April REWL's - Regina's, Bohemia, Somewhere Nowhere
And my (not new) website!
It just dawned on me recently that I have never once shared my new website with you guys and it’s been live for…a few months. Goes to show where the state of my brain is currently. Not sure how that happened considering I was really excited to finish it?
I was about to post my latest IG (my own take on the Wes Anderson trend going around right now) and I realized I haven’t spoken about my work stuff in a while, which led me to the aforementioned realization, which led me to sit here with this face for a few minutes:
So without further adieu, here’s my website!
You can see my work/photography portfolio, previous social media management clients and other brands I’ve worked with, AND you can even set up a 15 min zoom call with me if you’re looking to expand your social media horizons (aka you need social media help and aren’t sure where to start).
BONUS: there’s a link to download my FREE NYC Pizza Guide, broken down by neighborhood. On “The Blog” section, scroll down and there it is. I know, I’m too kind. I can’t wait for all the messages of places I forgot to add. There’s a lot of pizza in NYC, ok!!
You can also check out my Lightroom Presets on Etsy if you are into food photography at all. These help edit your photos with one tap (and they work with other photos too, honestly), but you do need the Lightroom Mobile app to use them. They’re $4.99 for 10 presets and that’s cheaper than most coffees these days.
OK now that that’s done, let’s get to the REWL’s for April (Reading, Eating, Watching, Listening). I can’t believe I have a month’s worth of food to cram in here but I will try to focus on the important ones.
Reading:
Healing Back Pain by John Sarno, MD. - don’t laugh at me. Yes this is what I’m reading and it was recommended by a lot of people because it gets to the root cause of our physical pain, which is usually (but not always) in the mind. All of my tension and stress goes to my neck, shoulders and my back, but is the tension coming from those areas, or are those areas merely carriers for the pain that’s going on inside elsewhere? Really interesting and I have to admit, I’m noticing some differences already.
Eating:
Birthday Party at Somewhere Nowhere - clearly I’m behind on my writing as this was a couple weeks ago, but this was such a fun night! Every Wednesday they do a jazz night situation, with a live jazz band (more swing, less smooth jazz, if that makes sense), and people of all ages come to dance and take in those glorious views of the Empire State building. The outdoor section of the rooftop will be opening on May 1st and they have a pool up there so… I’ll likely be checking that out at some point. Thanks to Somewhere Nowhere and my friends for making a truly memorable bday for me <3
Birthday Dinner at Llama Inn - ok, I have some very upsetting news here: they have a new menu and they took the Lomo Saltado off of it. I’m hoping if enough of us complain/cry about it, they’ll bring it back. I went here for my birthday dinner and I was SERIOUSLY craving that thing - the meat and fries mountain sitting atop the veal stock jus with rice AND the little sauce bottles? It’s one of the best things I’ve ever eaten and they just took it away from me. They replaced it with some DIY prime rib sando situation with horseradish and chimichurri. It was very good in it’s own right, but it wasn’t the Lomo Saltado. RIP.
Dumbo House pizza - I have been trying to use my membership more, because it’s expensive and I feel like an asshole if I don’t? And I forgot they actually have some pretty damn good pizza here.
Minetta Tavern Burger - not the same as the black label burger, but still pretty damn good. If you’re unfamiliar, the Black Label burger is the dry-aged version of their burger with a ton of caramelized onions, no cheese, and a higher price tag. You can add cheese, but I’ve been around so long I remember a time when they didn’t even allow you to add cheese. Times have changed aka I guess enough people complained. Still, a classic institution with some killer old school New York ambiance, and one of the few places I don’t mind eating a late dinner.
Bohemia - new Balinese spot in Williamsburg! Ambiance and decor was on point, and I’d go back simply for the Mee Goreng Grilled Cheese with a fried egg. If you don’t know about Mee Goreng, I suggest you learn. It’s an Indonesian fried noodle dish, and I would say it’s comparable to Lo Mein, but it’s a little more sweet and sour, in a good way. The other apps were good too (Shrimp Toast, Pork Belly Bao Buns, Wagyu Empanadas) but I wanted more from the wagyu empanadas, which might be the snobbiest thing I’ve ever said in my life. They needed a little acidity or something to dip them into. Still, I’d go back for the Jakarta cocktail, which comes in an adorable porcelain cat cup. I could tell you what’s in it but that’s honestly less important to me than the cat cup (it was dark rum, banana liqueur, coconut cream, lime).
Regina’s Grocery - the popular Italian sandwich shop from the LES has opened in Williamsburg right next to/in Freehold on the South side! I stopped by for lunch the other day and had The Uncle Jimmy with prosciutto, soppressata, roasted red peppers, mozz, arugula, balsamic vinegar, EVOO and Calabrian chili pepper spread. NOM.
Watching:
Beef - I just finished this series on Netflix and I gotta say, I don’t understand the hype. It was good but it wasn’t the masterpiece I was expecting? I couldn’t relate to any of the characters, not to mention most of them are unlikable (though this feels intentional), and I feel like the middle episodes dragged a lot. All that said, I thought the ending was very good - it’s dark as fuck and poignant in some ways, but at least it felt like a decent payoff for sitting through the prior episodes. I won’t give anything away, but if you’re curious about it, I’d say it’s worth a watch. Perhaps my expectations were just too high.
As always, I got a bunch of recs for what to watch on IG and these were the top: Bad Sisters (Apple TV), Daisy Jones & the Six (but I want to read the book first!), The Diplomat (Netflix), Yellowstone, and Hacks (HBO) but I’ve seen that already and it was excellent!
Listening:
Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing by Matthew Perry - I don’t know if this should be under reading, but since it’s an audiobook I got on Audible, I’m putting it under listening. I just started it a few weeks ago and DAMN CHANDLER. I’m sorry - good thing he doesn’t know me because he probably hates it when people call him Chandler - but I love Chandler and I don’t care who knows it. Seriously, Friends is one of my favorite shows, and I feel like I learned how to properly execute sarcasm just from watching Matthew Perry play Chandler. So to listen to all of the struggles he went through is really just so insane to me; you would really never know what was going on behind the scenes. We all knew something was up when he gained a shit ton of weight then lost it in between season 6/7, but I never knew it was anything quite as bad as the book describes. I’m not through it all yet, but so far, it’s a great “put things into perspective and be thankful for your health” story.
I think that’s it for now. Oh, Foo Fighters came out with a new single called “Rescued” and it’s pretty good! They can’t really do wrong in my book, but I’m excited to hear more from them.
TOOTLES FRIENDS.