Free NYC Concerts Bright and Early every Friday this Summer

How do you know that summer is right around the corner in NYC?  All of sudden, outdoor and often free warm weather concert series start to pop up everywhere. Whether it’s the Today Show’s Toyota Summer Concert Series on the Plaza at Rockefeller Center, or something like the quintessential NYC gem Summerstage, there are shows just about every week.

One of the best (if not one of the earliest) NYC summer concert series is the Good Morning America free summer concert series in Central Park.  The series starts this very morning with Robin Thicke and continues every single Friday through August 31^st. Not all artists have been announced yet, but it is a rather impressive list of those announced so far.

It all happens in Rumsey Field in Central Park. (Enter at 72^nd street & 5^th Avenue. Map to Rumsey Field here). Gates open at the near unholy hour of 6:00 AM and the bands usually perform between 7:00 AM and 9:00 AM, but with limited sets. Experience says you can expect most of the actions between 8:30 and 9:00 AM. Expect big crowds, but lots of excitement as well.   

Among the highlights are The Beach Boys, No Doubt and Neon Trees. We love that LMFAO is playing just two weeks after The Beach Boys. Talk about nothing in common. Really wish they were both playing on the same day just for the awkward conversation that would flow between the two bands.

More info and details can be found here and here too

Line Up:

May 25: Robin Thicke & Ellie Goulding

June 1: Brad Paisley

June 8: Counting Crows

June 15: Beach Boys

June 22: Mary J. Blige

June 29: LMFAO

July 6: Demi Lovato

July 13: TBA

July 20: TBA

July 27: No Doubt

August 3: TBA

August 10: TBA

August 17: Neon Trees

August 24: The Wanted

August 31: TBA

Best Outdoor Drinking in New York City? This Spring, it is definitely the famed Astoria Beer Garden

It’s a wonderful time of year in New York City. Memorial Day is just around the corner. Beautiful, warm weather awaits. And it seems in the last year that the number of places to drink outside has doubled. With several new openings in Midtown and classic staples dotting the city, one has endless options in which to soak up some rays whilst enjoying a cold drink.

Some of the more notable locales include Rare Bar and Grill rooftop’s location on 38^th, the high-end biergarten and rooftop bars at the Standard Hotel,  the always chill Heights Bar  in Washington Heights. We also mourn the loss of Mé Bar in K-Town that was replaced by the VU Bar.

But what is the best place to drink outside in NYC? After almost one hundred years, the Big Adventure strongly believes that title still belongs to Bohemian Hall and Beer Garden – Astoria’s original beer garden.   The NY Daily News hit the nail on the head when they published  this review .

 

The perfect day involves taking the N Train to the Astoria Blvd Stop and following the foot traffic to the 24th Avenue destinations that is as filled with history as it is with spiffy looking glassware. Show up early to claim your spot on the picnic table – you’ll want to beat the crowds. If you’ve got the space in your bag, make sure to bring some cards or a game (Connect 4 will always make you some new friends) and enjoy some pitchers of fine Czech Beer on a warm afternoon.

Full pitchers run in the neighborhood of $15 or so. However, if you're not so much into beer in general this might not be the place for you (beware the sneers from the bartenders inside when you order your double Vodka Stoli). There is legit, affordable bohemian food on the grill and always an easy going vibe. Live music is often on hand which really helps compliment the scene.

Great for large groups (if you can find space) as well as a small tight crew.  If things get too crazy, hop across the street to the dimly lit Sparrow Tavern. In a city where outdoor space is as valuable as gold, The Bohemian Beer Garden manages to constantly be a hip destination without even trying. 

Read the Daily News review of The Bohemian Hall and Beer Garden (as well as a couple of other outdoor bar hot spots) right here

http://www.bohemianhall.com/
Opens at Noon on Weekends, 5:00 PM During the Week
24th Avenue and 29th Street
Astoria, NY
718-274-4925

How much would YOU pay for a parking space in NYC?

The Big Adventure is tired of the stereotypes that everything in NYC is overly expensive and costly. Oh, wait. Just read this article. We take that back. Stereotype is completely true.

$1 million parking spot will be New York City’s most expensive

Pretty sure this is mostly to get this high-end condo publicity, but absurd nonetheless. We particularly like that condo plans on charging an additional maintenance fee. For a parking space.

Speaking of parking, here is an old favorite from the only in NYC files from last year: Optimus Prime Gets a Parking Ticket

Announcing the NEXT New York City Big Adventure!

We're back again! After a quiet hiatus, The NYC Big Adventure is returning to full force! Thrilled to announced that we'll be hosting our next New York City Big Adventure on Saturday, June 30th! Our day will start around 1:00 PM and continue late, late into the evening.

More information and details forthcoming in the next few weeks, but we plan on deliver such a bang, that you won't even be interested in real fireworks a few days later.

 In the meantime, you can always track what we're up to by becoming our fan at https://www.facebook.com/TheBigAdventure or follow us on Twitter @NYCBigAdventure.

New York Yankees Tickets for Five Bucks!

We took advantage of this last year and we’re delighted to see what it is back again for 2012. Quite the steal: Five Dollar Seats to five select New York Yankee 2012 games through Mid-May.

An amazing deal to see any quality MLB game to being with. Throw in the fact that this is NEW Yankee Stadium (where a beer seems to cost about $21.75) and this makes this an astonishing cheap, unique opportunity. 

They’ve reduced the number of $5 games from eleven in 2011 to five this year and the games are against traditionally "second teir" opponents like Orioles and Royals, but who cares? Seats are available in select areas of the Terrace Level, Grandstand Level or Bleachers for Five Bones! One Honest Abe! The Cost of a Happy Hour drink! The price of a Subway Foot Long! You get the point...Purchase in advance while you can. Major League Baseball kicks off Opening Day on Wednesday, April 4^th.

Click here for Tickets

All games start at 7:05 PM at Yankee Stadium.

 Monday, April 16^th               Minnesota Twins

Tuesday, April 17^th                    Minnesota Twins

Tue, May 1^st               Baltimore Orioles

Wed, May 2^nd           Baltimore Orioles   

Mon, May 21^st           Toronto Blue Jays            

Best Guinness in New York City (just in time for St. Patrick’s Day)

Who has the Best Pint of Guinness in New York City? Well, we've enjoyed enough of Ireland's best stout in enough bars to be smart enough not to get tangled up in this debate: There are too many great bars, great bartenders and just amazing locales in the city to coin on as "The Best."

That being said, we thought we'd pass on this article from the NY Daily News that lists some top bars that serve the legendary stout from St. James Gate:

Best Bars in New York City for a Guinness

Some of their NY Daily's selections include:

• Dalton's Seaside Grill - Way out on Rockaway Beach, but the trip is apparently worth it

• The Beekman - Billed as "An Irish Pub in Downtown Manhattan"

• Tracks RAW Bar and Grill -Sure, great, if you like your bars underground and in a filthy train station with no windows, but hey, maybe that's just us

• Irish Heaven -  In the heart of Sunset Park Brooklyn, they boast pints for $4

• The Dead Poet - Which is coincidentally one of the Big Adventure’s beloved Upper West Side bars. We just recently enjoyed a few pints in a futile attempt to get our name on the wall.

Also, Time Out New York just published this list of The best Irish pubs which includes  Molly’s Pub and Shebeen, Ceol in Cobble Hill and An Beal Bocht in the Bronx.

Additionally, The Big Adventure would be incredibly remiss if we didn't mention a few of our own:

• Paddy Reilly's Bar - The All-Guinness bar at 2nd Ave and 29th in Kip's Bay serves nothing but Guinness on tap and constantly entertains with live music.

• Stout- Near Madison Square Garden, probably one of the largest bar/restaurant spaces in Manhattan with a delicious menu to boot. Our guess is they pour more Guinness than 50 small neighborhood bars combined. 

• Doyle's Corner - In the middle of Astoria, our heart will always sing for thee. More than any other pub in the city, Doyle's feels like home to the Big Adventure.

 Happy St. Patrick’s Day from the Big Adventure!