Danny "Goten" M.'s Profile

Decided to check this place out looking for some sake.  It's a small, cozy restaurant.  Got there pretty early, but by the time I left the people were pouring into the place.  Good prices on both the food and the drinks and the atmosphere is soothing.

Got a chance to go to my first game at the new stadium last year, and boy they did a fantastic job!  It feels more than just a stadium, it feels like a Yankee museum as well.  Such a modern feel yet you can taste old Yankee history in the air.  The staff is extremely courteous and friendly, and despite the pricing, everything is top-notch.  

Whether or not you're a Yankee fan (and I am damn proud to be one), a trip out to the new Yankee Stadium is well worth it.

I've been watching the Daily Show ever since Jon Stewart took over but I never thought about actually watching the show live, and as fate called I was able to book tickets to both Colbert and Daily Show within 2 months of each other.

The pre-show drill is the same as Colbert, get there early . They suggest 4, but I would suggest at least 2:30-3 if you want a closer seat (not that it matters, you'll get a great view no matter where).  Don't break out the phones though, I saw a few people get their phones taken away.  The warmup comedian was hilarious, and Stewart came out to take questions (One person asked him how he felt when he announced that Obama has won the election).  The guest the day I went was Ron Howard.  

As I've said in my review of The Colbert Report, the show is great but being there is even greater.  Definitely worth the wait to get in.

After seeing it open for a few weeks I finally decided to give them a try.
The empanadas are pretty good.  I had the the NY Pizza, cheesesteak, and veggie mama .  The empanadas are a decent size and it's pretty filling.  The crust was a bit raw, but I guess they just took it out a bit sooner.

However, I have to take a star off for the sides.  The sides were rather bland.  I got the pasta salad and rice.  The rice was ok (nothing spectacular), but the pasta salad was really oily and I couldn't finish it.  Oh by the way, by "sides" you get a very small plastic cup of sides.  Not sure if you can get a larger size but considering my experiences, you may want to skip them altogether and maybe get a 4th empanada instead.

In short, it's okay, empanadas are good but the sides need a lot of work, even if they're in small cups.

This Chickpea opened up sometime last week, and always the curious one I decided to try this place out today.  

Their claim to fame is that their falafel (among other things) are always made fresh, uses only natural ingredients, and (in the case of falafel) is baked, not fried.  I was a bit skeptical at first but after trying some of it, I could barely taste the difference.   You have a selection of four bases, a pita pocket, platter, salad, or hummus plate, then several fillings including chicken, eggplant or fafael.  

The stuff is not bad at all and the price is reasonable (the hummus plate with chicken and falafel goes for 6 bucks and it's actually quite filling).

In short, not a bad place.  Go check it out.

I just came back from tonight's taping, not knowing what to expect.

It was just made of pure awesome.

Their warm-up comic was funny as hell, and if he happens to pick on you, take it in good stride, he doesn't mean any harm.  Heck, he even admits it when sometimes he may have taken it a bit too far.  Colbert comes out and does a short Q&A while out of character ("Here's your chance to humanize me before I start saying horrible things!") before the show begins.  Colbert loves interacting with the crowd, even during commercial breaks we get to watch him lip sync and do air-guitar. It was like a little kid having a lot of fun, and that's what made it great. He gave a really sincere thank-you to the audience, and I was one of the lucky ones that shook his hand after the show.  

I love The Colbert Report, but watching it live just brought it up to a whole new level of awesome.  The only complaint I had was the waiting period. If you're gonna go (and I demand that you do), be prepared to wait at least 3 hours (Good thing I brought my DS).  I also suggest getting there early, since even if you have reservations, you may not be able to actually get into the studio.

In Short: Go watch this live or you hate America.  Period

The Statue of Liberty.

After almost 20 years since the last time I've been here, I decided to come back and bask in it's glory  (That and my mother has never been there before).  And everything is just as I remembered it back when I was 9.  It's a pity that most of the inside of the statue is closed off now, I remember watching in awe when I was up in the crown and getting a breathtaking view of the Manhattan skyline.   But even if you don't go inside the statue, it's still a sight to behold.   And it's still relatively cheap (ticket gets you both visits to Ellis and Liberty Island).  Just beware of the long lines for the ferries (especially on the hot days), but if you're an American, you gotta visit Lady Liberty at least once in your life.

I came back here today 15 years since I first went here, and the improvements are amazing.   The only thing that felt a little weird to me was the fact that the "D" zone (the area with the hippos and sharks) was separated from the other areas (A-C).  But they had plenty of interactive exhibits (Never touched a live jellyfish before!) and I just can't explain it but sitting there watching some of the large-view exhibits (Like the ocean exhibit that had the large stingrays and turtle) is soothing.  

My only complaint was the food.  Yes it's overpriced (but I expected that) but even then it wasn't that good.  Better bring your own food.  But other than that, this place is a fun way to spend a day.

Funny enough I first heard of this place through Yelp, so I wanted to give this a whirl. Boy it was fun!  

The range itself is in the basement of the building.  You have to make an appointment for your first visit,  where you sit through a short safety and instructional class, where they teach you gun safety and how to work the gun.  It's 50 dollars for the first go-around, which also nets you a paper target and 50 rounds and time on the range.  The staff is very courteous and knowledgeable, and will help you whenever you need it.  During the class they explained every possible scenario that you may run into while on the range and how to handle it, and they will answer any questions you may have. Beginners will start with .22 Ruger semiautomatic rifle.  It's a low-powered lightweight rifle with virtually no kickback so you don't have to worry about possibly injuring yourself from kickback.  They do have other rifles available but if you're just starting out, you should stick with the .22.  They also say these bullets won't pierce the skin and is akin to getting hit with a paintball.  As I was told, subsequent visits are $25 for rental and 50 rounds for $5, and you don't have to make an appointment (You'll fill out paperwork and they'll get a copy of your ID during the instructional class, I was told that on subsequent visits you just show your ID)

This was definitely a blast, I can't wait to go again.

I need to come back here one day.  I used to go here a lot as a kid, whether it was a field trip or a family outing (I wonder if the Longstreet Farm still exists).   My fondest memories was the playground in the back.  They had that huge (well.....back then it was to me!) fort made of logs and those cranes.  

My god I feel old now.