Out & About NYC Magazine was founded to offer the arts and lifestyle enthusiast a fresh new look at New York City. We will showcase the established and the emerging, the traditional and the trendy. And we will do it with élan, and panache with a dash of fun.

10/5/14 O&A In NYC: Four Places For Sunday Brunch

By Walter Rutledge 

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A Sunday afternoon in October is a great time to get out and explore New York City. Whether you go uptown, downtown or over one of the bridges into another borough there is no better way to begin your day than with brunch. Here are four restaurants that will get you off to a great start on your day Out and About. 

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Catfish, 1433 Bedford Ave, Brooklyn, is a true Crown Heights gem serving classic New Orleans dishes. At this cozy hideaway, you can savor bona fide Southern dishes like spicy, flavorful jambalaya or shrimp and grits. Enjoy a strong spring cocktail on the outdoor patio, like the Lady Laveu, a refreshing, flavorful mix of absinthe, St. Germain and cucumber lemonade. But be warned—alcohol isn’t served until noon. Until then, there’s no shortage of delectable eats.

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Toast,  3157 Broadway NY, NY 10027 (just south of 125th street between Tiemann & LaSalle Streets), is the wonder world of a bruschetta, where the pasta with chicken and pesto cream sauce is awesome. The mesquite-smoked barbecued-pork sandwich rules. The skirt-steak appetizer rocks. The raspberry swirl cheesecake kicks ass. In general, Toast is gratifyingly pleasant, and everything is cooked as if you were the only one dining. Rest assured you’re not: Toast has caught on with local students and other Upper West Siders. “Where all good things are toasted” is the restaurant’s cheerful motto, so let the browning and the brew-downing begin.

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Five and Diamond, 2072 Frederick Douglass Boulevard (112-113th), is an intimate storefront restaurant that serves a southern inspired weekend brunch. There is an unlimited brunch cocktails special for those with an empty stomach and a hollow leg. 

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Tosca, 4038 E. Tremont Ave., offers the irresistible flavors of Italian cuisine—a compilation of our family recipes using the finest ingredients and offering the traditional tastes of home-cooked pastas, lusciously fresh seafood, and the distinctly unique flavor of our coal oven pizzas. Along with the savory and sweet menus we offer our guests, we invite you to linger at our bar and lounge, take a mouth watering pause at our distinctive sushi bar, or plan your next event at our lavishly appointed restaurant. Much awaits you at our family of eateries here in the Bronx. Let us treat you to the delights of our foods.

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We look forward to seeing you Out and About

10/5/14 O&A Gospel Sunday: Fred Hammond

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Fred Hammond is a gospel singer,bass guitar player, and record producer. Hammond first gained recognition while playing bass guitar for the gospel group The Winans. By 1985 he was one of the six original members of the group Commissioned, participating in 10 of the group’s 12 albums. After his time with Commissioned ended, he regained fame in the gospel community after selling millions of albums with his musical group Radical For Christ. He is a multiple Grammy, Dove, and Stellar award winner as a performer, producer and writer. Continue reading

10/4/14 O&A With WaleStylez: Pharrell Williams – Gust of Wind (Teaser)

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Fresh off delivering the Takashi Murakami-produced visual interpretation of ”It Girl” , Pharrell Williams took to his i am OTHER YouTube Channel to tease his latest music video for the Daft Punk-assisted “Gust of Wind.” The 30-second clip shows the polymath stumbling upon a Daft Punk rock formation in a wooded area, almost as if they’re ancient relics.

10/ 4/14 O&A With Walestyles: What if the Apple Watch was Designed by Famous Fashion Designers?

By Adewale Adekanbi

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With the celebrated announcement of the Apple Watch, we were wondering what would happen if some of the worlds most celebrated fashion designers produced versions of the watch. The idea is not too far-fetched considering how many designers produce cases for the i-phones, and i-pads. Lets take some of our favorite fashion designers and brands and imagined what the Apple Watch would look like if they had a say in their design. Continue reading

10/4/14 Its Saturday- Anything Goes: If You Won The Lottery… The World’s Most Expensive Things

It is Saturday
Pile-of-Money-copyIf you won the lottery tomorrow…how would you spend the money? Buying fancy cars? Going on ridiculous vacations? Having $1 million worth of diamonds attached to your cellphone? Continue reading

10/3/14 O&A Shall We Dance Friday: Banda (excerpt)- Geoffrey Holder and Carmen de Lavallade

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Geoffrey Holder’s Banda dance debuted in the 1954 Truman Capote/Harold Arlen musical House Of Flowers. Holder the Baron of The Cemetery (based on the Haitian Loa of Death Baron Samedi) and received both a performer and choreographer credit in the program. The Broadway musical takes place somewhere in the West Indies during Mardi Gras weekend. Continue reading

10/2/14 O&A: Interview with Anthony Wayne and Kendrell Bowman- Mighty Real: A Fabulous Sylvester Musical

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A video interview with the co-producers and co-directors Anthony Wayne and Kendrell Bowman of the Off-Broadway musical Mighty Real: A Fabulous Sylvester Musical during the run of the show at the Theatre at the Church of St. Clement’s. Continue reading

10/2/14 O&A Throwback Thursday: Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds

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Babyface (Kenneth Brian Edmonds) is a multi-platinum selling R&B singer, songwriter and record producer. He has written and produced over 26 No. 1 R&B hits for artists such as Whitney Houston, Karyn White, Johnny Gill, Vanessa Williams, Pebbles, Madonna and Boyz II Men, and has also worked on various film soundtracks in his successful career. Babyface has won 10 Grammy Awards.

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10/1/14 O&A Wildin Out Wednesday: Boondocks- R. Kelly Goes To Trial

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The BOONDOCKS is an adult animated sitcom on Cartoon Network’s late-night programming block, Adult Swim. The series premiered on November 6, 2005. Created by Aaron McGruder, BOONDOCKS is based on McGruder’s comic strip, which is distributed in over 350 newspapers nationwide. The sitcom revolves around a boy named Huey and his gangster-wannabe brother who have left the inner city to live with their grandfather in the suburbs. Continue reading

10/1/14 O&A DIVA ALERT: Aretha Franklin Sing Adele’s Rolling In The Deep On Letterman

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Aretha Franklin was the guest on last night’s David Letterman, where she performed her cover of Adele’s Rolling In The Deep that was released yesterday (which also contains a bit of “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough”). For the performance, she was joined by a choir (which included Cissy Houston) and a large back up band.  Continue reading