In This Issue:

• The World’s Best Weeknight Fun
• Ins and Outs: Night+Day’s Latest Recommendations
• The Urbie Awards
• Alan’s View
  • ASD Picks: 3 Best Jazz Fests
  • On the Road: Berkeley, San Francisco, and L.A.
  • Last Word: Bail Out Travel

Bad News and Great News

The bad news is that we don’t have our usual introduction to this e-letter. The great news is that Kim Westerman, our Senior Editor who usually introduces our e-letter, gave birth earlier than planned to a healthy boy. Congratulations, Kim, on your new baby and welcome to parenthood.
Alan S. Davis Publisher Night+Day, the Cool Cities series from Pulse Guides

THE WORLD’S BEST Weeknight Fun

Nobody nails the weekend’s can’t-miss nightlife like Night+Day. But what if
you’re feeling feisty mid-week? Forget about quiet evenings curled up with
your Kindle—we’re giving you prime picks for Weeknight Fun around the world.
Hump day will never be the same!.

D.C. • LIMA

The Draw: Complimentary salsa lessons, Miami-based DJs, and dance-to-it Latin beats on Monday nights draw a soigné crowd for whom the weekend was only a prelude. Latin is as Latin does, so most stay on well past 10:30pm (when the salsa lessons end) to sway those hips and put those sexy steps to the test.
The Scene: DC is replete with international hipsters, and it seems 20-to-40-somethings are all at Lima on Monday night. After dining on ceviche in the posh upstairs dining room or its enclosed year-round patio, the sleek and the beautiful, with their scarves tied to rest just-so upon their shoulders and hints of lace peeking out from tight leather jackets, descend to the subterranean lounge. There, they head straight to the 40-foot illuminated bar for a minty mojito before hitting the dance floor.
Hot Tip: Doors open at 4pm. Arrive early for dinner and beat the rush, the velvet rope, and the wait.
See all 3 of the Best Weeknight Fun from D.C.

MIAMI • B.E.D.

The Draw: Start the week by crawling back into B.E.D. at this long-running weekly party at one of South Beach’s most popular clubs.
The Scene: Heavy on R&B and hip-hop, Secret Society has been the party of choice for celebs like Pitbull and Timbaland, as well as locals who like to party. On Mondays, the noisy fun goes on all night long.
Hot Tip: Make dinner reservations too—the tapas are terrific—to take advantage of the trademark beds. You don’t need to wear pajamas, but something loose and loungey might be easier to maneuver than, say, something very, very short and very, very tight.
See all 3 of the Best Weeknight Fun from MIAMI

SAN FRANCISCO • CALIFORNIA ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

The Draw: On Thursday night of every week, the California Academy of Sciences opens its doors to a 21+ crowd for an evening of cocktails, music, and provocative scientific inquiry. And you thought science museums were just for kids.
The Scene: Each week, the Academy invites hip local DJs, singers, and other entertainers to mix it up with NASA astronomers, oceanographers, filmmakers, ecologists, and world-renowned professors who come to speak on a variety of topics, all while crowds mix and mingle, cocktails in hand. Witness how interest levels rise as the night proceeds.
Hot Tip: Check the Academy’s website for details about each week’s event, so you know what kind of entertainment will be offered.
See all 3 of the Best Weeknight Fun from SAN FRANCISCO

Discover the Best Weeknight Fun in other Night+Day cities

INS and OUTS:
NIGHT+DAY’S LATEST RECOMMENDATIONS

Night+Day’s Top 5 New Openings

AMSTERDAM • Azuma 1 • Restaurant (Japanese)
azuma1.nl
Despite the high per-capita restaurant count, Amsterdam suffers from a dearth of hip Japanese options. Enter Azuma 1. Whether seated shoulder-to-shoulder with strangers at the 20-seat teppan grill or at a private table, guests nosh on inspired takes on Japanese standards… full review
Daily 5–11pm.
€ Leidsekruisstr. 29 (Korte Leidsedwarsstr.), 020.623.48.29

CHICAGO • iCream • Restaurant (Cafe)
icreamcafe.com
University of Chicago business school students Cora Shaw and Jason McKinney launched this high-concept cafe after experimenting with liquid nitrogen and finding that, by rapid-freezing cream to -320 degrees Fahrenheit, ice cream could be made. Like a chemist’s lab, the cafe’s numerous mixers and tanks literally smoke as they churn out customized flavors… full review
Sun–Thu 1–10pm, Fri–Sat 1pm–midnight.
$ 1537 N. Milwaukee Ave. (Honore St.), 773-342-2834

DC • Sei Restaurant and Lounge • Restaurant (Asian)
seirestaurant.com
Arguably DC’s chicest restaurant, Sei evokes Sweden’s Ice Hotel, a blizzard of whiteness blanketing cushioned chairs, stone tabletops, window shades, floors, and ceilings. And yet for all this coolness, the place is hot, boasting a full house nightly… full review
Mon–Thu 11:30am–2:30pm and 5pm-11pm, Fri 11:30am–2:30pm and 5pm-midnight, Sat 5pm-midnight, Sun 5-10pm.
$ 447 Seventh St. NW (E St.), 202-783-7007

MEXICO CITY • Museo Universitario Arte Contemporáneo • Attraction (Art Gallery)
muac.unam.mx
The creative team behind the Museo Universitario Arte Contemporáneo (MuAC for short) has put together a prime space for reflection. This is the first major public museum to be built from the ground up in Mexico City in the past 30 years, and it houses the largest collection of national and international contemporary art (1,138 pieces and growing) in the country… full review
Wed, Fri, and Sun 10am–6pm, Thu and Sat noon–8pm.
$ Insurgentes Sur 3000 (Centro Cultural Universitario), 55.5622.6972

MIAMI • Mamajuana Cafe • Restaurant (Latin American)
mamajuana-cafe.com
The name, the story goes, comes from a miracle potion created years ago by Taino Indians in what’s now the Dominican Republic, surviving today as a cure—all concoction of herbs, rum, and honey. Maybe a shot of it will cure what ails you, but a Quisqueya beer goes down nicely with the Nuevo Latino cuisine here in the former Chispa space… full review
Mon–Sat 11am–3pm and 5–11pm.
$$$ 225 Altara Ave. (Aurora St.), 305-443-0505

The Night+Day Promise
Night+Day writers and editors use the same high standards in selecting and researching venues to be included in our Ins and Outs updates as we do for our books. Our local correspondents determine which new hot spots are the real deal and which are simply hype—just as you’d expect from Night+Day—to provide the kind of reliable information you need to make the best possible choices.

THE URBIE AWARDS

Los Angeles 2009/10: Sam Nazarian
In a town full of hyphenates, Sam Nazarian takes the punctuation crown, compiling a list of job titles that make P. Diddy seem like a one-trick pony. The LA native is CEO of the SBE Entertainment Group as well as a real estate financier, hotelier, restaurateur, and film producer. His entrepreneurial drive landed him on the LA Times’s “Top 100 Most Powerful People in Southern California” list, and he was named among “The Influentials” in Los Angeles Magazine. Not bad for an NYU dropout who left school to start his own telecommunications company, Platinum Wireless… Read more.

Click here to see all Urbie Award winners

ALAN’S VIEW, April 2009

As publisher and executive editor of the Night+Day series, and as someone who has spent a lifetime in travel, I certainly influence our selections and recommendations. But our guidebooks reflect a collaborative effort involving local writers and experienced editors. So I welcome this opportunity to share my very personal views and experiences. I sincerely hope you find them somewhere between interesting and extremely helpful (life-altering is probably too much to ask). And needless to say, I very much welcome your comments.
Click here to send me an email

The jazz festival season is upon us, unofficially launched by one of the biggest and best: the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival.  If you’ve got nothing to do next weekend, hop on a plane to “the Big Easy” and you’re certain to have one of the best times of your life.

Jazz fests have become ubiquitous—every Night+Day city has one, as do hundreds of other cities and towns. Unfortunately some, like New York’s, are threatened by the 2009 economy. (Of course, as George Wein, the promoter deemed the grandfather of jazz festivals, was quoted in the New York Times, “New York’s a jazz festival all year long.”)

There are two reasons for going to these festivals—jazz and fun.  Actually, it’s not so much jazz, because most so-called jazz festivals are loaded with blues and other musical genres… Read more

On the Road: Berkeley, San Francisco, and L.A.

Because we’re wrapping up work on the second edition of our San Francisco guide, my recent travels have been limited to quick stops in L.A. and Berkeley. Yes, the Berkeley across the bridge, which for San Franciscans is a huge trip. That can be the only explanation for my not having gone back to Chez Panisse in more than five years.

Restaurants and bars are indicators of how well the economy has been doing—aka trailing indicators. Just in case you missed the last six months, things have been pretty awful—and it shows. At the 9pm seating in the Chez Panisse restaurant, there were a few empty tables–mon Dieu! While there is a bit of a buzz in the upstairs Café at Chez Panisse, one doesn’t go to this restaurant for the scene. You go to experience the world’s most innovative holistic approach to delivering delicious food, just as it was when Alice Waters, the mother of California cuisine, opened it in 1971. The carefully crafted ambience does create the feeling of dining in someone’s home (albeit a large home), but try to snag a table with a view of the open kitchen so you can see the action. The chefs meet midday to determine the menu based on that morning’s fish, meat, and produce delivery—it’s a set menu each day—and decide who is going to prepare what part of the meal. Unbelievable. The result is food that’s as fresh and organic as it gets, virtually no waste, and reasonable prices ($60 Mon, $75 Tue–Thu, $95 Fri–Sat)… Read more

Last Word: Bail Out Travel

If there is an upside to the financial crisis we’re experiencing, it is that, more than at any time since Watergate (or for the under-50 set, simply any time), the daily news has become more interesting than any soap opera. Although it’s a little different from watching John Dean testify at a Senate hearing about White House–sanctioned illegal break-ins, the current bombardment of the unimaginable—Madoff, retention bonuses, trillions thrown about, GM (I still don’t understand why Nader hasn’t bought that company), unemployment rates, my portfolio, and on and on—the “what’s next” quotient is pretty darn high. As I watch the drop in the value of my assets, I regularly have to ask myself: Is this a bad dream?

Luckily, I can turn to an old trick I learned to get a reality check, and I’ll share it with you. If you find yourself not sure whether you dreamed something or it really happened, stand up, put your hands under your arms, and flap. If you start to fly, it means you’re dreaming (and you really didn’t lose as much money as you thought)!

Needless to say, the travel business isn’t doing so well these days, and travel publishing is even worse. Unfortunately, my company has lost considerably less than a billion dollars, not to mention $10 billion—so I can’t qualify, as the CEOs of GM, Citibank, Merrill Lynch, and others have managed, to claim a $10 million bonus this year… Read more