The Queen at Royal Ascot photo: RacingKel |
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At the Top: Paradox and Parties
 Coachella Music Festival photo: Vonlohmann The poet T.S. Eliot famously wrote of this month: “April is the cruelest month, breeding lilacs out of the dead land, mixing memory and desire, stirring dull roots with spring rain.” He was referring to the contradiction that the month brings, signaling simultaneously the end of winter and the beginning of spring.
There is also paradox in the world of travel, April being a month full of religious holidays (Passover, Easter) alongside some of the most decadent celebrations all year (New Orleans Jazz Fest, Coachella Music Festival, Fillmore Jazz Festival). Three guesses as to which the consummate urbanista celebrates (first two don’t count).
This month’s issue of the Night+Day e-letter features the World’s Best Live Music, from a high-profile club in D.C. to a hole-in-the-wall in Mexico City, and provides you with hot tips for each venue so you can make the most of your night out.
As always, we list the top five openings in the world’s coolest cities. See our Ins and Outs for full reviews for each destination. This month includes a famous SF pastry chef's expansion, as well as a trend-setting Toronto carnivore space.
Our publisher Alan Davis’ column, Alan’s View, will return next month.
Whether April decides to rain or shine, enjoy your travels this month! |
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Book Restaurant Reservations Now!
NightandDayGuides.com has just added its latest exciting feature—restaurant reservations! Now, for each of the restaurants we’ve selected as Best of the Best, you can make reservations instantly through OpenTable® or the restaurant’s website.
Nobody reviews restaurants like Night+Day. And nobody drills down to the absolute Best of the Best in dozens of categories so that you don’t have to spend hours sifting through hype. Now you have carefully selected restaurant choices, expert reviews, insider tips, and a reservation link all in the same place!
And with Night+Day’s unique one-click design, you can get to that reservation in a nano-second (what our Big Apple readers might call a New York minute).
Night+Day: Right Place. Right Time. It Matters. |
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THE WORLD’S BEST Live Music
The world’s coolest cities have live music scenes that come in all shapes and sizes. The common denominator is that they deliver an outstanding evening of great music—be it blues, Latin, soul, funk, jazz, rock, indie-pop, or something in between. These are our hands-down favorites.
D.C. • 9:30 CLUB
The Draw: This is the best live music venue in the city and among the best in the nation, according to industry folks. A full roster of top-quality performers keeps the indie-rock club open nearly every night. Its sight lines, sound system and 1,200-person capacity make a concert experience here a true pleasure—as long as the stars themselves, everyone from The Roots to My Chemical Romance, are up to snuff.
The Scene: A combination of no seats and general admission means that a line to enter is inevitable on most nights. Inside the cavernous hall are four full bars on two levels, the generously sized stage in sight from all vantage points. An all-ages policy means that the crowd is often exactly that, though 30-somethings usually rule.
Hot Tip: A stepped balcony hugs three sides of the room and offers the best views—but fierce competition for those spots requires getting in line way earlier than a concert-goer might ever imagine necessary.
NEW ORLEANS • HOUSE OF BLUES
The Draw: Musicians, both the up-and-coming and the legendary, stop at this mid-sized concert venue when they when pass through town.
The Scene: The sprawling French Quarter venue, filled with Southern folk art, boasts a down-home, Delta vibe. The music, though, can range from rootsy Americana to raunchy rap. The smaller Parish Room upstairs offers a chance to catch bands before they get their big break. Part of a national chain, this concert venue keeps its calendar packed with touring acts and mini-festivals, like the Ponderosa Stomp in September. And if you sin too much while in New Orleans, the popular gospel brunch on Sunday will put you back on the righteous path.
Hot Tip: Become a member of the Foundation Room to get VIP treatment and choice seats for shows.
NEW YORK • BOWERY BALLROOM
The Draw: Trendy musical venue that’s also friendly, with great views of the stage no matter where you sit.
The Scene: This rocking performance venue has showcased everyone from Rufus Wainright and Kanye West to Better than Ezra, and features a full bar, lounge area clad in velvet, and excellent acoustics.
Hot Tip: “I knew them when…” Major labels often test their new bands here, so it’s a prime place to catch the Next Big Thing in any genre.
Also discover the Best Live Music in
CHI
LA
LV
MC
MIA
SF
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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. |
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INS and OUTS (NIGHT+DAY’S Latest Recommendations)
Top 5 New Openings
LAS VEGAS • MARQUEE • Nightclub
marqueelasvegas.com
The brains behind Tao and Lavo expanded their nightlife empire on New Year’s Eve 2011 when they unveiled Marquee at the brand-new Cosmopolitan casino and hotel. Marquee is many things to many people: First and foremost, it’s a night club with top-tier DJ talent (Erick Morillo, Kaskade, and Roger Sanchez were among the first in the booth). Upstairs, the Library is a low-key hangout for sipping artisan cocktails, and the Boom Box Room is a smaller space with its own
distinct sound. full review 93 Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, 3708 Las Vegas Blvd. S. (Harmon Ave.), 702-333-9000.
MEXICO CITY • EL BAJÍO • Regional Mexican Restaurant
carnitaselbajio.com.mx
Chef Carmen Titita, author of several cookbooks, is a big name in the Mexico City culinary scene. Her original restaurant, located in a middle-class neighborhood north of Polanco (easily accessed by taxi), is popular with large families, especially on weekends. The traditional food always offers interesting choices. full review $$$ Av. Cuitláhuac 2709 (Colonia Obrera Popular), 55.5234.3763.
MIAMI • ARKADIA • Lounge
fontainebleau.com
Once upon a time, the sprawling, glamorous Fontainebleau had a lower-level arcade of touristy shops. Today that space houses Arkadia, the hotel’s seductive nightlife addition. Brought to you by the people who developed the huge and massively popular LIV nightclub nearby, this more intimate lounge is faced in laser-cut gold mirrors, furnished with overstuffed sofas and pool tables, and lighted with dramatic strobes. full review Fontainebleau Miami Beach, 4441 Collins Ave. (41st St.), 305-674-4680.
SAN FRANCISCO • CITIZEN CAKE • Mediterranean Restaurant
citizencake.com
Elizabeth Faulkner’s successful Hayes Valley restaurant has relocated to trendier digs, while retaining its cutting-edge dessert concepts and simple Cal-Med menu. Faulkner quietly does the best cupcakes in town, while her macarons and tarts do the heavy lifting in the baking department. full review $$ 2125 Fillmore St. (Sacramento St.), 415-861-2288.
TORONTO • BEAST • Canadian Restaurant
thebeastrestaurant.com
If meat holds a special place in your heart, this resto offers all kinds of juicy red and white meat, served in classic French and Italian styles. Diners happily tuck into the traditional dishes, from cassoulet made with chorizo to classic duck confit, or they can entrust their taste buds to the chef’s tasting menu. full review $$ 96 Tecumseh St. (King St. W.), 647-352-6000. |
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NIGHT+DAY 1st Edition Guides
$9.95 (retail $19.95) |
No other guidebooks capture the urbanista experience like Night+Day, and they include regularly updated recommendations on our website. When it comes to navigating the world’s coolest cities, look no
further than Night+Day.
“It’s unlikely that you’ll find another guidebook as detailed as this.”
- The Times of London
“Well-researched, well-organized and original” - USA Today
“The best of the trend-setting lot.”
- San Francisco Chronicle
For more information or to order,
click here. |
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THE URBIE AWARD
Movers and shakers who shape the urbanista experience |
London 2011/12
Jancis Robinson (Wine Critic)
 The British aren’t known for their food, so it’s no surprise, really, that they need wine. Lots of wine. Thanks to Jancis Robinson, they know just what to drink.
One of the world’s foremost wine writers critics, Robinson is the editor of The Oxford Companion to Wine, widely considered the most comprehensive wine encyclopedia ever published, as well as a host of other books, articles and videos that virtually define the field of wine education.
She has served as a wine consultant for British Airways and the Queen herself, has won a seemingly endless list of awards, and was the first person outside the wine trade to pass the Master of Wine exams (hence the MW often seen after her name).
Yet, despite her position as one of the world’s leading wine authorities, she revels most in the fun, enjoyable aspects of wine and the wine industry. Perhaps it was her (wine-free) upbringing in a tiny town in the north of England that gave her the down-to-earth, approachable style with which she educates the masses on the wonders of wine. Or, perhaps, she’s always drunk. Either way, we applaud her work in bringing the wonderful world of wine to dedicated drinkers of ale, lager, and stout in the Empire and beyond.
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