LIQUID COURAGE

Coming off the heels of Cinco de Mayo, many might be thinking twice about inviting tequila to the party. If your head hurts, your mouth is dry, and your liver is crying: you probably overdid it. Next time, celebrate in style with a luxury sipping tequila like Casa Dragones, your body will thank you.

Whiskey and scotch have some stiff competition these days. Luxury brands are crafting sipping spirits from rum to tequila that will easily compete with their caramel-colored counterparts. One of our favorites to hit the market is the high-end sipping tequila Casa Dragones.

LIQUID COURAGE

The best part of living in a major metropolis is take out delivery service from essentially any restaurant especially now that sites like Seamless and GrubHub are so popular. Even if you don’t live in a major city there’s hardly a need to go outside anymore. Need toothpaste and shampoo? Drugstore.com’s got you covered. Need groceries but don’t feel like going aisle by aisle picking up what you need? There’s Fresh Direct and other similar services. So what if you’re throwing together a last minute Cinco de Mayo party? Thanks to BoozeCarriage.com, an online New York City alcohol delivery service, servicing Manhattan and parts of Brooklyn and Queens, you won’t have to run to the grocery store, liquor store, and party store for your spontaneous fiesta.

DELICIOUS DEBUTS

Dining in Manhattan can be an adventure—culturally or otherwise. You consider yourself an adventurous foodie type, don’t you? Do you wear your culinary exploits like a badge of honor? Well then, have you ever had an appetizer of salmon carpaccio topped with ice cream or a tomato marshmallow? We didn’t think we’d ever be able to say that either, but after a recent dinner at Melibea, we can say we’ve ate that and from this day forward Mediterranean fare is forever altered.

CULINARY OCCASIONS

The First Annual Sustainable Seafood Week is taking place in NYC from May 13th through May 19th! The mission of the events during this week are to bring awareness to food origins while shedding light on the benefits of supporting local fisherman, chefs, and organizations. The events vary from chef demonstrations to film screenings and 5-course dinners. Here's three Sustainable Seafood Week events that shouldn't be missed!

CULINARY OCCASIONS

This upcoming weekend kicks off the summer partying scene with Cinco de Mayo parties all over the country but there’s also another event worth celebrating this weekend that honors all things southern. The “greatest two minutes in sports” gives you an excuse to wear a ridiculous bonnet with feathers, tulle, and more while sipping on a traditional drink, the mint julep. Bad bets and thoroughbred racehorses aside, the 139th Annual Kentucky Derby is reason to celebrate with these events, drink specials, and snacks.

CULINARY OCCASIONS

Selling out in less than two weeks, The Village Voice Choice Street event is set to be one of the fastest growing and most sought out food festivals to hit the city. The little brother of The Village Voice Choice Eats food tasting event, Choice Streets brings together the city’s favorite food trucks all into one venue. As much as we love food trucks, that tends to be the most aggravating aspect of our love-hate relationship—tracking our favorite trucks down. Like Choice Eats, which brings together Village Voice’s favorite restaurants from throughout the five boroughs, Choice Streets takes out the traveling and gives foodies an opportunity to try food trucks that may never make their way over to their neighborhood or near their job.

LIQUID COURAGE

For Cinco de Mayo don’t rely on the tired cocktails and beers designated for the holiday. There's so much more than icy lime margaritas, Corona bottles, and shots of Jose. Expand your cocktail repertoire! Tequila is a versatile spirit and can make an array of drinks using herbs, fruit, flowers, and more. Mezcal, tequila’s smoky cousin can be used in traditional-style margaritas or used to create a unique smoky punch. Don’t think that Corona and Dos Equis are your only options if you’re more of a beer drinker. The Mexican brand, Bohemia, is a delicious Pilsner-style beer that can be kicked up a notch with a simple rim of chipotle. For fans of the traditional chilled rice drink, Horchata, you’ll love it even more when it’s spiked with rum! Below you’ll find cocktails that everyone at your fiesta will love. Cheers!

BEHIND THE PLATE

Finding food to cure your hangover is easy. Finding amazing gourmet food to cure your hangover is not. Enter: Dinner on Ludlow. Their weekend brunch (available 11:30am until 4pm) is crafted by executive chef John Keller and can make the grumpiest person all smiles. First of all, the restaurant itself is to die for. Picture leather banquette seating, dozens of crystal chandeliers, draped curtains—basically, a completely regal setting. It's a great way to start your day. Next comes the menu, and with options like cornflake crusted french toast, pork belly confit, and chicken and biscuits, it's a wonder anyone can narrow down their choice to just one entree. Since most of us don't have stomachs the appropriate size to eat everything on the menu, it guarantees a return trip just to make your way through it all. Trust us, you'll want to. Additionally, each entree comes with a complimentary mimosa, bloody mary or maria, or bellini, which is just what we need on a weekend morning, er afternoon. Finish it up with one of the chef's equally delicious desserts and you are set to take on the rest of the day...or go into a food coma.

CULINARY OCCASIONS

You’ve got the tequila, Coronas, and the frozen margarita machine packed with ice to kick off the first weekend of May. Chances are you bought maracas and the biggest sombrero you could find from the party store. The only thing missing is great eats to round out your Cinco de Mayo celebration. Here are five recipes to make your Cinco de Mayo unforgettable and probably help keep you off the floor after doing one too many tequila shots!

BEST OF

We may have killed our taste buds at the First Annual NYC Hot Sauce Expo this past weekend in Williamsburg, Brooklyn! The event featured the “hottest” artisanal sauces from across the country. It was a beautifully warm weekend out and it felt even warmer as soon as we started tasting. It got a little crazy when we boldly decided to try each vendor’s spiciest sauces. Although we have a high tolerance for heat, not every sauce was spicy. There were interesting combinations of flavors such as a strawberry habanera sauce and pepper jellies. While most of the vendors served their sauces on little spoons, we were grateful for the ones who served their sauces with crackers, cheese, or pretzels to hopefully prevent the ulcers we were likely giving ourselves.

DELICIOUS DEBUTS

Lovers of Asian cuisine should not stray away from the recently opened Mira Sushi & Izakaya, located in the Flatiron district. The giant menu reinterprets Asian street food, overseen by Chef Brian Tsao and Chef Owen Wu.

Chef Wu is a fifteen year sushi veteran, overseeing the sushi bar, which makes up half of Mira's menu. Offered on the sushi menu are a number of cold small plates, as well as both signature and whimsical sushi rolls and sashimi, ranging from the classic California Roll to the inventive TNT Roll (made with yellow tail tuna, crunch, and cucumber topped with spicy tuna and jalapeno relish). Chef Tsao, formerly of Telepan, comes from a Chinese-Korean background, which serves him well at this new venture. The fare here is really out of this world—favorites include the Beef Bulgogi Tacos, Kyoto Crunchy Sloppy Joe, Spicy Wontons, Honey Yuzu Chicken Wings, and the Spicy Tuna Pizza. All of the dishes are great recreations of classic plates and are accompanied by delicious cocktails. Bartender Raphael Lester has created complementary cocktails to go with the unrivaled food. We love the Crimson Moon (made with Kokuto umeshu plum, sweet potato shochu, orange, lemon, plum bitters) for something refreshing, but can't say no to the wide selection of sakes they have to offer. To end your night the right way, make sure to order up one of their desserts, like a unique Malaysian cookie, the Honeycomb Dream or Sticky Bun Poppers. Furthermore, the venue itself is comfortable and unpretentious, yet is inviting to all. Best of all, everything on the menu is priced so that you won't have to save a month's paycheck to order...even though we gladly would.