LOWER EAST SIDE

On Friday night Ludlow Manor had its official opening party in New York's Lower East Side. The three story club is owned by Georgie Seville (The Delancey) and Luc Carl, a former bartender, also known as Lady Gaga's ex boyfriend. While the venue was plagued by some Community Board drama involving noise and crowd control, Carl and Seville prevailed and the new spot threw their rock 'n roll and mermaid-themed opening party.

The multi-plex is 12,000 square feet, with 20 foot ceilings, real palm trees, a retractable roof, revolving DJs, and has "one of the best rooftops downtown." The crowd "definitely had a rock 'n roll and hipster vibe." Well, duh.

'Party' -Beyonce f/ Andre 3000 Remember that scene from 'Goodfellas', when Henry Hill (Ray Liotta), escorted Karen (Lorraine Bracco) past the line at the Copacabana, through the kitchen, somehow navigating his way to the main floor of the club. Then getting a fresh table setup for him right in front of the stage. Fellas, this doesn't mean you go through kitchens now...There are many other ways to impress that special someone. Autumn is the perfect time to express yourself to someone. It's a time of year someone falls for another, whether literally or figuratively.

If there is any recurring theme in New York's art world, it's that New York's art world is decidedly anti-theme. With galleries featuring eclectic mixes of art, artists, and media, this October has something for everyone. Join the Culture Club on its monthly art walk as Joonbug previews its top picks.

Sculpture: David Smith (The Whitney)

The Whitney will open its retrospective of American sculptor David Smith on Thursday. The work of Smith (1906-1965) is often described as “geometric,” and it’s easy to see why. But the artist’s work changed over time, ranging from early surreal sculptures to his large-scale pieces in the 1960’s that earned him a spot in the Smithsonian’s sculpture garden in Washington, D.C. The exhibit will cover it all, complete with sculptures, sketches, and photographs of Smith at work.

On Wednesday, Lower East Side galleries are trying something we haven't even seen from its older, gayer cousin known as Chelsea -- a "Grand Opening" featuring more than 70 galleries on the same night. Exhibit rooms, most of which have been closed throughout August, will open and host a new influx of artists, complete with schmoozing, smirking, and hopefully a free glass of wine or two.

The event only lasts from 6-8pm, and with so many artists and venues, planning ahead is essential. Check out Joonbug's interactive map of the event, complete with a 1-mile walk with 20 galleries, to decide your plan of attack. For listings of every Lower East Side gallery, go here.

A pornography convention wants to come to your city. It's a good opportunity to generate some much-needed revenue. Do you allow it to meet at your convention center?

A dolphin is trapped in one of your city's rivers. It'll cost one million dollars to fish it out and bring it to safety. Do you save the dolphin?

These are some of the questions you and other participants may have to answer when you play Urbanology, an interactive group game where players become city-builders, deciding by majority rule what categories of urban planning to prioritize. Located at the new BMW Guggenheim Lab pop-up on the Lower East Side, Urbanology consists of a chessboard-esque gameboard and five game pieces, each representing a different category of city-building such as sustainability, mobility, and affordability. Each game piece begins in the middle of the board. Players begin to answer questions and they either move forwards or backwards --a positive or negative space-- depending on what the players value for their city. At the end of the game, participants will be told which real city their mock city most resembles; for example, a city which values sustainability above all will likely be compared to Mumbai.

On Wednesday, July 27th, Joonbug got to celebrate with Party 4 a Cause at their Sizzlin’ Summer BBQ. Live music, food, and fun were in abundance as volunteers and charitable party-goers danced on the Delancey Rooftop. Guests enjoyed hamburgers and hot dogs and tons of sweet treats from Cake Pops from Little Miss Cupcakes and frozen goodies from Wooly’s Ice. We also sampled a variety of specialty spice cocktails from Promethus Springs including a Black Pepper Mojito. The event raised money for the Children’s Cancer and Blood Foundation, which is an organization that supports the care and treatment of children with blood disorders.

After being a contestant on Fox's hit reality series Hell's Kitchen in 2007, Chef Seth Levine has been taking the culinary world by storm. Levine has steadily compiled an impressive résumé, which runs the gamut from taking the role as executive chef for both Georgica and Wine and Roses in New York, opening POP YOGURT- one of the hottest frozen yogurt shops in Manhattan, and becoming a contributing editor to the internationally-distributed FOOD Magazine.

We spotted H.B. strolling around the Lower East Side on a steamy morning, and were taken with the way this handsome fella put a twist on the polished preppy look. He paired a sky-blue J.Crew button-down with mustard jeans, rolled just-so at the ankle, for a surprisingly pleasant and punchy color combo. Then he finished off his outfit with beautiful white bucks from Johnston & Murphy. His Persol aviators and rad haircut add a bit of edge to his clean-cut look. How he's wearing jeans in this heat beats us--but the guy sure does look handsome!

If you’re a wine connoisseur, or even if you’re not, there is one thing that we can all agree on: Wine bars are hot this summer. They’re good for date night, a night out with the girls, or even a quiet night out with Mom and Dad. Check out our list below of the Top 5 Winebars to visit in NYC!

1. Black Mountain Wine House
This Wine Bar, located on Union Street in Brooklyn, may very well be the city’s best kept secret. Don’t be frightened by the worn doors on the outside, because it is definitely worth checking out this hot spot. With select wines like a 2008 Italy Pinot Bianco and a 2007 Washington Cabernet Sauvignon, diners a guaranteed a variety of tasty options. The food, $10 across the board, include a Charcuterie plate and the famed Black Mountain Mac n’ Cheese. There are daily and seasonal specials available as well as an extensive selection of cheeses.

You can't spell RAID without I.D. Last month, the NYPD launched an aggressive crackdown on a number of nightlife joints in the Lower East Side, for the repeat offense of serving alcohol to minors, causing business hours in the neighborhood to mirror that of a bad relationship: on again, off again.

Max Fish, Los Feliz, Mason-Dixon, and Gallery Bar have been the profiled subject of attack so far, fined and forced to shut down until court-ordered resolutions ensue. Los Feliz and Mason-Dixon fall under the umbrella of LES mogul, Rob Shamlian, whose portfolio also includes Spitzers & recent Brooklyn invasion, Spritzenhaus. Shamlian and famed Max Fish owner, Ulli Rimkus's bars have spent the last month mired in settlements and court-ordered notices, the latter reaching an agreement just last Friday. MF, the cultish, legendary haunt, was granted the right to operate with rigorous security and a robust fee over the weekend -but only after a long and lonely week in the dark. (We'll hold you, Max Fish.)