This week’s list of reasons to leave the house include a whimsical animated Japanese movie, gallery openings in Chelsea, and a two-day outdoor poetry festival. If that still doesn’t fill your calendar, remember that you can always check Groupon for more great things to do in New York City.
Summer Restaurant Week
July 21–August 15
The summer edition of restaurant week brings three-course prix fixe menus to eateries such as Red Rooster Harlem, Café Boulud, Bann Restaurant, and Tertulia (pictured above). Luckily, the “week” actually runs for three-and-a-half weeks, so there’s still plenty of time to make reservations at crowded spots ahead of time. ($25 lunch, $38 dinner; see a full list of participants)
Neutral Milk Hotel at Prospect Park Bandshell
Prospect Park | Tuesday, July 22, and Wednesday, July 23, 7 p.m.
It may have been 15 years since their last tour, but Neutral Milk Hotel haven’t lost the idiosyncratic touch that made 1998’s In the Aeroplane over the Sea an indie classic. Join a packed crowd in Prospect Park to hear frontman Jeff Mangum weave together his eccentric, Anne Frank–inspired lyrics with horn-centric melodies. ($39.50 in advance, $45 day of; buy tickets here for Wednesday’s show)
A Letter to Momo
West Village | Wednesday, July 23–Tuesday, July 29
A fanciful, hand-drawn tale in a similar vein to Spirited Away, 2011’s A Letter to Momo tells the story of a Japanese teenager, Momo, whose only relic of her lost father is a letter to her he never finished. Momo comes to terms with her loss with the help of three mischievous goblins who have taken up residence in her mother’s attic. (IFC Center, 323 Avenue of the Americas; $14 adults, $10 children and seniors, $9 IFC members; buy tickets here)
Chelsea Art Walk
Chelsea | Thursday, July 24, 5 p.m.–8 p.m.
More than 100 participating galleries in Chelsea stay open late for a free public viewing of their summer exhibitions, as well as artist talks, openings, and other events. (free; see a full list of participating galleries)
New York City Poetry Festival
Governors Island | Saturday, July 26, and Sunday, July 27, 11 a.m.–6 p.m.
The fourth annual event brings literati to Governors Island for a weekend of readings and performances by more than 250 poets, including Mark Doty, Joyelle McSweeney, Matthea Harvey, and Paul Muldoon. In between sets, browse indie crafts and booksellers’ wares, fuel up with snacks from food vendors including Morris Grilled Cheese and Mud Coffee, or quaff pints in a beer garden sponsored by Brooklyn Brewery. (free; register here)
Photo of Tertulia by Jen Davis
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Things To Do In Westwood
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Westwood Cinema
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Old Tappan
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Four or Six Kickboxing or Krav Maga Classes at DP Martial Arts Academy (68% Off)
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River Vale
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10 or 20 Kumdo Classes at Sae Shim Kumdo Academy (Up to 80% Off)
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Norwood
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Five Boot-Camp Classes at Training Ground Women's Fitness and Self-Defense (45% Off)
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Select Local Merchants
Proponents of the slow-food movement, Bibi'z Restaurant and Lounge's proprietors believe that meals deserve to be savored rather than scarfed down. To that end, their chefs ensure that diners have plenty to relish: they use simple techniques to bring out flavors in sustainable and wild-caught fish, grass-fed Black Angus beef, and locally sourced organic produce, dairy, and poultry. The culinary team incorporates those ingredients into dishes such as vegetarian wild-mushroom ravioli with a butternut-squash cream sauce, pan-seared duck breast with a reduction of Asian five-spice, and gluten-free braised short ribs with a parsnip puree. In 2014, Bergen.com awarded the restaurant with the titles of Best Healthy Restaurant and Best Place for Girls' Night Out.
Hand-selected from sustainable wineries at home and abroad, organic and biodynamic wines?more of 50 of which are available by the glass?add their own nuanced flavors to meals. Barkeeps also quench thirsts with complimentary still and sparkling water filtered in house rather than taken straight from the blowhole of a whale. Each leisurely feast unfolds on Bibi'z's airy outdoor patio or in a spacious dining room replete with a fireplace and a lounge full of comfy leather chairs.
284 Center Avenue
Westwood,
NJ
US
The player toes the baseline, bounces the tennis ball a few times per ritual, and then tosses it skyward for the first serve. The ball is hit a touch too firmly, and it sails past the service area for a fault. No matter, you get two faults in tennis. The second serve takes some oomph off the stroke while imparting spin, hoping to keep it safely in-bounds. Instead, the ball is lands wide of the sideline for fault number two.
It's common situations like these that certified tennis instructor Peter Ohanyan believes separate an average player from confident players whose skills are refined. Recognizing the need to combat mental obstacles and boost confidence, particularly with beginners, Peter applies all the knowledge learned from playing singles at the NCAA level, coaching a high school team, and earning degrees in psychology and physical education. He takes a positive, reinforcing approach to teaching the game, and employs a wide range of equipment—such as agility ladders, cones, and hurdles—to help his students sharpen technical skills.
10 Grand Street
Westwood,
NJ
US
Kids typically love a chance to play with a set of toys that's new to them. At The Big Playhouse, the staff not only provides toys to play with, but grand playsets, including a cafe, doctor?s office, enchanted loft, construction site, and salon, that spark imagination and develop social skills better than any imaginary tea party or Senate hearing. Kids can play house in a pretend home complete with a washer and dryer or wax entrepreneurial in a bake shop stocked with pretend cupcakes. As they check their shoes at the door, they can choose a toy vehicle or doll to adopt for the day, or they can bring their favorite doll or truck with them. Birthday parties, meanwhile, include catered food and customized games such as freeze dancing, limbo, and simon says. WiFi and coffee are available for parents as they watch their children from the viewing area.
316 Kinderkamack Road
Westwood,
NJ
US
Yoga, ballet barre, Pilates, and Zumba aren't one-dimensional workouts. That's why they and other similar classes are offered at Spectrum Wellness Center. There, the team of instructors pushes students toward overall wellness, not just exterior goals like six-pack abs and chiseled thumb muscles. Classes are kept small so students can receive personalized attention, which is ideal for all skill levels. Spectrum Wellness Center's holistic approach also shows during one-on-one injury-prevention sessions, which lets athletes get back in the game without risking performance.
184 Central Avenue
Old Tappan,
NJ
US
Once commonplace in American moviegoing, the revival house itself now needs a revival. Enter Rosebud Theatre, whose single screen is solely dedicated to the films of Hollywood?s Golden Age?the theater even draws its name from one such film, Citizen Kane?s famed sled. Built around a new theme each month, the theater?s programming ranges from classic musicals such as Yankee Doodle Dandy to foreign staples such as Jacques Tati?s inventive Mr. Hulot?s Holiday. The intimate 94-seat theater shows every movie digitally, which allows CGI dinosaurs to roam Charlie Chaplin?s movies just as he always intended.
316 Kinderkamack Road
Westwood,
NJ
US
PGA Teaching Professional Tom McGuinness hones in swings and sharpens short games in his campaign to help students better enjoy the game of golf. Tom's private and group lessons at the award-winning Emerson Golf Club welcomes every kind of golfer, whether he or she happens to be a junior or an adult, a beginning golfer or Jack Nicklaus's even-better-at-golf cousin. Lessons use video so that the student can easily see what the instructor sees, and range balls are provided throughout the session.
40 Jefferson Ave
Emerson,
NJ
US
