Comfort Food on the Cheap

Cold-weather comfort food takes an Australian-inspired twist on the Lower East Side at Tuck Shop, a small, unpretentious hole-in-the-wall "tucked" (like its name) onto the side of 1st Street. The scent of pastry is in the air and exposed brick walls, a Coors surfboard, and black and red tile flooring round out the restaurant's interiors.

Take a seat at the battered wooden bar or one of a few wobbly tables while the kangaroo on the trash cans looks on as you enjoy one of the eatery's classic meat pies and the "spud of the day," which may include Tuck Shop's heavenly scalloped potatoes, the perfect combo to warm your stomach on a cold winter day. Vegetarians don't fret, a seasonal vegetable pie is on the menu and on Thursdays a vegan pie is served. Ketchup or hot sauce are available to top your pie and a bewildering variety of Boylan sodas including my personal favorite, black cherry, can be paired with your meal.

Be warned though, on my last visit, I hadn't realized that the bearded counter guy's T-shirt was so literal (it said "I ate all the pies") when I found out that they had run out of my favorite classic meat pie, luckily I was saved with the suggestion of a meat and cheese pie, which was absolutely delicious.

Cheap Chick Info: Pies are about $5-$6, sides are $3, and sodas are $1-$2
Location: 68 East 1st Street between 1st and 2nd Avenues
Subway: F,V to 2nd Ave.

Cheap Chick Weekend Picks

Welcome to my inaugural Cheap Chick Weekend Pick list!
Friday January 30, 2009
Star-gazing at Columbia University
“Eavesdropping on Black Holes” by Taka Tanaka
7 p.m.
I attended one of these lectures before, and tho I tuned out a bit when equations were drawn on the blackboard, the view from the telescopes on the roof is so amazing it looks fake.
Cheap Chick Info: Free! Includes lecture and star viewing.
Location: Columbia University, Pupin Physics Laboratory
Subway: 1.9 116th Street

Saturday January 31st, 2009
Gotham City Improv
Off the Top our Heads Comedy Show
7 p.m.
Come heckle (suggest) ideas for this comedy show!
Cheap Chick Info: $7
Location: Gotham City Improv, 48 W. 21st St, between Fifth and Sixth Aves.
Subway: F, V to 23rd Street

Sunday February 1, 2009
Harlem Walking Tour
Big Onion Historic Harlem Walking Tour
1 p.m.
This tour may cover sites such as Abyssinian Baptist Church, Striver's Row, the Big Apple Night Club, and sites associated with the Harlem Renaissance, W.E.B. Du Bois, Madame C.J. Walker, Marcus Garvey, and Malcolm X.
Cheap Chick Info: $15, no reservations needed, just show up!
Location: Northwest corner of 135th Street & Lenox (Malcolm X) Avenue in front of the Schomburg Center.
Subway: 2,3 to 135th Street
(source: Big Onion website.)

Bonus Housing Works Shout-out:
Saturday Jan. 31, 2009
Spelling Bee
8 p.m.
Come show off those vocabulary skills or just watch others try and spell words like sarsparilla.
Cheap Chick Info: $10, includes popcorn, cash bar
Location: Housing Works Bookstore, 126 Crosby Street near Lafayette
Subway: B,D,F,V to Broadway-Lafayette, Downtown 6 to Bleecker

Saturday Jan. 31, 2009 to February 1, 2009
Geektacular Basement Sale
12 p.m. to 7 p.m. each day
Take a break from watching Battlestar Galatica or Dr. Who this weekend and check out this sale of records, comics, and vintage paperbacks.
Cheap Chick Info: Five for $1
Location and Subway Info: Same as above!

Editor's Note

Just a quick note to let my faithful readers (my friends and family) that starting on January 30, 2009 I will start posting Cheap Chick Weekend Picks every Friday. I hope to follow this by posting a Cheap Chick Daily Pick every day, but will start with the weekend Cheap Chick Picks.

Stay cheap and free in 2009!

A few Laughs for Less!

The last thing I expected to be doing on a recent Saturday afternoon in New York City was reliving my high school and college theater days, but against my better judgment, my friends had talked me into attending a free improv class at the Sage Theater in midtown.

I love theater and have enjoyed my forays into acting, but improv has always been my least favorite acting exercise, I think because I've always felt this pressure to be witty, and not only to be witty, but to do so at the spur of the moment. I always much preferred acting out scenes because what you were supposed to say (witty or otherwise) was written right out in front of you. I was put at ease however, when Tim, the enthusiastic young man who was leading the class told us that the more boring, the more obvious we were, the more successful we would be. Whew!

I think any lingering nerves any of us may have felt about performing in front of strangers were dispelled after we played a rhyming game that ended with the phrase, "in my butt." Like most schoolday pursuits most of the improv exercises were done in a circle and involved us saying zany phrases like "Zip, Zap, Zop," and "Yah" and "Nien." At one point we moved from person-to-person around the circle and quickly answered whatever question was posed to us; one of mine was,"If you were a boy, what would your name be?" to which I quickly replied "Blake" without exactly knowing why.

Later we experimented with the physical aspects of improv after being assigned the role of being either high-or low-class. Low-class individuals were instructed to avoid eye contact and touch with others, while the high-class was to be friendly and interact with everyone. After spending time either shuffling around and looking at the floor or throwing out manic smiles, this was a great way to learn how we express ourselves using body language rather than words alone.

Other exercises I participated in with a partner and the group somehow involved me hiding behind cavemen at the Museum of Natural History and a hamburger eating a hot dog vendor in Central Park.

Cheap Chick Info: For the rest of January free classes are being given every Saturday from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. and every Monday from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Just email improv@sagetheater.us to reserve a spot in the class.

Location Info: Sage Theater, 711 Seventh Avenue, 2nd floor, Between 47th & 48th St.
New York, NY 10036 (Near the Sbarro's, be sure to look for it, I had walked past a million times without realizing it was there!)

Subway Info: N/R/W to 49th St., 1/9 to 50th St., F/V or B/D to 47th-50th St.

Cheap Chick New Year's Eve Guide 2008

Now that all your presents have been unwrapped and you've vacuumed up the pine needles from your apartment floor, it's time to move on to the last holiday of 2008, New Year's Eve. While there are a number of venues in the city where you can spend several hundred dollars to ring in the new year, I'm here to share some cheap and free alternatives to apartment parties and big bar blowouts.

Cheap Chick New Year's Eve Guide
Watching the ball drop at Times Square
Now you may think that this event is just for tourists, but it is a New York City institution watched the world over that you don't have to drive miles to attend, and it's free! Musical guests include Ludacris, Taylor Swift, Lionel Richie, and the Jonas Brothers. Be sure to arrive early for standing space and dress warm!
http://www.timessquarenyc.org/nye/nye.html
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location: Times Square
Subway: A,C,E,N,R,Q,W,1,2,3,Shuttle, 7 train

Jivamukti Yoga School 20th Annual New Year's Eve Party
After spending the holidays with your relatives you may want to ring in the new year with some peace and quiet and you'll get it at this party. From 9 p.m. to 12 a.m. At Jivamukti Yoga you can experience mauna, the yogic practice of silence, while in quiet reflection until midnight when the silence is broken with chanting. There will also be vegan chai for guests to enjoy.
Cheap Chick Info: Free! Party starts at 9 p.m. and lasts until 12:30 a.m.
Location: Jivamukti Yoga School's downtown location, 841 Broadway (near 14th Street) , 2nd floor (near Union Square)
Subway: N,R,Q,W,4,5,6, to Union Square

Time's Up New Year's Eve Bike Ride and After-Party
If you want to ring in the new year with the athlete in your life, you might consider coasting into 2009 on a bike or blades at this event. The ride starts at 10:30 p.m. at Washington Square Park under the arch and ends in Central Park at Belvedere Castle, which is the site of the group's free New Year's Eve party with the Rude Mechanical Orchestra and fireworks! If you aren't up for riding you can hang at Belvedere Castle until the bikers and bladers arrive. The group encourages revelers to bring food and drinks to share. For more details and info on joining up in one of the boroughs, click here: http://times-up.org/index.php?mact=News,cntnt01,detail,0&cntnt01articleid=42&cntnt01origid=15&cntnt01returnid=114 Cheap Chick Info: Free! Ride starts at 10:30 p.m. and party continues into the night.
Location: Starting point is Washington Square Park and the ride and party are at Belvedere Castle in Central Park.
Subway: 6 to Astor Place, N,R,W to 8th Street (Washington Square Park) B, C to 81st St/Museum of Natural History; 1 to 79th St.

New York City Roadrunners Annual Midnight Run
It's too late to get a head start on your New Year's resolutions and run the event, but you can still enjoy watching runners complete the four mile course and enjoy a party at the Central Park Bandshell complete with fireworks, dancing, and a costume party.
Cheap Chick Info: Free! Schedule: DJ Music and Dancing 10:00 p.m. Costume Parade and Contest 11:00 p.m., and fireworks and four mile run begin at midnight.
Location Info: Central Park Bandshell (near the 5th Ave. and 72nd Street entrance.
Subway: E,V to 53rd Street/Lexington Avenue, 6 to 51st and Lexington Avenue, 6 to 68th Street/Hunter College.

Fireworks at Grand Army Plaza
Ring in the new year with a bang as you watch fireworks at Brooklyn's Grand Army Plaza. This free event includes entertainment and hot refreshments.
Cheap Chick Info: Free! Fireworks starts at 11 p.m.
Location Info: Grand Army Plaza
Subway Info: 2 or 3 to Grand Army Plaza station; Q to 7th Ave. Station (Flatbush Ave.).

Cheap Chick Holiday Guide

Now that you're done slathering that mayo onto your last turkey sandwich, it's time to think about the other holidays coming up in December. NYC is magical this time of year and you don't have to be a Scrooge to enjoy all the city has to offer during the holidays. Here's a list of happenings and activities to keep you busy until next year!

Tree Lighting at Rockefeller Center (tree lighting at 8:55 p.m.)
Dec. 3, 2008
7 p.m. to 9 p.m.
It may be crowded, but the famous tree-lighting ceremony is an iconic NYC tradition watched the world over. Why not be a part of it? Of course you can avoid the crowds and walk past the lit tree later in the season, both activities are free.
Cheap Chick Info: Free, but take note that it will be crowded!

Location: Rockefeller Center, Rockefeller Plaza, From West 48th Street to West 51st Street between 5th and 6th Avenues
Subway: B,D,F,V to Rockefeller Center/47-50th Street station, N,R,W to 49th Street and Seventh Avenue, or the E to Fifth Avenue and 53rd Street.

Indie and Small Press Book Fair
Saturday December 6th, 10 a.m. to 6 a.m.
Sunday December 7th, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
My fellow bibliophiles will love this free event! This annual fair is a great source of book-related holiday gifts as well as workshops related to writing and publishing. I think my favorite purchase was a homemade book with an old-fashioned poem on the perils of snoring.
Cheap Chick Info: Free, but donations of $1 or $2 are encouraged.
Location: New York Center for Independent Publishing, 20 West 44th Street
Subway: N,R,Q,W, 1,2,3,A,C,E to 42nd Street-Times Square, 4,5,6 to Grand Central

St. John the Divine St. Nicholas Day Celebration
Saturday December 6th, 9:45 to 3 p.m.
This is an all-day festival celebrating St. Nicholas Day with theater, music, poetry, storytelling, dance, comedy, workshops, and a crafts fair.
Location: St. John the Divine Episcopal Cathedral, 1047 Amsterdam Avenue

Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Subway: 1, 9 to 112th Street

Bust magazine Holiday Craftacular
Sunday December 14th
10 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.
The same-title magazine hosts this annual craft fair, $2 gets you in and once inside you'll have access to vendors across the country hawking wares such as purses, clothing, jewelry, books, baked goods, and ornaments. These crafty gifts aren't all cheap, but fellow cheap craftsters who make the effort should find some bargains to put under the tree or in the stocking.
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location: Metropolitan Pavilion, 125 West 18th Street
Subway: 1 to 18th Street, 2,3 14th Street, A,C,E to 14th Street, N,R,W,Q, 4, 5, 6 to Union Square

Lighting of the World's Largest Menorah
December 21, 5:30 p.m. (other nights various times)
Come watch the first candle being lit on this oversized menorah. The lights will be lit each night of Hanukkah, and festivities include food, folk dancing, and music.
Location: Near Central Park at 5th Avenue and 59th Street
Subway: N,R,W to 5th Avenue

Kwanzaa Fest 2008
December 28, 2008
Museum of Natural History
12 p.m. to 5 p.m.
The museum is hosting this event, which will include dance and gospal performances as well as special Kwanzaa foods served at the food court.
Cheap Chick Info: Free with museum admisison (like the Met admission is suggested so pay what you wish, except for the special exhibitions.)
Location: 79th Street and Central Park West
Subway: B (weekdays only) or C to 81st Street

Holiday Exhibitions and Displays

A Literary Christmas at the New York Public Library
On display from December 5, 2008 to January 4, 2009.
Holiday-related writings will be on display at the library and include a copy of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol, a Christmas-themed T.S. Eliot book,
Christmas greetings by James Joyce, Sean O'Casey, E.E. Cummings, and Maurice Sendak; and a Christmas letter from Jack Kerouac to his future wife, Stella Sampas.
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location: Humanities and Social Sciences Library at 42nd Street and Fifth Ave.
Subway: 4,5,6 to Grand Central, B,D,F,V to 42nd Street, 7 to 5th Avenue, Grand Central

Christmas Tree and Neapolitan Baroque Crèche at the Metropolitan Museum of Art
November 25th through January 6th, 2009
Come see this large Christmas tree displayed in the Medieval Sculpture Hall decorated with eighteenth-century Neapolitan angels and cherubs and be sure to catch tree lighting ceremonies as well:
Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays at 4:30 p.m., and Fridays and Saturdays at 4:30, 5:30, and 6:30 p.m.
Cheap Chick Info/Tip: The museum suggests a $20 admission price, but visitors may actually pay what they wish, The Cheap Chick has paid as little as 50 cents and been able to enter the museum. Simply tell the admission clerk you would like to make a donation and give them the amount of money you wish to pay.

Location: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 5th Avenue at 82nd Street

Subway: 4,5,6 to 86th Street

Grand Central Holiday Train Show
Nov. 24, 2008 to January 19, 2009
Grand Central Terminal, Transit Museum Gallery Annex
This annual display, sponsored by Lionel depicts a railway journey from Grand Central Terminal to Santa's workshop at the North Pole. This year's exhibit also includes a scale model of the Brooklyn Bridge.
Gallery & Store Hours: Monday – Friday 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., Saturday – Sunday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Cheap Chick Info: Free! Plus don't miss the free holiday light show on the main ceiling!
Location: Grand Central Terminal
Subway: 4,5,6,7,Shuttle to Grand Central Terminal

New Year's Eve Ball Display at Macy's
Through Dec, 10th, 2008
You can see this FREE iconic end-of-year symbol on display at Macy's even before New Year's Eve.
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location: Macy's Department Store at 34th Street and Broadway
Subway: N,R,Q,W,B,D,F,V to 34th Street

Activities and Shopping
Holiday Marts
It's always free to browse the booths at the city's holiday marts. There are shops set up at Bryant Park, Columbus Circle, Union Square, and Grand Central Terminal.

Housing Works Sale
Housing Works Bookstore
Take 30% off already discounted books, movies, and CDs.
Location: 126 Crosby Street
Subway: B,D,F,V to Broadway-Lafayette, Downtown 6 to Bleecker Street, and R,W to Prince Street

New York Botanical Garden Holiday Train Ride
New York Botanical Garden
November 23rd, 2008 through January 11, 2009
Take a train ride through the gardens and see New York City landmarks such the Statue of Liberty and the Empire State Building made of natural materials including cinnamon sticks and orange slices. You may want to purchase tickets in advance from the website here:
Cheap Chick Info: Regular adult tickets are $20, plus the cost to get there. It is a little more than the Cheap Chick would usually spend but she got carried away with listing holiday events.
Location: New York Botanical Garden, in the Bronx
Subway: The easiest way to get there is to take a Metro-North train to the Botanical Garden stop.

Ice Skating
Natural History Museum Polar Rink
November 22nd, 2008 through February 28, 2009
Skate around a 17-foot-tall polar bear decorated with pine boughs and lights
Cheap Chick Info: $10 (includes skate rental)
Location: 79th Street at Columbus Avenue
Subway: B (weekdays only) or C to 81st Street

Bryant Park Pond
October 25, 2008 through January 25, 2008
Work off the calories you've accumulated by eating too many Christmas cookies by taking a few turns around this outdoor rink. Admission is free but skates are $12 to rent. Be aware that the rink isn't huge so it can be crowded, which might make novice skaters a little nervous and there are usually lines to rent skates and check belongings.
Location: Bryant Park, behind the New York Public Library, between 40th and 42nd Streets and Fifth and Sixth Avenue
Cheap Chick Info: Skating is free but skate rental is $12.
Subway: B,D,F,V to 42nd Street, 7 to Fifth Avenue

Cheap Chick Thanksgiving Guide

If you're like the Cheap Chick and will be around the city during the Thanksgiving holiday, don't despair, there are plenty of free and cheap things to do during the long weekend:

See the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade balloons before the parade. On the Wednesday before Thanksgiving you can see the balloons that have been blown up for the parade (for free!) on the Upper West Side between 77th and 81st Streets between Central Park West and Columbus Avenue from 3 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. Look closely that night and you might see the Cheap Chick under the Shrek balloon!

Of course you can also watch the parade for free as well, just be sure to get there early before the crowds gather. The parade officially starts at 9 a.m. at 77th Street and Central Park West.

At Canstruction, you can see sculptures created out of ordinary objects such as tuna cans, water bottles, and soup cans. The Cheap Chick highlights of this year's display included a panda bear with bamboo, Mr. Potato Head, and the head of Olympian Michael Phelps, complete with goggles. The event is free, but visitors are encouraged to donate a canned good that will go to someone in need. Canstruction is open through Thanksgiving (and beyond) and is located at the World Financial Garden with hours beginning at 7 a.m. and 9 a.m.

Of course Herald Square, Union Square, and SoHo will be a madhouse on Black Friday so you can wait one day to check out Housing Works White Saturday sales, with free hot chocolate and cookies at all the thrift store locations. The sale lasts from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. at all stores (here's a link to store locations: http://www.housingworks.org/locations)

Also, don't forget that volunteering is always free, think about contacting a church or other charitable organization about serving a Thanksgiving dinner to those less fortunate than yourself.

Happy Thanksgiving from the Cheap Chick in the City! Look for the Cheap Chick NYC Holiday guide coming soon!