Tales of the Cocktail Celebrates 10 years

Loungers, below is a press release from our friends at Tales of the Cocktail.  They will be celebrating their ten year anniversary this July. Take it from me, "Tales" is a must attend festival for cocktail aficionados and newbies alike! The event runs from Wednesday July 25th through Sunday July 29th and promises to be the best one yet.  Please book you accommodations sooner than later, as the most popular hotels get booked up fast. Tickets to the excursions, competitions, seminars, and tasting dinners are on sale now at TalesoftheCocktail.com.

New Orleans, Louisiana -With more than 200 events for both experts and amateurs alike, we will be making history during the five days of Tales of the Cocktail® 2012. For the historic 10th Anniversary celebration, this year’s schedule includes a host of events including a street food and go-cups event and new Tales of the Cocktail® excursions.

The Street Food and Go Cups event will show how in a city known for it’s food, a new culinary trend has hit the streets on the final day of Tales of the Cocktail®, Sunday July 29th. Food trucks are rolling through New Orleans serving everything from fish tacos to grilled cheese. At Tales of the Cocktail® 2012, we’re adding cocktails to their menus. Grab some grub, a good drink and a picnic table, and then enjoy a lunch unlike anything else.

“At this point in my life, I have few passions left that I haven’t addressed with gusto,” said Paul G. Tuennerman, Co-Instigator and COO of Tales of the Cocktail. “So, the combination of New Orleans, Food Trucks, and Cocktails is the natural next step in the quest to leave this life, satiated.”

The “Tales of the Honey Island” excursion, on Sunday, July 29th, presented by 42 Below Vodka trades the wild life of the French Quarter for the wildlife of the Louisiana swamplands. This exclusive Tales Tour will take you to the Honey Island Swamp where you’ll enjoy cocktails on board the airboat as you drink in the majestic sights and sounds of this famous swamp.

The “How to Strip for Your Man” excursion, on Sunday, July 29th, presented by Secrets in Lace and Spicebox Whisky is a sizzling class that is guaranteed to add spice to your love life. Do something delightfully naughty but nice for yourself and your man by following the easy step-by-step moves of veteran Bourbon Street ecdysiast GiO who will show you everything you always wanted to know about striptease. There will be a 20-minute cocktail break between the first and second hour of the class.

The “Mardi Gras Beads at Galeria Alegria” excursion, on Sunday, July 29th, answers the question: What happens to all of those colorful strands after Mardi Gras? Join in for a night of making artwork out of the Mardi Gras necklaces and chowing down on authentic NOLA cuisine at a happy hour-meets-art class. Gallery owner and self-taught German-born artist Stephán Wanger will lead a class in creating the kind of artwork he pioneered.

The “Urban Farm Tour” excursion led by Poppy Tooker, a native New Orleanian who has spent her life immersed in the vibrant colors and flavors of her hometown. She will take you to some of New Orleans most fascinating urban farms including Brobson Lutz “Bee Hive in the Hood” and the mid city chicken farms of Joe Brock. Ends with a wonderful tasting of foods raised from the gardens of Ye Olde College Inn a New Orleans landmark established in 1933.

The “Confederacy of Cruisers” excursion presented by Spicebox Whiskey lets the good times roll as you take in the sights and sounds of New Orleans from behind a pair of handlebars on Wednesday, July 25th and Friday, July 27th. This two-wheeled tour takes you through the distinctive neighborhoods of New Orleans as you soak in some history and stop off for some local cuisine along the way. Mixology maven Chris Hannah joins the tour, serving up some of the cocktail history and culture that lives throughout the city.

The “Curing with Cocktails” excursion presented by Jameson Irish Whiskey on Sunday, July 29th, presented by Chef Alon of Domenica Restaurant will give an introduction to the Italian technique of butchering a local Mangalista pig on Thursday, July 25th and Saturday, July 28th. Enjoy the succulent Salumi paired with a delicious cocktail while gaining knowledge in the art of pig butchering.

To purchase tickets or for more information about these excursions as well as other events at the Tales of the Cocktail® 10th Anniversary celebration, visit TalesoftheCocktail.com.

This Week In Lounge: April 9th - 14th

Songbird Queen Esther channels Billie Holiday Saturday April14th

Monday, April 9th
Tiki Mondays with Miller
Our pal, up and comping bar star, Garret Richard will be guest bartending at the island oasis known as Lani Kai with the legendary tiki pirate, Brian Miller.  Get ready for a host of island inspired elixirs featuring the rums of Mount Gay from Barbados. Each drink will be a vacation in a glass.  Richard and Miller promise, "If you can't reach paradise, we'll bring it to you."

Lani Kai (525 Broome Street, New York, NY) - 6pm to 2am.

Friday, April 13th
The Champagne Riot presents La Vie en Rose: A Sultry Evening Celebrating The Return of Spring

It's their Spring Fling, and The Rioteers are feeling friskier than ever! Celebrate the sultry rain showers and blushing flowers with a glamorous evening of hot jazz and even hotter burlesque!

STARRING:
The Girl With The 44-Double D Brain MISS NASTY CANASTA
Mind-Bendingly Bendable Beauty EKATERINA
Tap-Dancing Dervish GIN MINSKY
The Girl Who Spins You Round EVELYN VINYL
Boylesque Sensation GO-GO HARDER
and The Fastest Girl in Town MISS JEZEBEL EXPRESS

with EMCEE DANDY WELLINGTON and Hot Jazz by THE GELBER & MANNING BAND

Dress To Impress: Bring colour to our world! We want our party to bloom with exotic flowers and decadent blossoms. Bright and romantic for the ladies, carnation-clad elegance for the gents. Fluttery gowns, flapper favorites, old Hollywood glamour... wear whatever puts a spring in your step

Dominion NY, 428 Lafayette Street, New York, NY 9PM Doors/10PM Show$15/Advance, $20/Door


Saturday, April 14th 
The Billie Holiday Project featuring Queen Esther

At this special event, the performance takes a theatrical turn when two Harlem icons collide in a mix of music and spoken word. Accompanied by The Hot Five, Queen Esther augments the relatively unknown yet timeless songs of the jazz siren Billie Holiday with newly unearthed Harlem fables by Zora Neal Hurston. 


The Apollo Music Café -- located within the iconic Apollo Theater -- is Harlem’s new night spot where music genres from the Apollo’s heritage – R&B, hip hop, soul, jazz, pop, funk, and rock – are transformed by cutting-edge artists in a stylized lounge space.
 
The Apollo Music Cafe - 253 W. 125th Street, 9PM Doors/10PM Show, $15/Apollo A-list advance tickets, $20/Door - seating is limited so get your tickets ASAP!


If you have any lounger worthy events for our weekly recommendations, please email loungers at loungerati dot com for consideration.

Destinations: The Easter Parade & Bonnet Festival

Loungerati's Eff at the Easter Parade

The Easter Parade & Bonnet Festival is one of the last remaining authentic New York traditions. From the late-19th century until the 1950s, over one million people attended the annual event. Crowds may have thinned in this last half-century, but hardcore New Yorkers with penchants for ceremony and haberdashery keep it relevant.  Today, New Yorkers will put on their finest attire, sport creative head wear, and promenade up-and-down Fifth Avenue for several hours like Judy Garland and Fred Astaire. It is an informal amble, and any line between spectators and participants ebbs and flows like the Avenue's traffic.

From a lounge lifestyle-perspective, aficionados of vintage style hang up their tweeds and break-out fresh and found bright fashions. If you like to see boaters, seersucker, bonnets, poplin suits, bow ties, boutonnieres, and a glamorous, sartorial crowd, it is a must-attend event. Whether one is religious or not, the Easter Parade is treated by the city as its entrance to Spring. Jazz Age stalwarts such as Michael Arenella & The Dreamland Orchestra set up guerrilla performances in front the University Club. Lindy hoppers from the decade-old website and community, Yehoodi, show up with prepared routines as shutterbugs snap the whole scene. The New York Times photographer, Bill Cunningham, nips in and out the throng to spot those who'll grace next weekend's Sunday Styles section.

The Easter Parade runs from 10 a.m. through until 4 p.m. Gather in front of Rockefeller Center before making your way up to 57th Street, then stroll back down Fifth Avenue, and repeat! Once you are finished strutting your finest duds and headwear,head to these post parade destinations.

Since 1907, teetotalers have been getting their tea fix on at the traditional 4pm tea service Palm Court at the venerable Plaza Hotel (768 Fifth Avenue). The recent renovation has restored the 1,800 square foot stain glass sky light to its original grandeur. Linger for the savory snacks such as truffled quail egg sandwiches or freshly baked scones and gourmet pastries. It is a luxury indulgence and but worth the experience.

Thirsty parade goers should promenade over to King Cole Bar at the St. Regis Hotel (2 East 55^th Street at Fifth Avenue). This is birthplace of the Red Snapper, the predecessor of the Bloody Mary, which was invented in 1934. Order one with Gin (Beefeater or Plymouth) to get the authentic flavor of the era and quench that thirst under Maxfield Parrish's 30 foot long mural. Try to pick out John Jacob Astor in the painting and no the barkeeps won't give any hints.

Happy Easter from Loungerati!