Welcome to the Sugary Scoop, my free biweekly newsletter where we help you see and experience the magic of NYC that I love so much through curated events, experiences, artists, and community stories.

Let’s get to this week’s Scoop!

🍬The Scoop 🍬

• UPCOMING EVENTS

• WHAT'S NEW

  • THE SUGARY EFFECT

  • PAST EVENTS

    • AND DON’T SAY I DIDN’T TELL YOU ABOUT…

  • NOTABLE NYC EVENTS THIS WEEK FROM OUR FRIENDS

• Connect IRL. Experience Fabrik.

  • EMPATHY PROJECT

October 6th (Flatiron) - The Rubin: A Farewell to History - After 20 years of introducing New Yorkers to the wonders of Himalayan art and being the epicenter of numerous cultural gatherings, the Rubin is closing its doors forever. This is the final opportunity on THE FINAL DAY to explore this incredible space along with its sacred art. Join us for one more trip to this venerated institution before it leaves NYC forever. RSVP Here
_{(Social Battery Level: Low Ambivert - Crowd Size 20-30)}

October 19th (Central Park) - Pickleball Social III - Join DK as he leads a session of pickleball for our community.  Learn to play and if you’re seasoned, get your game on with some seasoned players within the Sugary community.  Just don’t challenge DK…he’s…a touch competitive. RSVP Here
_{(Social Battery Level: Medium Ambivert - Crowd Size 10-25)}

October 20th (LES) - NFL Double Header Watch Party (49ers vs. Chiefs + Jets vs. Steelers) - NFL season is in full force and we’re setting up a viewing party for an epic doubleheader with the first match re-creating last year‘s Super Bowl matchup and the final match in support of one of our hometown heroes. Come join us for a serious good time as we all cheer for our favorite teams and enjoy 50% off all bar drinks!
RSVP Here
_{(Social Battery Level: Medium Extrovert - Crowd Size 30-50)}

_{(Space is very limited for each of these events so if you’d like to attend to any of these events, please hit the RSVP button below sooner than later!)}

Well, September we hit a new record…7 events for the month (7.5 if you count our collaboration in support of the Mom’s Out Front Climate Week Decompression Lounge)! 😳

I gotta say that even though it was hard work, I’m impressed that we managed to pull it off! From happy hours to tasting experiences, dance parties to art salons the Sugary community presented a veritable tasting menu for our community to enjoy with aplomb!

DK and I are definitely tired from the experience, but it also proved to us that we could in fact increase our capacity and still maintain quality the whole way through.

Definitely not something we’d want to repeat every month but the mere fact that we are capable is a feather in our cap and a boon to your social calendar!

As mentioned, October and November will be a little lighter as I will be physically away, but DK will be here, and we had discussed a number of events that he will lead in my absence.  I hope that you will continue to enjoy yourselves and I’ll send you blessings from afar.

Next time I write to you it’ll be from abroad. Wish me luck and I’m wishing you all well!  See you when I get back…

THE SUGARY EFFECT

Arrivederci…(Goodbye in English, Not in So Much in Italian).

Recently, I went to Milan and ultimately Verona to attend a close friend's destination wedding.  

It was an enjoyable week long excursion and my friend Nadir and I took the entire experience at a leisurely pace with the exception of our obsession with late night speeding on electric scooters through the abandoned streets of Milan at the height of their vacation season which honestly felt like a section of a Mission Impossible film…minus any Cruise-like running on our part…that and the pit stops for Gelato kinda takes away from the overall visual.

During this entire trip, I noticed a familiar observation that I had first felt when I visited Rome back in the early 2000s. 

Piazzas proximal to posh, arcades abundant with aliments and tracery touching transit.

Sure there’s modern construction all around, but there’s also a sort of reverence to the remnants of an iconic past, a reluctance to totally forego what once was, merely for the sake of “progress”.

Italy (and Europe in general) just seemed to be much more concerned with the preservation, repurposing and incorporation of its iconic past, than here in NYC (and America in general).  

Even though I’m a maven of progress, I couldn’t help but be charmed by some of the everyday antiquity that fell beneath many of my countless steps and vaunted far above my modest frame in venerated glory.

Upon my arrival back in NYC, an almost absurdly appropriate and timely TikTok appeared on my “For You Page” to feed my reflective pondering. For once I was grateful for my phone’s clandestine surveillance of my every word.

As it turns out, I was coming back just in time to see the potential destruction of another iconic space: 

The Elizabeth Street Garden.

22 years in this city, I’d never visited the space. In a city where there is so much to explore…we might soon have one less unique place to enjoy. 

No time to waste…it was now or potentially never, so I paid a visit to the garden.

I sat alone for a while in this Nolita nugget, taking in the space. 

Eclectic, a tad bit ramshackle…yet charmingly unique.

Piecemeal decor and architecture adorn the 1 acre space and harkened back to a metropolis of yesteryear.  In that moment, I felt an unexpected sensation of mild sorrow that washed over me. What a shame it would be to lose a place like this.  Italy would never…

Later that evening, a restless mind led to a Google search about other iconic artifacts the city willingly lost over time for all the wrong reasons and another crazy coincidence occurred…near the top of my search a listing caught my eye. The New York Historical Museum had an exhibit called, “Lost New York” in it’s final days,  which by the time of this publication will be…gone

…fitting.

But I managed to make it there and it’s pretty incredible what we’ve lost over the years: 

The Hippodrome, The Original Penn Station, The Old Met Opera House, the Chinese Theater on Doyers, Ebbets field, Steeplechase Park (Fun fact: Demolished by Fred Trump for condos that he ended up never building)

Too Old?  We have more contemporary losses of an iconic nature as well:

Keith Haring’s Pop Up Shop, Rizzoli’s BookStore (Original 57th St. Location), 5pointz Aerosol Arts Center, The 21 Club

Time and time again we choose not to raise our past so we can raze for our future and after what I experienced abroad, I’m not so certain that the two HAVE TO be mutually exclusive. 

Capitalism can coincide with cultural classics (i.e. The Highline…or say for instance…a museum exhibit alongside a rather robust gift shop).

Who’s to say what we might lose next but all is not lost.  In fact, there’s still so much to be found.  

While you can, when you can:

1. Admire the many wonders that still exist such as reveling at an abandoned old City Hall subway station, pay respects with a pint of “light or dark” to the wishbones above McSorley’s tavern, or cackle at the defiant snarkiness of the infamous Hess Triangle.

2. Support the work of the Landmarks Preservation Commission

3. Take a stance and fight for what you wish to enjoy in the years to come. (Donate to Elizabeth Street Garden)

Let’s not be so quick to give up our iconic past but instead attempt to find a common ground where the timeless relics of the past and the mortal engine of progress can coexist in greater harmony. 

Besides, I was never really good at goodbyes, so maybe instead I’ll just say…

…arrivederci.

PAST EVENTS

September 18th: The Happiest Hour Fundraiser for Apex for Youth - Nearly 30 of you came out to champion minority youth from low income families across NyC.  And I’m pleased to report that we raised our target goal of $1,500! Special shout out to Sugary community member Steven Moy for going above and beyond to support this worthy cause!

September 21st: So Long to Summer Soiree - Nearly 100 of you dropped by Bushwick to experience a BBQ of epic proportions! An absolutely decadent spread of over 15 different dishes had us cooking from sunup to sunset but we did it with love while DJ Special Problem gave us a groove well into the wee hours. Pure magic.

September 24th: The Best ___ You’ve Ever Ate - Nearly 45 of you came out for a truly special evening of tasting just how big a difference produce we eat every day is in comparison to what we could get from a farm.  Local Roots guided the experience followed by a farm to table feast after which attendees got to “shop” our massive centerpiece which became an impromptu farmers market for all to enjoy and take home with them. A truly special Climate Week event.

September 26th: The Art of Movement Salon - Close to 90 of you came to experience a magical evening that had NOTHING to do with Climate Week whatsoever! A perfect distraction that came in the form of a string quartet, contemporary dancing, live painting and sleight of hand. A moving metaphoric melange for an evening well spent. 

September 28th: Soul Brunch - From noon until late, over 250 of you dropped in and out to dance, eat, imbibe, reflect and vibe in artistic bliss within the curious nooks and crannies of Dead Letter 9. A perfect way to decompress from both Burning Man as well as the hectic intensity of Climate Week.

ARTIST SPOTLIGHT

Leslie Mendelson

Some years back on a rainy weekday, I was invited out by a close friend to check out a late night set at Berlin Lounge for an up and coming artist she was excited about.

I remember it being cold and wet and I wasn’t particularly jazzed about heading out but I figured I didn’t want to disappoint my friend so I decided to keep an open mind.

As I descended the steps, the set was just starting and from the first note you could tell that something special was about to go down.

Leslie is a remarkable Grammy nominated talent. A gifted lyricist who crafts stories with such depth wrapped in an old soul sensibility that harkens to songwriters of yesteryear such as James Taylor, Neil Diamond, and Carole King just to name a few.

Even Jackson Browne proclaimed, “Leslie’s melodies are timeless…”

Pre-pandemic she was on a fast rise to notoriety before COVID derailed her ascent when the entire world came to a standstill.  

Since that time, Leslie has been hard at work creating timeless songs and bringing them to the masses one appreciative audience at a time delighting everyone in small towns to big cities all across America.

Definitely make it a point to add Leslie to your must listen to playlists.  

Her lyrical prowess will stir your soul while her melodies will carry the unforgettable sentiment of an earnest songcraft honoring the very best of American songwriting traditions.

I Know You Better Than That (most popular)

Human Touch Feat. Jackson Browne (lesser known song)

Rock and Roll on the Radio (newest song)

NOTABLE NYC EVENTS THIS WEEK FROM OUR FRIENDS

Tue. 10/1 - The Bench Presents: VP Debate Watch Party: RSVP Here.

Sat. 10/5 - Walk Around New York! ...a benefit for FELLOW HUMAN: the quest for mass human flourishing: RSVP Here.

Sat. 10/5 - NYC in LA Presents: Battle of the Bagels in Soho: RSVP Here.

Sun. 10/6 - Slice Out Hunger, Pizza on the Pier: RSVP Here.

Thu. 10/10 - Christians in Tech: NYC - Singles Event: RSVP Here.

Thu. 10/13 - NYC Media Club Presents: Masculine & Feminine Roles & Toxicity: RSVP Here. 

Thu. 10/17 - Gather Presents: Modern Kintsugi: RSVP Here.

Fri. 10/25-26 - Art Bath Fall ‘24 Season Show 2: RSVP Here. (Use code ARTBATH10 for a discount).

Connect IRL. Experience Fabrik.

Get in touch for a free week to come in and make new friends.

Fabrik is a home for communities and where everyone has a place to belong. With spaces designed to feel more like your living room than your office, Fabrik’s 'third spaces' are vibrant hubs where you can come together in real life, explore interests, forge meaningful connections, and enjoy a sense of community.

Sign-up here to experience a free week at Fabrik.

EMPATHY PROJECT

Support the Empathy Project by purchasing any of the items from the collection. Be a part of a unique initiative that empowers seven diverse artists to create one-of-a-kind empathy-inspired t-shirts. These shirts serve as iconography tied to our identity, promoting compassion-driven societal impact. 

Each artist picked a 501(c)3 charity of their choice to donate a portion of the sales of their t-shirt design. Your purchase also empowers voices, amplifies the message of empathy, supports charities, and elevates storytelling within our communities, all while building a network for compassion-driven societal change. Join us in making a lasting impact through art and empathy.

You can check out and purchase the 7 different empathy tees HERE