Fancy Food Comes To NYC
From July 8-10, the National Association of Specialty Foods hosts the annual “Summer Fancy Food Show” at the Javits Center, a showcase of all kinds of food processing and packaging machines, materials, systems and products under one roof. There will be more than 140,000 exhibitors representing about 72 countries, presenting more than 100,000 specialty foods to discover and sample.

By Elizabeth Valerio

No longer must couples experience their last hurrah with their wedding ceremony and the honeymoon. More and more, second honeymoons are emerging. Whether it’s to celebrate a silver anniversary or just to show love for one another, couples are honeymooning, renewing their vows and taking some fantastic trips. So where are they going?

Summer is underway, and there’s no better place to cool off and have fun than at the beach. For hard-working souls who can’t manage to leave off working for even a weekend, there are various spots in New York to choose from if you’re desperate to take a dip and sun yourself for a few forbidden hours.—Gabriela Frias

Though Americans are sometimes derided for sporting prim bathing suits that cover too much when vacationing at foreign beaches, not all of us are so proper. The naturalist movement is alive and well in the U.S., though you might have to travel abroad to find some of the more interesting enclaves. Here are four top nude beach destinations where you can bare it all.—Nicole Tringali

As executive director of the City Parks Foundation, David Rivel has a hand in planning over 1,100 performing arts events to be held in parks this year and has undertaken to bring more programming to low-income neighborhoods. Currently on the organization’s plate is the annual, mostly-free Central Park SummerStage, featuring a diverse slate of performers, ranging from bands like the Brazilian Girls to the writer Amiri Baraka. Rivel talked to the Resident about his efforts to make the city a greener place.—Melissa Swinea

By Hugh Spencer

Michael Psilakis does it again. In his third rebirth in four years, chef/co-owner Psilakis has once again raised the bar and exceeded expectations. Anthos, the reincarnation of Acqua Pazza – formerly owned by the brother of hospitality queen and Psilakis’ current host/partner Donatella Arpaia – has been transformed into a bastion of Greek culinary delights worthy of high praise.

By Rory Winston

Look forward in anger: a fitting battle cry for stand-up raconteur Henry Rollins, the punk patriot who continues to wave his symbolic Black Flag behind enemy lines. Though the band of that name has retreated into history, Rollins refuses to surrender to either unfocused rage or age. Instead, he has become a lean, mean, top-billing comic machine, who has vented his outrage into a spoken-word performance that has taken much of Europe by storm.

By Rory Winston

Though the West Indian island of Antigua lies in the eastern Caribbean Sea, it has a lot more to offer than exceptional beaches. From its rich history and colonial past to its natural splendor, family-friendly resorts and haute cuisine, the island is rife with enough unexpected pleasures to keep every traveler happy.

By Margarida Correia

The garden on the roof of St. Simon Stock Elementary School in the Bronx isn’t much to look at on a recent spring day. The dried remains of brown-eyed susans and orange columbines, flowers native to the area, and yellowed batches of Indian grass and switch grass, barely move in the breeze. But evidence of the garden’s vitality is everywhere. The four-foot stalks of butterfly weed, a favorite for bees and butterflies, are beginning to bud. Sparrows and turtle doves flutter about. The roof, which is almost completely covered with soil, is home to 20 native plant species, many of which grow to five to six feet.

Born in England and raised in Southern California, chef Gypsy Gifford may not be the most likely candidate to cook Asian cuisine at Rain, 100 W. 82nd St., but she is not new to the flavors and ingredients of the region. A graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, Gifford was Chef de Cuisine at Bao 111, where she expanded her knowledge and interest in Asian cuisine, specifically Vietnamese. However, it was during a recent “pilgrimage” to Thailand where Gifford cemented her love for Asian food. Traveling from region to region, Chef Gifford browsed open air markets and dined in homes and restaurants.