It’s hot, it’s humid, and we’re sweating out of every pore, which means that New York summer is in full swing. If you want to take full advantage of the beginning of the best season in the city, get ready for an afternoon filled with open streets, music and performances this Friday, June 21.

The Department of Transportation is partnering with Mov!ng Culture Projects to curate Make Music New York Day, which will feature performances at 11 different plazas and open streets across the city.

RECOMMENDED: The best Juneteenth events in NYC for 2024

Here are all the events happening this Friday, broken down by borough:

Bronx

• Morrison Plaza- Altin Sencalar Latin Jazz Project (5pm-7pm)
• Fordham Plaza- New Heights Brass Band (3pm-5pm)

Brooklyn

• Kensington Plaza- Drumming and other instruments workshops (5pm-8pm)
• Thatford Avenue Open Street- African Peach Arts Coalition (4pm-5:30pm)
• Troutman Street Open Street- Reverend Vince and The Love Choir (7:30pm-9pm)

Manhattan

• Johnny Hartman Plaza- Pueblo Harlem (12pm–8pm), DJ Set (12pm), Berta Moreno Afro Jazz Soul Project (1pm), Rachel Terrien Latin Jazz Project (2:30pm), Fat Cats Alumni Ensemble (4pm), Salsa Dance Class (5pm), Arturo O’Farrill & the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra (6pm)
• Forsyth Plaza- World Record Players (2pm) Glicky’s Connection (3pm) The Wigouts (4pm) Johnny Mellor’s Bastardos (5pm) Not All Heroes (6pm)
• Astor Plaza- Charu Suri (4pm) Cassandra Kubinski (5:30pm)
• Cooper Square- Alex Inciardi (5:30pm), My Frieds (6pm), Hipsy Gap (6:45pm)

Queens

• Corona Plaza- Prinkipo Quintet (5pm-6:30pm)
• Diversity Plaza- RECAP Quartet (6pm), Eclectic Charango Beats (7:30pm)
• Lowery Plaza- Prinkipo Quintet (1pm-2:30pm)

Staten Island

• Minthorne Street Open Street- Amber Sweeney (5pm) This Way to the Egress (6pm) Alayisha (7pm)

Beyond June 21, the DOT will continue to host several outdoor events that are free to all New Yorkers across all the boroughs, including a series of soca dancing classes on June 22 and June 29.

Starting July through August, the Bindlestiff Family Cirkus is also going to be giving free performances at Troutman Street in Brooklyn West 120 Street in Manhattan, 34 Avenue in Queens, and many other locations. 

“Producing event in partnership with the DOT’s Office of Livable Streets’ Public Space Programming division has opened up so many possibilities for New York City artists to perform outdoors in public spaces in their own neighborhoods, and to be paid to do so,” Robin Schatell, founder and director of Mov!ng Culture Projects, said in an official statement. “I am especially excited to be able to showcase five locals indie rock bands on the 21st as part of the annual summer solstice celebration, Make Music NY.”

To check out their full programming, visit their website. 

* This article was originally published here

Little Grenjai first got on our radar with its Thai and American mash-up, the Krapow Smash Burger—a gushed-about item from their summer pop-up days. The smash burger is still one of its most popular bites, so much so that the phrase, “Burger is only available for lunch” is stamped all over its website. And it is no surprise why. Here, the burger is seasoned with chili, basil, and oyster sauce before it’s smashed and dressed with a lemongrass and bird’s eye chili giardiniera. One bite, and we were sold. But something tells us that its upcoming collaboration with a local Detrioit-style eatery will have us hooked, too.

RECOMMENDED: The 12 best Thai restaurants in NYC

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Little Grenjai (@littlegrenjai)

This Friday, Little Grenjai is partnering with Ace Pizza for a Thai-meets-Detroit mash-up like no other.

Going on at the pizzeria’s Williamsburg location, the pop-up will include two pizza specials: The Chiangmai Chi Pie and the Grenjai Clam Pie.

Topped with handmade Thai sausage cups, the Chiangmai Chi Pie is a Detrioit-styled pizza lashed with a spicy Chiangmai relish, sport peppers, yellow mustard and dill pickles for a balance of savory and spice. Are you a lover of all things clams and pizza? Try Little Grenjai’s spin on the classic by ordering the Grenjai Clam Pie. Livened up with a drizzle of nam jim—one of Thailand’s classic dipping sauces—this pizza has an added crunch thanks to a topping of chili crunch and Ace’s zesty breadcrumbs. And if you just can’t stand a visit to Little Grenjai without securing its famous burger, chef-owner Trevor Lombaer will be on the grill smashing up patties to fill that void in your heart (and stomach).

As for refreshments, cool off with the rum-forward frozen cocktail, Scorpion Kiss (a blend of rum, gin, and brandy with lemongrass orgeat, exotic fruit juices, and coconut) or a selection of wines by the glass or bottle from wine pop-up, @bardubois.

It all goes down at 3pm, a perfect way to start your summer Friday.

* This article was originally published here

The first day of summer hit us with a scorching heat wave, and with NYC currently under a Red Alert as well as a Heat Advisory now through Sunday, June 23rd at 8 pm, several school districts around NYC will dismiss students early today, Friday, June 21st.

The full list is as follows:

Dutchess County

• Arlington Central School District – Middle schools dismissed at 10 am, elementary schools dismissed at 11:30 am
• Beacon City School District – RMS dismissed at 11:30 am, ES dismissed at 12:30 pm
• Carmel Central School District – CHS dismissed at 10:45 am, GFMS dismissed at 11 am, elementary dismissed at noon
• Dover Union Free School District – Wingdale & Dover elementary schools have a half-day. Dover Middle School has a normal schedule
• Pawling Central School District – Pre-K-8 has a 2-hour early dismissal
• Pine Plains Central School District – ES students dismissed at noon
• Wappingers Central School District – Junior HS dismissed at 10:25 am, ES dismissed at 11:25 am

Orange County

• Florida Union Free School District – Seward 6th grade dismissed at 10:30 am, Golden Hill PreK-5 dismissed at 11:30 am, Golden Hill Club Kids canceled
• Goshen Central School District – SAS dismissed at regular time, GIS dismissed at 11:30 am, CJH dismissed at 10:30 am
• Highland Falls-Fort Montgomery Central School District – Pre-K and K-8 have a half-day
• Minisink Valley Central School District – MS dismissed at 11:30 am, ES dismissed at 12:40 pm
• Monroe-Woodbury Central School District – Early dismissal
• Port Jervis City School District – K-8 have a half-day
• Valley Central School District – MS dismissed at 11:50 am, ES dismissed at 12:30 pm, ALC dismissed at 12:15 pm
• Wallkill Central School District – MS dismissed at 11:05 am, ES dismissed at noon

Putnam County

• Haldane Central School District – ES and MS have a half-day

Ulster County

• Kingston City School District – K-8 have an early dismissal, Pre-K-4 dismissed at noon, Grades 5-8 dismissed at 11 am
• Marlboro Central School District – MMS dismissed at 10:30 am, MES dismissed at 11:30 am

Westchester County

• Briarcliff Manor Union Free School District – Todd Elementary dismissed at 11:15 am
• Eastchester Union Free School District – MS dismissed at 10:50 am, AH/GV dismissed at 11:30 am, WV dismissed at 11:40 am
• Elmsford Union Free School District  – Alice E. Grady Elementary School dismissed at 11:15 am, Carl L. Dixson Primary School dismissed at 11:35 am
• Pelham Union Free School District – Colonial, Prospect Hill, and Siwanoy dismissed at noon
• Poughkeepsie City School District – ES has a half-day, MS had an early release
• Yonkers Public Schools – Pre-K-8 has a half-day, Schools starting at 8:35 a.m. will dismiss at 12 pm, Schools starting at 7:35 a.m. will dismiss at 11 am

The post These NYC Area Schools Will Dismiss Students Early Today Due To Extreme Heat appeared first on Secret NYC.

* This article was originally published here

Starting next month on July 3, New Yorkers will be able to satisfy their hunger pangs at a new Smorgasburg market at The Shed by Hudson Yards.

Featuring a total of 30 vendors spread across two days—Wednesdays and Thursdays from 11am to 6pm through August 22—the summer pop-up will take over The Shed’s outdoor public plaza while the structure’s iconic shell is retracted for the season.

Just as is the case across other Smorgasburgs, the on-site culinary offerings will run the gamut in terms of form and function.

Among the confirmed vendors are BiBi Bakery, a purveyor of “reimagined Iranian-inspired desserts,” Black Rican Vegan, Red Hook Lobster Pounds (a vendor since Smorgasburg first launched in 2011!) and Home Frite. A number of new businesses have also joined the market, including 88 Coffee Company, Hibiscus Brew and Kalihi.

The launch of Smorgasburg at The Shed brings the total number of market locations to four (World Trade Center, Williamsburg and Prospect Park are the other three), with New Yorkers now able to shop from at least one of them five days a week—a pretty important mark.

“Having the opportunity to now offer our vendors five days of weekly markets plus partnering with a cultural icon like the Shed is as cool as a Hudson River summertime breeze,” said Smorgasburg president and co-founder Eric Demby in an official statement. “We can’t wait to meet new friends from Hudson Yards and the High Line, and hope to come back for more next year.”

While you’re in Hudson Yards, you might as well peruse through the relatively new neighborhood at your own leisure. There are a lot of things to do on site: from visiting the highest outdoor observation deck in the Western Hemisphere to dissecting the monstrosity that is the Vessel, a 60-ton sculpture that resembles a honeycomb but really reminds us of a waste can. Perhaps, you might want to grab some fare at Smorgasburg and then spend time just staring at the structure to figure out how you feel about it yourself.

* This article was originally published here