30 to Midnight

manqué or prosperikey?

The thing about the end of the year, the one sole thing, is the opportunity to contemplate the passing of another twelve months. Did we accomplish all we set out to in 2009? Did we accomplish anything? This is the kind of thinking that (a) motivates people, (b) paralyzes people, (c) buys things for therapists, (d) makes Age an issue.

Whichever boat you fall into (hoping you actually make it into a boat), we think you should know that we learnt a new word. We're not saying we necessarily feel this word applies to us, but we have spent approximately more than two minutes considering it.

man⋅qué  [mahng-key; Fr. mahn-key]
–adjective
having failed, missed, or fallen short, esp. because of circumstances or a defect of character; unsuccessful; unfulfilled or frustrated (usually used postpositively): a poet manqué who never produced a single book of verse.

Happy New Year! Haha. This is so dark. Our intention was to illustrate Age Appropriate thinking. Lovely picture we painted. Hey, at least we painted a picture. Now we're talking. Positivikey. We're not washed up yet (so many water cliches today). Let's take a right good-will draught, for auld lang syne.

Bar Veloce, Chelsea

Saturday, 9:30pm

Bar Veloce
176 7th Ave. (21st St.), Manhattan

One great thing about this restaurant bar is that is really is a bar with food (if we said bar restaurant would that have made sense?).
We know you know there's an East Village location (175 Second Ave., 11th St.; this is the shooting location; can you believe that was 2002?) and a SoHo location (17 Cleveland Pl., Spring St.). We like those too and we really should go into some depth about the nuances of each one but we're thinking about other things today and, anyway, we're a site about Age. Bar Veloce is AABM. We haven't pulled out that term in weeks.

Air Quality InAppropriate, Definition

Air Quality InAppropriate [ah-eer-kwol-i-tee-in-uh-proh-pree-it]
–noun, adjective

1. a measurement of the pollutants (e.g. smoke, grease, Age InAppropriates) that render the air disadvantageous for Age Appropriates.

Antonyms: Air Quality Appropriate

Abbreviation: AQIA

Zocalo, Grand Central Station

Friday, 9pm

Grand Central Zócalo
Dining Concourse, Grand Central

Sara thinks she had a birthday once at the original Zócalo (174 E. 82nd St., Manhattan) which is now Flex Mussels. Things are always changing (though Flex uses Zócalo's old phone number: 212-717-7772). Anyway, we think this gloomy picture of a colorful Mexican restaurant will be pleasing to all. We've had dinner at Grand Central Zócalo. It's pretty good, especially if you've had a half-off margarita (4-6pm, M-F) before boarding a train to New Haven. The bar, however, is not so good, as mentioned in our GCT round-up. AA, yes. AQA, no. 

Air Quality Appropriate, Definition

Air Quality Appropriate [ah-eer-kwol-i-tee-uh-proh-pree-it]
–noun, adjective

1. a measurement of the superiority or distinction of air that is auspicious for Age Appropriates.

2. a designation by The Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards to signify appropriateness in atmosphere surrounding any person over-30.

Note: May be used in reference to lack of smoke, smelly grease, and/or anyone under-30.
Note 2: The Clean Air Act requires periodic review of the science upon which the standards are based and the standards themselves.

Abbreviation: AQA

The Oyster Bar, Grand Central Station

Friday, 8:30pm

The Grand Central Oyster Bar
Grand Central, Lower Level
E. 42nd Street, Manhattan

We were impressed by the quantity of Age Appropriates in the bar at the Oyster Bar. In the lounge, we should say. We assume you already know the food here is good, but have we told you we're fans of chowder (though we know when to root Manhattan over New England)? Wow is that an amazing sentence. Really. We talk this way too. Easy to follow. 

Cipriani Dolci, Grand Central Station

Friday, 6:30pm

Cipriani Dolci
Grand Central, West Balcony
Vanderbilt Ave. (43rd St.), Mahattan

The bar here is great if you get a seat because the maître d' keeps the hoardes out of the narrow space, meaning you can sit and drink and snack in relative peace. And mostly everyone around you will be about your age. Excellent.

Jacques, Upper East Side

Monday, 7pm

Jacques
204-206 East 85th St. (Third Ave.), Manhattan

Sara used to have a post office box at the post office across from Jacques. She wondered if it was a good place. Now she knows it is not, if you're talking about food. If you're talking about a little AA bar and the look of the place, it's great. Wine by the glass? Not so great.

Muldoon's, Midtown East

Friday, 9:45pm

Muldoon's
692 Third Ave. (43rd St.), Manhattan

When The Moody Blues are singing and more than half the crowd knows all the words, you know you're in an Age Appropriate bar. Since it's Karina's daytime local (yes, DAYtime local), we had high hopes, and they were met, which may or may not be how we ended up in a $300 Superbowl box, and is surely how we got some special treatment, which we so love and appreciate. 

Here's one side of the text conversation Sara had with someone she thought might join the fun:
10:02pm -Drinks happening. Karina says hi.
11:35pm -Shots and extra drinks happening.
11:48pm -I'm in college. It's ugly
12:17am -I'm at Muldoon.S
12:20am -Are you coming? Might be drunk. Third Ave 43
12:27am -Are you coming heidi
12:41am -Are you coming hen
12:45am -
12:46am -Another shot
1:05am -Cab

If not for the wonderful scarfed-down burger and onion rings, circa 10:30pm, Saturday would have been gruesome. Instead, it was merely grim. We will most definitely be back to Muldoon's.
I wonder if you know; I wonder if you think about it

p.s. "heidi" and "hen" were attempts to type "here"

Capital Grille, Midtown East

Friday, 9pm

The Capital Grille
155 East 42nd St. (3rd Ave.), Manhattan

We really wanted to sit at the bar and have a decent glass of wine and a somewhat expensive but mostly delicious burger, but didn't want to combat the tourist and other non-resident vultures waiting to pounce on any smidgen of available space. Nor did we want them behind us once we did sit. We considered nudging out the youngest of the seated AAs. We didn't.  The verdict: Lively, Age Appropriate, pretty fly for a chain in midtown, if eating at the bar: sit at your own peril.