This week in NYC, marked

8/10 – 8/16: Corn is the theme of this newsletter. Plus: a new vinyl bar, the pop-up pizza you need, and my trip to Maine.

Open for business

Spots on my radar that just opened – or are already accepting reservations.

• Don’t Matter (opened 8/5): Vinyl and cocktails in a new Dumbo listening bar.

• Graciela (opened 7/14): An Argentine tavern in the West Village from the team behind Don Julio, the Michelin-starred Buenos Aires steakhouse that shows up on World’s 50 Best lists.

• Street Blends (soft opened 7/10): A new caffeine shop on Mott, just off Houston, with drink specials like guava matcha, or earl grey tea lattes.

• Ven.archive (opened 8/5): My husband’s favorite store, Ven.Space (a multi-brand menswear shop in Carroll Gardens), just opened a second outpost a few blocks away. It’s a two-floor archive space stocked with past-season pieces and one-off samples.

This week in NYC

My favorite things to do between 8/10 – 8/16.

• A summer BBQ at Bridges (8/10): Bridges, the Michelin-starred restaurant in Chinatown, is hosting a summer cookout with Barbichette Wines pouring.

• Poetry night at a wine bar (8/13): June Wine in Cobble Hill is turning its courtyard into a night of seasonal wines paired with readings, curated by two local poets.

• Happy Medium pops up in Prospect Park (8/13): Happy Medium, the art cafe and studio, is leading a life-drawing session at Prospect Park’s carousel, sketching the horses as they go around.

• An Italian restaurant’s dining room becomes a dance floor (8/15): Balera is throwing a party for Ferragosto: the Italian holiday every August 15th when much of the country shuts down and heads to the coast for one last blowout before summer starts winding down. Pizza and cold drinks until the DJ takes over.

• Diljan Bakery’s pop-up pizza (8/15-8/16): Diljan‘s Afghan pastries are some of my favorites in the city, and I’ve heard incredible things about the pizza. They’re making flavors like kofta leek sumac pie.

• Misty Copeland’s Ballet Festival (through 8/16): World-class dancers at the Joyce, with a benefit night curated by Misty Copeland.

• Six years of Edy’s Grocer (8/16): Edy’s Grocer, the pantry and café in Greenpoint, is having a block party to celebrate six years with food and music, plus an ice cream truck parked outside.

• Live music at Elizabeth Street Garden (8/16): The free Sunday concert series continues at the beloved Nolita community garden. Bring a blanket and sit under the trees.

It’s corn

Corn season, marked. The best corn dishes on menus right now, sweet and savory, showing up in places you wouldn’t expect.

• Za’atar corn ribs at Cleo in the West Village. I tried these last week on my first visit and would order them again on every return trip. Luckily, they seem to be a menu fixture, not a seasonal special.

• The smoked corn BLT at Edith’s, which has locations in both Williamsburg and the West Village, and which I’d rank (personally) as the best sandwich in the city. I convinced myself I needed to try it again last week, purely for research purposes. It’s only around while their heirloom tomatoes and corn are actually in season, a very short window, so go now.

• A corn and blueberry soft serve twist at Leo, the Williamsburg pizza spot that rotates its soft serve flavors. Confirmed it’s still on for this coming week.

• A corn cookie at Culture Espresso in Midtown, sweet with a little savory edge. It’s a standing menu item, but corn season is the perfect excuse to get one.

• A corn and brown sugar ice cream sandwich at Poppy’s. It sold out before Friday was even over this past weekend. Poppy’s told me it’ll be back this coming weekend (Friday through Sunday) at their Outpost location on the Columbia Street waterfront, once they’ve restocked.

• Classic elote at Tacoway Beach, the Rockaway taco stand, a staple of their summer menu.

• Corn ice cream at Lai Rai in Chinatown, which I featured in my NYC summer bucket list. It’s the natural wine bar where you can get scoops of pretty unusual ice cream flavors alongside your glass, and corn might be the one they’re most known for.

• A blackberry corn croissant at Hani’s Bakery in NoHo, roasted corn custard and fresh blackberries folded in. Only on the menu about two months a year, so this is the window.

Somewhere else worth going

You can get to Maine faster than you can get to the Hamptons.

Last week I took a trip to Maine and needed to share how easy it was for a last-minute weekend getaway. The flight from New York to Portland is cheap and easy enough that you could probably pull off a day trip, though I’d give it the full weekend. I ate and shopped my way through Portland, then stayed at a life-changing hotel and found a waterfront sauna and a pick-your-own flower farm. All the details, including my favorites from many past trips, are in Southern Maine, marked.

If you run a restaurant, bar, hotel, or brand and think there’s a good fit for something together in Marked, email me at team@markedbymorgan.com.