pub and culture

On Saturday we decided to defy Daylight Savings time and head down to the Lower East Side for an evening out. One of our favorite bands, The Tossers, were playing, and we hadn't seen them in a while. Since the weather is warming up, we've felt more like going out too, so this was the perfect opportunity.

We got to Mercury Lounge just as the opening band (The Mighty Stef -- good stuff) were finishing up, and who did I end up standing beside in a back corner but Bono himself (The Mighty Stef are from Dublin, which might have something to do with it). Anyway, after I'd gotten over the shock that I'd just brushed elbows with one of the most famous people on Earth, Ian and I made our way up to the front so we could stand at the foot of the stage. It was a great show, and we did get to dance in the pit for a little while (long enough for us to get a good workout and then for me to get punched in the jaw -- don't worry, not even a bruise).

I couldn't get to a spot where I could get the whole band at once, but I put the pictures together and voila!

T, the lead singer-slash-mandolin player, stores his cigarette between the strings during songs. I could do without the smoke wafting right in my face, but I think it's ingenious anyway.

When the show ended, we walked over to get a late dinner at Katz's Delicatessen, the famous deli that's been in several movies, like When Harry Met Sally and, more recently, Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist. The place was packed with people ordering heaps and heaps of food. I hear the pastrami is fantastic. We tried the corned beef, though, and it was chewy and fatty -- not the juicy, tender meat we're used to. It's one of those places every New Yorker should go to at least once. But I'm pretty sure once is enough.

We've walked by this place dozens of times on various excursions, but I never realized this was the Katz's.

You can either sit down and get waited on, or line up like this crazy group here. There are lots of things to look at while you wait, like big tubs of pickles, hanging sausages, and hundreds of celebrity photos.

I thought Ian might like the pickles here...I think I should just give up on him being a pickle guy.

I tried valiantly to bite through this corned beef sandwich, but ended up having to use a knife and fork. Not the way corned beef should be!

When you come in, be sure to grab a ticket. At the end of the meal, you have to turn it in to the cashier marked with what you ordered.

So when we'd had our fill of corned beef sandwiches, pickles, French fries, coleslaw, knishes, and chocolate egg cremes, we turned in our tickets and made our way home. And slept til nearly noon...Eastern Daylight Time.

PS Watch The Tossers play with Andrew's band, The Scrubbers, in Milwaukee on St. Patrick's Day!