Last Night at Hea

What VP debate? While you were huddled on your couch, wondering what Sarah Palin might say next to embarrass herself and her party, I was doing what every patriotic American should have been doing: Drinking. Also eating--delicious things like spicy tuna rolls, coconut soup, fried rice, duck and pork belly at East Village newcomer Hea (pronounced "he"), which serves Asian fusion cuisine (and cocktails) in an aesthetically pleasing environment. With low booths and small tables, the lounge-like lower level was ideal for the cocktail hour that preceded last night's press dinner--during which time I guzzled enough lychee martinis to stumble up the steps on my way to the second floor for dinner. Okay, so I missed the debate. But instead, I got a free dinner, a moderate hangover and the respect of everyone smart enough to recognize that free booze is more important than being informed.

More new and notable restaurants here.

Yet again, you woke up recently lamenting your dry mouth, your alcohol-oozing pores and your raging headache. That's when you swore off drinking. Again. For once, stick to your new determination--at least for a day--by enjoying a new kind of happy hour. Between now and September 15th (5pm-8pm), stop by the East Village outpost of Chocolate Bar, where $5 gets you a mini brownie, a truffle and either a liquid chocolate (iced hot chocolate) or a classic egg cream. While you're at it, also check out our extended list of Restaurant and Bar Deals.

Today is ANZAC Day--the Memorial Day of Australia and New Zealand. Why do we care? Because Down Under dining spots, like Kingswood, Eight Mile Creek and Wombat, are sure to be aflurry tonight. The Sunburnt Cow, for example, is hosting a tournament of Two-Up, an Australian coin toss game, and sister Bondi Road will supersize your cocktails tonight. Both places will be giving away free ANZAC biscuits, made of rolled oats, coconut and golden syrup. But you can keep your cookies. All I want for ANZAC day? Tickets to see Flight of the Conchords at Town Hall on May 6. Thank you so much for asking.

(Photo courtesy of HBO)

New York gets a little cheesier starting tomorrow, when chefs all over town will serve complimentary pecorino pastas outside at 23 restaurants, including Blue Fin, Da Silvano and One if By Land, Two if By Sea. For a listing of times and venues, click here. You can stop smiling now.

One of the most authentic Japanese restaurants in town, En is hosting a cooking demo and tasting this Sunday, April 6, at 4pm. Chef Yasuhiro Honma reveals the secret of Japanese cooking: You can prepare almost any dish with just six ingredients. The deal is sweetened with a sake tasting led by the president of Joto Sake and the owner of Marumoto Sake Brewery. The cost is $80 per person. To reserve call (212) 647-9196.

Next Monday, April 7, Savion Glover is teaming up with some of the biggest names in the New York restaurant world (Colicchio, Bloomfield, Brennan) for a night of tap and tapas. Proceeds from each $200 ticket will benefit Groove With Me, a New York-based charity that provides dance programs for at-risk girls in East Harlem. The girls will be performing with Glover, and the chefs will provide the snacks. Sounds like a good cause, and a toe-tapping, belly-busting good time, as well. Tickets can be purchase from the Groove With Me website.

With all due respect to Bob Geldof and the Boomtown Rats, I do like Mondays--at least as a night to eat out. Restaurants tend to be emptier as the rest of the city recovers from the weekend and there are some great deals to take advantage of around town. Here are two to kick the week off right on 3/31.

The "Greens"--the James Beard Foundation's foodies-under-40 set--will be hosting a seven-course dinner paired with sake at Asian tapas spot Kuma Inn. Know your gingo from your daigingo alongside bites like wasabi pork shumai and adobo duck with a soy, garlic and vinegar marinade. $70 for members; $85 for non-members. Advance reservations required: (212) 627-2308.

If you're on more of a budget, The East Village's sexy snack spot, the Bourgeois Pig, sells every bottle of wine on the list $60 and under for half price on Monday nights.

U.S. farmers once called huitalacoche "devil's corn." After looking at it, can you blame them? But the corn-attacking fungus is a delicacy in Mexico, where it is harvested and used in a variety of dishes. In celebration of its second anniversary, Crema's chef Julieta Ballesteros is creating a daily changing, three-course menu ($40) built around huitalacoche, which will add an earthy bite to dishes like chowder and risotto. The menu runs from March 31 through April 5, until 8pm daily. Hey, if Momofuku Ssam Bar can get away with serving moldy ham, this should be an easy sell.

(Photo courtesy of TheMexicanDentist.com)

Plain-old haggis? Not all that dare-worthy. Free haggis "hot dogs" from a temporary street cart near Times Square? I double-dog dare you. Prove your foodie mettle at this Scotland Week event, at the corner of 52nd Street and Broadway (near the Continental Airlines billboard), April 4th and 5th, 11am to 5pm. After this, dirty-water hot dogs will seem like kids stuff.

(Photo courtesy of Edzell.org)

What better timing for World Water Week than one that starts with a booze binge? While rehydrating, consider donating $1 for your tap water at participating restaurants around town. Over 300 diverse eateries, from Le Bernardin to Lucky Cheng's, will donate that buck to UNICEF's Tap Project, which provides clean drinking water to children around the world. So while the beer may erode the memory of your spastic bar-top jig, donating a dollar for water eases the conscience, softens the hangover and gives a kid clean water for 40 days. Click here for participating restaurants through 3/22.