Crains New York - June 11, 2012 - (Page 27)

flickr.com/chemex INSATIABLE CRITIC Gael Greene Feeling the burn on Curry Hill THE WEEK AHEAD JUNE 18-24 CONFERENCES AND SEMINARS THURSDAY, JUNE 21 The New York State Bar Association sponsors REPRESENTING THE POLITICAL CANDIDATE IN NEW YORK. The updated version of the workshop will explore the complexities of representing political clients under New York’s election laws. The seminar, which provides education credits for attorneys, takes place from 8:30 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. at the New York Hotel Pennsylvania, 401 Seventh Ave. Tickets are $110 for members and $205 for nonmembers. To register, visit www.nysba.org. Tickets are $130 for members and $150 for nonmembers. Email tina@griddycity .com or call (917) 514-8112. WEDNESDAY, JUNE 20 Join WNYC AND RICHARD HAKE at Meet @ WNYC, an LGBT networking event. Richard Hake, host of The Takeaway, and WQXR Vice President Graham Parker will host a professional LGBT networking event presented by WNYC, the Manhattan Chamber of Commerce LGBT Business Committee and Out Professionals. The event will take place at The Greene Space, 44 Charlton St., from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. Tickets are $40 and include hors d’oeuvres and drinks. To purchase tickets, visit www.wnyc.org/ events/127688 or call (646) 829-4000. G Lexington Avenue eatery brings the heat of Asian fusion buck ennis WHAT HE’S READING WHEN HE’S NOT RUNNING Macy’s Inc., Chief Executive Terry Lundgren is reading about how to run it even better. He’s in the middle of Taking People With You, by David Novak, the CEO of Yum! Brands. “It’s very much aligned with some of the things I think about,” Mr. Lundgren said. “The only way to make big things happen is to surround yourself with strong, talented people who share your enthusiasm.” Mr. Lundgren is eager to dig into an antique edition of the collected poems of Dylan Thomas. But for now, he’s busy with Macy’s Be Book Smart campaign, which starts June 22. After raising $4.9 million for 1.6 million books last year, Mr. Lundgren is hoping to again pass the million-book mark by asking customers to donate $3 at the register for a $10-off coupon. “The goal is to get books in front of kids, and that costs money,” he said. —ADRIANNE PASQUARELLI CULTURAL EVENTS SATURDAY, JUNE 23 Join BARUCH COLLEGE AND THE ADHUNIKA FOUNDATION for an evening of festivity celebrating Bangladeshi women. The event will take place at Baruch Performing Arts Center, 55 Lexington Ave., from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Tickets range from $40 to $100. To purchase tickets, visit www.baruch.cuny.edu/calendar/. SUNDAY, JUNE 24 Join celebrity chef TOM COLICCHIO for an event honoring chef Gerry Hayden. The evening will feature Mr. Hayden’s culinary colleagues dishing up their favorite foods at this fundraiser benefiting ALS research. The event will take place at Colicchio & Sons, 85 10th Ave., from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. Tickets are $250. To purchase, visit www.giveforward.com/haydensheroes or email paulagivingroom@gmail.com. —eva saviano o to Singapura to revel in a full peppery blast. Don’t bother going if you’re not into the burn. It’s probably silly to hit this tricked-out, narrow little storefront in Curry Hill for anything less than the multilingual flavors of Thailand, Malaysia, India and Hakka China, at least as Singapura attempts them. I am going for the real deal on my first visit, letting my companions, a Tiger from Singapore and a Lion from Malaysia, handle the ordering. We’re amused by the use of the abacus as room divider and decor, and by the bold march of blowsy lotus lampshades—red, scarlet, turquoise, Astroturf green—just above our heads. My pals debate what to try in the various categories. They are brutally critical. Clearly homesick for these familiars—Indian paneer, Hakka noodles, Malay rendang, Indonesian beef semur—they are not about to yield a unit of jolt on the Scoville heat scale. I listen to their mourning that the sauce on the Malay boiled egg is not as torrid as that of our chili-detonated paneer cheese stew—a five-alarm fire. Inside its layer of crunch, the cool egg white and nicely turned out yolk are a bland foil for the devilish mix of onions, shrimp paste and chili heat. It’s definitely hot enough for me.“At least the egg is perfectly cooked,”one of my companions notes. I’m biting into a Malay fried chicken wing, savoring its spicy aura, thrilled that my tongue is not too blistered to revel in the distinct layers of heat in the bright orange dipping sauce. “At home, the chicken would be more garlicky, yellower,” notes the Tiger in the Kitchen, Cheryl Tan. Well, maybe the meat is a bit dry. Backup heat arrives with a tray of sauces: more of that same layered orange dynamite, a sweet sauce, a few slivers of tiny bird peppers in vinegar. They dismiss the Hakka noodles as too bland and the Sarawak sambal udang with ginger and coconut cream as the victim of tight little shrimp. The critical expats are happier with beef semur—a complex preparation with tamarind,soy sauce and fennel—than the lamb rendang. It sits in a swamp of coconut, curry, kaffir lime and chili paste, juicy with fat,but they find the flavors wanting. I’m happy sharing both. On my second visit, I order the Malay wings, so maligned earlier, for my guests to chew on as we scan the menu. Not till I taste the “Drums of TAKING WING: Spicy “Drums of Heaven” 106 Lexington Ave. (212) 684-6842 www.singapuranyc.com SINGAPURA NETWORKING RECEPTIONS MONDAY, JUNE 18 Join Griddy City and Art21 for FETEWORKING: A NY CLOSE UP FILM SCREENING. The screening and networking event welcomes auction houses, gallerists, curators, dealers and collectors to build clientele and discover new talent. The evening will feature an open bar and hors d’oeuvres while Webby-nominated NY Close Up plays on the big screen. The screening will take place at the Eventi Hotel SkyBox, 851 Sixth Ave., with a private Griddy City reception at 6 p.m. and general admission at 6:30 p.m. CUISINE Asian fusion PRICE RANGE $10-$16 SERVING Lunch, dinner RESERVATIONS Suggested NOISE LEVEL Noisy but not impossible I can’t wait to return. I will definitely go back. I’ll let them simmer awhile. NO HATS Never again. Pick of the week To view Crain’s classified events listings, go to www.crainsnewyork.com/events Heaven”—spicy pulled-back wings, also fried—can I see the difference. They’re crunchy,too,and wildly juicy. It seems that by cautiously requesting medium-to-hot spicing on a second outing with non-Asian companions, we’ve crippled the kitchen, though I rather like the subtle flavor layering of the Malay fish curry—coconut, curry, peppercorns—and the fish itself is carefully cooked. Tonight my friends are more enthusiastic about the chicken larb than I am. Rice powder, mint and chilies are tuned too low to make up for boring crumbles of white-meat chicken. Sizzling lamb, an old favorite from the days when New York was an outpost of Szechuan, is tame, too. All five cultures are covered in the noodle choices. I consider pad Thai or Singapura curried noodles, but I have a weakness for the gumminess of rice noodles. Indeed, the marvelous drunken noodles with black soy sauce and red chilies don’t suffer at all from timid spicing. Singapura, of course, is the original name for Singapore. I’ve never been to Singapore. It’s been on my list of food destinations since long before skyscrapers chased away the legendary street stalls. I dream of tagging along one winter when the Tiger is visiting her family. In the meantime, there is restaurateur Shiva Natarajan’s modest little homage to a city of fusion. Copyright © 2012 by Gael Greene. Syndicated by www.insatiable-critic.com. Meet & Mingle WITH THE HONOREES AND THE SMALL BUSINESS COMMUNITY Crain’s welcomes noted entrepreneur and digital economy visionary Esther Dyson as the keynote speaker for this year’s event. Crain’s 2012 Top Entrepreneur Honorees: -- Clint White, President; Sean Keepers, Creative Director; and Simona Tanasescu, Vice President; WiT Media. -- Charles Feit, CEO; OnForce Solar, Inc. -- Laura Geller, President and CEO; Laura Geller Makeup. -- Matt Blumberg, Co-Founder, CEO, and Chairman; Return Path. -- Joe Meyer, President and CEO; Chinedu Echeuro, Founder; HopStop. -- Tony Shure and Colin McCabe, Co-Founders; Chop’t Creative Salad Co. DATE: Monday June 18, 2012 PLACE: Sentry Centers 730 Third Avenue TIME: Networking Breakfast: 8:00-8:30AM Program: 8:30-10:00AM REGISTER TODAY: www.crainsnewyork.com/events-smallbiz2012 Or call the Events Hotline: (212) 210-0739. For sponsorship opportunities, please contact Trish Henry at thenry@crainsnewyork.com or (212) 210-0711. June 11, 2012 | Crain’s New York Business | 27 PLATINUM SPONSOR: http://www.flickr.com/chemex http://www.wnyc.org/events/127688 http://www.wnyc.org/events/127688 http://www.nysba.org http://www.baruch.cuny.edu/calendar/ http://www.singapuranyc.com http://www.giveforward.com/haydensheroes http://www.crainsnewyork.com/events http://www.crainsnewyork.com/events-smallbiz2012 http://www.crainsnewyork.com/events-smallbiz2012 http://www.insatiable-critic.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Crains New York - June 11, 2012

Crains New York - June 11, 2012
Table of Contents
Local hospitals suffer growing pains
Meet two of the busiest property buyers in town
Sin City: Pot, pop and ponies, by the numbers
New York, New York
Brooklyn Heights morphs into retail hot spot
The Insider
Real Estate Deals
Viewpoint
Greg David: Why city’s med centers must merge or die
Small Business
Plus: NY’s top hospitals list
Classifieds
For the Record
Tourists’ ticket to exclusive events
How to overcome the tech talent shortage
Executive Moves
Dewey partner down but not out
Hot and spicy at Singapura
The Weekahead

Crains New York - June 11, 2012