Need a New Marko's Punk Rock Jukebox T-shirt for the Spring?

The new Marko's Punk Rock Jukebox and WCNI t-shirts are available through the WCNI radiothon that is going on now through March 8.
A mere $35 donation will get you a t-shirt, and WCNI long-sleeved t-shirts are to be had for a $40 donation...860-439-2850/2851.
Support college radio AND look spiffy!

Restaurant review: Dev's on Bank Street

This past weekend consisted of two separate trips to the Hygienic Show in New London - the first trip, I was able to introduce someone to the fabulous North Indian restaurant on State Street and, second trip, I was introduced to the amazing Dev's.

I had heard how great this place is, and boy, is everyone right! It has a nice atmosphere and great specials. During happy hour, a glass of wine is $2, well drinks are $3. And not shabby, either! The tapas menu is wonderful, reasonably priced and has lots of options. The meataterians in our group were as happy with the selections as I was. We ordered a few plates each, and not only were the dishes beautiful, they were incredibly delicious. Every dish tasted completely different from the others, and if you don't think it's enough food, it is. The portions aren't huge, but this is not a place where you just shovel the food in- you have to really take your time and appreciate it.

We tried the following: Cumin-Lime Chicken, Crab Cakes, Shrimp Espanola, Mongolian Pork Bar-B-Que Ribs, Crispy Pork Meatballs, Painted Grapes, American Mac and Cheese, Si Si Pollo, Papa San's Spring Rolls, Roma Mushrooms and for dessert, bananas foster & churillos with hot chocolate sauce.

To even try to describe how divine this all was is impossible. When one of the co-owners came to our table and asked how we liked it, I blurted out "Well, we're talking about porn, so the food must be exquisite! Only really great food is that sexy!"

So, this may be my new favorite place to eat. But be warned: during a normal happy hour, I hear it's really busy in there. But I'm sure with the presence of Bunny and the fabulous staff, it's quite bearable. If this place was located, say, in Stonington Borough, it would be snooty as hell - but the staff & owners are down-to-earth & nice, so it's a very comfortable place to have a leisurely meal.

So, who's taking me out to dinner?

Eight!

That is the number of years that J10X and I have been together....Happy Anniversary, pootie-pie!

(I'm pretty sure one of these guys is J10X.....)

Hygienic XXX - Opening Night

....and my day and night did end up getting better!

We started off the evening's festivities by having some delicious sushi at the Asian Bistro - J10X, being the brave one, sampled scallop and sea urchin for the first time: scallop was the winner in this taste test!

Then we flew off to New London. It didn't look as though we were going to get a parking spot anywhere near downtown and it was bloody freezing out. So, we drove along a couple of streets and magically found a spot right in front of the Dutch Tavern- booyah! So, we wetted our whistles with a pint before heading out into the cold. I was pleased to see my fave barkeep, Chris, wearing a t-shirt with my merstrippers on it....

We stopped in the Golden Street Gallery and the exhibit was a ton of photos and other ephemera from the 1988 Hygienic Arts weekend- it was really interesting and also kind of amusing to see pics of people that had participated in years past...

After a grueling block and a half walk to the Carriage House (formerly the Contemporary Design Gallery), where the Rock Fixxx was happenin', we were treated to an excellent set by Superbald. The sound was great in there, it was spacious, and some of the larger art pieces were in there too. There were singles by local bands to be purchased produced by Cosmodemonic Telegraph, as well as a drag show for some benefit we coudn't quite figure out....in any case, to my benefit, I love drag shows, of the queenly variety.

After Superbald, we popped over to the Hygienic Gallery...and had to stand in line....brrrr! I did see some old friends, which was great, and huddled right next to them while catching up. The show was better than the last few years, but it did have the numbing overuse of penises and male-friendly porn overtones, but at least it wasn't due to crappy collages. Once again, I have to go back again to see everything. I was delighted to see my poster design was a poster after all! (I will shut up about this soon, I promise.) So, I purchased a few, but I do want to go back as I liked one other poster and there was another t-shirt with just a ginormous lobster claw on it, so I hope there's a few left!

(I understand there was a large lobster pinata in the Hygienic Park that was filled with adult toys....we missed it! Actually, we would have done more, but it was ridiculously and uncomfortably cold out.)

Then we went back to the Carriage House to see Paul Brockett Roadshow Band's set- I'm digging the new songs! After that, it's a bit of a blur as I must have had a brief conversation with almost everyone in there...I knew so many people it was crazy! A gentleman who went to school with me at UConn actually recognized me - he's very nice and it was nice to reconnect. The odd thing is he works with my friend Trevor.......who is in Superbald with Ben....who is my supervisor's brother-in-law.....the six degrees thing was in full force! We watched a few songs by Fatal Film, and then we decided it was time to go- but not before having a nightcap at the Dutch. It was still nicely uncrowded (except for the jackass coughing on my beer so I would give up my seat- ok, pal, and here's your snide remark! Enjoy!), so it actually was a relaxing last pint before heading home.

So, the evening was a hit as a whole- lots of socializing, nice spaces, eye candy and good bands. The festivities go on through Feb. 14, so check 'em out!