A “Nightmare” of a meal at Mojito
Feb 28, 2010 Around NYC
Back in May of 2009, Kitchen Nightmares – one of my favorite shows – filmed an episode in my neighborhood, at local Cuban restaurant Mojito. It’s never a good sign for a restaurant to make it onto the show, and I felt glad that I had never eaten there before. I’ve seen plenty of episodes with rotting food and bug-covered kitchens, and I’d told myself more than once that if I ever found out I’d eaten at one of the Kitchen Nightmares restaurants, I would promptly make myself throw up just for good measure, no matter how long ago the meal had been. Seriously people, kitchens crawling with bugs; food older than my kids; staff members that act so cringe-worthy on camera I can’t even imagine how much worse they are off camera.
But my love for my websites was apparently greater than my fear of food poisoning, because I managed to snag a reservation one of the nights they were shooting and convinced The Ass to go with me. I was hoping to write it all up for Filming In Brooklyn, but of course the production made me sign so many papers I decided in the end it wouldn’t be worth the headache and kept quiet (online, anyway) about our little adventure. So, basically, we paid a babysitter to watch our kids while we paid to go eat in a restaurant that we knew to be so incredibly bad it had made it onto Kitchen Nightmares. We did this willingly, enthusiastically even.
If you ever get a chance to eat during the filming of one of these shows, you want to do it on the last night – after Chef Gordon Ramsay has worked his magic and brought the restaurant around. We were definitely not there after the make-over. The food was pretty bad. But of course, we weren’t there for the food. We were there to see the show get produced, maybe hear a few expletives straight from Ramsay’s mouth, and perhaps even get on TV.
We were seated against the back wall of the restaurant, which gave me a good view of everything that was going on, and gave The Ass a great view of the back wall and the giant boom mic that would occasionally hover over my head. I would know it was there because we’d be talking about something personal – the kids, gossip, it was a date after all! – and all of a sudden The Ass would ask me how my food was, out of nowhere. That was the only way I knew we were on camera – the cameras were zooming in on us from across the room.
The cameras got close to us only when I sent something back. Sending something back is something that I hardly ever do. I mean, something has to be just downright awful, or simply the wrong order, for me to send it back. I’m more likely to leave hungry and never ever return. But we had been told on the way in that if we didn’t like something, we should let a producer know. I let the producer know that my rice and beans were pretty gross (come on, how do you mess up rice and beans?), and I would absolutely not say that I was pushed to send them back, but I was encouraged. Or rather, the producer looked so hopeful that I would send it back that I just couldn’t let her down. So I sent it back, and got something new, and that was that. The rest of the meal wasn’t great, but wasn’t worth sending back either.
The whole time we were there, we didn’t hear any shouting, didn’t see any drama, didn’t get to watch Chef Ramsay foam at the mouth. No staff members fled in tears. All in all, kind-of a let down. Chef Ramsay did wander through the dining room a couple of times but never came to our table. This was his night to observe, to see how the staff and owners do on their own before getting his help. No fireworks.
The episode finally aired this week (you can watch the Mojito episode of Kitchen Nightmares here) and while we don’t appear in it for even a split second, it’s a good episode, you should watch. It’s fun seeing how shows are made (and I really wish I could find a way to resurrect Filming in Brooklyn without giving up on sleep entirely), so if the show comes to your town you should try to get in. But remember, if you actually want good food, try to get a reservation for the last day!
Originally posted on Selfish Mom. All opinions expressed on this website come straight from Amy unless otherwise noted. Please visit Amy’s Full Disclosure page for more information.
Tags: Filming In Brooklyn, Gordon Ramsay, Kitchen Nightmares
Win a Your Shape to get yours in shape!
Feb 24, 2010 Contest/Giveaway, Weight Loss
UPDATE: Congratulations to the winner of the Your Shape game, Christine W.!
The Challenges
So I completely killed the week five challenge for the Your Shape challenge that I’m participating in. The ten participants get weekly challenges, like drink more water (which I did OK at, not great) or walk 10,000 steps a day (which was easy when I was at home, not so much when I was sitting my ass in sessions at the Blissdom conference). But week five I was awesome on. OK, I really didn’t do anything special at all, it’s just that the challenge was to get outside every day, getting some kind of exercise, even if it was only for ten minutes. And it was the week that I was at Disney World. I walked miles and miles around the parks every day. If that challenge had happened last week, though, I would have totally lost. My family was out of town and I didn’t leave my house for four solid days. I would make an awesome hermit. That is, as long as I had access to the internet and could have things delivered to me.
Anyway, the week six challenge was to be innovative with healthy snacking. Each participant was given a Wal-Mart gift certificate to buy food to make the snacks. Only problem was, there’s no Wal-Mart anywhere near me, and they don’t sell food online. So, instead, I tried to stick to the spirit of the challenge, and I bought a few things that would help me to eat at home more. When I go out to eat, I tend to go a little crazy. It’s not that the food I’m eating is necessarily all that terrible, it’s just that I have no way of knowing the calorie content. So, I usually say “screw it” and eat whatever. Therefore, the more I eat at home, the more likely I am to eat less and better. So, I bought three things to help me cook at home more, stuff that I love to get at restaurants. That way, I can control what goes into it and know exactly how many calories I’m eating.
I love getting sandwiches in restaurants, they’re just fancier than what I make. So I bought a cast-iron panini press. I love getting nice, creamy soups in restaurants, and I like to make homemade soup but I hate cleaning my blender, so I bought an immersion blender. And last, my kids – Jake especially – are always dragging me to the coffee shop for Belgian waffles, so I bought a waffle iron. Besides eating better, I’m hoping I’ll save a little money too!
The Giveaway
What I love about the Your Shape Challenge is that it involves more than just the game. Drinking more water, walking more, these things all contribute to healthy living and weight loss. But the heart of the challenge, of course, is the Your Shape game for the Wii. And I get to give one away! (Sorry, Wii not included.)
All you have to do to enter is leave a comment stating what you weight loss or health goal is: lose ten pounds, be able to do a pull-up, walk up stairs without getting winded, etc. For a second entry, you can tweet about this giveaway (don’t forget to leave a separate comment linking to your tweet or it won’t count; instructions on how to link to your tweet can be found here). Just make sure to mention what the prize is and link back to this post, or you can just copy and tweet this:
Win a #YourShape exercise game for Wii from @SelfishMom! http://bit.ly/9se1iF
So, that’s a maximum of two entries per household, please. The comments will close at noon-ish on Friday, February 26th and random.org will draw the winner. Contest open to residents of the U.S., and shipping is available in the continental U.S. only. Entrants must be 18 years or older. For complete rules, please see my Giveaway Rules page.
Good luck!
Originally posted on Selfish Mom. All opinions expressed on this website come straight from Amy unless otherwise noted. This post has Compensation Levels of 1 and 10. Please visit Amy’s Full Disclosure page for more information.
Tags: Wii, Your Shape
Finally unpacking the kitchen
Feb 24, 2010 Amy in the Morning
Sorry, the sound level is very low on this. I love it when my laptop changes levels on things for absolutely no reason.
Disclosure: I wrote this review while participating in a Test Drive Campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Frigidaire and received a Frigidaire Refrigerator, Range/Microwave, Washer/Dryer set, and a Dishwasher to facilitate my review.
Originally posted on Selfish Mom. All opinions expressed on this website come straight from Amy unless otherwise noted. This post has a Compensation Level of 1. Please visit Amy’s Full Disclosure page for more information.
Tags: video
Interview with Antoine Fuqua, director
Feb 23, 2010 Around NYC
Since the new Richard Gere/Ethan Hawke movie Brooklyn’s Finest, which filmed almost entirely in Brooklyn, is about to be released (March 5th), I’ve been republishing a series of posts I wrote for my other blog, Filming In Brooklyn. This is the last in the series, and my favorite: an interview with the movie’s director, Antoine Fuqua.
This post first appeared on July 7th, 2008.
***
Director Antoine Fuqua didn’t grow up in Brooklyn. And he didn’t grow up in South Central L.A., where his other cop drama, Training Day, takes place. He grew up in Pittsburgh, and got his first taste of filming when a TV production moved into his neighborhood. According to Brooklyn’s Finest producer John Thompson, Mr. Fuqua went to the set every day, hanging around and figuring out what the different jobs were, and how things were done. He said to himself, I could do that.
Four teenagers from the Brownsville neighborhood where much of Brooklyn’s Finest is being shot are getting a similar chance to learn about filmmaking, but they’re not just hanging around the set: they’re actually being mentored by Mr. Fuqua. Mr. Fuqua chose four kids, based on their essays, to participate in the Fuqua Youth Film Program. They received high-tech camera equipment and instruction on how to use it, and were given assignments to complete. They got to meet with Ethan Hawke and Mr. Fuqua, and have been on the set learning how movies get made.
Below are three of the four participants in the Fuqua Youth Film Program. Shown L-R: Bryan Martin, Ethan Hawke, Lea-Sym Feyjoo, Antoine Fuqua, and Terrell Brown (not pictured: Marcus Underwood). [Photo credit: Phil Caruso]
Everyone Filming In Brooklyn spoke with was really excited about this program. They all wanted to give something back to the community that has embraced this production.
Mr. Fuqua was especially enthusiastic about giving back to the community, and about the importance of filming this movie in Brooklyn. Mr. Fuqua was able to take a few minutes during a break in shooting and speak with Filming In Brooklyn.
FIB: You could build a bodega set, and you could build a small apartment on a soundstage, and have complete control of the environment. Why was it so important for you to get into the actual spaces?
Antoine Fuqua: Well, it’s the details. You can’t build the details. You can try but you can’t really capture the details of the people, of the energy…It affects how I film, it affects the actors’ behavior, when you’re in the real environment, when you really can interact with the people who live here, it makes a big difference in what comes off emotionally on the screen.
FIB: And do you find that the crowds that gather to watch you, are they ever a distraction, or do they really just juice everybody up?
Antoine Fuqua: I mean they’re both, honestly, they’re both. They’re a good distraction. They’re always going to be a distraction because there’s some people who you’re getting in the way of their everyday life, and that’s to be expected. They’re just trying to go to work, or take care of their business. And we’re really in the way. But they juice everybody up because the majority of the people so far have been amazing. They’ve just been helpful and excited about it, you know, really cheering us on out here. And I’ve had a lot of guys come up to me and say, keep doing what you’re doing, thank you for shooting here, really appreciative. So, it’s been great.
FIB: The four teens that you gave the cameras to, are you going to follow that long-term? Are you going to see what they’re doing with those down the road?
Antoine Fuqua: Yeah, we’ll follow them long-term, absolutely. I mean, I did the same thing in the jungle, in South Central [L.A.] when I did Training Day. I took some guys with me and one of them went on and did the documentary Bastards of the Party, it was on HBO that I produced, and a few others been in a couple movies, so I always follow through with these guys. I like to stay in touch, see how they do. That’s part of the reason I’m here is to hopefully inspire other young people who don’t get to see it that often. Maybe they could find a love of filmmaking.
FIB: You’ve said about Training Day that L.A. was a character in the movie. Do you feel the same the way about Brooklyn?
Antoine Fuqua: One-hundred percent.
FIB: Could this have been done anywhere else?
Antoine Fuqua: No. Trust me, I’ve had financiers say, well, could you shoot it in Detroit? Or could you shoot it in Canada? I wouldn’t do it. I wouldn’t have done the movie. I would not have done the movie.
[At this point in the interview, Mr. Fuqua had to pause, because all sorts of commotion had broken out next to us, at the red light. A car was blaring hip-hop music, and as soon as the light turned green and that sound faded, it was replaced by an angry driver swearing and honking his horn repeatedly, trying to move along the drivers who had slowed down to see what all the people and lights and cameras were doing there under the El tracks.]
Antoine Fuqua: See? You can’t- You can’t get that in- This is Brooklyn. Brooklyn style.
Originally posted on Selfish Mom. All opinions expressed on this website come straight from Amy unless otherwise noted. Please visit Amy’s Full Disclosure page for more information.
My appliances are coming! Otherwise I’d be asleep
Feb 19, 2010 Product Review
Disclosure: I wrote this review while participating in a Test Drive Campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Frigidaire and received a Frigidaire Refrigerator, Range/Microwave, Washer/Dryer set, and a Dishwasher to facilitate my review.
Originally posted on Selfish Mom. All opinions expressed on this website come straight from Amy unless otherwise noted. This post has a Compensation Level of 1. Please visit Amy’s Full Disclosure page for more information.
Tags: appliances, Frigidaire, kitchen
Conversations with “Brooklyn’s Finest”
Feb 18, 2010 Around NYC
This week I’ve been republishing some posts from my other blog, Filming In Brooklyn, about my set visit in 2008 to the soon-to-be-released movie Brooklyn’s Finest. The movie will be released on March 5th, and I couldn’t be more excited. Antoine Fuqua, who directed Brooklyn’s Finest, also directed Training Day, one of my favorite movies. And both movies star Ethan Hawke. See why I’m excited? To top it off, this movie was shot almost entirely in Brooklyn. In a world where Vancouver shows up in just about every movie and TV show, I have a deep appreciation for directors and producers who understand that a good location can give a movie a soul.
This post first appeared on July 6th, 2008.
***
Last week, Filming In Brooklyn got the opportunity to spend a day on location in Brownsville with the cast and crew of Brooklyn’s Finest. This movie is being shot almost entirely in Brooklyn, and almost all of it is on location. We were lucky enough to be able to speak at length with several of the people responsible for getting this movie made, including director Antoine Fuqua, producer John Thompson, and screenwriter Michael C. Martin.
Filming In Brooklyn is very used to seeing jaded residents of neighborhoods like Carroll Gardens, Fort Greene, Williamsburg, and Dumbo complain about all of the negatives that accompany a film or TV shoot. Those parts of Brooklyn, with their beautiful rows of brownstones, picturesque bridge views, cute shops and restaurants, and Manhattan vistas, do get the bulk of the on-location shoots that occur in Brooklyn. It’s not unusual to see two or even three productions filming within blocks of each other, their trailers and trucks taking up blocks of valuable parking spots, their crews and equipment blocking the sidewalks. Those residents have largely gotten over the excitement of seeing stars in their midst.
Antoine Fuqua and Richard Gere under the tracks in Brownsville:
So, it was nice to see an entire neighborhood react with curiosity and excitement to a production moving in. People of all ages crowded around to see what was going on. A young man pointed across the street nonchalantly and said “Yeah, that’s Richard Gere over there.” An old man walked up to a production assistant and said “I’m ready for my close-up. Where do you want me?” And rather than keep residents far back and under control, Brooklyn’s Finest has gone out of its way to include the people of Brownsville in the process. Many of the extras live in the neighborhood. Several speaking roles went to locals. Many days, the crew sets up extra chairs and headphones so that neighborhood kids can listen in as scenes are being shot. And everyone we spoke to had great things to say about the reception that Brownsville has given the production.
Screenwriter Michael C. Martin (pictured above) told us that the neighborhood has been “incredibly cool” about hosting the production. Sitting in the shadow of the Van Dyke Houses, he related how he grew up ten blocks – two subway stops – from where they were shooting, and was excited to be there as part of the production, inspiring others in the neighborhood to follow their dreams.
Many local businesses have been used in scenes, and an apartment in the Van Dyke Houses was a key location. The Van Dyke Community Center was used repeatedly as the meal spot for the cast and crew. According to Nick Bernstein, the locations manager, donations were made to neighborhood organizations and parks, and the production will be installing grills at the Van Dyke Houses as a way of saying thank you.
Filming this production in Brooklyn was very important to all involved. Producer John Thompson mentioned that just a few years ago, economics would have prevented this movie from being made. However, he explained that New York State recently tripled its tax incentive for productions filming in New York State. Added to the tax incentive that the City of New York provides, filming in New York has become not only possible for many productions, but preferable. Previously, many TV shows and movies set in New York would do most of their filming on an L.A. soundstage, and then come to NY to shoot just a few days on location. But according to the L.A.Times, shows such as Life on Mars, Ugly Betty, Kings, and Fringe will be doing all of their filming in New York this season.
According to Thompson, the new tax incentives can represent the entire difference between a project making money or losing money. And in the case of an independent film company, which doesn’t have the finances of a huge studio to fall back on, the incentives can make a project like Brooklyn’s Finest possible. “Everybody would prefer to film an entire movie in New York City, not Toronto.”
Coming up next: Antoine Fuqua speaks with Filming In Brooklyn
Originally posted on Selfish Mom. All opinions expressed on this website come straight from Amy unless otherwise noted. Please visit Amy’s Full Disclosure page for more information.
And sluggishness wins again
Feb 18, 2010 Amy in the Morning
Originally posted on Selfish Mom. All opinions expressed on this website come straight from Amy unless otherwise noted. This post has a Compensation Level of 1. Please visit Amy’s Full Disclosure page for more information.
Tags: video
On location with “Brooklyn’s Finest,” bodega edition
Feb 17, 2010 Around NYC
In the summer of ’08 I was lucky enough to spend a day on the set of a Richard Gere/Ethan Hawke movie, Brooklyn’s Finest, for my other blog Filming In Brooklyn. I’m reposting what came out of that visit in anticipation of the movie’s March 5th release. You can see the first one here.
This was originally posted on Filming In Brooklyn on July 4th, 2008. I’ll be posting another one each evening for the rest of the week.
***
Yesterday we posted pictures of a scene being shot for Brooklyn’s Finest, of Richard Gere’s cop hearing a gunshot and running into a bodega. After several takes of that shot, they then shot the scene from inside the bodega, looking out to where Mr. Gere’s character was drinking a bottle of water before the gunshot.
Here’s the bodega as they get ready to light it.
All of the equipment had to be relocated from across the street.
This is Mr. Gere’s stand-in, taking Mr. Gere’s place during the lengthy lighting process.
Unfortunately, we weren’t able to get inside during the shoot, because it was cramped in there and absolutely nobody was allowed in who didn’t need to be there. But here’s a peek inside during the set-up (that’s director Antoine Fuqua second from the right, in the baseball cap).
It was during this set-up that Mr. Fuqua took the time to answer some questions for Filming In Brooklyn. We’ll be posting that interview tomorrow.
Originally posted on Selfish Mom. All opinions expressed on this website come straight from Amy unless otherwise noted. Please visit Amy’s Full Disclosure page for more information.
Tags: Antoine Fuqua, Brooklyn's Finest, Filming In Brooklyn, Richard Gere
