BlackBook

Ever wonder how Ren & Stimpy got on the air? Why Sam always climbed through Clarissa's window? Who came up with the song "Killer Tofu" on Doug? Me too. And in the spirit of "ask, and you shall receive" is a new book full of all the golden answers to all your '90s-nostalgia questions: SLIMED! An Oral History of Nickelodeon's Golden Age. 

Th Meatpacking's sexy steakhouse STK gets even sexier tomorrow when it opens its single greatest facet: the rooftop.

In honor of the national holiday that is National Burger Month, I'm devoting Fridays to the world's love for the juicy, dripping beast that is The Burger. First honored were the weirdest burgers, then the smallest burgers, and today, I'm honoring NYC's BIGGEST burgers. Oh yes. Size matters. Take a look at these big boys:

When two guys from Brooklyn asked themselves what they would do if they won the lottery, their answer catapulted them into opening a sandwich shop that has, within a year, expanded from a nook behind a Crown Heights inn, to its own neon-and-brick den on the Lower East Side. NYC, shake hands with new-kid-on-the-block Black Tree, where every single ingredient – from the cheesy, pork-filled sandwiches to the lilac, celery, & mint cocktails - is from Union Square's Greenmarket and farms upstate. 

Of America's culinary contributions – the apple pie, the juicy cheeseburger, the mac & cheese – perhaps its finest is The Chocolate-Chip Cookie. At its best, its gooey in the middle, warm with crisp edges, and a minefield of rich chocolate-chip chunks. And at its worst, it's simply dough and chocolate – and my, is that wonderful. But today is National Chocolate-Chip Cookie Day, when these doughy, little saucer-shaped desserts are celebrated for the joy they bring to us and the world. Here's where to find NYC's Five Best Chocolate-Chip Cookies.

When a comedian with the record-breaking #1 podcast on iTunes accidentally creates a sangria during one tipsy night by his liquor cabinet that's 20-percent alcohol…you've just got to try a glass or four. And tonight, at Sons of Essex at 7pm, you get to do exactly that when Adam Carolla hosts a tasting of his white, red, white peach, and pear-flavored sangria Mangria, alongside confirmed celebrity guests Jimmy Kimmel and Beth Ostrosky-Stern. 

Tuesday nights are an enigma. Do we continue our gin-and-tonic-and-cocktails parade and devour a plate of tilapia tacos at Barrio Chino with a date from Tinder, or do we subscribe to an evening of Netflix and pad Thai-spring roll delivery? How about none of the above. At Brasserie Beaumarchais' bi-monthly Tuesday Jazz Series, you get the relaxation of a night in with Netflix and the indulgence of a night out drinking martinis, eating seafood, and being among good-looking people for five-plus hours.

While it does not…quite… feel like spring in NY (is there such a thing?), two restaurants are doing a very good job at playing along with Mother Nature by rolling out their new spring menus, characterized by light, cold, smooth bites and fruity, bitters-filled cocktails.

In NYC, doing good is a hard thing to do; amid the packed subways to catch, under-paying jobs to compete over, and overpriced lattes to guzzle mid-stride, the full body-and-mind frenzy overtakes the intrinsic want to be a good person. But once a year, a party comes along that, for four hours, momentarily changes everything. The name: The Fortune Society's Spring Soiree, and this year's theme is A Midsummer Night's Dream (see photo) happening at The Bowery Hotel Thursday the 16th, from 9pm to 1am. 

Now that Midtown East's classy American bistro Lexington Brass has launched their DIY Bloody Mary Bar, weekend brunchers everywhere can drink Their Perfect Bloody Mary. The Sunday & Saturday afternoon addition equips you with your own little checklist of ingredients – from spirit to rim to spice – that you mark with a pencil, hand to the bartender, and watch (and salivate) as they make their mixing magic with your choices.