Category Archives: festival

art of fine dining, dinner, family, festival, fish fry, food, ISO - fish fry, Karen Tashkovski, live music, music, restaurant, restaurants

ISO Fish Fry – The Fish Friar

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Kathy and I went downtown on Saturday night to hang at the Italian Festival, which happens every year around this time (except last year because of the Covid situation). There was Italian food and music, and cover band dance music under tents and on two different stages around City Hall in Syracuse, New York.

Although I have a lot of Italian friends and recently found a lot of Italian in my own DNA, I don’t particularly like Italian food, Luckily, Kathy treated me to dinner at The Fish Friar, which is located right across from City Hall in downtown Syracuse.

Presentation: As you can see from the pictures, the presentation is divine. These fish sandwiches were $15 and came with two sides. Kathy selected house salad and macaroni salad and I had the roasted carrots and coleslaw.

Taste: Although I ate everything on my plate, I thought it was too salty (don’t hate me The Fish Friar fans). It was saltier than I remembered it from eating it the last time I was there.

Restaurant Experience: The restaurant is adorable! Small but comfortable. We ate outside at one of about five tables. The bathroom is very clean as well. :). The service was spectacular. It was such a beautiful night. We enjoyed the sound of the local cover band, Hard Promises, playing on the large stage set up for Italian Fest and later got all front and center to dance and sing along. We also spotted our cousins who strolled by and stopped to chat. Overall, it is an amazing place for a dinner date.

Location: The Fish Friar is located at the corner of Washington and Montgomery Streets in Syracuse, NY. They are open Tuesday-Saturday from 11:00 am – 9:00 pm and Saturdays from 4:00 pm – 9:00 pm. They offer an on-line service on their website. Call (315) 468-FISH for the deets.

Parking: There is no parking lot for The Fish Friar. Street parking only. Because there is currently so much construction on the roads in the city and many streets were blocked off for this immense Italian block party, we parked in a pay lot by the Civic Center and walked over. <3

accessories, art, clothing, fashion, festival, jewelry, Karen Tashkovski, outdoor art

Art City

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I visited with four friends in their tents on Montgomery Street yesterday.  They are all participating in the AmeriCU Syracuse Arts & Crafts Festival, which continues today from 10 am – 5 pm.  The festival occupies and includes four streets around Columbus Circle in downtown Syracuse, New York.

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Barbara Conte-Gaugel sells unique, handmade handbags and wallets.

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John Oneal Heard (johnonealheard@gmail.com) is also a drummer.  His paintings on glass reference music.

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Charlie Sam creates whimsical illustrations on T-shirts.  They are known as having a “both cute and creepy” dichotomy.

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And, of course, Michelle DaRin.  I love her vibe – and feel privileged to be among her tribe. <3

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art, festival, Karen Tashkovski, music, photography, sculpture

Lighting The Way

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I managed to convince a dozen friends to meet me at the Chinese Lantern Festival last week.  It was my birthday, a week night, and it was sunny here for the first time in over a week.  Perfect conditions to enjoy this exquisite happening at the New York State Fairgrounds in Syracuse, New York.

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You enter at Gate 6 and follow the signs to the parking lot inside the fairgrounds.  The event is open every night (except Mondays) from 5:30 – 10:00 pm until June 24, 2017.  It is $15 per person but they have daily specials; there was a $2 discount last Thursday for “best friends day” in addition to it being my special day!  Check their Facebook posts here.  I think there is another deal coming up for Father’s Day this weekend.

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We arrived at around 7:00 pm.  There are a few food vendors and an ice cream truck, and a bunch of crafts to purchase from booths at the far end of the festival enclosure.  At 8:30 pm, performers take the stage – acrobat and rhythmic gymnastic style stuff with Asian melodies and lavish costumes.

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By 9:00 pm the sky becomes that beautiful Prussian blue before turning dark then the statues transition into glowing visions of beauty.  What an incredible light show and photo opportunity.  It is truly a magnificent experience!  Once you witness it, well…I think it is unforgettable.  So worth the admission price.  I am so grateful that my friends indulged this whim of mine.  Thank you, thank you, thank you!  I love you all sooooo muchy-much. <3

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art, art education, art exhibition, art resources, ceramics, festival, Karen Tashkovski, museum, sculpture

New Packaging

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I strolled through the Everson Museum of Art today (401 Harrison Street, Syracuse, NY 13202).  In the basement wing, they’ve flipped the Education Center with the Ceramics section and created a gorgeous inviting space for part of the ceramics collection (the rest, like the Robineau funerary urn, is in storage).

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It is spectacular!  The art looks fresh again.  You can actually enjoy the nuances of individual pieces and appreciate them for their craft.  The Everson has a very large collection of ceramics.  I’m not sure if it is one of the largest in the country, but something like that.  The old shelves made the collection look like it was all in storage, like they never really wanted people to look at it.  I remember taking students on a field trip there once and there was so much stuff, it read like junk and nobody looked at anything.  

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The museum has never looked better!  We have this incredible resource right here in Syracuse, NY.  So great.  I was delighted to see a handful of visitors there.  They are charging a fee to get in these days, but it is free for Everson Museum members.

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EVERSON MUSEUM OF ART HOURS:

SUNDAY 12-5
MONDAY CLOSED
TUESDAY CLOSED		 WEDNESDAY 12-5
THURSDAY 12-8
FRIDAY 12-5
SATURDAY 10-5

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Next week they are installing the Festival of Trees, so maybe you can plan an outing for that!  Call (315) 474- 6064 for more information or visit their web-site www.everson.org.

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art, festival, Karen Tashkovski, painting

Family Affair

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The Macedonian Festival is in full swing this weekend at St. George Macedonian Eastern Orthodox Church in Syracuse, New York.

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They open at noon today for hours of ethnicity – food, music, dance and church tours.

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My father is a chef – retired now, but he spent all day yesterday in the kitchen.  My mother brought in her arsenal of décor and costumes to display on the stage in the reception hall.

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Lots of red!

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The interior of the church is spectacular.  An iconographer from the monastary created breathtaking murals on canvas that were adhered to every wall.  I love the blue starry ceiling!

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I am an iconongrapher too!  OMG, I painted a picture of St. George when I was eighteen.  It was a project using only the primary colors and black and white so, keep that in mind before you judge, lol.

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My painting has actually been blessed and resides above the candle kiosk.  So, even though I am not technically a member of the church anymore (I haven’t paid my dues since the ’80s) I still maintain a small presence there, which is very special.

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Macedonia is a country for those of you who have never heard of it.  It is one of five countries that were once part of the former Yugoslavia.  I think it goes by Former Yugoslavia Republic of Macedonia or something.  For more information about Macedonia, check out the latest issue of National Geographic magazine!

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Here is the link to the festival’s Facebook page.  The church has a web-site too.  Check out the festival today (noon-11:00 pm) or tomorrow (noon-7:00 pm) – or both!  5083 Onondaga Road (Route 173) Syracuse, New York 13215

Folk dancing is a guilty pleasure.  It’s so much fun and great cardio!  Especially to the sounds of Merak, a group of guys who have been playing together since they were preschoolers – they are amazing!