Free Food!

With the recent flurries in NYC this week, its hard to say whether we are stuck in winter or maybe, just maybe spring is around the corner. Either way, this cold spell gives me a great excuse to continue my winter munch out. That and the fact that Passover officially ends tommorow, 4/10/07!
Today's New York Post features a great article about bar food. Apparently the whole gastropub thing is really popular with NYC's foodie community. Has anyone ever been to The Spotted Pig? The chef (its a she!) was just named Best Chef in 2007 by Food and Wine magazine.

Award winning chefs aside, bar food usually implies nothing fancy. A couple weeks ago, we started our night out at the Crocodile Lounge ( 25 E. 14th St., between Second and First Aves) and indulged in free pizza (you get a pie with your drink!!), not so cheap drinks, and several rounds of $.50 skee ball! The night only got better as we headed down to No Malice Palace (197 E. 3rd Street ) to dance away some pizza calories. As the rain poured down in Alphabet City (is there a reoccurring theme here?) we drank, smoke and gave thanks for free pizza pie! While the night ended in a not-so successful endeavor to meet nearby corporate hotties, I am speaking for everyone present when I say free pizza and dance parties cannot be beat!

So, with that, I present you a list of bars that serve "complimentary snacks" as compiled by the New York Post.

On Monday nights, Professor Thoms' (219 Second Ave.; [212] 260-9480) hands out free thin- crust pizzas - usually $8.95 - with any pitcher of beer, while Standings (43 E. Seventh St.; [212] 420-0671) serves saucy, cheesy pies every Friday night. A veritable bar mitzvah buffet awaits at Ama (48 MacDougal St.; [212] 358-1707), a hidden gem in SoHo featuring the cuisine of Puglia. Every weekday from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., chef Turibio Girardi serves "L'ora dell'Aperitivo" - an Italian-style happy hour complete with cocktails ($10) and a farmhouse-table buffet overflowing with prosciutto, salami, cheeses and more, alongside hot appetizers such as spinach frittatas and potato croquettes. At Tarallucci e Vino (15 E. 18th St.; [212] 228-5400), you're served a complimentary assortment of mini pizzettes, frittatas, olives and fresh-baked savory spinach and cheese pastries. Many bars are also serving seriously addictive higher-end snack foods, such as truffled popcorn and spiced gaufrettes (waffle potato chips) at HQ (90 Thompson St.; [212] 966-2755), homemade caramel corn at Amalia, (204 W. 55th St.; [212] 245-1234), and platters of Parmesan- and smoked paprika-dusted malfatti chips - fried pieces of misshapen pasta dough - at Dani (333 Hudson St.; [212] 633-9333). At Pair of 8s (568 Amsterdam Ave.; [212] 874-2742), a new two-for-one themed happy hour (5:30-7:30 p.m.) offers a pair of signature cocktails for just $8. Chef Matt Hamilton also serves free house-made potato chips and a daily freebie from the bar menu such as shrimp fritters with ginger and chili. At European Union (235 E. Fourth St.; [212] 254-2900), chef Akhtar Nawab stocks his bar with beer-swilling eats such as cazuelas of fried pancetta dusted with chili powder and chunks of German hunter's sausages.