This is probably old hat to most New Yorkers, but the hottest sweet treat to hit London in 2010 is the Whoopie Pie.  They might look like bizarre rejects from La Duree, but these are not so much giant misshaped macaroons  as a sort of sandwich of cookies with a cream filling from New England. Harrods have recently upped the ante and made this  school break snack into a bona fide gourmet delicacy, with flavours including red velvet, pistachio and gingerbread.

However, Harrods is not the only place in London you can sample some whoopie goodness, Hummingbird Bakery has been doing them for ages, and I’m pretty sure I spotted some at Happening Bagels in Finsbury Park.

New Yorkers are spoilt for choice when it comes to whoopie, but the pies at Baked and Magnolia Bakery are particularly famous, the latter branching out to include a ‘whoopie cookie’ consisting of maple cream cheese sandwiched between brown sugar cookies.

One of our Metrotwin contributors Catty recently had a go at making machta green tea whoopies, proving beyond doubt that this is the versatile sweet hit of 2010. Check out her results and read the recipe on her website.

Incidentally, if anyone wants to email me explaining the origin of the name, that would be great, as currently all I can think about is:

Photo by freakgirl and tedreese via Flickr used under a Creative Commons License

One of the greatest things about London and New York is their diversity – it makes life (and this dear website) so much more interesting. Today, for example, we have four new lists for you that are all completely different in theme, but are united in helping you to discover something new in your city. Oh, but if you happen to be a gay Australian ice skater with a weakness for cake you may be particularly pleased!

Going Down Under – Who knew there were so many Aussie/Kiwi places in New York? Whether you’re wanting to watch the Wallabies thrash their opponents at some ungodly NYC hour or relive your travelling days by chowing down a meat pie, this list by NYKnifeAndFork is for you!

London’s Best Afternoon Teas – A world away from great hunks of antipodean steak and larger, this list by Bon Vivant is full of cucumber sandwiches, scones and exquisite blends of tea served in fine bone china. Think it’s just for girls? Think again – the Mandeville Hotel specialises in a men’s afternoon tea – you’ll get whisky and a selection of games alongside heartier-than-expected portions of chai and cake.

The Cutting Edge – Why not take advantage of New York’s rather bracing clime and attempt a spot of al fresco ice skating? After which, you can take advantage of this useful list and find a nearby place to warm your feet (and fill your stomach)

Gay London – Finally, Metrotwin has a list for all you confirmed bachelor/bahelorettes out there. Compiled by fruit-fly extraordinaire moi (with a little help from my friends) it’s a mixture of fun, legendary and ‘hot right now’ places, that hopefully won’t be distinctly ‘over’ before you finish this paragraph. We want to do an accompanying Gay New York list, so please, send us your suggestions, and we’ll put them on the site!

Photos by alisonlongrigg and darrell berry used under a Creative Commons License

A great find by BBH-Labs, via @finnbarrw. We’ve posted some ‘toy-town’ style photography of London on this blog before. Now, here’s a little film using yhe same technique (although in this instance the filmaker Sam O’Hare also faked it a bit in post) but the effect is to bring a liliputian dimension alive in motion, and it’s very lovely.

This is a stunning piece of film, shot by Sam O’Hare (and uploaded to Vimeo).

For best results hit HD and watch in full screen. And turn it up.

There’s a really great interview with O’Hare here, on the Aero Film site. Here’s a sample, in which O’Hare talks about the equipment he used in putting this together. It involved over 35,000 stills.

The music is perfectly matched. It was specially written by Rosi Golan and Alex Wong, and composed by Human.

The film sucks you in. You look for faces – but you don’t find a single one. It’s hyper-real to the point of being surreal. We love it.

It was actually one of our Metrotwin Mumbai bloggers, the excellent Shilpa Bhatnagar, who came across this event. On March 1st at Oxfam Books on Marylebone High Street, renowned New York poets David Lehman and Mark Ford will be reading some of their work alongside five Young British Poets (YBPs?) to celebrate the launch of Oxfam’s poetry DVD ‘Asking the Shadows to Dance’.

Perfectly Metrotwin non?

I recently attended my first poetry reading. Whilst I admit I was there somewhat under duress as the night clashed with both pancake day and the Brit Awards, I was ultimately glad I swapped trashy live TV and fried batter for a bit of culture.  It was an open mic night and yes, some of the poets (usually middle aged women with works titled things like ‘WHY DOES NO ONE LIKE ME? A lament in twelve verses’) were so utterly cringy I was squirming behind my glass of box wine. However, some of the poetry was really moving and powerful – a composition about belatedly finding a message from a now dead friend on an answerphone is the one that sticks out in the memory – so I would definitely recommend going to a reading if you have the chance. I mean have you got to lose? They repeat Eastenders  on BBC3 now you know…

If you’re in the area you could check out the following:

Daunt Bookshop – A charming Edwardian book shop

The Orrery – Smart restaurant with a divine roof terrace (not a huge amount of use in this weather!)

Providores – Renowned for its unusual brunch – think Blueberry fritters and grilled chorizo.

If you’re in New York and yearn to hear some rhythm and verse:

Ding Dong Lounge – Punk rock poetry in this gritty little bar.

The Mercantile Library – a library and writers retreat that also puts on poetry nights.

Pete’s Candy Store – Poetry readings, bingo and more take place in this intimate W’berg bar.

Photo by yesfuture used under a Creative Commons License

a glimpse back to the 2008 Whitney Biennial

Finally, she’s back! This Thursday, February 25th, marks the return of The Whitney Biennial – a spectacular display of the state of contemporary art. Think of a Jekyll & Hyde scenario: calm galleries by day and rawkas parties by night. While this year’s Biennial will be doing without it’s uptown counterpart, the Park Avenue Armory, The Whitney Museum will play hostess with the mostess to the most influential names in art TODAY. From The Bruce High Quality Foundation to Aurel Schmidt, the Whitney will expose – for the good, the bad and everything in between – where we are today. Art is one of those larger sensibilities, one that reflects our philosophies, aesthetics, economics and hopes. Art is a mirror on our world.

But more than just ‘art,’ I like to think of the Whitney Biennial as a huge experiment. Looking back at the last, where tequila bars and pink painted rockstars were all presented as definitions of the contemporary state of artistic affairs, whether you agree with the curation of the show or not, there is no doubt that the Whitney leaves itself open to welcomed debate.