This and that: A Tim’s Picks edition heading into NYE

Plus, ex-NFL player Chike Okeafor charged after Lafayette altercation over Fortnite. Return of the Horner Building downtown. Kwanzaa celebration shapes up. And a local restaurant recommendation redux

Dec 29, 2022

Thanks to sponsor Stuart & Branigin for support to help make this edition of the Based in Lafayette reporting project possible.

Let’s start here on a holiday week Thursday …

By Tim Brouk / For Based in Lafayette

Five choice ideas for your New Year’s weekend and beyond in Lafayette/West Lafayette.

Festivus, 6 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 29, Escape Velocity Brewing, 405 Sagamore Parkway S., Suite A2, Lafayette — Whether you have a glut of grievances or think you can pin your old man, celebrate “Seinfeld” fans’ favorite holiday invented by Frank Costanza himself. The Festivus pole will be trimmed with malice while fantastic feats of strength highlight the evening at Escape Velocity. Already boasting Lafayette’s most unique vegetarian menu, Escape Velocity chefs will be cooking up meatless meatloaf and mashed potatoes to commemorate Festivus for the rest of us.

Traveler’s Dream, 7:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 30, Nine Irish Brothers, 3520 Indiana 38 East, Lafayette — For more than 20 years, Michael Lewis and Denise Wilson have been making beautiful Celtic and French music together. More recently, the duo expanded to a trio or a quartet for a fuller sound. Armed with an impressive repertoire of traditional and original tunes, Traveler’s Dream are a dream to experience. From reels to ballads, jigs to sea shanties, Wilson, Lewis and company put on an amazing live performance to help close out 2022.

NYE Party with DJs MADD0G and Kyle Robert Paquin, 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31, The Spot Tavern, 409 S. Fourth St., Lafayette — Feel the rhythm of 2023 as DJs spin before and after a midnight champagne toast. MADD0G is a great get for New Year’s EVE as she performs all over the Midwest, packing dance floors with sexy dancers in the process. MADD0G has shared stages with Kesha and Girl Talk, and she often lends her beats to burlesque and drag shows. MADD0G can get it and so can you during 2022 and 2023 Saturday night. $10.

New Year’s Bash, 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31, Teays River Brewing and Public House, 3000 S. Ninth St., Lafayette — This Lafayette brewery and restaurant is ending 2022 in a big way — all-you-can-eat dinner and dessert buffets, door prizes, games, contests and a DJ to dance the year away. Party people also get two free drink tickets and a totally toastable glass of champagne at midnight. $70. Tickets (scroll down to “Merchandise”).

First Day Hike 2023, 1 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 1, Prophetstown State Park, Battle Ground — Walk off that New Year’s Eve hangover literally with a brisk hike around Prophetstown. This annual two-mile jaunt will stick to the paved bike trail. After, hikers will be treated to fireside hot chocolate and apple cider. The free event will get your 2023 started with some burned calories from the night before while meeting some new friends for the new year.

THE RETURN OF THE HORNER BUILDING

As work continues inside Lafayette’s $55 million Public Safety Center near the corner of Sixth and Columbia streets, crews recently finished rebuilding the bricks and limestone on the façade of the Horner Building that, until 2020, stood at 625 Columbia St. Contractors dismantled the former Columbia Ballroom – at various times housing Midtowne Oven, Sylvia’s Brick Oven and, way back in the 1920s, a car repair garage – brick-by-brick, storing the material until it could be reinstalled into a section of the new police station and parking garage. Plans from the city include using the 900-square-foot space for “micro-retail” opportunities, once the facility opens in 2023.

FORMER WEST SIDE, PURDUE, NFL STAR CHARGED IN ALTERCATION OF VIDEO GAME

Tippecanoe County prosecutors charged former Purdue and NFL defensive end Chike Okeafor Wednesday, a day after he was arrested when police reported that neighbors said he confronted neighbors over the video game “Fortnite.”

Okeafor, 46, was charged with misdemeanor battery resulting in bodily injury, according to court records.

According to court documents, Okeafor was arrested after neighbors called police around 9:50 p.m. Tuesday. They accused Okeafor of going to a home on Chardonnay Court in southern Lafayette to tell a neighbor’s child to take it easy on his son as they played the online video game. Neighbors told police Okeafor had come to their home with a similar request in the past. According to court documents, while Okeafor was in the neighbor’s home, he was accused of body-slamming the boy’s father before pushing him against a wall and into a couch, ripping up the man’s shirt and giving him a karate chop.

On Wednesday, a judge set a $250 bond for Okeafor, with a trail set for March.

Okeafor played at Purdue before being drafted in the NFL in 1999. In an NFL career that lasted until 2010, he played for the San Francisco 49ers, Seattle Seahawks and Arizona Cardinals.

KWANZAA CELEBRATION FRIDAY

With the seven days of Kwanzaa starting Monday, Paula Davis, owner of Blooms & Petals Flowers and the Good Samaritan Project, will host a community celebration at 4 p.m. Friday at the shop’s design center, 317 Cincinnati St. in Lafayette. The event will include a meal, dancing and more. The community is welcome for the free event.

ICYMI …

Where do you feel like going tonight? How about for lunch? This week’s crowd-sourced thread of recommendations for Lafayette/West Lafayette restaurants might come in handy.