Category Archives: New York

November 28, 2017 · 9:57 pm

Wainscot (Georgica Pond trespassing/Beach Lane Biking)

Stayed at yet another borrowed mansion in the Hamptons this Thanksgiving, this one overlooking the exclusive Georgica Pond neighborhood (home to Grey Gardens and folks like Steven Spielberg) although I didn’t realize at first where I was riding the mansion’s borrowed bike. The caretaker suggested I take the bike for a spin so I rode on a pleasantly flat road through the woods to a road that seemed to lead to a body of water. I did see a private sign but also a welcome sign to an estate sale or tour so I rode on in past a few cedar shingled houses, typical fancy Hamptons stuff, and onto the beach which I thought would be a bay but soon realized was Georgica Pond. It was me and the sea birds. No other sign of life as I rode on the sand in the no speed fat tire, wide seat, bike. When the sand started getting soupy and I could find no quasi-public exit, I made a quick dash through someone’s back yard, pushing the bike up to the main road and out.

I soon found Beach Lane, a far more welcoming road to ride, wide, flat, leading straight to the ocean. Gentle wind, sun-soaked, the road was dotted with the occasional mansion, farm-stand and old gnarly-trunked tree. I parked my bike and walked out toward the crashing waves.

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September 14, 2017 · 4:01 pm

For future reference: how to go glamping in Moab

I used to love to camp – but my bad back makes sleeping in a tent on the ground, even with a pad, out of the question. So glamping – which presumably mixes glamour and camping but most importantly, offers the promise of a firm bed inside a tent – seems like the way to go. Our friends Denise and David went glamping in Moab and report that: “It was just great! Love sleeping in a tent, AND in a bed ;)”  Denise’s photo (above) of the tent at sunrise has me in heavy daydream mode…

For future reference, here’s the appropriately-named glamping outfit they went with: Under Canvas

More information on how to glamp (including in my beloved Ithaca) is here.

The NYTimes is also on it….

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May 22, 2017 · 7:35 pm

PJ Bernstein’s, Pomodoro Rossi, new Q subway, gotham Hall, Central Synagogue– NYC

We love NYC but hope to get home to Des Moines tonight on this dreary rainy day. Our flight is already delayed so we aren’t sure we will make our connection in St. Louis. Other than that, we had a great time. We were surprised to enjoy our two visits to Central Synagogue so much. It turned out to be a spectacular Sephardic temple on 55th and Lexington, run by a smart charismatic group of women rabbis and cantors who we’re warm, friendly, and sing beautifully. The lead rabbi was also Asian. Another surprise.  The party was held at Gotham Hall, an imposing former bank (I’m told) on 36th and Broadway and 6th Avenue, near the original Macy’s. It has a huge domed ceiling below which some 300 or so of us ate, danced and partied until after midnight.

Last night we had good Italian food at Pomorodo Rossi, a neighborhood place on Columbus and 71st or so, can conveniently located near my relatives apart. Good pasta with seafood and a light red sauce, grilled artichoke and an outdoor table where we had a rare and wonderful dinner with our dear friends Myra and mike who won the good friend award for driving in from Connecticut.

Today, we met my brother at The Whitney Museum, our favorite place to hang out on a rainy Monday. This time we saw the Biennial exhibit which had some challenging stuff, as expected. Lunch was lobster bisque and a shared crab cake sandwich at Lobster Place in Chelsea Market.

On the east side, we had corned beef and breakfast at PJ Bernsteins on 3rd, morning pastries on Lexington at Corrado Bakery and coffee served by Aussies at Heavenly Rest Stop at 91st and Fifth, in an alcove of a fancy church by the same name.

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December 1, 2016 · 4:23 pm

Gansevoort Market, new subway station at northern end of The High Line, Bryant Park holiday fair, subterranean Japanese restaurant

Another cherished post-Thanksgiving adventure with  Myra during which two old friends from college catch up while wandering around a great American city, noshing, window-shopping, people-watching, architecture-admiring, restaurant-searching, laughing, lamenting, reminiscing, dreaming and occasionally searching for a decent public bathroom (Penn Station had to do this time). Among the highlights (beyond the great company):

– Gansevoort Market, a “rustic industrial” food court on 14th street, small, manageable, calm, excellent poke at Gotham Pike.

– The High Line, which never disappoints, especially on a beautiful afternoon. There are always new art installations when I return, even after just a few months. And more work has been completed since my last visit in September on the retro-looking building with wide oval windows designed by the late Zaha Hadid. This time we found the attractive, European-feeling  new 34 St-Hudson Yards 7 Subway Station, with its cool mosaic tile domed ceiling underground. (Opened in 2015, the station is the first new one in NY in 26 years.)

– The crafts at the holiday fair at Bryant Park were generally less impressive than those at the holiday fair at Grand Central Station, but what a lovely scene with the pretty ice skating rink, holiday lights and wreath-festooned stone lions at the foot of the New York Public Library.  Also appreciated the inventiveness of the food vendors including one cooking unlikely creations with matzoh. Yes matzoh.

– Sakagura, a remarkably authentic Japanese restaurant (including classic interactive, water-spraying Japanese toilets) in the basement of a drab building just east of Grand Central. Who knew? Apparently a lot of people, including many people of Japanese descent. The place was packed. I almost felt like I was back in Kyoto, without the around-the-world flight. Instead, we walked down two flights of steps akin to the kind found in an aging middle school basement.

Earlier in the day, my cousin took us on a fascinating tour of the production “commissary” of Juice Press, in a cool Long Island City marketplace.

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September 24, 2016 · 1:30 am

Hyde Park diner, walk over the Hudson, train to 125th Street

Walkway over the Hudson

Walkway over the Hudson

Another day of spectacular weather in the Hudson River Valley. After another morning hike around my friend’s beautiful 39-acre spread in Dutchess County, we went for brunch at a classic old diner, the EverReady in Hyde Park (eggs with spinach and feta…my favorite dinner fare, plus delicious grilled potatoes with onions, not your everyday hash browns, and fresh squeezed orange juice.)

I was first introduced to East Coast diners by my college friends, who would take me to their hometown favorites in Forest Hills and Long Island.  And then there is our favorite stop on the way to Ithaca from NYC or Connecticut: the great Roscoe Diner. I love the shiny metal building, the encyclopedic menu, the huge showy cakes on display and all the locals hanging out over endless cups of coffee, not to mention the patient, efficient, seen-it-all waitresses.

imageNear the train station in Poughkeepsie, we walked half way across the footbridge over the Hudson, with spectacular views of bucolic waters in the distance and industrial workaday river scenes just below us. I envied the cyclists biking past us. As promised, the almost 2 hour train ride to 125th street offered great river views most of the way and then boom, I emerged in Harlem. I didn’t have to wait long for the m60 bus to Laguardia, a rare public transportation option to the airport and a much better deal ($2.75) than the ripoff black car I am embarrassed to admit I mistook for an Uber on my arrival at Laguardia. ($71…ouch. Lesson learned. Never get in a car with an uber sign unless you’ve ordered an uber online.)

image

The bus took about an hour but the first stop, surprisingly, was terminal B where my grubby southwest gate was located. Now here I am at the St. Louis  airport with a 2.5 hour late night layover (again, a big change from my mad dash here a week ago with a 50 minute connection cut in half by delays.)

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September 23, 2016 · 1:36 am

Bard college, Red Hook, Tivoli, Germantown–Rambles in and around Dutchess County

Salt point scene

Salt point scene

 


 Sadly, I am a little early for the mutsu Apple crop here (due the first week of October) but I did get some good honeycrisps at a roadside stand near where I am staying Salt Point. And we have had gorgeous weather – 70s and sunny with a slight breeze.

imageWe drove past the frank Gehry-designed theatre on The Bard College campus, which looked like his building on the U of Minnesota campus.Then we drove through the nearby towns of Red Hook and Tivoli, which were sleepier than usual because, we learned, places tend to close on Wednesday. We got sandwiches at Otto’s, an old timey grocery store in Germantown where we ordered at the meat counter.

Otto's in Germantown

Otto’s in Germantown

Now sitting on the slate patio with my friends of almost 40 years, enjoying the late afternoon at this beautiful place on Allen Road that I’ve been visiting for, um, 31 years. (Some of which is soon to be available via Airbnb…)

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September 21, 2016 · 2:51 am

The new Whitney Museum — NYC

On a Whitney terrace

On a Whitney terrace with One World Trade Center in the distance

Finally made it to the new location of the Whitney Museum and loved everything about it – the architecture  (Renzo Piano building with great open terraces on the upper floors with dazzling views of the Hudson River, the downtown skyscrapers and the High Line right below the museum), the neighborhood (bustling art and commerce of Chelsea and the meat packing district with designer shops and old crumbling brick streets) and of course the art. The Whitney is big on figurative contemporary art, which happens to be among my favorite.

Inside the Whitney

Inside the Whitney

We saw a really interesting retrospective of photographer Danny Lyons work and thoroughly enjoyed the 7th floor exhibit from the museums’ portrait collection. We ran out of time so couldn’t see the 6th floor of portraits (which oddly wasn’t open because they were rehanging some work). NExt trip! Also enjoyed a light lunch in the top floor cafe, a Danny Meyer restaurant.

Robert Bechtle, 61' Pontiac, 1968-69 oil on canvas

Robert Bechtle, 61′ Pontiac, 1968-69 oil on canvas

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March 22, 2016 · 5:15 pm

Travel tip for rides in Manhattan and Chicago: VIA

Just when I’ve gotten used to Uber (sort of) my friend Anne raves about her “new favorite NYC find: the VIA app ”  More below:

It’s cheaper than Uber and cabs. I tried it today to get from Upper East side to Penn Station. $3.25. No lie. Talking with the driver who says he used to drive for Uber and switched to Via because the company is better to its drivers. Still, he works really long days to pay his car insurance and make enough money. I tipped him even though you’re not really supposed to because he went out of his way to get me to the right entrance. Quite a contrast to the $70 cab ride from JFK to Manhattan last night! Right now, Via is only in Manhattan and central Chicago.

Here’s a NYTimes story on it: www.nytimes.com/2015/03/15/nyregion/like-taking-a-luxury-bus-via-a-ride-share-app-offers-manhattan-trips.html

 

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February 6, 2016 · 6:00 pm

A little Hawaii in NYC – Poke!

hawaii-2012-0891I first fell for Poke in – where else – Hawaii and haven’t had it since our trip there several years ago. So I was pleased to see a story this week in the NYTimes about the new Poke places popping up in Manhattan. Some of the Poke is a little too orange and creamy for my taste – k raw salmon slathered with orange midwestern salad dressing (but is actually chile aoili and quite good. spicy too.)

The kind I really fell for in Hawaii is red chunks of raw ahi tuna in a sesame oil/ salty soy sauce (the japanese version, Shoyu) with maybe some shredded carrots or seaweed or avocado.)

I first spotted it in the Big Island (see photo above!) when a hipster surfer guy staying at our bed & breakfast was eating some from a plastic takeaway carton. Had to try it – and it was delicious. Then I found it in odd places, including a little hole-in-the-wall natural foods place (Ruffage) restaurant off Waikiki Beach in Honululu; a very upscale version at the elegant Alan Wong’s (Obama’s favorite Honolulu restaurant)  and then on the side of a two-lane highway, being sold out of the back of a parked white pickup by a guy with two Styrofoam coolers full of the stuff. I lived to tell the tale (I was a little concerned about food poisoning but it was delicious.) Short of another trip to Hawaii (some day, I hope!), I’ll now look for it in NYC. – best spot according to the NYTimes is Sons of Thunder in Murray Hill.

Sons of Thunder

  • American
  • $$
  • 204 East 38th Street, Murray Hill
  • 646-863-2212

Pokéworks

  • American
  • $$
  • 63 West 37th Street, Midtown South
  • 212-575-8881

Wisefish Poké

  • American
  • $$
  • 263 West 19th Street, Chelsea
  • 212-367-7653

East Coast Poké

  • American
  • $$
  • 186 West 4th Street, West Village
  • 718-887-6902

Hungry City

By LIGAYA MISHAN FEB. 4, 2016

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December 5, 2015 · 2:03 am

NYC — the ribbon, Russ and daughters (the restaurant!), grand central holiday market

imagetalk about a good day. On a sunny fall Monday, I got to spend the morning with my son, on his 24th birthday no less (we ate at the deli PJ bernsteins on 3rd avenue, near 69th, then I got to spend the rest of the day with my dear friend Myra (we had a terrific lunch at the new Russ and daughters restaurant on Orchard street, and rambled around the lower east side, NoLIta and outer soho into Greenwich village and bought ourselves “statement necklaces” at the holiday craft market in Grand Central) and at night I got to babysit my sweet 3-year-niece Lucy.

On Tuesday, more cherished Lucy time (and cherished time with her parents) then I schlepped to Chelsea to visit a friend temping at Martha Stewart Living (where I got a short tour.) Then I hopped onto a nearly deserted High Line (it was raining) and walked around Chelsea Market (where I was pleased to find a fat witch brownie store that had gift packages of brownies, perfect for a guest gift when I visited a friend for dinner a day later.) Tuesday night was dinner with a dear “fake” aunt at our usual spot Bella blu on the upper east side.( salad with grilled artichokes and parmesan; pasta with duck ragu and olives!)image

Sunday night after thanksgiving was a family outing to T he Ribbon, a welcoming place on west 72nd that is perfect for families. it was fried chicken night!

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