Looks like we’ll have four days to wonder along the East Coast in early September before flying home from NYC. Where to go? Vermont? New Hampshire? Western Mass? Boston? Maine? Too many choices. Any suggestions out there. (Perhaps from the Detroit bagel fan?)
Category Archives: 2) Frequent Destinations
where to eat in Dubuque
This according to AAALiving: L.May’s for pizza; The Bank Bar and Grill in a 100-year-old former bank; Calico Bean Market for organic coffee and gourmet candy.
where to eat in LeClaire, Iowa – preferably with a river view
My sister texted en route from Des Moines back home to Oak Park, Illinois this morning, asking where she could stop around the Mississippi River for lunch and a nice view of the river. I suggested the town of LeClaire (or Le Claire) only a few miles north of Interstate 80. It has some nice antique shops and restaurants along or near the river. I found one I hadn’t heard of before that looked good: the Crane & Pelican Cafe.
Beyond that, on a Monday, the limited selection included Sneaky Pete’s (my sister was accompanied by her 10-year-old so I thought she’d get a kick out of the atmosphere which is a bit corny; although steaks are the specialty and my sister is a vegetarian) or Happy Joe’s. The Faithful Pilot, which I’ve always wanted to try, isn’t open on Mondays alas.
Filed under Iowa
Brooklyn hotspots
No matter how many times I visit my brother and sister-in-law in the Brooklyn neighborhood of Park Slope, I can’t quite figure out where I am in relation to other neighborhoods of the borough – or when those other neighborhoods begin and Park Slope ends. But a story in The London Times Magazine that a friend sent me from England offers some suggestions of things to do in Brooklyn in general that makes me want to explore and figure out the terrain more. Here they are:
– Brooklyn Fare, a small restaurant where the chef prepares 20 tasting plates for 18 customers per night. I’ve heard of this…and that it’s hard to get a seat, not surprisingly.
– Brooklyn Flea – huge flea market at 176 Lafayette STreet
– Escape guesthouse – a B&B on a street I’m pretty sure my brother lived on years ago, elsewhere in Brooklyn. escapeguesthouse.com
– Brooklyn Social – old-fashioned Italian cocktail bar at 335 Smith Street
Filed under New York City
36 Hours in Detroit – why not?
Some relatives (you know who you are) in my hometown of suburban Detroit weren’t convinced by the booster-ish tone of the 36 Hours in Detroit article in last week’s NYTimes Travel section but the article sold me. It made me want to revisit Detroit with a pair of fresh eyes and new enthusiasm!
Filed under Detroit
Places to check out along the new High Trestle Trail in Iowa
The High Trestle trail just north of Des Moines officially opens today and here are some places the DMRegister recommends checking out along it:
– Woodward: Lake Robbins Ballroom, Woodward Hardware’s Antique Toy (nuts and bolts and antique toys and other antiques)
– Madrid – Baldy’s Chill and Grill opening soon in the old American Legion building
– Slater – Snus HIll Winery, with a tasting room, a mile north of the trail along a gravel road
– The Bridge, of course: A 13-story high bridge originally built in 1973 that has been redesigned with six overlooks, four art installation/towers at each end and 41 steel frames overhead that light up in the dark.
Filed under bike trails, biking, Iowa
Mount Vernon, Ia. – one of 10 cool small towns
I didn’t know until I heard a plug on Iowa Public Radio this morning that the small northeast Iowa town of Mount Vernon was named one of then “cool small towns” by Budget Travel Magazine. Turns out this was back in 2009. But I’d have to agree. It’s the home of Cornell College and the wonderful restaurant the Lincoln Cafe and is smack in the middle of some bucolic farm country and about a half hour south is the booming artsy college town of Iowa City. One place I don’t know that was mentioned in the Mount Vernon blurb: Fuel, a coffee shop/antique store.
The 2009 cool town list also includes Jacksonville, Oregon, which my husband and I visited in 2010 during a visit to my sister-in-law’s house in nearby Medford, and Tubac, Arizona which we visited many times during visits to see my dad in Tucson. (In Tubac, the mag recommends the interior design story Pancho’s, Tubac Center of the Arts, and Tubac Country Inn. Good to know since I’m sure we’ll be back there.)
Royal Wedding – from afar
Alas, I won’t be as near to this Royal Wedding as I was to the last big one thirty years ago, which I helped cover as a young reporter working in the London Bureau of a Yank newspaper. My British friends emailed today that wedding fever is finally starting to take hold of the capital – and perhaps the country. In addition to a republican (i.e. anti-monarchist) party where guests will dine on red food and NOT watch the wedding on the telly, one friend has been invited to a more traditional garden party at the home of a neighbor who has planted red, white and blue pansies for the occasion. Hope the weather permits (another friend reported its supposed to be rainy.)
I just may get up early tomorrow to tune in – although I’m not sure how early I can handle. I’ve got my new wedding kitsch just in time from my sister, who brought them back from a recent trip to England. A Wills-and-Kate tea towel and Wills-and-Kate mug. Hip Hip Hooray.
Filed under England and U.K., London
who would’ah thunk it: spotted George Hamilton at Des Moines restaurant
On a Monday night in Des Moines, hard to imagine seeing anybody out for dinner, let alone perpetually tan actor George Hamilton who was dining at a table near us at Alba in the East Village. The director of the Greater Des Moines Civic Center was his host so that was a tip off – apparently the civic center unveiled its next season today and George will be returning in October (unless he’s staying here til then, as if) in La Cage Aux Folles.)
I”m particularly excited about Billy Elliot which will be in DM in June 2012.
DES MOINES, Iowa — The Civic Center of Greater Des Moines announce its new 2011-2012 season on Monday night.The schedule includes La Cage Aux Folles, which headed to Iowa direct from Broadway — and stars George Hamilton. Wicked returns to Des Moines. Billy Elliot The Musical also is coming to the Civic Center.
2011
- Oct 11-16: La Cage Aux Folles (Staring George Hamilton)
- Nov. 9- Dec. 4: Wicked
2012
- Feb. 7-12: West Side Story
- Feb 28-March 4: Bring It On: The Musical
- April 24-29: Memphis
- May 15-16: Rain: A Tribute To The Beatles
- June 6-17: Billy Elliot The Musical
Filed under Des Moines, theater
Where to eat in Albuquerque
My dad is passing through Albuquerque and was looking for a good place to eat so I checked in with my sister-in-law, who lives there. Figured I’d share her suggestions which include: the Grove Cafe, Standard Diner, Farina (for wood oven pizza) and Artichoke Cafe (a fancier place).
Also for a funky New Mexican food place, there is Duran’s Pharmacy near Old Town – an old-fashioned pharmacy with a little restaurant that serves pretty decent stuffed sopapillas and green chile stew.
Filed under DINING, New Mexico
TakeBetsywithyou 