womantraveler

The Perfect Bags and Totes - Simplified in a Bag-Crazy World

Updating this popular post for 2013...(And Happy Mother's Day, all Womantraveler moms.) The explosion of options for women in a bag-crazy world seriously outdated this Womantraveler popular post of 2006.

Top-of-mind tips: (1) go for something lightweight, foldable and versatile and (2) for laptop-lovers like me, the lightest weight possible computer case that slips over the handle of a carry on suitcase. It's all about options.

Apart from the Longchamp "Le Pliage" fashion bag collection, the search for the perfect computer tote, briefcase, and handbag selection for the professional womantraveler reminds me of the Three Bears story -- not to heavy, not too ugly, and, in fact, just right. But what is "just right" in this context? I could hold a profitable yard sale with my closet full of wrong choices. Thankfully women have finally become a focal point of the accessories trade and certainly there is no dearth of choices in colors and fabrics this season. Keep in mind these perennial criteria:

• Necks, shoulders, and backs
• Versatility
• Portability with other carry-on bags
• Style and colors (galore)

After much digging through options, here are my hot picks:

• Baggallini -- my Baggallini tote goes with me everywhere, often as a laptop carrier that has plenty
  of room for personal items (wallet, glasses, phone and cosmetics). I fold it up inside my carry-on luggage for expanded options once through security. Inside, I tuck in smaller Baggallini travel organizers, including one designed for my passport. The flexibility is amazing.
• Longchamp's"Le Pliage" bags -- in multicolors, multisizes. I put this ingenious discovery in competition for the Eighth Wonder of the World. As you can see above, they fold small and open large. I carry at least two on all trips -- an extra large tote in a color and a small discreet version (in black) for day-to-evening. To get through airport check-in, I put the small as a pocket book inside the large one as a tote, plus everything else I want to carry on. Purchased in Paris but available in fine handbag stores anywhere or online.
• Computer bags -- for style and weight, I stick with Briggs and Riley or Tumi, both functional and professionally fashionable. Packing smartly, I can carry the computer bag on one shoulder and a microfiber tote from Bagallini or Magellans on the other shoulder as my handbag. 
• Business totes -- the leathers in Levenger's colorful collection coordinate with the smartest range of organizer materials -- this year in peacock blue, citrus yellow, coral red, black and more. What fun and at impeccable business chic.
• Handbags -- with all of the above options, I pack small evening or accessory handbags in my luggage to match my outfits for dinners or casual activity after hours. One can only schlepp so much at once.

Tucson: A High Desert Cultural Shelter

After a long weekend in Tucson, I’ve answered a question bugging me for awhile – if it’s so darn hot in the desert, why do so many retirees move there? My answer: the climate may have lulled them to town but the reason they stay is something else – there is so darn much to do here! In three days, we only touched the surface. 

About 60 miles north of Mexico and surrounded by mountain ranges, Tucson is situated at an altitude of 2600 feet in high desert and across a sprawling 226-square-mile grid of adobe structures hunkered close to the ground. Like many communities I’ve visited in the Southwest and in Florida, there's much more beyond that snapshot – from the sweeping views and challenging terrain in the foothills to the funky historic downtown close to the university.

Yet the climate does rule: golfers are out at dawn to avoid the punishing midday sun, and late afternoon kicks off more comfortable languorous evenings, often outdoors, under a vast canopy of stars. At night, Tucson is home to dazzling skies and thus is destination for astronomers; for most others, the city shuts down early (9ish), preparing for another early morning. And what is offered each day is unexpected, fed by the University of Arizona, extensive hiking trails, many arts and culture museums and a recorded history dating back 12,000 years.

Here’s just a sample of what you might do for your first three-day trip:

• Escape to the Arizona Inn: Back in the 1930s, guests from the East arrived by train with steamer trunks and stayed for weeks or months to enjoy the healthy air. These wealthy visitors mingled with Hollywood elite, rodeo enthusiasts, young women cultivating horseback riding as part of finishing school and ranchers enjoying vast acreage at a really good price. They met at the Arizona Inn, a terra cotta shelter of gardens, fountains, porticos and Spanish Colonial parlors and dining rooms. The hotel has never left the family of founder Isabella Greenway, who started the Arizona Hut, a furniture-making company, to help support disabled veterans from World War I.  
• Downtown Tucson’s Presidio Trail: With light-rail construction currently disrupting downtown, a sure way to get around is The Presidio Trail historical walking tour. Highlights include The Presidio, a small fort founded in 1775 on the Spanish frontier; the Sosa-Carrillo-Fremont House, one of the many preserved Sonoran row houses of the mid- to late-1800s; the Historic Railroad Depot built in 1907 and restored in 2004 and St. Augustine Cathedral, a Spanish Colonial Revival church begun in 1896 and displaying a magnificent sandstone façade of local flora and fauna (ergo, the horned lizard and cacti).
• John Dillinger’s Watering Hole: Along the Presidio Trail stands the Hotel Congress, a perfect shelter for the genteel 1920s railroad travelers from the East. Yet it’s infamous as the place where notorious criminal John Dillinger and his gang, hiding out in Tucson after their bank
  robbing rampage in the Midwest, were literally smoked out and caught, thanks to a basement fire. Before the fire, no one even knew they were there. The lobby decorated in Southwest Deco, the Tap Room bar, award-winning Cup Cafe and Club Congress (a progressive nightspot) make this hotel a busy destination 24x7.
• Savage Beauty at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum: We drove about 30 minutes west
  from downtown, up through the Gates Pass where saguaro cacti cover the hills in a startling motif that resembles the windmill turbines covering the rolling hills near California’s low-lying Palm Springs desert. The saguaro, unique to this desert area, have the presence and mystique of the sequoias of California, ancient and commanding with a blossom that arrives and disappears each May. Upon reaching the museum, we viewed the breathtaking Arizona-Sonora Desert that connects west to San Diego and the interpretative indoor-outdoor museum with 1200 types of plants and 230 animal species. What an incredible diversity of flora and fauna in the desert, said to be the lushest desert on earth. In this open-air setting mixed with some interior spaces it’s vital to wear a hat the covers both the head and shoulders. In two hours we could not visit all the exhibits; trails led us to up-close (but shielded) encounters with mountain lions, bears, javelina (sort of a wild boar), wolves, soaring raptors and snakes.The plants were equally mesmerizing - abundant expanses of multiple varieties of cacti and grasses along with green-barked palo verde and staunch mesquite trees - and what do you know - a delightfully artful hummingbird aviary?
• Restaurants: They are in abundance, so I asked a local friend and international foodie - where do we find the best Mexican food (versus the best “tourist Mexican” food)? Answer – Mi Ranchito and Micha’s (unfortunately we didn’t get there but this is a trusted local source who knows what he is talking about). And for regular dining, put Feast and Kingfisher at the top of your list. Another suggestion - the Arizona Inn menu was superb. (Insider view: the Casa Molina, which figures high on many lists, is said by my insider to have seen its better days about 25 years ago; I would put it in the “OK but not unusual category" foodwise; that said, the  6225 E. Speedway Ave. location allows you to eat relatively well and sit outside at shaded tables around a fountain for comfortable outside seating at brightly festooned oilcloth-covered tables.
• Southwestern Art and Silver: It’s always a challenge in the Southwest to know what’s both high-quality jewelry and art from the region, but here are two recommendations you can count on. For traditional Southwest, the completely unassuming Desert Son Gallery, and for contemporary renditions, Skyline Gallery. Note that in both places, many of the artists aren’t local – they come from the East Coast and across the U.S. The owners, however, are highly informed and can provide terrific advice and context. Don't be put off because they are located in neighborhood strip malls. Their collections offer exceptional quality and variety from those who understand the art and can advise the rest of us.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Finding Pig Heaven in East Tennessee

Texas Monthly has named its first fulltime BBQ editor – and here’s my vote for his first out of state visit – Dead End BBQ in Knoxville, Tennessee. As this championship-winning neighborhoody restaurant rightly declares in its tagline – “the search is over.”

Dead End BBQ opened shop about a decade ago near the tonier suburbs of Knoxville at the end of a dead end street where neighbors gathered to barbeque and honed their talents. Now it's a gathering place for those in the know in a highly competitive culture of sauces, rubs, ribs and brisket - from local politicians and University of Tennessee faculty and administrators to truckers, students and moms with strollers -- all with a favorite plate and very high standards. 

I always go for the combo plates (you get two choices from the pulled pork, beef brisket, smoked chicken and sausage) and a couple of sides, like Mayor's Beans and Red, White and Bleu Slaw. The meaty St. Louis ribs are irresistible - just wear a larger belt size than normal to pack it all in.

While the BBQ method is central, the sauces and rubs can truly distinguish one BBQ house from another. People I know have large collections from places they've visited. I took home special rubs for pork and chicken since I couldn’t carry the amazing liquid BBQ sauce through airport security. (While some people pack wine bottles from Napa Valley and BBQ sauce from Tennessee in their checked luggage, I'm not so daring and don't fancy arriving home with a new wardrobe freshly stained in many shades of red.) Spice rubs, just as potent in containers of glass or plastic, are far more trustworthy as flying companions.

If you can’t make it to Dead End, stop downtown on the river at Calhouns. Now this is a place that gives new meaning to "heapin' portions." My server suggested I order a child’s portion – that turned out to be 4 lean but tender meaty ribs and a large scoop of pulled pork – to which I added Smokey Mountain Beans and steamed broccoli (the only green vegetable in the joint besides salad). “That is food for a very large child!” I gasped - and happily (for $11) completed about two-thirds of the offering. 

If you're traveling along Interstate 81 through far east Tennessee en route to Virginia, the go-to place is Ridgewood Barbeque in Bluff City. I've not had the pleasure, but it's national reputation and local popularity add up to doing somethin' right - and their Hickory-cooked hams are a specialty. Yet BBQ-lovers are an opinioned lot - so, bottom line, it's all in the eatin'. 

Food Faves in Manhattan 2012 - Womantraveler's List of New York Restaurants Updated for 2013

Updated, Spring 2013

What's New York without knowing where to eat -- and particularly seasonal and regional ingredients wherever possible? This list is a continuing work in progress -- classy but comfortable get-togethers, suitable for friends, family and business...So stay tuned and more shall be revealed as time goes on... 

Midtown 

Alfama, 214 E. 52nd St. (between 3rd and 2nd Aves., Midtown) - delectable Portuguese specialties in an comfortably animated setting - not too loud, not too intimate. I would return again and again for the marinated olives, chorizo and kale soup, grilled octopus, Branzino and more, including very reasonable prices.

Fig & Olive, 10 E. 52nd St. (between 5th and Madison, Midtown - simply delicious olive oil-infused Mediterranean dining, and in this location, a cozy but lively atmosphere that is neither too small to be cloying nor too large to be noisy and uncomfortable; there are other locations in the city, including the Meatpacking District.

Rouge Tomate, 14 E. 60th St. (between 5th and Madison, Midtown), seasonably inspired modern American cuisine combining world flavors with huge wine list; cavernous high-ceiling space but with tables comfortably separated so you can talk and enjoy your companions.

Park Avenue Summer, 100 E. 63rd (between Park and Lexington, Upper East Side) - recommended but not attended yet.

Bistro Milano, 1350 Avenue of the Americas  (Midtown near Theater District), Northern Italian cuisine with outdoor cafe on 6th Avenue, open 7 days a week, expansive menu and reasonably priced for Midtown.

DB Bistro Moderne, 55 W. 44th St., between 5th and 6th (Midtown near Theater District), connected to the charming European-style City Club Hotel, next to the stalwart Algonquin Hotel and across from the hip Royalton Hotel, a well-situated high-energy French-American bistro popular for business lunches and casual or celebration dinners, where I always stop at least for an appetizer and glass of a charming wine. The wait staff, led by Maitre D' Leslie Affre, is welcoming, smart and attentive.

Downtown

Cafe Condesa (183 W. 10th St., off 7th Ave. at West 10th) - You might walk right by this one-room storefront featuring Latin American cuisine and the cooks working in the tiniest of spaces just across the bar - but be sure to go in. The place is small but they don't overbook and the pace is easy. Nicely priced but inventive dishes, like the succulent roasted rack of lamb with chimichurri sauce and Red Snapper Veracruz. Great for pre-theater dining ahead of the cozy West Village performance spaces.

Commerce (50 Commerce St., off 7th Ave.) - upscale American with European accents, this West Village bistro is super-lively - actually quite noisy - but serves excellent food and tons of fun. People pack in, but don't go if you want a quiet evening. This is the place to get jazzed, eat well (we chose all-American pot pie and lamb ragu) and start out on the town. It's close to several small neighborhood theaters for a pre-show bite. One a speakeasy, later a grange hall, the historic decor and murals, Commerce is a very uptown-downtown venue.

Jane (100 W. Houston St., just east of 6th Ave.) - A truly neighborhoody vibe and perfect for a Sunday night at the "$15 Sunday night special." Every night the menu is eclectic American - steak frites, a pot of warm mussels, mushroom truffle soup, gnocchi and other homey dishes served with easy but attentive service. A place to return over and over with a dependable but not overpowering range of choices.

Special occasions and celebrations:

Blue Hill Farm, 75 Washington Place just off Washington Square (Greenwich Village-West Village), tel. 212.539.1776. This is my top pick in Manhattan to date, with inventive seasonal menus created from the abundant ingredients of Hudson Valley farms and Blue Hill Farm in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. Located a few steps down in an English basement on a quiet street, the relatively small space is intimate, unhurried and so popular it's hard to get a reservation (start calling 30 days out); the atmosphere, while stylish, is not "snob," and diners, here for the food, are into each rather than displaying for "show." I am still savoring the featured farm egg appetizer, which changes personality according to the season, such as the soft poached egg served on morels, potatoes or greens. 

Crispo (240 W. 14th St. between 7th and 8th Aves.) - Warm, friendly and animated, Crispo is to date my all-around favorite for terrific food (Northern Italian) and vast selections of wines, beers and cocktails -- all enhanced by attentive, personable service. Tables are spaciously separated in the mid-size trattoria, softly lit and cozy with rustic plank floors and brick walls, yet at 150 seats a comfortable space for a casual friends or business dinner or a festive night out. The New York Times calls its spaghetti carbonara the "best of the form." Too many yummy choices to mention.

Union Square Cafe, 21 E. 16th Street at Union Square (Gramercy district), a critical success for nearly 25 years and an anchor of Danny Meyer's expanded resto realm, which includes Gramercy Tavern. With consistently rendered, uncommon combinations that are always good and "real" food that doesn't strive to overly impress, you feel well-cared for, whether for a business dinner around a large round table, a smaller family graduation celebration, as a tourist or simply a foodie looking to try out one of the best. It's a place where you can keep going back.

Craftbar, 900 Broadway at East 20th St., just above Union Square in the Flatiron-Gramercy district and near the Flatiron Building and one of the Craft restaurants in hot cities across the U.S.. It's lots of fun with a tempting variety of creative but not overly drawn small and large plates to share. For our large plates we opted for choices including mussels, choucroute and salt cod in simply delicious preparations and imaginative wine and beer options to match. We did find that going early was a good move since it gets busy and noisy.

Porter House New York, on the 4th floor of the Time Warner Center on Columbus Circle (West 59th and Broadway near Lincoln Center, Upper West Side) - spectacular views of the city, large roomy booths and tables, luxury dining and the best steaks ever by the former executive chef of '21' and Windows on the World.

And see my blog article on the Meatpacking District, for Spice Market and other suggestions.

General tips

I use Open Table and Urban Spoon for reservations and ideas, and find their reviews trustyworthy and from different perspectives. But not all restaurants use their reservation services, so it's important to broaden your resources. The New York Times dining section, New York Magazine and Travel + Leisure are additional sources that I like to balance out ratings and gain deeper insights to specialized dining opportunities.

"SuperWomantraveler" is Revealed

A preview screening of Wonder Women! The Untold Story of American Superheroines, which premiers April 15 on PBS, gave me an idea. This blog could rename itself SuperWomantraveler and strive for justice and truth in the often self-serving online travel industry. (Not to say there aren't plenty of excellent travel bloggers, but does any of them wear a disguise??)

OK, just kidding about this blog, but the documentary's director Kristy Guevara-Flanagan has created a provocative story that sheds much new light on women, women and power, women and teamwork and many other traits. I heard her describe her motivation at a screening and then quizzed some women friends. None of us, we confessed, had appreciated the deeper themes of this Wonder Woman comics superheroine during our upbringing. In fact she was a turnoff to many of us, with all due respect to actress Lynda Carter, TV's Wonder Woman and a savvy voice in the film. Truth be told, what was personified early on in these figures was physical exploitation -- Carter's ample measurements and those first Southwest Airlines female flight attendants in their hotpants? To be honest, because of this imagery, many of us clearly undervalued the concept of Wonder Woman for her symbolic role in history (aka the Amazons in Greek myths), her inspiration for modern warrior princesses (e.g., Linda Hamilton in The Terminator films) and her meaning for contemporary modern feminist icons, modeled by Gloria Steinem.

But Ms. Magazine co-founder Steinem, ever the smart and savvy analyst, and several other thoughtful voices in this fascinating chronicle have rendered a both stirring and entertaining tale about history, literature, politics and culture. And did you know that the DC Comics superheroine was created by Harvard psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston in 1941 to fight for justice, peace, love - and even sexual equality - on the eve of World War II and within the male-dominated superhero genre? Now, that's a concept to be further pondered in the context of the times, and as further modeled by the contributions of wartime superheroines like Rosie the Riveter and as described in the new book, The Girls of Atomic City. The question at hand - what makes a superhero, mythic or real?

To consider this more, check out some other good reads on the topic, such as Ink-Stained Amazons and Cinematic Warriors: Superwomen in Modern Mythology, from Wonder Woman to Charlie's Angels.

So from now on, Womantraveler will be assuming a posture of truth and justice in travel-writing. Now wouldn't that somewhat upend the genre -- telling it like it is, without fluff, no cleavage (sorry) and dedicated to tell-it-like-it-is punch? 

 

 

 

 

 

Charleston, S.C. Food Crawl - Redux for 2013

A year ago Womantraveler ventured to Charleston to indulge in Low Country cuisine and today The New York Times features the latest updates, which reflect several of our original recommendations. Read it here. Then, enjoy my original blog article from my April 2012 adventure below...

The easy sway of Charleston, South Carolina’s “Lowcountry” beauty and Southern charm has been newly amplified by "ahas!" of its culinary creativity after our weekend “food crawl.” This is not to dismiss the broader impact of Charleston – the pungent jasmine cascades, stylish fashion boutiques, stunning 18^th-19^th century architecture or the majestic Arthur Revenel Jr. Bridge just north of Charleston Harbor. Yet for me, “Holy City,” known to many for its low-rise skyline dotted with distinctive church spires, will forever be “Food City.” While the annual Festival of Houses and Gardens in Charleston’s historic district was underway, we were eating. So much to sample in too little time.

Charleston’s growing presence on the national food stage has multiple highlights and takeaways:

The search for the best “shrimp and grits”: Trying out grits, cheese grits or shrimp and grits everywhere we ate, highest honors go to Butcher and Bee, a lunchtime sandwich shop tucked in a warehouse behind a chain link fence under the Ravenel Bridge overpasses. Already nationally known, it appears carelessly (or intentionally?) on the fringes of blighted geography. We stopped for carryout en route to the Isle of Palms and Sullivan’s Island.

Do not underestimate the multiple varieties of grits (small broken grains of corn milled to different sizes) and the thick rich concoctions they inspire in adventuresome Charleston cuisine. Butcher and Bee’s buttery and cheesy rendition was finished with light gravy, and it was a dish we didn’t want to end. Too bad the funky industrially-sited eatery is open only midday (11 am-3 pm) and serves up only three sandwich options (at least the day we were there) with one of them out of stock by the time we arrived. (Note: Butcher and Bee is also open late night, 11 pm – 3 am.) But the careful crafting lulls one back for the next sandwich adventure. Example - the roast beef sandwich, which we also sampled, is a ciabatta-size winner heaped with thin-sliced top rare round smothered with chimichurri aioli and onion jam. Together with the shrimp and grits, these two ample choices more than completed our lunch for three.

The culinary energy of the Saturday Farmers Market: The lines start early around the crepe, egg and omelette booths in the southwest corner of the Charleston Farmers Market. It’s located on the full block of Marion Square between Upper Meeting and King streets, every Saturday from 8 am to 2 pm (April-December). From pickled asparagus and hot pepper jelly at one end to multiple varieties of honey, boiled peanuts, green grocers, grass-fed beef and local coffee roasters by far reaches, the market is a head-long plunge into the distinctive offerings of Lowcountry gardens and farms. The 30-minute wait in the breakfast lines is easily distracted by people watching and the crafts in nearby artisans booths.

The treasures of the sea: Growing up along the East Coast, I’m always on alert for the bounties of the Atlantic Ocean and its brackish bays, rivers and creeks. Grouper is high on my list, so its sister Cobia at Hominy Grill was an easy choice. No disappointment there. The delicate near-sweet flavor came through in the moist, firm texture. While the also nationally known Hominy Grill was the first stop on our list, we were surprised the relative ordinariness of the shrimp and grits (despite its bacon flavoring) and the lukewarm service. Perhaps it was that particular evening, but Chef Robert Stehling was the James Beard Award Best Chef Southeast winner in 2008, which sets an expectation.

Over at The Wreck in the town of Mt. Pleasant on Sullivan’s Island, a more traditional “fish camp” on the Shem Creek inlet off Charleston Harbor, the no-reservations dinner line forms early. (Also no air conditioning and no tablecloths.) In this family-owned business, named in honor of the Richard and Charlene trawler that slammed onto land during Hurricane Hugo, the fare is simple (broiled, boiled or fried) and piled high. Like other fish camps we know in the Southeast, ordering by partial pound makes a lot of sense, especially for sharing around the table. The fried oysters were the best I’ve ever had in many years of tastings up and down the East Coast – very light batter sheltering tender, sweet interiors. Amen to the grilled scallops and not overly dry hush puppies. Another awkward experience in inconsistency, though, was the fresh fish special, a large whole fried flounder, which was overcooked. That said, The Wreck is a loud “yes.”

The restaurants worth checking out: Sean Brock’s (James Beard Best Chef Southeast, 2010) duo, Husk and McCrady’s, and Craig Deihl’s trio – Cypress, Blossom and Magnolia (he was nominated Best Chef Southeast 2010 and 2011 and finalist 2011). Of our entire food crawl experience, Husk (at brunch on Sunday) stands at the top – all measured by a Sunday brunch for quality, consistency, ambiance and service. Cypress was a late-night unwind-at-the-bar fave (and having recently stayed at the Pine Barn Inn in Danville, Pennsylvania, where Deihl started out, super kudos to him for breaking out for Charleston’s enthusiastic audience and setting). And as aside, according to my restaurant watchers, the best known restaurants on the national stage are Husk, Cypress and Fig (which stands for "food is good"; Chef Mike Lata is another James Beard Southeast winner; we didn’t eat here but noted it’s pricier). 

Rare and delicious honeys: Savannah Bee Company is a winery for honeys. Who knew you could fill an entire store with so many flavors? From their signature “Tupelo” to the award-winning “Sourwood,” Savannah Bee turns honey into a completely changed experience, and online ordering is available.

Sweets galore: I was trying to duck the street barker but couldn’t resist popping into River Street Sweets to see what else came with that ultra-sugary almond praline sample. This place upends any other Southern sugar cookie and candy company that I’ve witnessed. Many of the carmely bear claws, glazed pecans, fudge and more goodies are made onsite in this City Market shop, though the headquarters is in Savannah, Georgia, so it’s fascinating to see them being scooped from the open kitchen. Though not a full-on sugar lover, I am now committed.

Sweet, but not to eat: South Carolina’s coiled and woven Sweetgrass baskets, preserving one of the oldest African crafts (which slaves brought into the Lowcountry) turn the native palmetto tree  and local sweetgrasses into artistic treasures.  We were mesmerized by the young man who was deftly weaving palmetto fronds into rosettes at the City Market. The artistry of coiled basketry, mainly from bulrush and palm, is handed down from generation to generation with no set patterns. You’ll see them everywhere, from stores to craft shows to street corner and highway stands. Such inspired craftsmanship, using natural materials cultivated in swamps and marshes, links history, tradition and cultures – and like all art, enriches us all.

If you go: Choose the French Quarter Inn for your accommodations. Located in the historic district near the City Market, this charming hotel offers graceful, friendly and luxury service. From the welcoming champagne to the evening wine reception, ample morning breakfast and large quiet haven of a patio -- and no less than seven pillow comfort selections -- this hotel provides high-quality personal service often not found in busy tourist areas and is consistently top-rated with good reason.

 

NYC's Trendy Meatpacking District - Haute Style and High Line

While it's easy to return to a favorite Manhattan neighborhood over and over, what a treat to find a new day-tripping home-away-from-home in the city's Meatpacking District on the West Side downtown. This discovery comes from an Upper West Side perennial, now hooked on the food, fashion, history and reverence for bucolic open spaces in the Meatpacking District.

From Chelsea Market to the High Line public park built on a defunct railway track above the streetscape to Diane von Furstenberg (DVF) and other high end boutiques, there is much to do in a relatively small zone tucked away on the Hudson River west of the West Village and south of Chelsea. "Oasis" might be a bit overstated but its scale is much-appreciated after the noise and crowds of Midtown.  

Once home to 250 slaughterhouses and packing plants in 1900, Meatpacking went through a long decline, then the usual gentrification. Its preservation and historical designation are due to the vision of neighborhood activists, specialists in urban environmental design and artists like fashion designer von Furstenberg who has anchored one of her retail stores, with a design atelier and penthouse, just east of the High Line. Such are the powerful champions vital to transforming our cityscapes with vibrant imagination and generosity. 

Here are some recommeded "Meatpacking" destinations:

The High Line

On a hot summer afternoon, we strolled through the gardens and wading pools of the High Line, a renewal project built on the freight tracks 30 feet above the street. Opening in 1934, then replaced by trucking and closing entirely in 1980, the High Line criss-crosses 22 blocks that had become so dangerous that cab drivers wouldn't even go there.
Now it's a focal point of urban chic among restaurants, glass apartment and office buildings and within view of the Chelsea Piers sports complex. Read all about its history, urban planning and current details in this special New York Times section. 

Food faves:

Chelsea Market 

I could spend the entire day (and have) going from shop to shop in the Chelsea Market food emporium, a collection of New York's finest on the ground floor of the old National Biscuit Company complex. I have never seen as many extra virgin olive oil bottles to sample as in The Filling Station. Nor as many playful cookies as at Eleni's, nor as many fanciful sweet creations as in Morimoto. I love to watch the bakers manage the ovens at Amy's Bread and peruse the aisles and grab lunch at one of New York's finest fishmongers, The Lobster Place.

Spice Market

This atmospheric Southeast Asian dining spot down the street from Chelsea Market is a creation of resto impressario Jean-Georges Vongerichten - and a New York scene in itself. I was always a big fan of the French-Thai cuisine at his now-closed Vong in Midtown East, and in the huge space of Spice Market, his inventive menu and evocative setting are delicious in all respects, including the people-watching. Plates are ordered and shared at the table, a variety of flavors but nothing overcomplicated or pretentious.

Other popular food faves include The Standard Grill, Fig & Olive (one of several in the city), Pastis and Buddakan.

Fashion faves:

Check out the DVF boutique at 874 Washington and around the corner at 420 West 14th Street, fabulous tees, tops, separates and signature origami sweater wraps in resilient cotton at LillaP. A handful of haute and casual fashion stores are mixed among funky and playful furniture and homestyle stores and, of course, considering the hip crowd, a large, crazily intense Apple Store at 401 W. 14th St.

 

 

 

 

The Ballantyne: A Business Womantraveler's "Me Time"

When you're a business womantraveler on the road with a transition day between meetings, what do you do? Fly back home and start out again before dawn the next morning? Or, take a more creative path - find the nearest lap of luxury and spoil yourself for a day?

It's tempting to take the easy path - stay on the plane and stick to the routine. Putting together the alternative, the "take care of yourself" option, requires more research, creativity and budget. Essentially the decision is this, what are you worth? Recently, I chose "pricey." And retreating to The Ballantyne Hotel and Lodge on the outskirts of Charlotte, N.C., on a rainy cold night when plane travel would have been dreadful, I decided I was worth it, despite the month's worth of groceries I spent for the refueling.

As an independent consultant who works really hard, my demands are few. So an easy morning with room service coffee and cheating the morning for a few hours are simple pleasures that break up the routine. The Southern-style professionalism in this Starwood Luxury Collection Hotel with Ritz-Carlton decor was comfortably welcoming. Thus bonuses were plentiful - marble bath and floors, the smallest room at 400 square feet, large picture windows and 10-foot ceilings, a view out over the golf course, a huge fitness center and indoor pools. 

The Ballantyne is part of a 2000-acre planned community that replaced what I knew as the Harris farm out in the country when living in Charlotte as a teenager. Its commercial office park is said to be the largest speculative commercial park development in the nation, not surprising for one of the fastest-growing cities in the U.S. The immediate area caters not only to the residents attracted to the mixed-use community but the frequent business travelers in and out of Bank of America, Liberty Mutual and other high-profile corporate tenants.

Still budget-conscious, I found the $50 cab ride from the airport a bit scorching along with Charlotte's add-on taxes (sales, automatic room service fees and more) and avoided the four-diamond restaurant for a walk to the sushi bar across the parkway. You have to pay attention to details or the charges will amp up. Downtown at the Westin, where I stayed the next night on points, an $11 room service glass of wine would have been $22 by the time it was delivered with mandatory fees and taxes. The hotel was just fine all in all, with simplified more predictable business hotel decor and service, but I decided that bottled water that I had brought along would more than pay for itself.  

San Francisco's Seafood Watch Alliance - Eat Sustainably

San Francisco’s Pier 39, the Fisherman’s Wharf tourist playground packed with lovers of fast food and plastic souvenirs, took a leap forward with the opening of Fog Harbor Fish House, the Wharf’s first Seafood Watch Alliance partner restaurant.  Fog Harbor serves over 220,000 visitors every year with a menu that is now filled with 100% sustainable seafood, including wild caught salmon, Dungeness crab and Pacific Cod.

The founders of San Francisco’s Seafood Watch Alliance (the Aquarium of the Bay, California Academy of Sciences and San Francisco Zoo) have recruited dozens of member restaurants. They were motivated by the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch program, which encourages consumers and businesses to purchase seafood that is fished or farmed in ways that don’t harm the environment. It's important to note that there is not complete agreement in restaurant and fisherman circles about the criteria for determining "sustainability," and some fisherman complain that the "green" message is confusing, not fully credible scientifically and is over-politicized. 

Seafood Watch labels its choices are ranked Best, Good Alternatives and Avoid. Noting that nearly 85% of the world's fisheries are fished to capacity, or overfished, Seafood Watch says it considers the entire context – the fishery, habitat, species, management, and other factors that affect each species. The campaign as embraced by grocery stores also is controversial.

The impetus for Fog Harbor's participation came in part from the Aquarium of the Bay, the San Francisco region’s only aquarium dedicated totally to San Francisco Bay, an incomparable world treasure which like its habitat is threatened by pollution, construction runoff, agribusiness and much more. When the Aquarium merged three years ago with the science-based nonprofit, The Bay Institute, its exhibits took on even more of an environmental message. Its conservation team worked with Fog Harbor to help reshape the image of Pier 39, the city's largest attraction for out of town visitors but one that is largely disdained by locals.

With the decision to weigh the evidence in consumers' hands, one downloadable pocket guide rates seafood by regions around the U.S. There's also a mobile guide app.  

Girlfriends Weekend in Philly

As a womantraveler now working from the West Coast, I'm always in search of a convenient East Coast rendezvous to catch up with longtime friends. Surprisingly, Philadelphia has moved far up the list of choices since I lived there 25 years ago. In two recent visits, I was reminded of the tremendous food options in Center City. What I hadn't expected, though, was stunning hotel adventure, the neoclassical architectural gem that is now the Ritz-Carlton.

Happily Center City is much classier than when I reported from there in the 1980s, when the entertainment core consisted of pubs, cheesesteaks and the Independence Square tourist gaggles led by invisible guides with tall umbrellas. Broad Street is now the Avenue of the Arts, with expansive concert halls, and the regal Mellon Bank, just south of City Hall, transformed in 2000 to the Ritz. The once sooty City Hall has been cleaned up (at least on the outside) and, in the last 18 months or so in particular, is said to have resumed its Ritz-level expectations, so I'm told. The welcoming flute of Prosecco at check-in next to the very uptown lobby was especially welcome.

There's nothing like a night off -- and especially a night at the Ritz -- after a long week of business travel. As a "road warrior" over the past couple years, I've been in the habit of flying out to work, then immediately flying home to unwind on familiar terra firma. But one of the pleasures of business travel is that it takes you places you may not otherwise experience. So a pause to refresh before heading back to the home office is my new habit whenever possible.

My Washington, DC-based girlfriend and I met halfway in Philly and splurged not only for the Ritz but for the club floor. For only about $50 more a night per room, the club floor's amenities more than pay for themselves -- five or six food presentations (actually mini-meals), from breakfast to light lunch to desserts after 8, attentive and extremely pleasant concierge service and kaleidoscopic views of the cityscape from 30 floors up. The personal care is top flight; the concierge even worked with the spa to call in an extra masseuse to fit my schedule even though they were fully booked.

The hotel began as The Rotunda Building, designed by the renowned architects McKim, Mead, & White between 1904 and 1908 at a cost of over $1.5 million. The dome was the largest dome in the western hemisphere when Girard Trust opened in 1908. Its oculus is 142 feet from the floor, the same as Rome's Pantheon, after which it is modeled. There was no skimping on quality, as seen in the more than 9000 tons of polished Georgia marble columns.

We didn't drift far from the Ritz cocoon, but the location is prime for some of the city's best restaurants and shopping. I had already discovered SA VA, the Philly-based designer boutique with very contemporary yet affordable style. Organic, fair trade and a studio right on Sansom Street. It's a place you need to go in, try on and plan to stay for awhile to get a feel for your own personal SA VA style. And last summer, the parade of leggy, thongy women in short skirts, tight capris or shorts -- sporting their precious dogs in oversized pocket books -- offered Center City's best people watching as I spent a warm evening at at a sidewalk table at Parc, the French brasserie on Rittenhouse Square.

This time we opted for Stephen Starr's Butcher and Singer, the upscale steakhouse replacement for the longtime favorite, Striped Bass, on Walnut Street. We were well taken care of and the food absolutely matched its classy reputation. Starr, a music promoter and restaurateur, is an icon of Philly's entertainment industry that a few decades back began offering alternatives to the stuffy Main Line culture by catering to the Baby Boom generation, and now post-Boomer tastes. Another of my Starr faves is the neuvo Latino Alma de Cuba also on Walnut Street. Over on Rittenhouse Square, Parc Brasserie is a traditional French-style bistro - very animated and delicious with a variety of fare and a wonderful wine selection. And when the weather is nice, you can sit outside and people watch. There is plenty of entertainment from the sleek automobiles dropping off people curbside to residents in the swanky neighborhood strolling with their dogs (and assorted friends) in the seen-and-be-seen parading style Aux Champs-Elysees in Paris.