As I've mentioned before, my intention for this blog is to be about all things that inspire me and light me up...
As I go along, I will tell bits about myself and my dreams, goals and what I am up to at the moment. I will journal about food, style, inspiring things and random things as I experience my life day to day. I can only hope that along the way I can either touch, move and inspire my audience in some way, shape or form. The objective here being... to live a life that I love and relish every moment with those whom I love and are the closest to me!!
One thing I will say is that I love to travel. I am fascinated by different places, the people, the aesthetics... from architecture to environment and ambiance. I love to experience diverse cultures and customs... whether in a foreign country, or in a different state... because really??... the culture in LA is foreign in comparison to one from the East Coast! :) So... having said that... I will share with you a recent trip I took to New York City that I had the privilege of taking this past February.
NYC is one of my favorite cities ever... there is never a trip there that is identical to the other! I love it all... the culture, the food, the sites, the different neighborhoods, the shopping ... (sigh)... ALL OF IT! Ironically, I was born and raised in LA... but when I am in New York, I feel as though I am a New Yorker. I can almost relate to SJP's character on SEX AND THE CITY, Carrie Bradshaw... and her love affair with Manhattan. Double irony that I love to write and I love fashion! (Wait... that is triple irony! LOL)...
Anyway... back to the trip to NYC... this trip was unlike any other as it was a turn around trip.
I left LAX at 9 PM on a Tuesday and returned the following Thursday morning at 9 AM!! I was in NYC for literally 24 hours... who does that? (Well, I'm sure there are many people that do that on a regular basis, be it for business or just day to day jetsetting... but for me... not so much!) So the excitement in all of this was that it was so out of the ordinary for me, an adventure, if you will!
I had the privilege to be invited by a friend to FASHION WEEK to the Diane Von Furstenburg fashion show, (a very fantastic gift to be given this trip and unforgettable opportunity). This year she (DVF partnered with American Express to produce a fashion show for the "consumer". So aside from the "celebrity" show that one reads about in fashion magazines... this was one for her "real" clients... and the whole thing was just brilliant! I love her work! I own a handful of her dresses and several other pieces and (though not from the most recent collections, very classic pieces) and I just adore them! She is truly an icon in the fashion world and an inspiration to all women. I can only hope I look like her when I am her age! Simply stunning!
So here is a rundown of my unforgettable 24 hour trip in the Big Apple:
We arrived at JFK at about 6:30 AM... and it was COLD! If I recall correctly, about 40 degrees COLD! BRRRRR!... There was a mere hiccup in the transportation plans... so after dealing with that and morning traffic hour... we arrived at The Algonquin at about 7:30ish... settled in and went across the street to have a fabulous breakfast at BRASSERIE 44. In one word DELISH!
I tell ya, the French know their food (and ambiance). BRASSERIE 44 is housed at The ROYALTON HOTEL on 44th St. Truly a work of art and a great place for the fans of boutique hotels, as myself. I have not yet had the pleasure of staying there, but will definitely have that in my "Places to stay" list when I return to the city!
I had a hard time choosing what I was going to have... I am a bit of a health nut and like to start my days with healthy breakfasts... but giving in to the sweet tooth occasionally is not so bad; everything in moderation! So, when traveling, I make room for the occasional indulgences! I went with the French Toast... which they prepared with Brioche... and it came with a Berry Compote (truly delicious). I will have to comment that the steak and eggs was done better than what would be expected for breakfast fare (this was my friend's choice). All in all... I would give Brasserie 44 a 5 star rating for breakfast in NYC, especially if one is after a great meeting location, either to impress your companion or for a power meeting; very chic, uptown (well, actually midtown) crowd; very New York!
So after breakfast, my friend, who was under the weather, decided to go back to the room to take a nap for a couple of hours. I, on the other hand, decided to go for a walk, as the morning was clear and brisk.... very cold... but beautiful... and really? I was in NYC... I did not go there to nap! I ventured into the city without a map... but with an open mind to see what I'd find. Off I went only to find myself in the theatre district... and suddenly "bumped" into Times Square! What a great surprise...(clearly, I had no idea in what direction I was walking).... I later found out that had I ventured the other way... I would have bumped into 5th Avenue!! (I guess it wasn't so bad... I saved money going the other direction! LOL... there was an H&M store just 2 blocks from my hotel!) :)
I walked around and took in the sights and sounds of the city... people watched and window shopped! There is something iconic about Times Square... it's so busy, people everywhere, both locals and thousands of tourists! It's the heart of New York! I will have to say it is a rather liberating and empowering thing to be 3,000 miles from home alone... and to take it all in... having nothing else to do in that moment but be there and be present to it all!! Simply amazing!
I returned to the hotel a couple of hours later to check on my friend... but by this time I had walked off that fantastic breakfast... So, we jumped into a cab and ventured into Greenwich Village. The original plans were to meet a friend who works at Carnegie Hall for lunch and go for a private tour of Carnegie with her... but that had to be changed and so I insisted on hanging in Greenwich and going to JOHN'S PIZZERIA! John's happens to be the most fantastic pizza in the city (IMHO) ... seriously to die for pizza!! Located at the corner of Bleeker and Jones St.... we got there shortly, only to have the weather change dramatically in that short while!! It had to have been 30 degrees at that point, when we ventured into a local shoe store (of course)... LOL! No sooner were we indoors...it began to rain, but suddenly to our surprise, there was a sudden snow flurry!! Such a cool thing to see! I had never been to NYC in the middle of Winter... so had never experienced this kind of cold, much less the snow! Can I just say??? So cool!!
We ended up warming up inside John's Pizzeria... ordered a pie with mushrooms, olives, peppers and meatballs. OMG!! I have to reiterate, to die for! I will have to say that just their cheese pizza is amazing... so I have decided that next time I return, I will go with one topping and call it a day! Whatever you order, you can't go wrong! Totally worth the cab fare to get there!
(BTW... they have a tradition of sorts at John's... you get to engrave your name at the table/booth you sit at... and your name (literally) goes down in history!) (So FYI... NO! I don't make it a point to vandalize the establishments I dine at! LOL!)
Lunch was done... and in the freezing cold we were off to SOHO. Again... too cold to walk... I seriously thought my friend would catch pneumonia... so we took a cab there... only to get there and get present to the fact that it was waaaayyyy tooooo cold to walk, PERIOD!!! In life's true ironies... we accidentally bumped into one of the most fantastic little tea houses called SANCTUARY T. Located just caddy corner from the Soho Grand Hotel (another fantastic boutique hotel), we walked in there not knowing what to expect. Very cool, contemporary, organic interior... accompanied by a very organic menu of exotic teas and lunch entrees... we ordered what turned out to be one of the most fantastic teas I have ever had! Granted, I have become a bigtime tea drinker and have discovered some pretty wonderful teas in my time, but SanctuaryT... definitely a "go back"! I highly recommend to anyone big on organic cafes; especially the kind with a fabulous ambiance! We spent a good hour and a half there... shared some delicious tea and conversation... and off we went.
At this point... the weather took a toll on us... and really?... I hadn't gotten the best rest on the plane... so I was ready for a nap; given that I wanted to be impossibly fresh for the fashion show! So we headed back to the hotel and napped for a little over an hour and got up and ready for the show!
After a short nap…. It was time to get ready for the fashion show! This was my first NYC Fashion Week experience… and I have to admit it is such a cool thing to know that you are going to be in the tents at Bryant Park! The weather was not the best “hair” weather, it was cold and raining, still… so I decided to go with the old faithful “high ponytail”… paid some extra attention to makeup… I would have loved to have worn one of my DVF dresses to the show, but most unfortunately, my winter coat had gotten the best of me; and given that her dresses are rather "unforgiving", I opted for another more flattering dress with some stiletto pumps... heavy coat and wrap… and off we went!
Tough thing to live in NYC and have to dress up and walk in stilettos in the rain… the cabbie dropped us off on the wrong side of Bryant Park, so we had to run in the rain… a full New York block! We managed to get there a bit wet, but we survived… after standing in what seamed to be the longest line ever… the crowd maneuvered and we all got in and took our seats! One word… WOW! What an amazing experience!… The press was there… Diane was introduced by one of VOGUE MAGAZINE’s executives… she is absolutely stunning! I so want to look like her when I am her age; the woman is ageless, timeless!
Her Spring Collection was presented and was just fantastic. Very feminine and ethereal… with a bit of rocker-chick glamour! Some pieces I could dream of having in my closet… but I must say I am drawn to her more classic pieces. Shockingly, fashion shows run an average of about 20 minutes… and this one was no different. Quick, yet breathtaking!
In the rain, after what seemed to be a long time, we flagged down a cab, only to drive a couple of blocks to have dinner. (On a side note, some of you know that I am a huge Food Network junkie, and true to that, a huge Bobby Flay fan!). Our dinner reservations were at BAR AMERICAIN, one of Bobby Flay's NYC restaurants. Bar Americain is a true All-American steak house, so the menu reflects Bobby's take on the Steakhouse classics. It was a bit late and we were just famished.
We started with the Homemade Potato Chips, which were served with a decadent Blue cheese sauce. Delish!
Dinner quickly followed, as we opted out of the salad choices… we wanted to eat our main entrée! My friend ordered Mussels in a Chile Verde Broth (Bobby Flay fuses many of his recipes with Southwestern cuisine), and that was accompanied by a side of “Americain” fries with a Chipotle Aioli. (OMG! My mouth is watering as I write!)
I went with a classic Filet Mignon and ordered a side of Asparagus with a Béarnaise Sauce. I wasn’t quite prepared for the taste sensation I was about to experience… I cut into the steak and it was like butter…. But the best part was tasting it! Can I just say, I could have gotten up and done a happy dance, of sorts! I quote my dear friend Becky, “There was a party in my mouth!”… LOL! There were so many spices and flavors going on, not only did my mouth water, my eyes watered, as well! Bobby, whatever infusion went into that marinade was simply genius! I will say that if I had the luxury of going to NYC on a whim and whenever I wanted a steak, I would not think twice to fly out just to have this filet!!! “To die for” is an understatement!!! Ironically there was a gourmet steak sauce that was served with it, and although delicious, totally unnecessary!
The portions were huge! That steak could have easily been shared, and though it was, there was more food than 2 people could handle!! I paired my steak with a Cabernet Savignon, and it was perfect!
I must say, that I would have never expected the food to be THAT good! I know Bobby Flay is a master in grilling and cooking, but completely out did my expectations! I have been to some truly remarkable steak houses while traveling, but Bobby Flay can give any one of those restaurants a run for their money! I highly recommend BAR AMERICAIN to everyone while in NYC!!!
So dinner was done, and although late, we went for a final stop back to the ROYALTON HOTEL, which houses LOUNGE 44, a very chic, upscale lounge for a drink! WHEW!! We were tired… a long fun-packed day… but one last toast is all we wanted. At about 2:00 am (EST) we were exhausted and knew we better head back because at this point we had about enough time for a 2 hour nap!!
At 6:30 am the next morning was our flight back to LAX! Exactly 24 hours after we had landed! We almost missed our flight…. But thank goodness, we made it in the nick of time, a few minutes later, and we would not have been so lucky!!
By 9:30 am (PST) we were back in LA, and nobody ever knew I was gone! Truly a memorable trip… fun, exciting and adrenaline charged!! I think the excitement allowed us to burn most of the calories we consumed (oh yeah, and running in the rain!)
Definitely an adventure I can cross off my “Bucket List”! LOL… and I would do it again in a heartbeat!! Thanks for joining me on my 24 hour turn around trip to NYC! It was almost as much fun writing about it, as was the experience!! (My gosh! I’m still savoring that steak in my mind!! YUUMMMM!!)...
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I love the play by play. I too am in love w/nyc and long for another trip. bye, carolyn
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