I love the Bryant Park Hotel - great location, comfortable and spacious rooms and a hip and trendy vibe...without being too hip and trendy. I also love the hotel because they have Molton Brown products in their rooms...and I am officially in love with some of their newest product offerings. I am taking home some bottles of the Heavenly Gingerlily bath and shower gel, the Ziao Jao shampoo and the Indian Cress conditioner. I am not easily wowed by bathroom products these days...but this line is a keeper....the scents were very lively and light while the product makes you walk out of the shower feeling exhilerated! I highly recommend purchasing some great products from Molton Brown! http://www.bryantparkhotel.com/
http://www.moltonbrown.com/
Friday, February 29, 2008
New York Restaurants
I had the opportunity to be in New York City this week and it was definitely a worthwhile trip - for work and some eating. I had some great meals while I was here - my round-up of my favorites:
1. BLT Prime: An amazing steak place, definitely one of my top 5 favorites. The atmosphere was very relaxed and fun, great acoustics so that you had entertaining - and fun - music in the background but not too loud that you could not talk to your dinner mate. We were fortunate enough to have a corner table, so the seating was very comfortable and perfect for conversation and sharing food. Our meal was delectable...we started with a beet and goat cheese salad, buffalo tomatoes and bacon. As a side, we had these amazing buns that I believe are a specialty of BLT - so good you can only allow yourself a small amount as not to ruin your appetite. We then moved on to our entrees - a filet with bearnaise sauce and spicy sweet potatoes. A perfectly balanced and cooked meal that I am still thinking about today. We of course enjoyed our meal with a great bottle of Barolo and we topped it off with a mouth watering peanut butter chocolate mousse dessert with banana ice cream. Just amazing! http://www.bltprime.com/
2. Il Mulino: We were very excite to try this Italian legend. A good friend had set up the reservation for us, and we were eager to visit the New York location as we had already had the pleasure of eating at the Las Vegas location. The ambiance was very old school Italian - small and cozy and the permeating smells of amazing Italian food. We were sat at a small table crunched between two big tables - one drawback as it was very hard to hear my table mate. There was also a cool breeze making me just a tad bit cold throughout the meal. But, we were served bread, cheeze, bruschetta and a few other treats as soon as we sat down, so I was immediately satisfied. We ordered a great bottle of Cabrea and a huge amount of food. This is not the place you go to for a light meal. We let the waiter take the liberty of ordering several items for us including stuffed mushroom caps with escargot, three different types of pasta including a delectable mushroom ravioloi in a champagne sause and for our entree a veal milanese and branzino. The fish and the veal were melt in your mouth good, I loved the pastas but my dinner mate thought they were just OK. We capped off the meal with our favotite - a flourless chocolate cake...which was undescribably good. Overall, the meal was very good, we were not in love with the cramped space and the loud parties on either side of our table. http://www.ilmulinonewyork.jp/
3. Nougatine: This is a Jean George restaurant located in the Trump Plaza Hotel in New York...it is a more casual dining experience than Jean-George, but in no way a lesser dining experience. Plain and simple, this is a phenomenal place to eat, great food, relaxing environment. A really enjoyable dinner....http://www.jean-georges.com/
1. BLT Prime: An amazing steak place, definitely one of my top 5 favorites. The atmosphere was very relaxed and fun, great acoustics so that you had entertaining - and fun - music in the background but not too loud that you could not talk to your dinner mate. We were fortunate enough to have a corner table, so the seating was very comfortable and perfect for conversation and sharing food. Our meal was delectable...we started with a beet and goat cheese salad, buffalo tomatoes and bacon. As a side, we had these amazing buns that I believe are a specialty of BLT - so good you can only allow yourself a small amount as not to ruin your appetite. We then moved on to our entrees - a filet with bearnaise sauce and spicy sweet potatoes. A perfectly balanced and cooked meal that I am still thinking about today. We of course enjoyed our meal with a great bottle of Barolo and we topped it off with a mouth watering peanut butter chocolate mousse dessert with banana ice cream. Just amazing! http://www.bltprime.com/
2. Il Mulino: We were very excite to try this Italian legend. A good friend had set up the reservation for us, and we were eager to visit the New York location as we had already had the pleasure of eating at the Las Vegas location. The ambiance was very old school Italian - small and cozy and the permeating smells of amazing Italian food. We were sat at a small table crunched between two big tables - one drawback as it was very hard to hear my table mate. There was also a cool breeze making me just a tad bit cold throughout the meal. But, we were served bread, cheeze, bruschetta and a few other treats as soon as we sat down, so I was immediately satisfied. We ordered a great bottle of Cabrea and a huge amount of food. This is not the place you go to for a light meal. We let the waiter take the liberty of ordering several items for us including stuffed mushroom caps with escargot, three different types of pasta including a delectable mushroom ravioloi in a champagne sause and for our entree a veal milanese and branzino. The fish and the veal were melt in your mouth good, I loved the pastas but my dinner mate thought they were just OK. We capped off the meal with our favotite - a flourless chocolate cake...which was undescribably good. Overall, the meal was very good, we were not in love with the cramped space and the loud parties on either side of our table. http://www.ilmulinonewyork.jp/
3. Nougatine: This is a Jean George restaurant located in the Trump Plaza Hotel in New York...it is a more casual dining experience than Jean-George, but in no way a lesser dining experience. Plain and simple, this is a phenomenal place to eat, great food, relaxing environment. A really enjoyable dinner....http://www.jean-georges.com/
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Project Runway Anticipation
Ok, I have to say, I love this show. If I could only come back as a fashion designer, I think I would love it. My favorite contestant as far as wearable clothes go is Jillian. I love her stuff, including the last outfit she made...I would buy it if I could. Of course Christian is so fun to watch and extremely talented. Chris and Rami - they do intrigue me. But I am rooting for Jillian....I look forward to the final show! If you are passionate about fashion, but have yet to tune into this show...it is a must see.
New Restaurant in LA
I had the pleasure if testing out a new restaurant prior to its soft opening this week! It is called Cinqueterra and it is located just south of Federal on Santa Monica Blvd., 11047 Santa Monica Blvd. The food was really amazing....their hook - they are using a myriad of fresh ingredients, and the menu will reflect that. My favorite - the smoked sushi - mouth watering. The ravioli was like butter and the bread was made fresh. Expect traditional northern Italian fare - based on a menu that you can play with. Oh, and the desert was amazing. It will be a great lunch location, as the location is a heavy commercial area...but definitely work checking for dinner if you want to try something new and intriguing. They anticipate a soft opening this coming weekend....but make sure to call first.
New name/old shop in LA
I decided to walk down Montana yesterday after a few meetings in the area and I found an old shop I like with a new name. The boutique is called Taylor, honestly, I don't remember the prior name, but it is on Montana around 9th or 10th street. Great clothes, I purchased a beautiful top and had 3 others I would have loved to buy, but I had to stop myself. I also ventured down the Blue Jeans Denim Bar - a recommendation from a few people. The selection was pretty good, but it seems most shops are out of skinny jeans these days. Montana continues to be one of my favorite shopping streets in LA.
Sunday, February 17, 2008
One Additional Favorite Thing
I forgot to talk about one additional favorite thing on my mind: (PRODUCT) RED. I am a huge believer in what (PRODUCT) RED is doing - they have created a new way of giving back - by doing something you do every day = shop! The products from all of (PRODUCT) RED's partners are awesome - fashionable, sylish, sleek - including Apple's (PRODUCT) RED Nano, and great lines from Gap, Emporio Armani, Converse, Motorola, Dell, Microsoft and Hallmark!
Check it out at http://www.joinred.com/.
Check it out at http://www.joinred.com/.
My Favorite Things
I have long found that the little things in life bring me such joy! And of course the big things. I have also found that I get great pleasure in sharing the new things I find that I love and that others must experience. So this is my first entry into sharing something special that I love.
Each post will focus on something new and interesting, but for my first post I want to share a list of my top 20 things currently on my mind, and here we go:
1. Los Angeles: I am a new transplant to the city of angels - i just celebrated my first year anniversary here, and so far it has been a wonderful experience. I am a Chicago girl at heart, but give me a little warmth, a wide beach, eclectic food and fashion and a lot of sun, and I am in love and excited every day to experience something new here. I have to say, the traffic is the worst, but the long treks across LA land are worth the hassle once you get to your destination of choice.
2. Hair - my favorite stylist in Chicago was Linda at Salon 1800...she is amazing. But I now loving Glenn at the Christophe Salon on Beverly.
3. Restaurants in LA: I am loving - Via Veneto, Cafe Del Rey, Mozza, AOC, Simon LA and Capo.
4. Boyfriends: Tim Duffy.
5. Dogs: Coco
6. Shopping: loving Dolce Vita, Planet Blue, Blonde LA....more to explore though.
7. Shopping online: My mother's site, http://www.chriscloset.com/ for the fun scarves, bags and jewelry all at an incredible price!
8. Travel: Hoping to hit Italy soon, but Hawaii is forever on my mind including Lanaii, my new favorite.
9. Airlines: American is my usual choice, but I had a nice trip on Alaskan Airlines recently.
10. I just started seeing a Life Coach and she is fanastic. Let me know if you want her contact details.
11. Joanne Pavin's Healthy Soulutions: You can find her at: http://www.soulutionstohealth.com/. She gives THE best massage....Second best is a girl in Kona that I will add to this list when I find her card.
12. Book: Pillars of the Earth and Night Over Water - Both by Ken Follett. I read Pillars of the Earth 15 years ago, but I am starting it again because it is so great. I am also in love with Kite Runner and a Thousand Splendid Suns.
13. Clothes: A great pair of Manolos, a beautiful dress from M by Missoni and some great jewerly from my mom's shop.
14. Laptop - I just got the little Sony Vaio and it literally has changed my life!
15. Trainers - My trainer in Marina Del Rey is Amazing....you can find him at http://www.unitedfitness.com/ - Craig Stolker.
15. Movies: I am watching silly old movies these days including Chances Are, Sabrina, 13 Going on 30.
16. Cars: currently loving the Range Rover Sport we just got.
17. My must have devices: a Motorola RAZR 2, a Blackberry, a Sound ID Bluetooth Headset and my Apple (PRODUCT) RED Nano.
18. Secret obesession: Anything shiny, like a new laurenmirkin.com laptop sleeve in gunmetal.
19. My favorite college team: Anything Purdue Boilermaker style! http://www.purdue.com/ . I am a member of the School of Liberal Arts Alumni Board, so I encourage anyone to check them out!
20. The best manicurist in LA: Nettie - you can find her at http://www.nettiescrub.com/
Please share your favorites and I encourage you to check out some of my favorite things!
Each post will focus on something new and interesting, but for my first post I want to share a list of my top 20 things currently on my mind, and here we go:
1. Los Angeles: I am a new transplant to the city of angels - i just celebrated my first year anniversary here, and so far it has been a wonderful experience. I am a Chicago girl at heart, but give me a little warmth, a wide beach, eclectic food and fashion and a lot of sun, and I am in love and excited every day to experience something new here. I have to say, the traffic is the worst, but the long treks across LA land are worth the hassle once you get to your destination of choice.
2. Hair - my favorite stylist in Chicago was Linda at Salon 1800...she is amazing. But I now loving Glenn at the Christophe Salon on Beverly.
3. Restaurants in LA: I am loving - Via Veneto, Cafe Del Rey, Mozza, AOC, Simon LA and Capo.
4. Boyfriends: Tim Duffy.
5. Dogs: Coco
6. Shopping: loving Dolce Vita, Planet Blue, Blonde LA....more to explore though.
7. Shopping online: My mother's site, http://www.chriscloset.com/ for the fun scarves, bags and jewelry all at an incredible price!
8. Travel: Hoping to hit Italy soon, but Hawaii is forever on my mind including Lanaii, my new favorite.
9. Airlines: American is my usual choice, but I had a nice trip on Alaskan Airlines recently.
10. I just started seeing a Life Coach and she is fanastic. Let me know if you want her contact details.
11. Joanne Pavin's Healthy Soulutions: You can find her at: http://www.soulutionstohealth.com/. She gives THE best massage....Second best is a girl in Kona that I will add to this list when I find her card.
12. Book: Pillars of the Earth and Night Over Water - Both by Ken Follett. I read Pillars of the Earth 15 years ago, but I am starting it again because it is so great. I am also in love with Kite Runner and a Thousand Splendid Suns.
13. Clothes: A great pair of Manolos, a beautiful dress from M by Missoni and some great jewerly from my mom's shop.
14. Laptop - I just got the little Sony Vaio and it literally has changed my life!
15. Trainers - My trainer in Marina Del Rey is Amazing....you can find him at http://www.unitedfitness.com/ - Craig Stolker.
15. Movies: I am watching silly old movies these days including Chances Are, Sabrina, 13 Going on 30.
16. Cars: currently loving the Range Rover Sport we just got.
17. My must have devices: a Motorola RAZR 2, a Blackberry, a Sound ID Bluetooth Headset and my Apple (PRODUCT) RED Nano.
18. Secret obesession: Anything shiny, like a new laurenmirkin.com laptop sleeve in gunmetal.
19. My favorite college team: Anything Purdue Boilermaker style! http://www.purdue.com/ . I am a member of the School of Liberal Arts Alumni Board, so I encourage anyone to check them out!
20. The best manicurist in LA: Nettie - you can find her at http://www.nettiescrub.com/
Please share your favorites and I encourage you to check out some of my favorite things!
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