Arriving in New York for Fun, Family, Friends & Food

 

I am a New Yorker, who didn’t move to the Midwest until my late 40s. I have never regretted the decision. It’s much more affordable here and I prefer the lifestyle. After years of living near the ocean, I’m also more than happy to enjoy beautiful Great Lakes, with no hurricanes, sharks, jellyfish, or Nor’easters. 

What I do miss a lot about New York is family and friends. It’s also nice to check out what there is to offer in the big city and my former home of Long Island. I decided to arrange a trip that would encompass all of this: time with loved ones and discovering some of New York I didn’t know before. For the latter, I worked with the ILoveNY team to create an itinerary.

The trip did not start off well. American Airlines cancelled my flight from Champaign to Chicago. I didn’t want to delay the trip a day so I had someone take me to Chicago so I could still catch my flight to LaGuardia. Unfortunately, he was late picking me up and I missed my flight!

This was made worse by the fact that it was my very first trip alone in a wheelchair. I was unable to go anywhere without hoping someone would come by and hear me call. I managed to accomplish that for one trip to the nearby Starbucks for food, and another to the bathroom. After five hours sitting at the gate, I finally was able to get on the plane.

Things were hectic on the other end too. My scooter had been damaged on my previous trip by the airlines. It had not been fixed yet, so they were renting one for me.( My new power chair hadn’t come in yet.)

The scooter that they had waiting at LGA baggage claim was not what we discussed, and it wasn’t easy getting in my cousin Marissa’s van, but she was a trooper and managed to do it.

We were off to Manhattan, aka the most famous borough in New York City. I had decided to check out the Chelsea neighborhood on this trip. I had never been and had a few offers in the area that sounded perfect.

My home for the night was Hyatt Place Chelsea. Marissa dropped me off so she could run some family errands, and I could get some rest.

The Chelsea area is around the Hudson River and is known for its waterfront eateries and walkways, and the Chelsea Market (on my schedule for day two). The hotel was near where I wanted to be and had a spacious accessible room ready for me, with a view that included the Empire State Building.

Although the Hyatt Place Chelsea has a rooftop restaurant, I was invited to a special dinner. Marissa and I were going to Hav & Mar, a Marcus Samuelsson eatery with a James Beard nominated chef.

I soon found out that what the New York tourism group told me was true, there were plenty of options to get around the city in a wheelchair. I used my app for a Lyft and a van with a ramp was there within 10 minutes. The cost was comparable to any other car service ride, about $15.

From my description, you might think Hav & Mar was pretentious, but it definitely is not. It’s modern and friendly, with an open kitchen. Executive Chef Fariyal Abdullahi greeted me and made sure to note my seafood allergy and Marissa’s gluten intolerance.

 

It’s hard to define the food at Hav & Mar. The menu is predominantly seafood, and there are a lot of Mediterranean dishes, there are also hints of other cultures, such as an Indian curry, and a French crème brulee. The only thing in common was that they were all delicious!

 

We wanted to sample as much as possible and, since most items are small plates, it worked out well. I had the cornbread, sweet and savory, with tomato jam and humus , vegetable curry and rice, and a chocolate cake that was so large I had more than enough for breakfast the next day.

Marissa went all out with the fish theme, starting with a spinach salad and continuing with oysters, scallops, a whole grilled fish, and the crème brulee.

 

I can say this was one of the best restaurants I’ve been to, and I’ve certainly had my share around the world. I was disappointed Chef Abdullahi didn’t win the James Beard Award, but she did truly seem to appreciate the nomination.

We easily caught another accessible Lyft back to the Hyatt Place, where Marissa left me for the night. I had been up since four in the morning and was ready for some sleep. I quickly drifted off with the New York City Skyline in the background.

I was hosted on this trip by ILoveNY, but opinions are my own.

Taking in NYC Food, Cocktails, Theater and Zoo

I spent most of my life in New York, but the truth is I spent very little of that in Manhattan. As a teen, I would go in on my school breaks for shopping or theater, and as an adult it was mostly a trip into the city to see a play, have dinner, or meet friends for drinks. I had never spent four days staying there before and I was determined to finish it with as much as possible.

My daughter Sam met me in the morning at my friend Liza’s and we headed over to drop my things at The Library Hotel. I had stayed at two of this brand’s sister hotels previously (Hotel Elysee and Casablanca) and absolutely loved them. This one proved to be just as unique. With an evening social hour (great wine and cheese spread) and a big European breakfast, you can’t possibly get more for your dollar in New York. Plus, there’s also the indiivudality of the hotel. This one – “Library” – has each floor dedicated to a subject and each room to a subdivision.  My room was 20th Century History and was filled with books from that time period

From The Library Hotel we walked down to Central Park where we were having lunch at the Sarabeth’s Kitchen location there. The place was absolutely packed and I was glad we had reservations. The smell of fresh baked goods was everywhere and I gazed over quite an impressive cocktail list for brunch as my stomach growled in anticipation.

It was a tough decision when we finally were seated as everything around us looked amazing. Sam and I decided to share so we could try as much as possible, but first started with one of their many mimosa options. The Four Flowers Mimosa (their signature Four Flowers Juice with champagne) was a perfect brunch companion with Almond Crusted French Toast with strawberry sauce, the Vegetable Frittata and a warm banana muffin.

The brunch was unbelievable and we were stuffed so we decided to walk off some calories in Central Park. It had been years since I had been there and Sam admitted that she never had. We made our way past the horse drawn carriages and the competition in the ice skating rink to the Central Park Zoo.  We spent an hour or so there and I loved forgetting that my little girl is all grown up!

Sam and I walked back to The Library Hotel and enjoyed a latte in the lounge (coffees and cookies are complimentary and available all day here) before she had to go catch her train. I wasn’t alone for alone, though, as my friend Gail was on her way to continue the adventure.

I decided that I needed to do some more walking if I was going to work up an appetite for brunch at DoHYo. Yes, I was going to have another brunch, but this one was different that any I have ever experienced in my life.

Here’s the story… you go to this funky, ultra modern restaurant in the Yotel just outside of the Times Square between noon and five pm. You then have two hours to eat as many small plates and drink as many cocktails as you want while you listen to the DJ spin. And, to make it even better, it is great food by Chef Richard Sandoval for only $35 per person.

I was a bit limited by a lot of the seafood on the menu, but still managed to try quite a bit while Gail also got to taste the Crab Wontons and Crunchy Shrimp. Some of the other dishes that were great were Yukon Gold Tostones, Chicken Salad (Asian style), Wild Mushroom Omelet, Wok-Seared Cauliflower and House Ground Meatballs.

We had to try some cocktails, of course, and they were both unusual and tasty.  I loved the Sake Sangria, Mango Mimosa and Lychee Bellini, and enjoyed quick tastes of the equally satisfying  Bacon Bloody Mary, Passion Plantation Punch and Peach & Bourbon Tea.

We actually didn’t linger the full two hours because we had somewhere important to go. The Broadway Collection had gotten me tickets to Godspell at Circle in the Square. It was one of the best plays I’ve ever seen and the cast is just spectacular. It’s been updated a bit with references to modern day Facebook, Donald Trump and others and the performances are just magnificent. I was lucky enough to catch Weeds star Hunter Parish in the lead before his limited run ended and was blown away by his voice. He was just replaced by Corbin Bleu of High School Musical.

After the show it was time to bid my friend and New York City goodbye. It was my first real in-depth adventure of the Big Apple and I’m sure it won’t be my last.

A Wine Expo and a New Manhattan Club

It was a perfect warm spring day as I attended the New York City Wine Expo and got to spend some time catching up with a friend at a new Manhattan club.

I had never been to the New York Wine Expo before and was very surprised by the variety of wine regions represented at the Jacob Javits Center.  The nearby Finger Lakes was well represented and proved to many how different Rieslings can be. I stopped by and tasted some unusual Greek wines before spending awhile checking out La Strada del Vino, a region of Tuscany. I sampled some excellent Chianti’s and talked about planning a trip there this coming fall.

Another region I am expecting to get to soon is New Zealand and they had some of their famous sauvignon blanc out. There were also plenty of tastings at the Côtes de Rhône table,  as well as a representation from South Africa that included an unusual sweet Shiraz (Jam Jar).

I found some unusual wines, such as Renee-Hugues Gay Wines, Happy Bitch Wine and Middle Sisters, all of which had some good offerings. Food vendors with everything from olive oil to Finger Lakes Wine Cake were sprinkled throughout the venue. The Dutch cheese was a big hit, as was the Belgian chocolate, but it was the wine everyone left talking about.

After I had made my way around the room, I left the expo and headed downtown to stay at my friend Liza’s. We enjoyed a girls’ night in catching up because we need to rest up for our next night out. We were checking out a great new bar and I was really excited.

The Vault at Pfaff’s is located at the corner of Bleecker and Broadway, although I should say it’s actually below it. It is underneath its sister restaurant, the Corner Shop Café. This former cocktail den was called Pfaff’s Beer Cellar when Charles Pfaff first opened it in 1855. Walt Whitman was among the frequent patrons then and he was often joined by actors and artists.

The space at Pfaff’s has been restored, using some of the original stone and brick. It has a real classic look, a comfortable speakeasy that almost looks like Al Capone may walk in the door any minute! Liza and I had no fear as we tasted some of the many cocktails and small plates on the newspaper –like menu.

I loved the Big Bird (house-infused Two Berry Plymouth Gin, Marie Brizzard Apricot Brandy and fresh sour mix) while Liza sipped on the Leaves of Grass (Zubrowska Bison Grass Vodka, Taylor Fladgate 10 year old Port, house-made honey syrup and fresh lemon juice). Later we tried a great Champagne Charles (Ayala Burt Majeur Champagne, June Liqueur and house-made cranberry bitters) and a creamy, but not too rich Melkor’s Ghost (Delord Armagnac Blanch, crème de cocoa, crème de banana and crème).

You will also find an interesting list of international draught and bottled beer  at The Vault at Pfaff’s, as well as quite a few offerings of wine by the glass and bottle. There’s a similar selection of spirits that include artisanal distillers like Brooklyn Gin.

The Maitake Mushroom Melt was actually a large plate of finger sandwiches that were delicious and the Artisanal Cheese and Charuterie place was a nice grouping of fruits, meats and cheeses. We also sampled the tender Filet Mignon Medallions with blue cheese dressing.

We lounged at The Vault at Pfaff’s for quite a bit and then met some friends upstairs at the Corner Café to share some scrumptious cheesecake for dessert. We also managed to catch some music before heading for a good night’s sleep and another big day in New York City.