Tons of Fun at Acme Hotel Company

I had passed the Acme Hotel Company on a previous trip to Chicago and it looked really interesting, even from the outside. I was excited when they invited me to visit with my friends.

From the moment we stepped inside I know we were someplace fun.

The check-in at Acme Hotel Company was quick and I boarded the elevator to our suite with my friends. It was filled with music albums from a lot of my favorite artists.

We had the one-bedroom suite, and it was spacious enough for a family or group of friends, with a large pullout couch in the living room and two queen beds in the bedroom.

The music theme continued into the room, where we had our own guitar in the living room! 

We also had modern art out the window and in the room, including a Rolling Stones’ style kiss on our mirror.

An Amazon Echo, with Alexa waiting to play our favorite music or tell the staff if we needed anything. 

We even had a DIY cocktail kit so we could mix our own drinks if we didn’t want to go down to the bar.

Scott, Brittany, and Amanda had a concert to go to (Catfish& the Bottlemen), but I had plenty of time to enjoy the hotel.

First, I headed down to The Berkshire Room for drinks and a light dinner. I always love to sit at the bar when I am alone, and this is especially true when there are interesting drinks to be made. 

The Berkshire Room at Acme Hotel prides itself in its unique and handcrafted cocktails. 

They have some that are Barrel Finished, while others are old favorites with a twist.

These include the Old Fashion turned into “Old Money,” with bourbon, Aperol, Walnut Liqueur, and Allspice (it was delicious).

I also tried the Banana Cognac Cocktail. The concoction of cognac, banana brandy, banana cordial, Falerium, and Angostura bitters was flavorful, but not too sweet.

The selection of spirits, and even bitters, at The Berkshire Room bar is huge, so the bartenders can create anything you want.

While chatting with the staff and customers – the crowd grew as the night went on – I also sampled the Charcuterie plate, filled with interesting cheeses, some from the Midwest. There’s also a menu of mini desserts to end with.

I left Berkshire Room and headed upstairs to change into my bathing suit. I had been anxiously waiting for my next stop, the Bunny Slope.

The Acme Hotel Company has a downstairs with a large fitness center and a room they refer to as a Bunny Slope. The room can be rented out for parties, but, on this night, it was empty.

It was the ultimate in relaxation, with a fireplace, a flat screen tv, and crystal-clear water in the whirlpool.

My friends were back from the concert by the time I returned up to the room. We all chatted for a while, and Amanda played the guitar a bit for us.

It was then time to get some rest before an active following day as we were heading to the Starved Rock area to satisfy some bucket lists.

Amusement Park Fun and Special Cocktails in Branson

It was the last full day in Branson for Marsha, Brittany, Amanda, and I. We had a full day of fun planned, as well as a very special nighttime celebration.

We were up and out of the Radisson Hotel Branson early to head to Silver Dollar City, one of Branson’s most popular attractions.

I expected an amusement park, but I also got a period attraction that reminded me of Colonial Williamsburg.

Silver Dollar City has as many depictions of historical sites as rides, including period costumes and vehicles, an old school house, animals, walkways that looked like streets from long ago, woodworkers, a glassware maker, a pottery store, and other shops that had a lot more than your typical theme park souvenirs.

The park also has lots of shows, such as “Mean Murphy Rides Again” at the Saloon, McHaffie’s Homestead, and the Silver Dollar City Street Troupe. They also have seasonal shows in the fall and Christmas shows in December.

Unlike most amusement parks, Silver Dollar City is open through January 1^st each year, and then re-opens in March. 

You can also purchase a triple ticket during the summer to include admission to Whitewater Water Park and the Showboat Branson Belle  (which we had done a few days before) dinner cruise at a discount rate.

We started with breakfast at Eva & Delilah’s Bakery. It was hard to choose free the pastries, breads, brownies, cookies, Danishes, and cupcakes.

We ended up with a cinnamon roll and sticky bun to share, and some fresh coffee to go with them.

There is no shortage of food at Silver Dollar City, from sit-down and buffet restaurants to stands for funnel cakes, sidewinder fries, tater twists, ice cream, candy, and fudge.

Marsha and I wondered around exploring while Brittany and Amanda hit the rides: 

The Giant Barn Swing, Thunderation Wooden Roller Coaster (called “the world’s most daring wood coaster” since it has three upside down twists), Firefall, and the Firespotter Roller Coaster.

We all did the train ride at Silver Dollar City, which stops for a comedy skit along the way, and the Fire in the Hole ride.

We were all very hungry and decided to go to Molly’s Mill Restaurant for the buffet luncheon. It was good and quite filling, with fried chicken, macaroni and cheese, a salad bar, a pasta bar, and more.

It was a very hot day and we were ready to go over to Whitewater Water Park. Marsha and I again took the relaxing route, spending time on the Lazy River before enjoying one of the many lounge chairs in the sun with an afternoon ice cream treat.

Brittany and Amanda went through the Pipeline Plunge, Surf’s Up Wave Pool, Kalani Towers, and Kapaui Plummet.

We headed back to the Radisson Hotel Branson in the evening. We had a late night planned and all napped for a while before dressing up.

The plan was to head to Crazy Craig’s Cheeky Monkey Bar at 10:00 and have dinner, and be there at midnight for a 21^st birthday toast to Brittney.

Unfortunately, there was a bit of a mix-up with the PR rep as far as the Missouri laws were concerned. No one under 21 was allowed in the bar between 10 and midnight.

Another wrench in our plans was the fact that Branson is just not a late-night dinner town. The only place we found open for the birthday dinner was the International House of Pancakes!

We actually had fun with breakfast for dinner at IHOP and made it back to the Cheeky Monkey at 11:45.

While Brittany waited outside the door with Amanda (who had turned 21 a few weeks before), Marsha and I got the drinks ready and talked to Craig, the bar’s owner. 

He told us about his journey as a farm boy from Nebraska to Washington, DC, Panama, Costa Rica, and more, including where the monkey came from (you can read the whole story on the back of the menu in the picture).

At exactly 12:01 am, Craig personally escorted Brittany into the bar for her first official cocktails.

I picked the Cheeky Monkey Bar because of the fun atmosphere and interesting cocktails. It seemed as if every one of them made it to the birthday girl at our table! Including these:

Cheeky Monkey

Cruzan Mango, Guava, banana, and Coconut rums with a splash of tropical juices.

A Monkey’s Uncle

Svedka Raspberry Vodka, Svedka Mango Pineapple Vodka, Cranberry Juice, sour mix, and a splash of Sprite.

Grass Monkey

Cruzan Coconut rum, Deykuper Melon Liqueur, pineapple juice, sour mix, and a Cruzan 151 floater.

We closed down the bar at 2:00 am and headed back to the hotel for a good night’s sleep. We had some more birthday celebrating to do for the last day of our trip in Branson, Missouri. 

Wine, Dine and Fun in Denver

My press trip invitation from Zimmerman Public Relations was very different than any I had received, but it definitely peaked my interest.

The trip was a collaboration between SpringHill Suites Denver Downtown and Infinite Monkey Theorem Winery. It was only two days long and it sounded like a lot of fun, so I cleared my schedule.

I was one of the first to arrive in Denver, a city I hadn’t visited in a few years.

It had been a while since I’ve stayed at a SpringHill Suites and this one was even nicer than I had remembered.

The lobby was very warm and welcoming, as was the staff. I would learn that the staff here was especially friendly as they were all students from the Hospitality School at the Metropolitan State University.

The school was right next door and there was a very unique partnership between this SpringHill and Metropolitan. Not only did the hotel employee many students, but profits from the hotel also went into scholarships at the school.

The relationship of SpringHill Suites Downtown Denver did not end at the front desk. 

Degree Food and Drink was also next door to the hotel and served as its only restaurant.

I had a delicious lunch at Degree with the staff from Zimmerman while we waited for the other guests to arrive.

My room was ready right after lunch and I settled in since we had some free time.

I was quite impressed with the suite, one large room with a divider between the living room area and the king sized bed.

The ladies from Zimmerman had left us all a big selection of goodies, ranging from snacks to samples of Infinite Monkey wine, and even a hangover kit for those of us who ended up indulging too much during our night time activities.

As I glanced at the schedule I realized here was a very good chance of that!

We met in the lobby at about 5:00 pm. It was the largest group of journalists I remember ever traveling with.

Within the group was Kristen Hanson. We had traveled together on quite a few trips and had become friends over the years. It was great to have a chance to catch up between the festivities.

We all hopped into the oversized limousine and headed to Infinite Monkey Theorem Winery. 

I was one of the few who already knew a bit about the company having attended their Swine on the Mine event at the Aspen Food &Wine Festival.

This winery is a very unique “urban winery,” located in a factory in the city and using some unique wine making. 

They are also known for their canned wine, still delicious using a special method to keep the wine from taking on any aluminum flavor.

My previous experience with Infinite Monkey had only been about “white or red?” but I soon learned this company has drastically expanded their bottles and cans, including the addition of a bottled sparkling wine and a canned pear cider.

We left the winery and returned to SpringHill Suites for a unique “Can & Cheese Dining Experience.” Cheese was a huge underestimation of the spread we saw.

The chefs at Degree had whipped up a wonderful selection of pairings with the Infinite Monkey Theorem wines that included Black & Blue Sliders with the Red Wine and Brown Butter Pouchettes with Rose.

After sampling some desserts with the Pear Cider, we headed out for some cocktails and popular Denver nightspots.

Our first stop was at Beatrice and Woodsley. It teetered on the whimsical with toilet paper on the bathroom walls and a community sink outside the restrooms, but it was also quite formal in some ways.

The cocktail menu was unique and enjoyed some interesting play on words. I had, for example, the Violet, You’re Turning Violet, a reference to a line in the Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory movie.

It was a concoction with house-infused Violet Vodka, made with teas, blueberries, and ginger, then covered with lemon juice.

We finished our drinks and then headed to The Blake StreetVault in Denver’s LoDo neighborhood. Despite the very decorative front of the building, it had a classic pub fee inside.

What we didn’t know until after we got our drinks was the place had a very long history that included ghosts. We took a tour through the basement and vault, where we heard the story, but had no sightings.

We returned to the SpringHill Suites Downtown after midnight.

I was a bit disappointed that we hadn’t made it to our last stop, Linger, as it had been a favorite of mine on my last trip to Denver. 

Unfortunately, they were closing earlier than we could get there.

I settled into my very comfortable king suite, resting up for another full day in Denver.

The Best Bars & Lounges at Heathrow Airport

Passing through an airport can be an extremely stressful part of traveling, an issue that a myriad of airline and airport operators attempt to counteract with sleeping capsules, yoga lounges, and kid-free zones. San Jose International, LAX and Miami Airport even have therapy dogs to de-stress passengers, but sometimes all you airport that supplies a wide variety of bars is London Heathrow.

The UK’s busiest airport continues to impress in all areas, from the delectable options for food and beverages to the convenient and ever expanding parking services that Parking4Less offers visitors -- long and short stay parking at all 5 terminals, all of which ensure a relaxing and hassle-free journey. If you’re traveling through Heathrow any time soon and in need of time to unwind during your time in the airport, here is a list of recommended pubs and lounges.

London’s Pride by Fuller’s, Terminal 2
Just last year, the centuries-old brewer opened a gastropub in Heathrow to offer passengers premium ciders as well as local provenance food to supply them with something slightly different from the typical airport restaurant experience. They even have a Terminal 2 lager called Wingman.

The Flying Chariot (Wetherspoon), Terminal 3
The Flying Chariot celebrates all things Heathrow with designs inspired by the airport’s rich history, boasting its own ‘control tower’ observation deck that overlooks the runway. In addition to the Windsor & Eton Brewery craft beers, the pub also serves organic ciders, artisan gins, and an extensive selection of exquisite dishes.

Fortnum & Mason Champagne Bar, Terminal 5
Open from 5:30 am until the last departing flight, Fortnum & Mason Champagne Bar is a classy establishment with a beautiful island bar serving a diverse range of bubbly, along with cocktails, spirits and non-alcoholic beverages. Travelers may wish to pair their drinks with crumpets, caviar or other snacks from the menu.

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