Mar 8, 2010 by Suzanne Steinert - comment
Darren Frei keeps you ahead of the curve with updates showcasing the world's most happening destinations, hotels, and attractions.
Theater buffs and foodies alike better hightail-it to New York City this month to take advantage of deep discounts on some of the Big Apple’s best shows and restaurants. Now through February 7 as part of the city’s bi-annual Restaurant Week fete, 260 of the fanciest eats in town are hocking three-course prixe-fixe menus starting at just $24.07 (for lunch) and $35.00 (for dinner). The roster of drool-worthy participants includes Gramercy’s Craftbar, Fig & Olive in the fashionable Meatpacking District, and Smith & Wollensky – Midtown’s prime steakhouse. After indulging your taste buds without breaking the bank, take your leftover cash to the theater. NYC & Co., the city’s marketing and tourism organization, is hocking two-for-one tickets to over 20 different Off-Broadway shows running from February 8-28. Read the rest of this post »
City Parks Foundation is presenting its annual performing arts festival at Central Park’s SummerStage. The concerts are held directly in Central Park and offer a wide variety of performances, including music, comedy, dance, film, and spoken word. All performances are free, with the exception of four benefit shows priced between $25-$55. This year’s lineup includes 311, The Indigo Girls, Q-Tip, and the Metropolitan Opera. The Buckingham Hotel (888-511-1900), a 100-suite boutique property located just minutes from Central Park, is offering a special package for SummerStage attendees. Starting at just $219, the hotel is offering accommodations for four coupled with VIP entrance and special seating to all Summerstage performances. The package is available through August 17 and can be booked at www.buckinghamhotel.com/summerstage. Read the rest of this post »
Given New York City’s penchant for a somber palette, the opening of a branch of French fabric store Les Toiles du Soleil (Fabric of the Sun) in Chelsea seems like mutiny. “People are scared of having color in their homes,” says Jean-Luc Carrucciu, who runs the outpost with his wife, Sandrine Guibert. “But then they start with one piece and gradually add more and more.” The company is nearly 150 years old and still handcrafts its vibrant cotton and linen fabrics on old-fashioned looms in the original St.-Laurent-de-Cerdans factory in southwestern France. In a similarly bygone tradition, the Manhattan boutique (two others operate in Paris and Tokyo) sells fabric by the yard and will custom-make any number of home goods—from curtains and duvets to tablecloths. Read the rest of this post »
While downing a cold Guinness yesterday, in preparation for St. Patrick’s day of course, I was inspired to write about my second favorite hobby besides travel . . . beer. Now I’m not a raging alcoholic and I don’t need 12 steps (at least I don’t think I do) – I just deeply appreciate an icy cold adult beverage, whether it be an exotic lager from a far away land or a strikingly good stout made in a local brewery. One of the best ways to sample (or chug) some suds is by checking out a beer festival. Read on to discover five noteworthy brew cities and their big booze events. Cheers – and may the luck of the Irish be with you! Read the rest of this post »
On Tuesday, March 17, Americans will paint their faces green and don their woolen sweaters to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. This year, why not make a last-minute road trip to one of these five U.S. cities to catch the big parade and throw back some Guinness with the locals? Considering how many great airline deals are out there, you may even luck out with a cheap flight!
Chicago: The Windy City has dyed its river bright green since 1962 (don’t worry, the dye used in the annual event is not harmful to the environment). Chicago’s parade is packed with floats, marching bands, Clydesdale horses, and, of course, Irish step dancers. See our Chicago Travel Guide
Four more seriously green St. Paddy’s Day cities after the jump. Read the rest of this post »
Thanks to an intrepid location scout, Katie Holmes is shooting a 90-second scene for her forthcoming film The Extra Man . . . in my living room. After confirming that Tom Cruise and Baby Suri will not be joining Ms. Holmes on the “set” (I really wanted Tom to jump up and down on my sofa), I do what any self-respecting New Yorker would do upon finding his/her apartment overrun by grips, gaffers, best boys, and Scientologists: Book a room at the nearest hotel. That’s how me, my partner, and our French bulldog Meatballs end up at The Cooper Square Hotel, a 21-story white glass and aluminum tower that swells above the East Village’s six-story brick tenement buildings. In its “soft opening” phase since December, the 145-room design hotel is offering recession-busting rates through April 30: Just $195/night on weekends and $255/night during the week (expect to pay $350 to $550 come May). Though a few key public spaces are still under construction – including the N.Y. outpost of L.A.’s famed Table 8 from star chef Govind Armstrong – the Cooper is ready for its close-up.
See what we loved about our stay after the jump. Even Meatballs was in heaven! Read the rest of this post »
The Morgan Library & Museum in New York City is currently showing “On the Money: Cartoons for The New Yorker,” with around 80 original cartoons published from 1925 through the 1990s that square off with the subject of money and how it defines us (January 23 to May 24). In Boston, The Institute of Contemporary Art, in its new Diller Scofidio + Renfro building, is hosting a survey of work by Shepard Fairey, the street artist famous for his now-iconic Barack Obama poster (through August 16). The Guggenheim Berlin is presenting “Picturing America: Photorealism in the 1970s,” a look at paintings created from photographs, a movement that evolved from Pop Art by artists such as Charles Bell, Chuck Close, and Ralph Going, whose Airstream (1970) is pictured above (through May 10).
From the Feb/March 2009 issue of Sherman’s Travel magazine.
When friends come to town, I love it when they stay at the Bowery Hotel in downtown Manhattan. For one, knowing someone who’s staying at the hotel is the only way to gain access to the cozy, opulent lobby bar (which expands into a patio in the summer). You can easily while away hours on the overstuffed velvet chairs near the giant fireplace, sharing a bottle of wine and a caprese from the adjoining Gemma, while watching the beautiful and eclectic crowd go by. It’s a really neat place to base oneself while visiting the city—the Bowery is still gritty in patches but it offers an “authentic” NYC experience, and it’s within walking distance of many great restaurants, bars, and boutiques (and the New Museum). Read the rest of this post »
Guerlain Spa, at The Waldorf-Astoria on Manhattan’s Upper East Side (301 Park Ave., 212-872-7200), opened in September.
From the Winter 2008/09 issue of Sherman’s Travel magazine
Ian Schrager may have sparked a flame in 1984 with the Morgans hotel in New York City, but the watershed for the boutique hotel genre wasn’t until 1998, when Starwood launched its hip W brand. The boutique model – design-conscious, intimate, unique to its location – took off, and big brands have been trying to get a piece of the success ever since.
Starwood recently launched another group, Aloft (pictured at right), with rates on a par with budget chains (around $150/night) and loftlike rooms by David Rockwell, with high ceilings, large windows, and lots of gadgets. As with W hotels, there’s an emphasis on hangout spots, such as a self-serve gourmet café and a pool area with WiFi. Nineteen Alofts opened in 2008 (Montreal, Philadelphia, and Beijing were a few of the first), and about 30 are slated for 2009. Read the rest of this post »