Town & Country Travels Home
All the talk of "staycations," reducing one's carbon footprint, and
the wastefulness of private jet travel are enough induce a guilt attack
when one thinks of jetting off to New Zealand to explore Great Mercury Island (pictured, left) or driving back and forth to a summer house every weekend. But
our friends over at the The Daily Green have a different take on the impact of travel on the earth's resources:
"...how do you measure the value of expanding your horizons, gaining knowledge and insight about other places, ecosystems and cultures? The powerful desire to protect tends to follow exploration. Those who have visited an ecotourist hot spot tend to be much more likely to do something to protect it...Read More
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Town & Country's August issue is on the stands and we are rolling out its travel stories online:
Going to visit your friends in the Hamptons and want to bring more than the de rigeur bottle of wine? Always wanted to see gorillas in the wild? Wondering what people are buzzing about in Chicago (a new museum, pictured left), or where to dine in Dallas? Check out these stories:
- Chicago's New Gem: The Driehaus Museum
- Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek Gets a Makeover
We'll continue rolling out August's travel stories throughout the month, and in early August, look for our coverage from Town & Country's fall issue, including our reports on trips to Yunnan province in China, New York's Hudson River Valley, Easter Island, and Copenhagen.
A few weeks ago I was invited to come try out the new menu at Brasserie. I had just eaten a meal at Benoit during its opening week, at Florent during its closing week, and had found myself sharing a bottle of Sancerre one night at Pastis with friends after seeing Olafur Eliasson's Waterfalls exhibit. I was suffering a bit of bistro fatigue. All the polished brass and tromp l'oleil were turning into a blur, and how many frites can one person eat, anyway?
Thankfully, I was in for a change. Despite its traditional name and its 1959 opening date, Brasserie's decor (pictured, left) -- redesigned in 2000 by Diller Scofidio + Renfro, the same visionaries responsible for New York's High Line project -- evokes Battlestar Galactica more than Brasserie Bofinger. Definitely a nice change from frescoed angels and gilt.
The menu, on the other hand, didn't seem at first glance to stray much from classic French offerings. But Luc Dimnet (pictured below right) -- who returned to the restaurant in March as executive chef, having held the same position from 2000-2005 -- translates the restaurant's modern sensibilities onto the plate in the form of inventive twists on traditional dishes. 
Kumamoto and Beau Soleis oysters were served with a sprightly, frozen mignonette. Foie gras beignets -- small, molten pockets of rich liver -- were countered with a tart, pleasantly viscious balsasmic gastrique. Order these at the futuristic bar if you don't have time for dinner.
The whole grilled durade was light and aromatic. For something more substantial, tuck into the lobster thermidor (which half the patrons seemed to be eating), from the seasonal Lobster Celebration menu. The tarragon hollandaise was not too heavy, and the aged parmesan delivered the right amount of bite. We were somewhat wary of the addition of the (seemingly omnipresent) truffle oil to creamed spinach, but found that with a light touch, it worked perfectly. The unobtrusive and uber-professional wait staff at Brasserie -- which received two stars from William Grimes in the New York Times -- was adept at picking the perfect wine for each course; we happily left our choices in their hands. Pastry chef Kenneth Larson offered up a juicy and buttery seasonal plum tart; if you visit during the winter, the cheesecake is what you should order. Our only gripes: the leather on some of the dining chairs would benefit from a buffing, and a place to set a handbag in the sleek ladies' room would be a nice touch.
As for the frites? I found they were good enough that a person can, in fact, eat many more.
Brasserie
100 E. 53rd St.
New York, NY 10022
(212) 751-4840
This past March we lauded luxury cruise line The Yachts of Seabourn for their wi-fi access, family-friendly policies, generous loyalty programs and exotic ports of call. Now, Seabourn is launching the largest spa on any luxury cruise ship: an 11,400-foot monster on the Seabourn Odyssey (pictured left), a 450-passenger ship that launches in June. The highlights of the spa are the two private villas, which can be booked along with appointments and are large enough for partner treatments, complete with a shower, a Jacuzzi, a private balcony for sunbathing, a full living room area and a dining room. If eating is more your thing, try out Seabourn's "Shopping with the Chef" program, where 15 lucky foodies accompany the chef in port as he shops for fresh produce and fish for that evening's dishes.
Another great amenity we didn't mention in March: easy-to-use luggage shipping. If you're traveling independently before a cruise and don't want to lug all your ship-appropriate items along (after all, who needs an evening gown in, say, Costa Rica?), Seabourn's Personal Valet service will ship it via DHL. Bags are tucked away in the guests' suites when they arrive on board, and are sent home when the cruise ends. The average cost of shipping a bag to Europe is $350. Seabourn said it saw use of the service double from 2005 to 2006, and that most people who use the service are hooked after one go. Given airlines' ever-tightening restrictions on baggage and the increasing hassle factor at the airport, divesting yourself of your luggage before the trip even starts is a sure way to start your vacation out stress-free.
Circle Line Sightseeing Cruises took us out last night on the first day of Olafur Eliasson's New York City Waterfalls exhibit. We grabbed a camera and shot a quick tour of all four waterfalls. Check it out here:
For more on the much buzzed-about exhibit (rivaled only in New York City by Christo's Gates in Central Park in 2005), The Wall Street Journal has an intelligent look at the project called "Niagara's Rivals -- For a Time, Anyway".
(At right: What you want to avoid.)
Fuel prices are high, the economy is slow, and airlines are cutting back accordingly. While the number of people flying is also likely to decrease, there may be more people herded onto remaining flights (and, thanks to new luggage surcharges, more stuff crammed in the overhead bin). Sounds like the recipe for a stressful flying experience, no?
We spoke with Jeff Burger, executive editor from Business Jet Traveler,
about what frequent leisure flyers can do -- besides giving up
entirely and buying their own planes -- to reduce stress when they
travel. Here are his four top tips for avoiding the
queues, the hassles and the wasted time. (Image via the Clarion Ledger.)
1. Join the Registered Traveler Program
For about $100 a year, passengers who pass a background check get a "smartcard" for use at the security checkpoints. The card gives you access to a reserved security lane' hence, a shorter wait at the security checkpoint. Other benefits include retaining some of your dignity, in the form of keeping your coat and shoes on, and your laptop in your bag. Some companies who offer this program are: Clear, Preferred Traveler, and FLO.
2. Ditch the Luggage
FedEx isn't the only way to go when shipping luggage. FlyLite stores your travel clothes and catalogs them online. Before a trip, you go to the Web site, check off what you want to bring, and it's waiting for you by the time you get to your destination...
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Through four mayors, financial boom times and downturns, Seinfeld, Sex and the City and Gossip Girl, the classic Italian fine-dining spot San Domenico, located on New York's Central Park South, has endured.
But all good things must come to an end. (Especially when landlord negotiations get ugly.) Thus, San Domenico is shuttering its location in midtown and moving to Madison Square, turf presently dominated by restaurant impresario Danny Meyer. Plans call for San Domenico to reemerge at 19 East 26th Street next spring. The new space, promises SD owner Tony May, will be significantly larger, and with a much more contemporary décor than its predecessor. The way New Yorkers dine out has changed much in the past twenty years, becoming more casual, says May, and the time has come for San Domenico to hew to that evolution.
A favorite stop for midtowners in need of an after-work cocktail or a plate graced with the restaurant's famed raviolo (filled with soft egg yolk), San Domenico succeeded thanks to the warm Italian welcome extended by Tony and his always-charming daughter, Marisa. The Mays also had a nose for talent in the kitchen, hiring a series of chefs who would go on to make their names elsewhere, including Benny Bartolotta (presently at Osteria del Circo), Andrew Carmellini (now of A Voce), Scott Conant (of Scarpetta), Theo Schoenegger (of The Patina Group) and Marc Bianchini (who has since staked his claim with three restaurants in Milwaukee). And of course, current executive chef, Odette Fada.
We wish Tony, Marisa and Odette well as they embark on this new chapter in San Domenico's history. But we will most certainly miss having them a stone's throw from the Hearst Tower, home of Town & Country and Town & Country Travel.
(Pictured left: Odette Fada, Tony May, Marisa May and Marc Bianchini. Pictured right: San Domenico's entrance near Central Park South. Photos by Thomas P. Farley.)
Speaking of Beijing, Boston.com's The Big Picture blog has a great roundup of photos taken during preparations for the Olympic games in Beijing.
Above: a Reuters shot of a member of the Olympic Rescue Dog Team in training in Beijing; the gallery has many more images of (human) athletes and improvements being made in and around the city.
I can't count the number of times I've been on the road and was unable or too inconvenienced to print out my boarding pass for the return flight. A new story from the Associated Press shows how flyers can now get those pesky boarding passes automatically sent to their phone or Blackberry and can board without the printed pass.
Town & Country's July issue features a great piece by T&C Travel Editor-in-Chief Heidi Mitchell on traveling to Beijing, along with practical tips for those heading to the Olympics this year -- including our top picks on where to stay (the Peninsula Beijing, the Park Hyatt Beijing and the Commune by the Great Wall Kempinski), where to get tickets to Olympic events, top outfitters (Remote Lands), and
where to enjoy the best nightlife.
There's much new to be seen in Beijing, Mitchell reports:
"Still, the show—or more like the coming-out party—must go on. In preparation for the Games, Swiss architectural firm Herzog & de Meuron and the China Architecture Design Institute have erected the 80,000-seat National Stadium, lovingly nicknamed the Bird's Nest for its webbed-steel tentacles. The Netherlands' Rem Koolhaas and his team will unveil their gravity-defying CCTV Headquarters, which some are describing as a twisted doughnut. British starchitect Norman Foster's futuristic new Terminal 3 at the international airport has just opened. Even more impressive, every single Olympics project is on track to be completed ahead of schedule, not to beat timetables but to help clear the dust clinging to carbon emissions in the air. Factories will work in slow motion for weeks before the first starting gun is fired on the auspicious date of 8/8/8, and cars will miraculously be swept off the streets—all in the name of blue skies and beautiful photo ops..."
Beijing is a city of 17 million people, and getting around town can be tricky -- best to read up before you go.
Anyone else have tips to share on new, can't-miss locations in Beijing?
One of the questions that comes up a lot when we're kicking around ideas for what stories is, "Is this location safe enough for our readers?" There's only so much information you can glean by reading the State Department's Travel Advisories, and oftentimes, you'll get conflicting information when you talk to friends who have recently visited countries on the list. I have friends who've recently visited Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia -- all of which are on the list. They all came back in one piece (but some of the stories they told convinced me that I won't be running off to Riyadh anytime soon). It's something that's always on the mind of travel editors, and something that was considered before publishing recent pieces on Tel Aviv and Kenya, among others.
OTBeach News's ProTraveller tackled this issue in its recent story "6 Upcoming Countries Worth Visiting Now the Conflict is Over," which gave its take on the wisdom of traveling to some of the same destinations we've covered recently, including Cambodia, Indonesia and Croatia.
Read MoreThe New York City Waterfalls, a new public art installation by Olafur Eliasson, will be a "spectacle to rival The Gates," the Central Park installation by Christo and Jeanne-Claude that capitivated New Yorkers in 2005, predicts New York Magazine. Eliasson, a Danish-Icelandic artist, has erected four 90- to 120-foot man-made waterfalls along the shores of Brooklyn, Manhattan and Governors Island that will add an impressive new vertical element to New York's waterways from late June through Oct. 14 this year. We're planning to go see it ourselves, and will be posting about the trip here in a few weeks.
The city's hotels and tour operators are rolling out packages in conjunction with the event.
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Given the intense heat wave that left New Yorkers running for A/C wherever they could find it this week, it may seem like an odd time to be thinking about snow (unless it's the variety that comes in a cone). But I was reminded of winter today when I came across a press packet I got last month at an event for Vail Resorts. I attended their party in New York to hear all about what the resorts have coming up for the 08/09 ski season; I get out to Colorado to snowboard quite frequently in the winter, so my interest wasn't just professional.
The most impressive offering -- one that I jumped on, and one skiiers and snowboarders should take note of -- is brand new for the 08/09 season, and available only until November 15.
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Heidi Mitchell is editor-in-chief of Town & Country Travel and Town & Country Weddings, and features and travel editor of Town & Country.
Adam H. Graham is a contributing writer for this blog; his work also frequently appears in Town & Country Travel, both in the magazine and online.