Kafer Berlin im Deutscher Bundestag, Reichstag

After touring the Reichstag via the dome we dined at the top. We found the restaurant to be very elegant, prices high but reasonable.

Good food. Lauren had chicken breast while i had fish.

What $16 Gets You at Rowdy Hall

I’m thinking that Rowdy Hall’s half an acorn squash stuffed with spinach is a bit pricey at 16 bucks. Agree?

Next stop: Nick and Toni’s.

New Year’s Eve 2010: Early dinner at Nick and Toni’s. Started with cocktails, of course. A hot pepper infused vodka martini for Lauren and for me, a Rosemary’s Baby—organic gin with homemade limoncello and rosemary. Delicious! Lauren had a wild mushroom and frisee salad which she loved. I chose the warm cauliflower salad which blew me away. Cauliflower was al dente and perfectly cooked. They snuck some bacon in there too. Main course, whole branzio stuffed with citrus for her. Osso Bucco for me. Lauren finished hers down to the eyeballs. Me? I couldn’t get through mine. Too much moist tender, delicious meat.

Reasons why this hotel is so inexpensive

As much as we enjoyed our Thanksgiving stay at the Gideon Putnam, we couldn’t couldn’t resist the $75 a night rate at the downtown Hilton in Saratoga. Really, how could you pass it up? The place, attached to the under-construction City Center is huge. The lobby is refined, large… and empty. There’s no restaurant, bar, coffee shop, just the front desk and a small gift shop. Room service is provided by the Old Bryan Inn, across the parking lot. You can get a cup of coffee in the gift shop. On our first visit they nice lady behind the counter told us that they serve “delicious breakfast sandwiches in the morning.” We had a gift basket of muffins, so i eschewed the delicious sandwiches the first day and the second. The third i decided to give them a try. but when i arrived i didn’t see any sandwiches so i decided on a banana and a coffee instead. Charge? $5.00. What?! How much is the banana? $2.50. Well, needless to say, i made the poor fellow behind the counter refund the charge and left him with the banana.

The final morning i decided i wasn’t going to leave without enjoying one of their delicious breakfast sandwiches, so around 10:00 i meandered down and asked for one at the gift shop. Easy, the counter lady pulled a box of Weight Watchers Smart Ones frozen breakfast sandwiches from teh freezer and popped one in the microwave. Voila! I took one bite and tossed it in the trash.

But the room was nice. The pool water temperature was 86 degrees. And parking was free.

A Crazy Turkey Day Weekend in Saratoga

Our weekend was a holiday adventure with family

The Gideon Putnam Hotel in Saratoga Springs

We left New York City on Wednesday afternoon. Fortified by Penn Station sushi we boarded a jam-packed Amtrak train for the four-hour trip to Saratoga, via Albany, Schenectady, and all those Hudson River Valley towns. It was the Ethan Allen, ultimate destination, Rutland, otherwise knows as Rut Vegas. Let me stop right here. Instead of writing a long day-by-day narrative of our weekend, i’m going to cut to the highs and the lows using my brand new ranking system: First Class; Coach; and Standby.

First Class:

Gideon Putnam Hotel

I love the old-world charm of the Gideon Putnam. The service is top notch and always in fashion; the rooms are large and clean. The common area with two fireplaces and big comfy couches is a delight. Best of all may be the location: right in the middle of the Saratoga Spa State Park with its gorgeous WPA era buildings, the Hall of Springs, Lincoln Baths, etc… Also prompt shuttle service into Saratoga, the train station, the harness track,.

Uncommon Grounds:

Lauren was there morning noon and night. All told we had: lentil soup, potato leek soup, shrimp and corn chowder, jalapeno bagel tuna fish sandwich, jalpeno bagel with Atlantic smoked salmon and garlic cream cheese, Greek salad, chocolate mouse cake, several cups of coffee, lemon tea.

Glen Sanders Turkey Dinner:

We ordered the 10-person thanksgiving dinner to  be picked up at the hall of springs. It included: 18 pound turkey; mashed potatoes and gravy; baked squash, green bean casseroe; stuffing, corn; cranberry sauce; rolls; apple and pumpkin pies and ingredient for next day’s soup. Granted it took two hours of prep time and included more items requiring reheating than we had oven space for, but in the end, it was delicious. The turkey was moist and perfectly cooked. The potatoes were real. The gravy tasted like homemade (it helped that we added a bit of juice from the turkey pan.

9 Maple

Very cool cozy little bar just off Caroline St in Saratoga. (Around the corner from the Tin and Lint where i spent many an hour back in the ’70s.) Know for its martinis. There’s a whole book of them to choose from and they start at $7.50. Friendly bartender, good peanuts, and live jazz. No velvet ropes. What’s not to like?

Amtrak:

No full-body scans, no pat-downs, no long lines. Leave your shoes on. And your watch, your jewelry, your belt, etc.. etc.. It’s a civilized way to travel. In my experience, the trains are usually on time. There’s a cafe car where you can get a coffee or beer or bottle of wine for a not exorbitant amount of money. they have a kick-ass cheese tray too. The holiday train from Penn Station to Saratoga was full but didn’t’ feel like a cattle car as the LIRR often does. Sit back, watch the Hudson river flow by, and before you know it, you’re there. Points off though for the Saratoga station being closed when we arrived at 7:00 pm.

Coach:

Putnam’s Restaurant:

On Thursday I had oatmeal and they brought me a side of strawberries when I asked for fruit. It was good. Friday I ordered oatmeal and fruit again. This time they brought me brown sugar, sraisins, strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries. But the ceral was cold. I asked them to stick it in the microwaves and they made a fresh bowl and brought a whole new helping of fruit.

Lauren Ezersky is a slots loser but she's still smiling

Saratoga Raceway and Casino: 

We snagged $40 in Kasino Kash from the hotel and wasted no time hoppng the shuttle over to the Racino to see if we could build our fortune there. After negotiating the very complicated registration system and not fully understanding the whole points/cash equation we made a beeline to the 5 cent slots.

Tim’s Jeep Wrangler

Once my Mom’s car got towed, Tim was nice enough to let us use his Jeep. It was fun Only problem was the battery came up dead the first morning. So i called Northway AAA and things got worse. (See below)

Turkey Trot 5K run

Don’t know what made me think it would be easy to find my daughters at the starting line of the Christopher Daily Turkey Trot on

Zea and Emme Discuss Race Strategy before the Turky Trot

Broadway in Saratoga. After all there were 3,000 runners and a like number of spectators. Bundles against the cold, i scanned the crowd, but before i found them, someone found me. I hear a voice calling my name and se

e a familiar face. it’s my old friend Kathryn whom i haven’t seen in at least 20 years! Thoughwe’ve been facebook friends for awhile, it’s such a treat to see her in person. I was amazed that she was able to pick me out of the crowd. We talked for awhile then met up again at the finish line where we shivered together. After 30-some minutes my girls came running by. i collected them at teh finish line and we headed off to do some thanksgiving dinner shopping at

Price Chopper.

Standby

My Mom’s Oldsmobile

This was where the weekend got interesting. When we arrived on Friday we picked up the old, assumed to be trusty Oldsmobile from my Mom’s house to use for the weekend. Or was that rusty? It was fine when we drove to the Gideon that night. However, the next morning as i drove into Saratoga for the Turkey Trot, the brakes seemed weird in a pedal to the floor kind of way. Drove back to the hotel, then back to Mom’s house, stopping to get a bottle of brake fluid on the way. Praying, the whole time, that i didn’t have to stop suddenly. When i checked, i found the fluid reservoir was empty so i filled er up.

Northway AAA

They were prompt; i have to admit that. The arrived as promised when i called them to jump start the jeep in the Gideon Putnam parking lot. the AAA guy started it right up, but that’s when the funny stuff started. He offered to run some “tests” on the battery and immediately shut off the Jeep. Then he hooked up some sort of monitor and after a few minutes it spit out a print out. “Ah ha,” he sez. “You’ve got a bad cell. It won’t hold a charge.” I tried to restart, and sure enough, it wouldn’t. But, of course, he had a recommendation for a parts supply store just down the street that could fix me up right away. Ok, that seemed a little fishy so i said no thanks, left the car runing while i went back inside to finish breakfast and call Tim. We decided i should bring the Jeep back to him and let him deal with it. Had nit not been for the earlier incident with the failed brakes i probably would have taken a chance and kept it, but i was feeling a bit gun shy. Long story short: Tim had no trouble starting and restarting the Jeep and i was left without a vehicle all weekend  because of the AAA scam.

9 Maple’s Smoke on the Vodka Martini:

Yes, i know I gave this joint my highest rating above. But I’ve just flashed back on the taste of the martini i chose from their martini menu book. Out of hundreds of choices on the menu i chose the Smoke on the Vodka martini. A vodka martini with a splash of single malt scotch. Sounds good, right? WEll, it was smokey all right. in fact it smelled and taste like a burning tire.

Here’s the Hall of Springs, built in 1933. Now used as an event hall.

Nick and Toni’s is delightful in November. Nick and Toni’s during Restaurant Week in November is doubly delightful. We sampled their prix fixe menu last weekend. I had the beef short ribs wile Lauren had the fluke. Both were wonderful. Had dosas for lunch the next day at Hampton Chutney in Amagansett. Had the deluxe Masala. Delicious! You can check out my article about the place here: http://bit.ly/99sTa3

It was warm enough that i was able to take a bike ride out to Napeague Bay Saturday. Beautiful, quiet, not a soul around.

Here's Lauren waiting for the LIRR train back to Penn Station on Sunday.

Relaxing Evening at a Chic Downtown Hotel in New York City

Needing a break from the craziness that is the Hamptons in summer—the parking lot that is route 27, the cattle car that is LIRR, the scene that is the scene—we decided to spend the weekend in the city, doing the things we never do. we spent the afternoon Friday at the Museum of Sex. It was more interesting and comprehensive than i thought it would be. Loved the condom exhibit. Lauren was enthralled by the Sex Live of Animals exhibit. Then coffee and lunch at Birch Coffee inside/beside the Gershwin Hotel. Really fun place, especially the library upstairs. We hopped the F train to Brooklyn for drinks with friends at Apartment 138 on Smith St. Kickin’ martinis on the patio.

Saturday, back to Brooklyn for some random wandering on 5th ave in park slope, a burger at Bonnies, then a show at the Bell House in the Gowanus. Brother-in-law Don McGlashan from New Zealand was on the bill and he really rocked the house (which seemed to be full of Mutton Bird fans.)

Furnishings almost as classy as the girl at the this Wall St. hotel.

As fun as all that was, the best came last on Sunday when we checked into the Andaz on Wall St for a luxe evening. And luxe it was, from the check-in, to the room, meals, and complimentary goodies. Check-in was smooThu and friendly. Our 17th floor room was spectacular from the plush kind-size bed to the modern furnishings, to the techie LED lights and electronic blackout shades. the bathroom was spectacular, easily larger than many NYC hotel rooms. In fact, the bathroom was more than a room. the sink was in an open area, the toilet behind a frosted glass door in a black granite room. across the space were the tub (for two) and a sleek shower.

King sized bed, huge bathroom, Lauren loves the Andaz

But we could only spend so much time admiring and playing with the facilities. After a short walk around the block we headed to the hotels restaurant, Wall and Water, for dinner. it’s a beautiful space with an open kitchen at one end and a unique loungy bar at the other. It was quiet early on Sunday evening and we enjoyed the calm with a glass of wine before ordering. We had the potato soup with duck sausage, a few oysters, the old-style Maine shrimp cocktail (excellent!) to start. Lauren had the Chanterelle and chickpea pot pie as an entree and she really enjoyed it. My roast chicken with stinging nettle and morels was good, if a bit too salty for my taste. It was a delightful dinner.

We finished off the weekend with a room service breakfast of pancakes and crepes before i rushed off to work on the 4 train.

Lauren relaxing at Radisson Blu Le Dokhan

Next stop, Paris. Well, actually, next stop, Dublin as yes indeed we do have a stop-over. And what a stop over it proved to be. A short schedule, long lines through customs and screening, a throw-down between Lauren and one of the screeners. Leading to a fight, maybe the first, between the two of us. And a stony silence flight from Dublin to Paris. We found our car in short order at Charles DeGalle and things took a turn for the better when the driver dropped us as the totally charming Raddison Blu Le Dokhan’s in the Trocadero district. More to come, including photos… sitting in the delightful lobby right now with my laptop.
First stop: Laduree for lunch.

Friday evening, 7:30 flight from LGA to MIA.

The things we carried into LaGuardia:

1 Louis Vuitton garment bag

1 large Louis Vuitton carryon

I purse

I generic garment bag

1 manbag

Now, no matter how you slice it, that’s more than 2 bags per person. Ever the optimist, Lauren thought that wouldn’t be an issue. She didnt know we were about to run into the meanest man in LaGuardia. I was hauling both garment bags plus my manbag as we approached the boarding gate. ‘You’ve got two many bags to carry on,’ he said as we approached. ‘Here. let me take one,’ Lauren said. ‘Now you’ve got too many bags,’ he said to her. ‘You’re going to have to check one.’ If we had been thinking we would have just shoved her purse into the carryon on. We weren’t thinking.

So we check a bag and  made our way up the ramp. The flight was full, the aisle was jammed but we were able to find room to stash our remaining bags in the overhead and sat, and waited, and waited. There was some sort of drama going on. Seems there was a ‘fearful flyer’ who wanted to be seated near a friend. Why they hadn’t gotten seats together to start with i don’t know. The attendants tried shaming a bullying passengers into switching but none would so they eventually gave up. And, only an hour late, we lifted off heading to Miami.

Amazingly, we only had to wait a minute or two to reclaim that bag at the Miami airport. A short, $32 cab ride later we were deposited on Ocean Drive in front of hte Majestic. Like every other place on the street, it had an open air cafe in front, and annoying host/hostess accosting every passerby, trying to lure them in to eat. Giving it kind of a third world beggar chic vibe.Upon entering we immediately sensed that the Majestic was well, not so much. The lobby was shabby. the front desk clerk was gruff at best. and i felt a sinking feeling in my stomach when i realized i had shelled out $180 a night for this place.

The room? grim is the best word to describe it. not exactly dirty but a bit shopworn. nothing special about the furnishings or size. and what about the "partial ocean view?" In the morning we found that if you threw open the window and leaned out as far as possible you could maybe see a flash of blue off in the distance. No worries, Lauren said. The beds were comfortable and she managed to spend most of the night in bed with me before stretching out in the early hours in the other bed. A woman needs her space…

We had all day on Saturday to roam around before the evening wedding and after lunch at the New Cafe with our friend Joe, we stopped at the red bull art of the can exhibit on Ocean Drive. Fabulous, as one of us is wont to say. Then it was shopping, shopping, shopping the afternoon away until it was time for the wedding at the Fountainblue. We were a bit underwhelmed by the glitzy hotel. With all the shops and whatnot it felt as much a mall as a hotel. It was so big we had a hard time finding the right room and wound up smack in the middle of the law enforcement officer of the year banquet. Eventually we found our peeps, or they found us and we followed them to cocktails and appetizers by the pool Delightful, if a bit chilly.

Lauren enjoying the heat during cocktail hour.

We had a full day in Miami Sunday as our flight didn’t leave util 9:30 pm. After lunch with Joe again (at paul’s a lovely cafeteria style chain, French in origin, we did some more… what else… shopping. Lauren charmed the salesforce at Alchemist and we both enjoyed the funky gear at All Saints, but by day’s end we packed up with only one purchase, a pair of Prada shoes… for me! Surprise. We also did a bit of tattoo browsing. We walked into one place and as we were saying hello to the clerk behind the counter we heard someone scream “Lauren” from the back. It was Irina, a young woman who was once Lauren’s intern of sorts. Small world.

Back at the airport we again made the mistake of passing through security—where Lauren was subjected to a full body scan in what looked like an isolation booth from a ’60s game show—before we ate. So all we found was a rather sad looking Cosi with a few sandwiches and salads.

The waiting area was packed with passengers foe the New York flight. We boarded only a little late but then had to sit on the plane for a half hour because they couldn’t locate the ground crew. Off eating, no doubt, at a better place than Cosi.

Hotel room equipped with state of the art tissue

Arriving at Miami Airport. Still smiling after the flight