Wine. Travel. Food.
London is a wonderful walking city, maybe the best I’ve ever experienced. Joanne and I would walk for hours, taking the time to stop and stare and pause for a while whenever we felt like it. The architecture is spirited and diverse, and everywhere on display…from old and very old to new and very new. […]
Let’s hope that COVID is finally in the rear-view mirror….and that after being cooped up for a few years, we can travel again – travel with a VENGEANCE! As is often the case, my mind wanders toward Europe and the many pleasures of Tuscany. After numerous euphoric dining trips up and down the Boot, one […]
Situated in the western part of Central London, Clerkenwell is an urban sanctuary populated mainly by young professionals. In the heart of the village lies the OLD SESSIONS HOUSE, built in the style in 1782. With its columned edifice and imposing presence, it bears some resemblance to the Pantheon in Rome. The building once served […]
A while back, I visited Toronto. My flight arrived late at night, about 11:30 PM, but no worries. I had a guaranteed room booked at the huge ROYAL YORK HOTEL, Toronto’s Grande Dame. As I wearily approached the front desk clerk, an onslaught of disheveled people rushed in front of me and proceeded en masse […]
A few months ago, on a snowy and bitterly cold evening, the thought came to me: ”Let’s go to JAX this Saturday night.” Because it’s located on the other side of town from where we live, we hadn’t been there in years. But Jax has…90 years to be precise. Yep, it opened in 1933 which makes […]
Joanne and I have been blessed for the past several years to take our daughter and grandkids to Florida for spring break. And being the grandchildren of restaurateurs, their expectations for dining out are rather high, especially as they grow older. To prevent disappointment – and, let’s be honest, enjoy the vicarious pleasures of introducing them […]
“Nobody just happens to eat at NOMA,” said the late Jonathan Gold, food critic for the Los Angeles Times. “The seat lottery for a reservation makes the Powerball seem like a sure thing.” He goes on to say, “Noma, as you have probably heard, is the Copenhagen restaurant considered by many people, including me, to […]
One of London’s toughest dinner reservations is FALLOW in St. James’s Market. To book here, you must be prepared to wait at least a week or two. But through the grace of God and the ingenuity of Alexander Graham Bell, Joanne and I managed to wrangle a table there one evening last October. Fallow was […]
Last fall when Joanne and I went to London, COVID, while not gone, seemed to be on the wane. Yes, we had to have proof of vaccination prior to leaving the states. And we were tested immediately upon arrival. And tested again the day before we left. A pain in the ass? Yes, but only a […]
When Mario Batali opened BABBO in New York City 20 years ago, his Italian fine-dining restaurant immediately became the darling of the city. New York Times restaurant critic Ruth Reichl awarded it a coveted three stars. Reservations were all but impossible to procure. I know. I tried for three years to secure a booking for […]
