The June issue of Real Simple featured an article by Hannah Wallace entitled “How to Barter Anything“. Check out the deal LAD Principal Lisa Donoughe and Lincoln Restaurant Chef Jenn Louis cooked up.
Last Thursday, I packed up my bag and headed to NYC to visit one of my closest friends. I only had three days, but the trip definitely warrants a LAD list.
Dinner Spots -
1) Schiller’s Liquor Bar – 131 Rivington Street – (212) 260-4555.
Schiller’s, owned by restaurateur Keith McNally of NY landmarks Pastis and Balthazar, serves continental dishes with a creative cocktail menu and simple wine list that consists of “decent, cheap and good” options. Straight to the point, which I liked. I recommend going a bit early for pre-dinner cocktails at the bar. The ginger cocktail was balanced and fresh, and the bartender was fun to chat with. It’s a great scene! Once seated, I recommend ordering a carafe of ‘decent’ red and white for a group of four, the fries to start for the table (thinly sliced and perfectly crispy) salmon entrée and finishing off with the apple crisp and banana split.
I loved the Schiller's post card
2) Café Mogador - 101 Saint Marks Pl. – (212) 677-2226.
My friend and I happened into Café Mogador on Thursday evening. The bustling energy and cozy patio was too good to pass up. This cute neighborhood gem serves Moroccan/Mediterranean cuisine. My friend and I split a mixed greens salad, an order of humus and pita, and the lamb couscous.
3) Artichoke Pizza -238 E. 14th St. – (212) 228-2004.
Wow, am I glad we found this place! Artichoke is a new pizza joint in the East Village that’s become a quick local favorite. We tried a slice of their famous artichoke pizza – thick crust, creamy sauce, and meaty artichoke chunks – and the thin, crispy crusted margarita. Both slices were perfection, but one could have been a meal.
Brunch Spots -
1) August – 359 Bleecker Street (Between Charles & West 10th) – (212) 929-4774.
This quaint brunch spot in the west village has the European charm. We sat on the outdoor patio, which was warm and inviting. Friendly service and a great atmosphere. I would go back in a second! I ordered the Ham and Egg Galette – two plump over-easy eggs resting on top of a strip of ham and layer of cheese, delicately wrapped in a crepe. What a present! If you’re in the mood for something a bit more filling, go for the Wood Oven Baked Eggs en Cocotte Alsatian style.
2) Paprika - 110 St. Mark’s Place (Between 1st ave and avenue A) – (212) 677-6563.
Cuisine from the Northern Valtellina Region of Italy. I went for brunch, but I’ve heard both lunch and dinner are fantastic as well.
A Few Other Notable Highlights -
1) 16 Handles - 153 2nd Avenue (Between 9th and 10th St) – 212.260.4414.
Cafeteria style frozen yogurt…16 flavors and 16 toping options.
2) Cafeteria – 119 7th Avenue – (212) 414-1717
A sceney late night food stop.
4) City Winery - 155 Varick Street – (212) 608-0555
NYC’s first custom crush facility. Beautiful space with a stage for concerts.
5) Clinton Street Baking – 4 Clinton Street (Between East Houston & Stanton) – (646) 602-6263
If you can’t make it here for brunch like me, go for the biscuits. Mmmm.
6) H & H
Classic neighborhood Jewish deli. Best loxs and bagels I’ve had.
Seeds of Peace is a non-profit organization that brings together young leaders from conflict regions in the Middle East and South Asia in Maine, for a week long camp where they gain the leadership skills required to advance reconciliation and coexistence. My friend who I was visiting, Ali Landes, works in the fundraising department, so I got a quick glimpse into the organization. Great cause!
Check out this fantastic article by Kerry Newberry in the May issue of the Oregon Wine Press titled “What Is Indie, Anyway” featuring the Portland Indie Wine Festival. This same issue also featured an article on the relaunch and redesign of Hotel Vintage Plaza – Portland’s wine themed hotel.
Ever been to Flora? It’s a modern botanical boutique located in the heart of downtown Portland on 11th and Alder. This little shop is owned by Herbalist Jewelie Randall who has her own line of herbal “io” products and has recently released a natural Botanical “Perfume” Balm Set that allows you to create your own personalized organic fragrance. Each set is individually blended and hand poured by Jewelie.
The Botanical Balm Set includes five layerable solid scents – Adore, Pure, Dream, Restore, and Radiant. Scents can be worn singly or blended and layered. My favorite concoction is mixing Radiant with Pure.
Jewelie doesn’t only sell wonderful handmade herbal products at Flora, she also sells great gift items, some made by local artists right here in Portland. Jewelry, pure beeswax candles, potions, art and home decor – check out Flora.
Flora is located at 1130 SW Alder, Portland, OR 97205. You can also visit http://florapdx.com/.
Happy Birthday James Beard!
In honor of Mr. Beard’s birthday, Kim Carlson of Culinate asked a few Portlanders about how he influenced them.
Lisa Donoughe admires Beard for being an “accidental influencer”.
“So few people fail at their dream — in his case, to be an opera singer — and then wind up having a legacy that transforms a culture. It’s so incredible to me that he never set out to have the career he had, it just happened as a default and then he ran with it. What an inspiration!”
Check out the rest of the article here.
What an incredible weekend!
Indie Wine Festival V is complete and it’s not too soon to start thinking about 2010.
The venue, the Ten 01 dinner, the trade tasting, the thunderstorm, the after-party, the great wine discoveries, and the FOOD! What an incredible historic weekend.
Thank you to all staff, volunteers, winemakers, sponsors, media, friends, cousins, chefs, out-of-town visitors, and guests who made this weekend such an outrageous success!
Our Los Angeles Times hit drew the most out-of-towners to the festival this year.
40 wineries in one day, how to pick and choose which to taste? Twitter, of course!
Unable to make it to the festival this weekend, but curious which wines will get big buzz? Twitter’s, the answer!
This weekend, the Portland Indie Wine Festival will be a tweeter’s dream. Join the conversation or just follow along to discover Oregon’s best small production, hard to find, wines. It’s gonna be a tweet fest like no other!
Follow the fun at #PIWF09 .
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