Kalene, Donna and Sue.
This would all have been relayed as it happened, if only I had brought my laptop. Since I didn’t, the New York highlights continue after the fact, this time related to food and fun:
* Tribeca Grill, which is co-owned by actor Robert de Niro. The building itself is in a historic 1905 warehouse, with exposed brick, a mahogany bar and enormous glass chandeliers that looked like spaceships. I couldn’t finish my New York strip steak, it was so big!
* Tempo, a great neighbourhood restaurant in Brooklyn. Our dinearound group was all Canadian, with the exception of one Australian. Obviously in her honour, the music playing as we entered was Waltzing Matilda as sung by Tom Waits.
* Gotham Bar & Grill, an elegant restaurant at 12 East 12th Street. Friends said the three-course prix fixe lunch left them breathless, and it definitely was amazing. The miso black cod was delicious, topped only by the dessert: Gotham’s signature warm flourless chocolate cake. You can have one baked to order, frozen and sent to you for only $82 plus shipping!
* Drinks at the pretty rooftop bar at the Peninsula Hotel. Called Salon de Ning, the large outdoor terrace and interior bar has panoramic views over 5th Avenue and the Manhattan skyline. The name refers to Madame Ning, a celebrated Shanghai socialite, world traveler and international hostess, who presided over “salons” in her stylish residences.
* Big Onion Walking Tours‘ multi-ethnic “noshing” tour of the Lower East Side. My friend Kalene and I learned about immigration changes in the neighbourhoods we walked through, stopping for tastes of pickle, plaintain, parmigiana and more. We ended with cannoli (which our guide told us is already the plural of cannolo, but lots of people say “cannolis”) in Little Italy, before heading over to Canal Street to look at purses.
Finally, I have to say a real highlight of the trip was sharing it with my roomie, friend, colleague and podcasting queen, Donna. You’re the best!