Sometimes you go to dinner and sometimes you go to an event. Dinner at the Russian Samovar is an event! First, the drama is clear from how this was envisioned by the previous owners, Russian dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov and poet Joseph Brodsky. They made it into a place for artists, especially Russian artists.
The best food in Key West is at the Latitudes restaurant on Sunset Key. There is a magical feel to this exceptional place which is on a small island you reach via a 6-minute launch ride from a pier at the north of Key West. It is the showpiece of Sunset Key, a resort with bungalows, pool, tennis courts and quiet inviting beach.
At this New York French bistro, game ” often venison and quail ” comes from Texas all through the year, but there‘s an annual festival featuring game till mid-March. I went to a press dinner featuring some of those specialties.
Philippe Chow‘s cuisine is delicate, subtle, an infusion of Chinese flavors into an American sensibility. One of the waiters told me, “It‘s Americanized food. It‘s Beijing style, but you won‘t find this in Beijing.” It‘s a sophisticated take on Beijing cuisine.
Sitting on the “Bar Canale” terrace for breakfast, gazing at the 17th century Church of Santa Maria della Salute across the Grand Canal, I could imagine the lazy mornings of the Venice nobles who once owned the Bauer Il Palazzo. They might have finished their coffees and walked the five minutes to the Palace of the Doges, where government business was carried out.
They or their servants might have stepped into a gondola to travel quickly to the Rialto, the market at the site of the famous bridge. That might have happened in the 18th century, when the Palazzo was built.
How do you know you‘ve picked a trendy hotel? In San Juan, it‘s where the new governor of Puerto Rico, AnÃbal Acevedo Vilá, chooses to have his inauguration party! Just my good luck to arrive there on that festive day. Loud speakers drew me to a nearby park where the political movers and shakers of the island had gathered for the swearing-in.
Then people headed for the tall white Caribe Hilton a short walk away. They had picked my hotel!
