chicago: a first

i visited the windy city for the first time in mid-october and practically fell in love. i wish i had had more time to explore (hard to do so when you're there for work), but perhaps i'll return sometime in the not-too-distant future?

a few highlights for me were eating dinner at big star in wicker park (think tacos and margaritas on an open-air patio), and eating/drinking/staying the night at longman & eagle in logan square. their modest six room hotel situated above the restaurant/bar is beyond hip. the little details (down to your very own pair of ear plugs for light sleepers) were greatly appreciated. i will definitely be staying there again on my next visit.

{requisite "bean" sculpture photo, chicago}

{millenium park, chicago}

{room at longman & eagle}

{longman & eagle}

{in-room amenities, longman & eagle}

{longman & eagle}

adventures out west

my final work trip this fall was a three-week jaunt to the west coast (los angeles, san francisco, and portland with a few personal days in seattle). here are a few highlights:

{LACMA}

 {halloween cupcake, west hollywood}

 {little brother weekend visit in los angeles}

 

 {san francisco}

{golden gate bridge, san fran}

{powell's books in portland}

 {my sweet friend claudia at the ace hotel, portland}

{voodoo doughnuts, portland}

{pdx signage}

 {mt. rainier, train to seattle}

{train to seattle}

{public market, seattle}

{space needle and me, seattle}

foreign and familiar

here are a few snapshots from my trip to europe earlier this month. my friend john flew over from athens and met me for a portion of the trip (paris, geneva and berlin), which made traveling abroad for work infinitely more exciting. (and yes, i apologized to him profusely for my travel anxiety...) take a gander!

 cousin laura, her husband james and me
at koko in london (camden)

 john at a sidewalk cafe in paris

florist in paris

 cimetière du père-lachaise in paris

(oscar wilde is buried there)

le louvre in paris

river cruising in paris

 nyon, outside of geneva (courtesy of john)

 fact: the tallest fountain in the world is located in geneva

 john calvin's church in geneva

the heart of geneva (courtesy of john)

 long-lost friend turned berliner

 "a spaniard and an american meet at a bar in berlin..."

 tv tower in berlin

 berlin's brandenburg gate

 bits of the berlin wall

dinner party in berlin (mitte) with good company

charlottesville in september

i do quite a bit of traveling for work in the fall, which is undoubtedly the best perk of my job.  my two and a half month journey began last week with a quick trip to los angeles, followed by a visit to charlottesville, virginia to see an old college friend/roommate (see? it's not all work). cali and i packed up a little picnic and headed to the king family vineyards on sunday to watch a polo match--a first for me.  we sprawled out on a blanket and drank a bottle of the king family's finest red... nevermind that we only caught the last five minutes of the polo match. ha.

 cali and her sister ashley are two truly talented ladies, who started their own photography business a couple years ago. check out (once like a spark) to see just how amazing they really are.

williamsburg's waffle & wolf

my dear friends daniel and arman recently opened a specialty waffle shop off graham avenue (corner of withers) in williamsburg called waffle & wolf.  you can either create-your-own sweet/savory waffle or choose from their list of daily (ingenious) specials.  they're now serving waffles with bacon baked in (yum!) and vegan/gluten-free buckwheat waffles (also yum!). with so many tasty options, their waffles break out of the typical breakfast stronghold and make for a delicious meal any time of day. so, go now. make haste!

people in your neighborhood

L magazine does an interview series called "people in your neighborhood," where they ask somewhat prominent musicians/artists/actors in nyc to share some of their favorite spots in their neighborhood (i.e. restaurants, bars, etc.). i thought i'd contribute my own answers since i really dig my 'hood. here goes!

. . .

neighborhood: greenpoint

best place to people-watch? mccarren park is the obvious choice (especially when it's warm outside), but it's sometimes too hip/obnoxious for my liking. i prefer to get my people-watching in while eating brunch outside on the weekends.


best place to drink? my new favorite spot is no name bar. it has a rather discreet facade with no signage, but their backyard (complete with lanterns hung from a towering tree and--at least last weekend--blow-up kiddie pools) is the jam. five leaves will always be my go-to for tasty cocktails, but calexico has a killer jalapeno mint margarita and manhattan inn serves up a proper manhattan.

best restaurant? five leaves never disappoints. their brunch is without a doubt the best in the neighborhood, and i will occasionally treat myself to their burger and truffle fries if its been one of those days (we all have them). my other favorite spot is calexico; their hongos and frijoles negros rolled quesadillas are addicting--hence why they've named the accompanying dipping sauce "crack sauce." and i would be remiss if i didn't mention the institution that is peter pan donuts. their glazed sour cream and toasted coconut donuts are to die for.


best bookstore or record store? word on franklin st. has a great selection of new titles as well as the classics. i also love their stationery nook for letterpress greeting cards.

best grocery store/farmer's market? key foods on mcguinness has decent prices (decent for nyc) and all the benefits of a real grocery store (none of that bodega/corner store inadequate selection nonsense). there's also a really great farmer's market on the weekends on driggs/union near mccarren park.

best laundromat? susan's on the corner of diamond and driggs has a real quick turn-around on dry cleaning and pretty cheap wash n' fold services (so i hear... i have laundry in my building).

best outdoor spot? if mccarren park is overcrowded, i love going to mcgolrick park to play bocce while sipping a pimm's cup. the east river park plays host to some great concerts in the summer (i've seen grizzly bear, band of horses, dirty projectors, etc. there), and open space alliance shows movies on the mccarren basketball courts during summerscreen (i'm going to see clueless in a couple weeks). the glorious foodie-dream-come-true known as smorgasburg is also a great outdoor event.


best place to attend a show/view art/see a movie? greenpoint has a couple spots to see live music (lulu's, bar matchless and manhattan inn to name a few), but the majority of the nearby music venues are in williamsburg (glasslands, music hall of williamsburg, cameo, death by audio, pete's candy store, knitting factory, brooklyn bowl etc.).

best coffee shop? this is a tough one... i love brooklyn standard (stumptown coffee, delicious homemade zucchini and pumpkin breads, and the best egg and cheese biscuit this side of the east river). downside: no tables. if i'm working from home (which is a rarity), i like to grab coffee and sit at either cafe grumpy (somewhat pricey, but i love the effort that goes into making my cup of coffee) or cafe royal (super delicious breakfast burritos).


best subway line? the L train, hands down. i know better than to rely on the G train (even though i live closer to it than the L). the only thing the G is good for is going to the brooklyn flea or target... when it's working.

best date spot? i know i sound like a broken record, but i usually recommend five leaves for any occasion. their food is delicious any time of day (try the ricotta pancakes or sage egg scramble for brunch or the burger and truffle fries for dinner) and their seasonal cocktails are supreme. while it's a bit of a tight squeeze in the actual restaurant, their staff has always been super friendly (especially the old aussie host) and accommodating.


best person whose name you don't know? the guy who owns the 24-hour bodega on the corner of diamond and nassau. he's the absolute nicest and has the sweetest bodega kittens. (probably the only instance where having pets in a bodega doesn't repulse me.)

according to neighborhood folklore, are there any celebrities living in the area? i've seen the grizzly bear guys in the 'hood (mainly at five leaves), and one of the vampire weekend guys lives on my street.

which are there more of: dogs, bodega cats, strollers, american apparel ads, or old men on stoops? while strollers abound, i would have to say that one of the more prominent neighborhood fixtures would have to be old polish men on stoops.

what's missing from your neighborhood? a really great thai restaurant!! i keep wanting to give erb thai a second/twentieth chance, but they mostly disappoint. i love chicken pad see euw more than life itself, but i'm afraid theirs is not up to par. rawr.

what's been the biggest change since you've moved in? the number of young folks who've moved into the area. greenpoint's still very family-oriented (it continues to have a thriving polish community), but the young twenty-somethings have migrated north to escape the hullabaloo that is williamsburg.


it's a saturday night in july/august. you don't feel like traveling very far but are antsy for a night out. where do you go? that's an easy one: five leaves, no name bar, or a late night dance party at manhattan inn.

these are things

i first experienced the awesomeness of these are things a couple months ago when i stumbled across their europa touring prints in someone's blog round-up.


the incredibly talented duo has added some new neighborhood prints (i'm a sucker for brooklyn neighborhood posters) to their shop as well as lovely maps of the good ole u.s. of a. and our great big world. take a peek below.