New York City (January 2011)

My spouse and I planned this 1-night trip to New York City because we were awarded a free 1-night stay at the Waldorf-Astoria in an Astor Junior Suite to make up for a problem with our stay at the Waldorf the previous month. It was a bitterly cold weekend, and we really enjoyed the space that our 3-room suite provided because it was almost too chilly to walk around. We did some sightseeing, however, first stopping at the King Cole Bar at the St Regis to try their famous "red snappers" (Bloody Marys), before visiting the Museum of Modern Art. In the evening, we took a cab way downtown to dine at Wylie Dufresne's wd-50. On Sunday, we enjoyed brunch at David Burke Townhouse before driving home.

Hotel:
Waldorf-Astoria Link to my review

Restaurants:

King Cole Bar at the St Regis Link to my review

wd-50 Link to my review

David Burke Townhouse Link to my review

Activity:

• Museum of Modern Art

New York City: King Cole Bar at the St. Regis (January 2011)

We popped into the King Cole Bar at the St. Regis (Starwood property) prior to a lunch reservation nearby in mid-January 2011. The bar doesn’t open until 11:30 “on the dot”, and because we were a few minutes early, we walked around the hotel to investigate. It seems to be a smaller property with more personalized service than the huge Waldorf-Astoria where we stayed on our trip. Their signature restaurant Adour by Alain Ducasse is somewhere that we would like to try in the future; the surrounding were elegant and the menu sounded intriguing. We also saw the Astor Court, the renowned area for afternoon tea, and the Remede Spa. In the King Cole Bar, we enjoyed looking at the Maxfield Parrish mural of Old King Cole, and we tried their famous Red Snappers (Bloody Marys). At a total of over $50 for two drinks, including tip, they weren’t anything to rave about - rather small and basically unadorned. However, the complimentary bar snacks, including spiced mixed nuts (with plenty of Brazil nuts, my favorite), upscale pretzel bites, and spicy wasabi peas, were a step above the usual offerings. Our bartender Gavin was most pleasant and knowledgeable about the city’s restaurant scene. I’m told that you can coax your bartender to tell you the secret of the painting (why King Cole is smiling), but I found out myself online prior to our visit. I’m glad that I can say that I visited this famous watering hole and imbibed in one of its famous drinks, but it was a bit pricey and need not be on anyone’s must-see list.

 

New York City: WD-50 (January 2011)

My spouse and I dined at WD-50 in mid-January 2011 after much anticipation, and the restaurant lived up to the hype in our opinion. It’s very unassuming, both from the street and inside, a really comfortable atmosphere, even though the tables are quite close together. We used Open Table to make our reservation a few weeks in advance. The food was beautifully presented, using unique ingredients and feature the innovative preparations for which chef Wylie Dufresne is famous.
Our tasting menu follows. We did NOT do the $85 wine pairing (10 glasses). This was a pricey dinner, but very interesting and memorable.

• Spanish mackerel, green tea yogurt, rutabaga, orange
• Everything bagel, smoked salmon threads, crispy cream cheese
• Foie gras, passionfruit, Chinese celery
• Scrambled egg ravioli, charred avocado, kindai kampachi
• King oyster udon, sweetbreads, banana molasses, pickled ginger
• Scallops, bone marrow, parsnip, black sesame
• Beef and béarnaise
• Squab breast, cheese pumpkin, corn bread, pickled cranberries
• Buttermilk ice cream, kumquat, orange blossom, cumin
• Grapefruit curd, campari, hibiscus, sorrel
• Soft chocolate, beets, long pepper, ricotta ice cream
• Cocoa packets, rice krispie treats

New York City: Waldorf-Astoria (January 2011)

This is our second review of the Waldorf-Astoria in NYC. (My spouse and I stayed there in mid-November 2010; see my December 2010 review titled “New York City: The Waldorf Astoria: Prestigious Name, But Service Level Is Lacking”.) We found ourselves back at the Waldorf in January of 2011, despite saying in my last review that there were other choices in town. So let me explain ... Shortly after my review was posted (I also completed an online survey from an independent company reviewing the hotel), we received a letter apologizing for the mistakes we experienced during our November 2010 stay, and offering us a complimentary night in an Astor Junior Suite to make amends. If you can splurge on an upgraded room, this category is quite spacious, with a large sitting area with desk, sofa, two wing chairs, side and coffee tables, large TV, and a wet bar with a sink but no refrigerator; the wet bar area also a lack of appropriate glasses and utensils should we actually want to use the area to prepare a drink. (There was a minibar, but that was in the bedroom, not in the living room area.) French doors (mirrored, not transparent) separated the living room from the bedroom, where there was a king-size bed, two night stands, a small closet (which I think was the only closet for the large room), a dresser (containing the minibar) and a second large TV. The bathroom was large by any bathroom standards (so for a NYC hotel room, it was huge) with a separate shower and soaking tub and double-sinked vanity. Each room had its own window or windows, and each had its own thermostat. We took advantage of using this room to the fullest, visiting the city on an incredibly cold January weekend. (Living 1.5 hours away, we visit NYC often, so we were able to just relax and watch some movies rather then brave the cold city streets for sightseeing.) As Hilton Hhonors Diamond members, we were offered two free drinks in any of the hotel bars (we chose Sir Harry's; the coupon was good for any type of drink) and two free bottles of water. Unlike at other high-end Hilton properties, there is no executive floor at this property, and no free breakfast is offered other than a coupon to Starbucks for a beverage and pastry, but as with our last stay at the WA, the lines at Starbucks were ridiculously long, and we did not redeem our coupons. The hotel provides free wi-fi to its Gold and Diamond members; however, we did not get free movie promised as part of Waldorf perk (the hotel claims not to participate in that part of the program). We used the Diamond check-in area with minimal problems - another guest arrived just after our check-in began, and it was clear that he received preferential treatment over us because he was a repeat customer. I don't mind if that sort of thing occurs, but don't “rub it in my face”. There was a private event happening on Saturday evening in the Park Avenue Cocktail Terrace/lobby area; therefore, hotel guests could not exit on the Park Avenue side of the hotel. During the event, guests were directed to the Lexington Avenue entrance, which wasn’t a big deal, but it would have been nice if a card or memo was left in the room instructing guests of this detour. As it was, I had arranged to meet my spouse at the Park Avenue entrance to depart for dinner, which caused a bit of running around when the private event ended after I had left for our meeting point (and was directed to Lexington) but then opened again in time for my spouse to be waiting at Park. To summarize, we had a good (second) stay, particularly with our Astor Junior Suite accommodations, but I maintain my “bottom line” from my last review - there are other great hotels in town that I’ll probably try next time.

New York City: David Burke Townhouse (January 2011)

My spouse and I ate Sunday brunch at David Burke Townhouse in mid-January 2011 after staying at the nearby Waldorf-Astoria. As its name suggests, the restaurant is in a townhouse, so the space is narrow but long and requires stepping down several steps to the bar/ancillary dining area and then another several steps to the main dining area. The dining room is a bit crowded; there isn’t much space between the tables for privacy. Our menu choices follow.

For appetizers, we ordered the pretzel crusted crabcake (with tomato orange chutney and poppy seed honey) and DB's pastrami salmon (with buckwheat blinis, horseradish crème fraiche, endive and orange mostarda). For main dishes, we ordered handmade cannelloni & braised short ribs (with wild mushrooms, mushroom chips, and truffle mousse) and “tongue in cheek” (braised beef cheek and veal tongue). We finished with the famous and cutesy DB's cheesecake lollipop tree (with bubblegum whipped cream and raspberries) for dessert. The food was good, but the close quarters would prevent us from returning; however, we might try Fishtail or David Burke’s Kitchen next time instead.