Diva Review: The Eatery

It’s Sunday night in NYC. We had been going nonstop for 4.5 days. I’m talking 4 hours of sleep a night NONSTOP.

We were sitting in Jyl’s of Mom It Forward room with Rachel and Breanne – Today’s Mama – who were devastated after missing their flight. Thank you JFK and the Dominican Parade. And we were hungry.

Jyl called down to the concierge to get restaurant suggestions. We said the restaurant had to be close to the hotel – The Hilton -  and we wanted some good comfort food, please.

The restaurant we were sent to was The Eatery. We happily chatted as we walked the 5 or 6 block to our dinning destination, on arrival we were relieved to find there was no wait. Our server patiently revisited our table a few times before we decided what to order.  You know… we all had to check in with whrrl, foursquare and foodspotting before we could even look at the menu.  Yeah… we’re that cool.

BTW – the atmosphere in the restaurant was perfect – right down to the “pringle shaped” light sconces that lined the wall.  Very contemporary and chic without being cold and unwelcoming.

I had been eyeballing the White Cheddar Meatloaf with Beer Batter Onion Rings until Jyl got word that they had the best Mac N Cheese in NYC, that was all I needed to push me over the edge.  Now I haven’t eaten every other mac n cheese in the city, but their “Mac and Jack” was up there.  Especially when you bite into the yummy crusty dark brown edge – which I almost neglected to do.  Heaven.

Jyl ordered the hummus – Diva note: served with whole wheat pita!  Then we shared an Organic Baby Spinach Salad with goat cheese, beats, and pickled pear.  Yum.  Jyl swears it was the best salad she’s ever eaten in her life.  I was excited that it was organic, green and would soak up some of the saturated fat from my calorie laden choice.

Rachel ordered the Edamame – which we all ate.  They were fresh and salted just right.  Followed by the Eggless Chicken Ceasar salad – which she enjoyed in between bites of my Mack and Jack.

The one dish that fell a little flat seemed to be the Pan Seared Sea Scallop served with Asparagus Risotto & Roasted Red Pepper Vinaigrette.  To be fair, I didn’t try the Scallop, but did take a bite of the risotto, which just felt like it was missing something… when the others swirled it in the vinaigrette it improved the story for them… not so much for this diva.

Stuffed we skipped desert and rolled ourselves back to the hotel, where we left Jyl to run off with her husband.  Rachel and Breanne moved in with me for the night – we had a great slumber party and I’m happy to report they made their plane the next day!

I’m so glad to have spent this time with these amazing women, it was definitely a highlight.  The food was great, the conversation better and my favorite part was all the hands flying back and forth across the table – stealing nibbles… I mean bites -  and truly “sharing” our meal with one another.

This evening was the perfect closing meal for an unbelievable New York City whirlwind!

Welcome back to PND. It's good to see you again!Diva Review: The Eatery

Quintessential New York Evening

While I was in New York this summer for Blogher one of my BBF’s threw an unbelievable party in the penthouse of the London Hotel.

In terms of Blogher events – this party stood out.   It was the perfect combination phenomenal guests and amazing ambiance.  The setting allowed for guests to truly connect with one another in a meaningful manner.

If you were lucky enough to snag an invitation – only about 80 of them were available – you knew the party was going to be special!

And when the party ended – the evening got even better.  Andrea aka SavvySassyMoms, Romy aka RomyRaves and I spent the night in this amazing 2 bedroom, 2 floor suite.

If you have extra cash in the bank – staying in this penthouse suite will truly make you feel like have arrived and are ready to take on Manhattan.  I can’t speak to The London‘s green practices – perhaps they will invite me back and I can do a full review.  I can speak to the fact that the penthouse is undeniable chic – at 3K + per night it better be!

I need to talk about my LBD for a minute!  This is a dress I wore when I was DATING my husband.  I’m so excited that after losing 13″ this year I can wear it again – after having two children!  OK – I’m done!

The Suite

Thank you so much to the party sponsors – Zulily & Ciao Bella Gelato – who made this event possible and an extra special thank you to our hostess – Andrea – you really outdid yourself!

Thank you to Romy for providing me with almost all my Blogher pictures – I really NEED a camera since my Sony Cybershot takes nothing but blurs.

Quintessential New York Evening

Diva Review: Cafe Blossom

While I was in New York City  for Blogher I had a chance to sit down with Neha from Greenista. We had lunch at Cafe Blossom, an organic vegan restaurant, located in the Upper West Side of Manhattan.

Now… to be fair,  when I eat out I lean towards conventional restaurants.  When Neha suggested Cafe Blossom I threw caution to the wind and went for it.  I was after all – on my own in NYC…  and I  write a naturally focused organic and eco blog after all…

Sitting down to order was a challenge for me.  Being a vegan restaurant meant  they had no dairy – which meant no cafe latte for me and even though it was lunch, I had been packing all morning and really could have used that coffee!  I settled for Earl Gray Tea with agave and lemon… steeped in a thimble sized cup.

Note to Cafe Blossom – if you are going to serve tea – serve it in a teapot or at least a cup that holds more than 4 oz of water.  It took us 20 minutes to get more hot water to dilute the bitter tea.

Back to the menu…. I contemplated the Black Eyed Pea Cakes – but not being a fan of the black eyed pea – that seemed risky.  I considered the Autumn Sweet Potato Rolls, but was fairly sure I would be wishing for rice noodles while I munching on their raw coconut noodles and I wondered where the rest of the dish was for the Peas and Carrots – if it’s delish – it needs to be renamed!

I ordered the mushroom soup – which never made it to my table -  and the Veggie Grain Burger with sweet potato fries.  The sandwich my have looked a little plain, but it was delicious.  I didn’t miss the cheese at all (and I always miss the cheese!) and had the server ever returned I would have loved a little more of the yummy hummus.

Overall, service was a little too laid back for my style.  No one checked on our meal, to get more water for our tea I had to get up… twice… and by the time we flagged a server to get get our bill, we didn’t even have time to see if they billed us for the mushroom soup that never arrived.

After a little trepidation about the menu, I found the food to be very enjoyable.  I just wished the staff had shown even the tiniest care in serving their clientele, on the upside if you are looking for a vegan restaurant where they will leave you to linger in NYC this may be the spot for you!

Diva Review: Cafe Blossom

Diva Family Disney Adventure

Living in Southern California – I think I delayed our inevitable  first family visit to the Disneyland Theme Park for as long as possible – Lil’ Diva was 4.5 and Lil’ Dude was 3 .  We decided to make our first visit special and stay overnight, allowing us to spend 2 days at the park.

My mom & younger sister were also visiting southern California, making the timing perfect.  Mom had never taken us, needless to say, being able to go with 2 of her daughter and her grandchildren was quite a treat for her.

I knew the kids were going to have the time of their life and while we were there – I wanted to find out what green efforts were a going on at this classic California theme Park – if any.

Turns out I was able to uncover some of the parks effort without even visiting their website:

Lil Dude hasn’t quite discovered his inner speed demon – yet – so one of his favorite rides was the Disneyland Railroad Train.  We rode it a few times.  On one of our rides it stopped to get fuel  Imagine my surprise when the conductor informed us that the steam was generated with BioDiesel collected from the park restaurants. No fancy stickers or pre-recorded promotion, just a mention in passing by the conductor.  Nice.  Can they convert the Race Cars to the same fuel – those are a little stinky!

I noticed  recycling receptacles throughout the park .  These are great – sadly most  people don’t bother to use them or use them incorrectly.  Imagine my surprise when I noticed one of the park employees dumpster diving!

Having recycling receptacles (say that 5 times fast) is one thing, but I happened to walk by when “Cast Member” Verola was emptying trash and  she did something that astounded me… I caught her fishing out the recyclable bottles out of the trash and walking them across the way to the recyling receptacle.  I had to investigate further!  It turns out that Disney donates the money raised by the recyling to charity – and Verola was motivated.  She proudly informed me that it was for the dogs.

 

While we visited the park we took advantage of the fruit stalls located near Pirates of the Caribbean.  It certainly would have been more economical to pack our own fruit, but in the absence good planning it was nice to have a few healthy options to mesh in between the cotton candy and bbq we hit for dinner.

Disney has also set some strong eco milestones.  In the next 2-4 years they plan to cut their emissions by 50%, their electricity use by 10% and lastly they plan to reduce their waste by 50%.  Their long term goal is zero emission and waste.

I would love to see them taking a stronger stance on the impact of Disney products, but overall they are making inroads in many areas, and have set some lofty goals.  I can’t wait to see how close they get to achieving them and in the meantime – we ended up purchasing season’s passes – so the lil’s will be sure to experience more joy at the happiest place on earth.

Diva Family Disney Adventure

Child Free & La Jolla Bound: Unstable Cliffs Stay Back

Where were we – oh yeah – Dude slipped out of our room at Estancia La Jolla while I got my beauty rest.

I eventually woke up and joined Dude in the restaurant.  To my delight, while I slept, he booked me a massage at the Estancia Spa.

Before bliss time there was little time for me to eat breakfast and explore the hotel grounds, which were stunning and beautiful and from an eco perspective I enjoyed the properties use of water wise landscaping selections – it was inspiring.

The spa was fully booked save a couple of appointments – so I was surprised that facilities were delightfully serene.  It was nice to have time to linger and relish my time at the spa.  It was perfection.

After bliss time we decided to take the hike to the ocean that “Ted” suggested – remember “Ted” the bellhop?

Picture a perfect day, stunning vistas and para-sails flitting above the cliffs.  We start navigating our way down the winding steep path – if you can call it that.  “Ted” definition of this way as a “little aggressive” may have been slightly understated.

We got a third of the way down the path when we had to chose between hiking up to the bluffs or down to the water.

The way to the bluffs involved crossing a narrow ravine via wood plank and what seemed to be an impossibly steep 15′ sheer cliff on the other side of said plank.  We made our way towards the water.  It was about a third further down the path when Dude packed it in and insisted we turn around.

I was a smidge disappointed until on our way back up Dude decided we should try to scale the sheer path on the way to the bluffs.  We climbed our way all the way to the top.  We could almost touch the para-sailer’s toes once we reached the top.  I was able to torment Dude by moving within 20 fee of the cliff in an attempt to ascertain how high up we were – high.

After a few photos it was time to make our way back to the hotel, but not before I checked out the front of a sign that had caught my attention upon our arrival on the bluff (we approached from the backside) – I was dying to know what it said – it required another photo.  Thank you “Ted!”

We managed to safely make our way down the “unstable cliffs” and back to the hotel.  Our hike built up quite the appetite for our dinner plans – but for our own safety we decided not to takes  Ted’s restaurant suggestion for the evening.   We selected Azul La Jolla a Steakhouse with a stunning view of the bay.

Some of you may be dismayed, but Dude and I are big fans of the steakhouse – from a health perspective they couldn’t be much worse for you and the only redeeming thing I can say about them is that the good ones make every calorie fully worth it.  I wish all my favorites would start buying their beef from all grass fed ranchers – pretty please!  I don’t buy that the steaks won’t be as delectable.  Sorry, I digress…

Azul La Jolla did not disappoint.  We have dined at some of the best steakhouses and Azul held it’s own – with a view was second to none.

My meal started with a Cosmopolitan that was perfect,  ice chips floating in a frosty glass, delicately sweet and smooth.  I might have had more than one – it was vacation so no one was counting and no one was driving.  It was a perfect sunset dinner, we mingled with our neighbors, invited ourselves to stranger’s home for wine tasting and had a fantastic evening.

One more uninterupted night of sleep and our time at Estancia La Jolla was all to quickly finished.  A relaxing breakfast and it was time to slowly wake from our dream and return to reality.

La Jolla, our visit was divine, just what we needed and more.  “Ted,” thanks for the adventure, our trip wouldn’t have been the same without you.

We’ll be back soon.

Child Free & La Jolla Bound: Unstable Cliffs Stay Back

Child Free & La Jolla Bound

It has been almost 2 years since Dude and I made our last child free escape.  With two children 16 months apart and no family anywhere nearby Dude and I are on our own.

When my In-Laws planned their most recent visit – it became clear that an escape was in order.  An enjoyable trip for Dude requires it to be in range for emergency response and with only 2 days for our escape there was no point in spending it all on the road.  Fortunately, living in Los Angeles beautiful spots dot the map to the immediate north and south of us.

Secretly – I was hoping to find a property working on green initiatives and was delighted to find  numerous hotels making an effort to be more sustainable.  Destination Hotel & Resorts has a green program they call Destination Earth and there are numerous Leed certified properties popping up around the country.

In the end it was a lovely invitation from a Destination Property -  Estancia La Jolla Resort and Spa – that caught my attention and with Dude’s approval we were on our way.

Two words describe my first impression of Estancia La Jolla – understated elegance.  While the property was quite extensive – it felt intimate and uncrowded.  A perfect spot for a romantic getaway.

We drove into a small swarm of Bellhops – we of course had the most charming of the group escort us to our room – let’s call him Ted.  Little did we know this little stroll to our room would flavor our entire weekend.

We’ve stayed at a number of lovely hotels -  and honestly – I couldn’t tell you the name of a single bellhop.  Somehow I think we’ll remember “Ted” for years to come and yes his name has been changed to protect his identity or in this case we don’t want him to get into trouble at work!

As we strolled through the immaculately groomed grounds he pointed us in the direction of all that we would really need to know during our stay – namely the location of bar and spa.

We ended up asking two innocent questions:  1.  How far of a walk is it into La Jolla?  2.  Can we walk to the Beach from the hotel?  More on this later…

Our room had everything we needed – but was on the smaller side.  If you plan on visiting the property and like to spend time in your room – you’ll want to upgrade your room selection.  What the room lacked in size it made up for in tranquility.  Our room was one of the quietest I’ve experienced in a hotel – entering from a courtyard meant no noisy halls.

 

Once we settled in and unpacked we embarked on our first foray and what would become – Adventure One of our La Jolla trip…. stay tuned!

Child Free & La Jolla Bound

Child Free & La Jolla Bound: The Very Long Walk

Part 2 – read part one here.

Where were we?  Dude and I had just checked into Estancia La Jolla for our first weekend getaway in almost 2 years.

After settling in we made a beeline to the bar – Mustang’s & Burros – for what might have been the best nachos Dude and I have ever eaten! Seriously. The atmosphere couldn’t have been better – we managed to to snag prime seats in front of the gorgeous outdoor fireplace.

Tip

Be sure to check out their happy hour specials – they had a cheese platter for $9 on Friday and the other offers looked appealing.

Don’t make your drink “a double” or you’ll find the priciest margarita’s I’ve seen anywhere at $22 each!

At the beginning of this story we’d asked “Ted” how far it was to walk into town?   He told us it was about 2 miles.   So… after leisurely drinks and stuffed with nachos we decided a walk into town for dinner.

It was a perfect night for a walk – the sun was setting – the conversation easy.  Wild nasturtiums were everywhere -  for some reason this fascinated me.  About an hour into our “2 mile walk” we started noticing that we weren’t even close to town … as a matter of fact we can see “town” on the other side of the bay.

Our relaxing evening stroll to dinner – over 2 hours long.  For some reason I found myself humming the Gilligan Island theme song.  I was grateful for the practical flats I’d chosen to wear yet wished they were sneakers and secretly wondered if “Ted” had known we were going to order nachos that night and intentionally underestimated the mileage in consideration of my waistline.

After wandering through town looking at restaurants we settled on Vigilucci’s an Italian Restaurant with a large outdoor patio, great atmosphere, live music and a stunning view.

I wish I could say the food was equally impressive – both Dude and I were a little disappointed.  I like garlic, but my pasta had enough to keep away more than a few vampires and Dude’s meat had to go back for a little extra time.  The restaurant wasn’t the only one struggling.  I somehow managed to send a shrimp tail flying across the room -  if anyone noticed they didn’t say a word.

We focused on enjoying our wine – which was chosen because the Vineyard and Lil Diva share a name and the winery was local.

We made our way back to the hotel, marveling the entire taxi ride at just how far we had walked.  We finished the evening with another glass of wine at Mustangs & Burros before turning in for the night.

I don’t have to tell you how nice it was not to be woken the next morning by children crawling on top of us for the first time in forever!

While I caught a few extra zzzz’s Dude went off to read the paper, and have an early breakfast.

Stay tuned for our hike to the beach… “Ted’s” way.

Child Free & La Jolla Bound: The Very Long Walk