NEW YORK ICONS ARE WELCOMED LOS ANGELES

I had the pleasure of recently experiencing not one but two NY icons done L.A. style. The first is the Broadway-Tony-award-record-breaking-smash-hit-musical Hamilton, which I was fortunate to see way back in October 2015. The second is the restaurant Jean-Georges, which the hubby and I have enjoyed on numerous occasions in NY and thus selected the new LA (Beverly Hills) outpost for our 31st anniversary dinner.  So, how did the west coast versions fare?

October 2015:  With daughter Hannah and Jonathan Groff (King George); Javier Munoz (took over for Lin-Manual Miranda on Broadway) and Tony-winner Daveed Diggs

It didn't come as a surprise that Hamilton-LA is as terrific as the original.  Creator Lin-Manual Miranda as well as others responsible for the show were all present for opening night at the Pantages. Given Miranda's well-known creative integrity, it follows that this cast, while providing their unique signatures, are marvelous. In particular, Michael Luwoye as Hamilton and Rory O'Malley as King George are stand-out's.

It was a joy experiencing the show with the hubby and son, for whom this was their first time. The daughter and I have now seen it three times (twice in LA).  The takeaway is what an incredible service Miranda has done to generate so much interest in the story of our country's founding. The audience was completely silent save for regular raucous cheering at the end of each number; i.e., so totally captivated not a single "shhhh" was necessary! That says a lot.  (The show runs through December).

While the Waldorf Astoria  and restaurant officially debuted late June, at the iconic intersection of Wilshire and Santa Monica Boulevards (next door to the Beverly Hilton), we decided to wait for the "dust to settle" before checking things out. 

Our last visit to the flagship Jean-Georges on Columbus Circle was an adventure -- literally.  We happened to be visiting when Blizzard Jonah struck (Jan 2016), closing the entire city and environs.  Not to be daunted, we walked up 7th Avenue from our hotel to Central Park South (pictured below) to get to dinner.  I could have seriously used those cross-country skis.  It was quite something!   

8pm - the streets are virtually deserted!

Back to the dinner at hand, any comparison to the centerpiece of the J-G empire (nearly 40 in the US and abroad) is virtually silly as the experience is completely different.  It's not even fair to compare one with three Michelin stars (not to mention a dress code) to one serving meals all day long in a more casual setting.  J-GBH is beautiful with excellent staff, but the menu -- supervised by J-G to incorporate seasonal flavors -- contains some ubiquitous choices (margarita pizza). The BH experience is much more akin to the more casual Nougatine, next to the flagship J-G, set in the bar area with a less serious albeit delicious menu. 

Clockwise from top:   Entrance to the restaurant; simple tablesetting; wine case in the bar; our beverages (loved the CabFranc from a not-too-impressive wine list

IMHO (as the kids say, "in my humble opinion"), I think they would have been better served to pick a different name for the main downstairs restaurant so no Michelin-star experience would be anticipated.  That doesn't mean we won't go back for the hotel is gorgeous.  But save for Providence, LA will continue to be about LA food and will leave the serious dining to Napa, San Francisco and NYC. 

The rooftop setting is a home-run with the pool, restaurant (Rooftop by J-G); view towards Westwood over the Beverly Hilton; pink-shirted Wolf Blitzer checking things out ..

Clockwise:  Monterrey calamari; corn with manchego, lime & chili (fabulous); skirt steak; lobster in coconut milk emulsion

Table-side prep of the salted caramel sundae was definitely a delicious treat!

Where to go after the Tampa trip?  Well, New York City of course.  When you live on the west coast and travel east, the bulk of the flying time is done.  So we left Tampa on Friday, August 31, which happened to be our 26th wedding anniversary.

Was dinner that night at Daniel? Maybe Per Se or Jean-Georges?? No, it was direct to Shake Shack for burger, fries and, of course a shake!  This is NYC-restaurateur-extraordinaire Danny Meyer's take on fast food.  FYI, he is the man behind some of the city's most popular spots -- Union Square Cafe, The Modern, Gramercy Tavern, etc.  But his idea for this type of food is a cut above the norm -- high quality beef, organic produce -- and the shakes are too die for.  Had previously enjoyed one a couple years ago at the-then new Mets stadium.  Yum, yum (mine was a "black-and-white," an homage to the famous cookie).

That evening we enjoyed a performance of "Once," winner of the Tony for best musical.  If you saw and liked the movie, you'll love this Broadway version about a Czech girl and Irish boy's collaboration.  Love the convenience of staying in the theater district, this time at The Time, a boutique hotel on West 49th. There is definitely an advantage to being so close to the shows and, remarkably, there's a wonderful absence of noise upstairs.

Delish chopped salad at Barneys

Saturday of this Labor Day weekend, my longtime friend Julie and I walked Madison Avenue (the hubbies went to see tennis) and gazed at all the gorgeous clothes we could mainly dream about buying.  Total fun and the stores are very welcoming.   On to the flagship Barneys New York for a late lunch and escape from the humid air. 

Tuna Tartare with Yellow Gazpacho

Saturday evening was a performance of Gore Vidal's "The Best Man" with a stellar cast and very timely subject matter as the setting is a political convention.   On to DB Bistro Moderne for a late supper. Can't go wrong with any outpost by famed chef Daniel Boulud; but, as a prime example of how different NYC is, I'm frequently not awake at 11pm let alone sitting down for a meal!

Blueberry Bread Pudding with B-berry Ribbon

Bruce, Me, Steve Davis & Julie Shuer

Sunday all four of us went to the U.S. Open, one of the main reasons for coming here.  Tix are a lot easier to procure and the number of matches obviously greater this weekend as opposed to the final weekend.  Seeing tennis up close is a fabulous experience -- love having the serve speed immediately displayed (which can reach 130+ mph). Wow.

 

Really good match

Yep, those 2 guys from the scoreboard above left.

Coincidentally, we and our friends both have daughters in NY colleges so that made for a lively dinner with a couple of our girls' friends at Trattoria Dell'Arte across from Carnegie Hall. Daughter Hannah is a senior at Long Island's Hofstra and friends Julie & Steve's daughter Sofia is a freshman at Barnard.  Lucky girls ...

Hannah's Limoncello Tower

Disappearing Pizza Margherita

 

Sofia, Steve, Ariella, Me, Julie, Hannah, Meaghan, Bruce

Hero then and now ...

Labor Day was the last of this travel so we ended with a visit to the 9/11 Memorial. Many of you know that not only were Bruce and I in D.C. on that horrible day, but we had just entered the Capitol when the planes were hitting the Towers and the Pentagon.  I've linked his worthy read of our personal experience and the 2-day drive from D.C. to L.A. with the wish that none of us ever experiences that kind of travel again...

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