Promenade: Winter 2012-2013 by Promenade Magazine

PROMENADE

About New York since 1934

NYLUXURY.COM

WINTER 2012-2013

theatre Maggie the Cat and Much More ■ Great Gifting ■ Brownstone Living ■ Holiday Shows ■ Fine Dining ■

12009 Dec Promenade.indd 1 Untitled-1 1

•

V I SI T OU R F L AG SH I P S T OR E ON F I F T H AV E N U E AT 3 9 T H ST R E ET

shopping For Her, For Him

winter in new york luxury properties The Brownstone Life

Fifteen Dollars

WINTER 2012-2013

L OR DA N D TAY L OR .C OM

art Picasso Sans Color

dining Cantonese, Elegant and Modern

11/8/12 6:19 PM

12-11-13 09:03

CAVIAR BOUTIQUE - RESTAURANT - RAW BAR CAVIAR RUSSE 538 Madison Avenue at 54th street - New York, NY 10022 Monday through Saturday, noon to 10:00 p.m., serving all day. Sunday noon to 4pm. Inquire for Private Dining.

212 980 5908 - 1 800 NYCAVIAR - www.CaviarRusse.com

Untitled-1 2

12-11-13 09:03

B:9.25”

(9578)

T:9.00”

T:11.00”

Promenade magazine December 2012

rolex

oyster perpetual and datejust are trademarks.

9578 promenade datejust 31_01.indd 1

11/05/12 1:01 PM

B:11.25”

oyster perpetual date just l ady

The world of Beretta in the heart of New York.

Beretta Gallery - 718 Madison Avenue. Pure Italian lifestyle celebrating the outdoor. A Beretta Gallery lives in the heart of New York. 500 years of tradition combines with modern day innovations to make Beretta the ideal choice for your outdoor lifestyle. Enhance your hunting, sporting and outdoor experience with the full range of firearms, clothing and accessories, all distinctly Beretta. NEW YORK - BUENOS AIRES - DALLAS - LONDON - MILANO - PARIS

718 Madison Avenue - New York - 212 319 3235 www.berettagallery.com

Jewels Created with Passion Please Call Our Fine Jewelry Salon for an Appointment: 877.922.6274 Diamonds by CORA I www.corainternational.com I info@corainternational.com I New York. Hong Kong

165-12 CORA Promenade Full Page.indd 1

8/14/12 4:15 PM

Template-Full.indd 2-3

11/7/12 12:50 PM

PUBLISHER’S LETTER

Paul Kolnik

Jewelry

The snow scene in George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker at The New York City Ballet

Shopping

winter in

Museums

Theatre

PROMENADE

inter got off to a challenging start in New York, so enjoying the city’s seasonal delights is a cheerful way to keep warm, have fun and engage in some retail therapy. For the gift-givers among you, Promenade’s style editor suggests an array of elegant purchases for your certain someone. For the techies, we guide you to the best new gadgets and gear, holders and covers. And if sparkle is on your agenda, we offer some high-octane twinklers that are perfect for lighting up a special night. New York’s stages are filled with the holiday and winter spirit. A Christmas Story, The Musical debuts, Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas The Musical is making its third NYC appearance, Elf the Musical returns and the Radio City Christmas Spectacular commemorates 85 years with a Rockette costume retrospective. And as always, the stars illuminate the Broadway stages: Scarlett Johansson in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Keith Carradine in Hands on Hardbody, Barry Manilow in a limited concert engagement, and Ellen Burstyn in the revival of Picnic, to name a few. At the Met Opera, a new Rigoletto is set in Vegas, Alvin Ailey’s company performs a Garth Fagan signature piece, and the Guggenheim showcases Picasso Black and White. On the dining scene, we talk to Georges Briguet, whose classic French restaurant, Le Périgord, has been setting a standard for over 50 years. See our recommendations for luscious Latin cuisine, travel with Promenade on river cruises in America and abroad, and relax with some luxurious spa pampering to get through winter’s chill. Let our listings help you make all your shopping, sightseeing and entertainment choices. Visit nyluxury.com, where you’ll find what’s new in the arts each week, exclusive shopping tips, and dining events and specials. Have a wondrous winter!

David L. Miller Publisher 8

PROMENADE I

DEDICATED TO THE AFFLUENT NEW YORK CITY VISITOR

Dining

008 PUBLetter.indd 8

11/12/12 3:14 PM

jacobandco.com

LI LI A: NAT U R AL FAN C Y IN T E N SE PIN K AND B L UE - GR E E N DIA MO ND R IN G

promenade.indd 1

+1.212.719.5887 48 East 57th Street New York, NY

11/2/12 6:49 PM

About New York since 1934

PROMENADE

nyluxury.com Winter 2012-2013

wrist glitz

Shopping New York Great Gifting 22 Swell ideas for your special someones. Tech Time 28 With so many marvels on the market, here’s our guide to some of the best new gadgets and gear. A Season of Sparkle 30 Twinkling stones provide high-octane sparks for a gray winter’s eve. Style Interview: Dr. Franco Gussalli Beretta 32 The Italian-born vice president of Beretta on his love for New York and making Beretta a lifestyle brand. The Holiday Gift Guide

Editor’s Picks: Mad for the Museum (Shops) 16 Unique merchandise at these well-curated mini-emporia. The Virtual Voyager 18 Topflight tips for the discerning traveler. The Best Places 34 Great suggestions for successful shopping.

opera ornament

Day Spas 43 Gotham’s elite retreats.

At Home In New York

outdoors in

Antiques 48 Vintage lamps that warm up a room. warm ups

Décor 49 Beautiful rugs transform a space. Real Estate 50 Living the brownstone life.

on the cover Clockwise from top left: Scarlett Johansson, appearing in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof; Marie-Thérèse, Face and Profile, from Picasso Black and White at the Guggenheim Museum; the stunning façade of 109 East 81st Street; fine Cantonese fare at Hakkasan New York; “Cylinder” cufflinks from Reinstein/Ross; diamond engagement ring from Jacob & Co.

floor art

010_12 TOC.indd 10

11/12/12 3:23 PM

Template-Full.indd 1

8/8/12 12:59 PM

About New York since 1934

PROMENADE

nyluxury.com Winter 2012-2013

On the Town The smArt List 20 A potpourri of cultural events in the city. Theatre

mad men

Joan Marcus

Scott Landis

Talking With Richard Schiff 52 From his breakthrough role as Toby Ziegler on The West Wing to his current Broadway debut in the star-studded cast of Glengarry Glen Ross, Emmy-winner Richard Schiff discusses his evolution as an actor and his love affair with New York. On New York’s Stages This Holiday Season and Beyond 54 A sparkling array of jolly, heartfelt family shows to share and a mitten full of Broadway productions arriving this winter. OPERA

Rigoletto Goes to Vegas 60 After many reinterpretations of the classic opera originally set in 16th century Mantua, the Met’s new production takes place in Tinsel Town. Dance

Museums

tomorrow today

Picasso in Black, White and Grey 66 “The fact that in one of my paintings there is a certain spot of red isn’t the essential part of painting,” said the towering figure of 20th century art.

Nick Heavican/Metropolitan Opera

A Garth Fagan Moment at Alvin Ailey 62 The Lion King’s choreographer lends a signature piece from his own dance company to the Alvin Ailey dancers this season.

the met does Vegas

Travel

Afloat in America and abroad 78 Sailing the Mediterranean on Silversea’s gracious Spirit and the Mississippi on the grand American Queen: Fabulous fare and splendid sights. Dining

The 10 Top... 86 Luscious Latin cuisine. Greek splend or

Promenade Picks 92 Hakkasan New York and Oceana. The Restaurant Interview: Georges Briguet 106 Open since 1964, his classic Le Périgord is host to many movie stars, UN diplomats, and French food enthusiasts.

The Most Up-to-Date Guides:

Theatre...................... 56 Performing Arts........ 64 Museums................... 70 Galleries & Collectibles................ 74 Sights in the City...... 82 Dining....................... 93

fine french

010_12 TOC.indd 12

11/12/12 3:20 PM

Promenade - Winter 2012-13: Aaron Basha advertisement (Right Hand Read)

Aaron Basha & Family, Central Park, NYC 2012

18 karat gold, diamonds and enamel

Aaron Basha Boutique • 685 Madison Avenue • New York • 212.644.1970 • w w w. a a ro n b a s h a . co m Athens

•

Dubai

•

Hong Kong

•

Italy

•

Kiev

•

London

•

Moscow

•

Qatar

•

Tokyo

•

Toronto

About New York since 1934

PROMENADE Winter 2012-2013

PUBLISHER David L. Miller CO-PUBLISHER Eli Marcus ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Lisa Ben-Isvy SALES & MARKETING

VP Sales & Marketing VP Community Relations Senior Account Manager Marketing Development Manager

Vincent Timpone Janet Z. Barbash Lisa Friedman Deborah B. Daniels

EDITORIAL

Editor Associate Editor Style Editor Theatre Editor

Phyllis Singer Colin Carlson Ruth J. Katz Griffin Miller

Contributing Editors Kaitlin Ahern Melanie Baker Martin Bernheimer Marian Betancourt Lisa Chung Kristopher Carpenter Sylviane Gold Karin Lipson Karli Petrovic Research Assistant Kara Faulk Art Director Jiyon Son PUBLISHING OPERATIONS

General Manager Thomas K. Hanlon Director of Distribution Linda Seto Moi Director of Operations - Events Div. Rebecca Stolcz Traffic Heather Gambaro Dana Golia Administrative Frank Kirsner Denise Marcovitch FINANCE

Credit Manager Elizabeth Teagarden Shaquon Cates Curtis Chaffin Diedra Smith Bookkeeper Fran Giovinco Assistant Bookkeeper Socehira David PROMENADE | DEDICATED TO THE AFFLUENT NEW YORK CITY VISITOR

Published by Davler Media Group LLC 1440 Broadway, 5th Floor New York, NY 10018 P: 212.315.0800 F: 212.271.2239 www.nyluxury.com www.davlermedia.com

Chief Executive Officer: David L. Miller Quarterly circulation is audited by BPA Worldwide NO PORTION OF THIS MAGAZINE, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION, ARTICLES, LISTINGS, MAY BE REPRODUCED WITHOUT THE EXPRESSED WRITTEN PERMISION OF THE PUBLISHERS. Copyright: 2012 by Davler Media Group LLC. 212.315.0800.

Subscriptions are $60 in US and $80 overseas For circulation inquiries, call Thomas K. Hanlon, 646.736.3604

014 Masthead.indd 14

11/12/12 3:15 PM

120 EAST 70TH STREET $35,000,000 | WEB:NYO0016387 Louise Beit, 212.606.7703

VillAgE ToWnHouSE W/gARAgE $13,800,000 | WEB:NYO0018006 S. Ponte/V. Kaufman, 212.606.4109/7639

41 WEST 74TH STREET $20,000,000 | WEB:NYO0018481 Roger Erickson, 212.606.7612

109 EAST 81ST STREET $10,000,000 | WEB:NYO0018368 Michael Pellegrino, 212.400.8731

105 EAST 73RD STREET $15,500,000 | WEB:NYO0018477 Serena Boardman, 212.606.7611

MuRRAy Hill MoDERn ClASSiC $6,995,000 | WEB:NYO0018141 Austin Schuster, 212.606.7797

EAST SIDE MANHATTAN BROKERAGES I sothebyshomes.com/nyc 38 East 61st Street, New York, NY 10065 T 212.606.7660 F 212.606.7661 Sotheby’s International Realty, Inc. is owned and operated by NRT LLC. Sotheby’s International Realty® is a registered trademark. Equal Housing Opportuinty. Landscape at Auvers After the Rain used with permission.

Template-Full.indd 1

11/6/12 12:53 PM

EDITOR’S PICKS

D A for the museum

(shops)

These well-curated mini-emporia offer unique and delightful merchandise.

New York is a city that boasts nearly 100 museums (not to mention many more cultural institutions and organizations), some of which you’ve never heard of, like, say, the Museum of American Financial History. Others are big crowd-pleasers—the Met, MoMA, the American Museum of Natural History, the Guggenheim—which rarely lack an audience, even for their most arcane exhibits. Still others are gems that don’t get that kind of high-volume traffic, like the Frick, the Morgan Library, or even (to my mind) that jewel, the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum, and another favorite, the Museum of Arts and Design. Then there are the specialty museums that I adore, some under the radar, like the New York City Police Museum, the Dahesh Museum, the Merchant’s House Museum, Theodore Roosevelt’s Birthplace, and that treasure, the Lower East Side Tenement Museum... and on and on. One thing that just about all of them have in common is their well curated gift shops, with exciting and interesting merchandise. Usually there are unique offerings, smartly edited by the specialist retailers who make these mini-emporia as much like their museum counterparts as possible. Here are some wondrous things to buy in our superb museum shops. By Ruth J. Katz

1 Black and white never looked so stylish together as they do in this stunning seed-bead clutch from The Metropolitan Museum of Art. The design of the Deco-style evening bag is based on a dazzling 1923 Austrian beaded purse; it has a satin body, is fully lined, and measures 7” x 11”, with a 10” chain drop. $225. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1000 Fifth Avenue (82nd Street); 800-662-3397; store.metmuseum.org

016 EditPicks-1pg.indd 16

▼

2 The endearing Milly von Barksky the resident hund at Neue Galerie New York, was the inspiration for the extensive and charming merchandise dedicated to canines that you will find here. Her luxurious bed cushion (with Velcro closures) is patterned in Josef Hoffmann’s “Rectangles” in 100% linen, with non-toxic, chemical-free, organic cotton stuffing. 20” x 20” x 8” $340. Neue Galerie New York, 1048 Fifth Avenue (86th Street); 212-994-9496; neuegalerie.org

▼

3 The Chinese designer Hang Feng knows a thing or two about theatrical-entrance clothing: Consider splendid kimonos she created for the Metropolitan Opera’s 2006 Anthony Minghella production of Madama Butterfly. Here, her polysilk “Floral” scarves at AsiaStore at the Asia Society are worked in tight pleats and are adorned with delicate flowers.(6”-7” wide and 55”-60” long). $138. AsiaStore at the Asia Society and Museum, 725 Park Avenue (70th Street); 212-327-9217; Asiastore.org

4 Own a piece of The Metropolitan Opera’s history, in the remarkable sculptural forms the Met has created from its signature, original starburst “Sputnik” chandeliers, which were replaced in 2008. The 1966 fixtures’ Swarovski crystals have been refashioned into one-of-a-kind ornaments. Each comes with a certificate of authenticity and a storage pouch fabricated from the Met’s elegant gold curtain (also replaced). Sizes vary: $2,000 to $5,000. The Metropolitan Opera, Lincoln Center, Columbus Avenue (62nd/65th Streets); 212-501-3482; metoperashop.org

11/12/12 3:26 PM

Template-Full.indd 1

10/18/12 6:35 PM

travel picks

{ Topflight Tips for the Discerning Traveler }

the virtual voyager

By Griffin Miller

Like Virgin – For the Very First (Class) Time Dear Sir Richard Branson, On behalf of every burnt out jetsetter privy to Virgin Atlantic Airlines’ newly redesigned Upper Class Cabin, I would like to personally thank you for ushering upscale air travel into the ether of consummate bliss. Your flight attendants – thanks to Virgin’s “vocal training sessions” – now approach passengers soto voce. Crew whisperers. Very thoughtful. As for your creature-comfort innovations, kudos re: the sleek eight-foot bar where guests can socialize over drinks, gorgeous Swarovski crystal curtains, elegant mood lighting, techo-forward handheld touchscreen entertainment units and overall design plan that eliminates the “move-about-the-cabin-bump-and-bruise” motif. And of course, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the awesome sleeping quarters: full-length beds with double sleeper options. So again, thank you, Sir Richard for transcendent 21st century First Class air travel. Most sincerely, Moi P.S. Loved your virtual tour of the cabin via PlaneView at Virgin-Atlantic.com Flat Out Fabulous

And a Little Kitten Shall Lead Them

The carry-on conundrum of how to pack cosmetics and toiletries (and how to organize them once they invade the hotel vanity) has been resolved by a chic little item called Make-Up-Matte™ by MUM. Bringing a whole new twist to the concept of “all-inclusive,” this 17” x 12” versatile roll-up unfurls to – well, whatever you desire, from a rectangular pocket cubby for beauty accouterments to the perfect surface saver (lotions, powders and nail polish do have a tendency to run a tad amok) to a pretty way to consolidate must-haves before heading to the gym or photo shoot. What put this “why didn’t I think of that?” bit of fashion/travelforwardness over the must-have top was the accompanying BeautyBand—a matching head-wrap designed to preserve one’s tresses from make-up, creams and ablutions. The luxe package (I recommend the sophisticated “Leopard” style, a favorite with celebrity makeup artists)—is a steal at $29.95. To place your order before your next five-star excursion visit makeupmatte.com.

Call her cute, call her kawaii, call her ubiquitous, but Sanrio Co., Ltd.’s Hello Kitty has a hold on pop culture that is simply irresistible. And now the adorable snowy white feline has been recruited by Japan Tourism Agency’s Visit Japan project to star in an iPhone app that covers all 47 of Japan’s prefectures and provides local tourist information – all while adding a generous dose of whimsy to one’s vacation cyber correspondence. The app, featuring Hello Kitty in 53 distinctive costumes, casts the cartoon miss as both a personal tour guide to local landmarks and a multifaceted model: you can insert her into your photos and post them online directly from your iPhones via GPS and the camera functions. Available for free download (through March 31st) at the iTunes App Store, Hello Kitty is by no means just for kids: adults and collectors have also fallen hard for the wee charmer – so much so that Taiwan’s EVA Airways recently announced it will soon introduce its 6th Hello Kitty-themed aircraft, a Boeing 777, to its fleet. Say what you will, this kitten gets around! visitjapanapp.jp; itunes.apple.com

Oh, Just Bee-Hive!

018 TravelTips-1pg.indd 18

The buzz at the InterContinental New York Times Square is the real deal – and a honey of a deal at that—courtesy of a fully functioning rooftop beehive and its industrious tenants. The first of what will be two hives (in place by 2014), the apiary, while one of several “eco-initiatives” in play at the hotel, is by far the most intriguing and Promethean. Not only is it exceedingly cool to watch a battalion of bees (as many as 50,000) go about their honeycomb business in the heart of Manhattan’s Broadway theatre district, the resulting liquid gold has a practical side as well: it’s used on-site in restaurant cuisine and honey-infused cocktails. And because this homegrown delicacy is a specialty of the house, it is slated to score serious bonus points in the gift and amenity department once harvesting reaches peak potential, most likely by next year when the anticipated harvest reaches 120 pounds. Notably, the Times Square hotel is the third U.S. InterContinental property to offer five-star bee accommodations: both the InterContinental Boston and the InterContinental New York Barclay (just across town), boast hale and hearty hives. interconny.com

11/12/12 3:26 PM

ter

’

ort

Escape to Doral Arrowwood for a Getaway Weekend.

Treat yourself to a refreshing weekend at Doral Arrowwood. Located on 114 acres in the heart of Westchester County, you’ll feel like you are a world away. There’s plenty to keep you busy: a round of golf, a game of tennis or a workout in our Sports Center. We also offer plenty of ways to relax: sauna, massage or lounging by the indoor/outdoor heated pool. In the evening, you can dance the night away at our Saturday Night Dinner Dance, or go al fresco at Mulligans. If you want to stay in the sports loop, drop by The Pub, where the big screen TVs will keep you on top of the action. Next time you’re thinking of getting away, think Doral Arrowwood.

Packages include a luxurious guestroom and a delicious breakfast.

Call Today. 866-312-0401 T O L L F R E E

975 Anderson Hill Road • Rye Brook • New York 10573 • www.doralarrowwood.com

DA103 Resort_Promenade.indd 1

8/16/10 10:03:53 AM

New York has plenty of fabled entertainment spots, but Harlem’s Apollo Theater is in a class by itself. The icons of 20th-century American popular music – from Ella Fitzgerald to Stevie Wonder – have played its stage. But it is hallowed ground to comedians, too. When Sinbad arrives with his gentle, kinetic, always perceptive standup act, he will be following in the footsteps of stars like Stepin Fetchit, Pigmeat Markham, Moms Mabley, and Godfrey Cambridge. Sinbad, December 7 at the Apollo Theater. apollotheater.org The “golden voice” sounds increasingly strangled, the eyes tired, and the stage moves were always beside the point. But then there’s the writing. Leonard Cohen’s meticulously orchestrated concerts are about his songs, as wry, piercing, and just plain grown-up as any body of pop music ever recorded. He’s pushing 80 now, and there may not be that many more opportunities to see him perform live. Leonard Cohen, December 18 at Madison Square Garden, December 20 at Barclays Center. thegarden.com; barclayscenter.com

DANCE

Once upon a time, in a faraway land called the ’50s, the great Broadway composer Richard Rodgers and his partner, lyricist Oscar Hammerstein III, created a musical version of the Cinderella story for television. No one who saw it ever forgot it, and it returned to the small screen periodically. At long last, its lilting songs come to Broadway, with Tony winner Victoria Clark as the Fairy Godmother, rising star Santino Fontana as the Prince, and adorable Laura Osnes in the title role created by Julie Andrews. (Lesley Ann Warren and Brandy starred in the subsequent TV productions.) Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella, starts previews January 21 at the Broadway Theatre (opens February 21). cinderellaonbroadway.org Gift of Charles T. Harbeck. Courtesy of the Hudson River School

THEATRE

ART

CLASSICAL

020 SmArtList-1pg.indd 20

Between the irresistible choreography of its founder, David Parsons, and its lineup of ten compelling dancers, Parsons Dance has become one of the best-loved of contemporary ensembles. During its New York season this winter, the company introduces two world premieres: a folk-inspired piece by Parsons and a work to Chopin by Katarzyna Skarpetowska. And yes, Parsons’ extraordinary, levitating masterpiece, Caught, is on the bill. Parsons Dance, January 15-27 at the Joyce Theater. joyce.org

[ Thomas Hill (American, 1829-1908) View of the Yosemite Valley, in California, 1865 ]

Carol Rosegg

POP

By Sylviane Gold

Setting aside objects crafted by its indigenous peoples, America made its first forays into a truly native art language in the 19th century, with the painters of the Hudson River School. Reveling in the mountains, valleys, and waterways to be found north of New York City, and then beyond, Frederic Church, Asher B. Durand, Thomas Cole, and their followers trekked into the woods to celebrate the American landscape. Many of the resulting masterpieces belong to the New-York Historical Society, which sent them on tour while its building was being renovated. They’re home again for the first time in several years, installed in sparkling quarters and shimmering themselves with the light of dawning self-awareness. Nature and the American Vision: The Hudson River School, through February 21 at the New-York Historical Society Museum and Library. amnh.org

An opportunity to hear all the Beethoven symphonies is a big deal no matter which orchestra tackles them. But hearing them played by the Jewish and Muslim musicians of the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra gives these works – especially the Ninth’s hymn to brotherhood – an extra resonance. Founded in 1999 by the conductor Daniel Barenboim and the late writer Edward Said as a way for young musicians from Israel and its neighbors to join forces and get to know one another, the Divan is more than a cross-cultural exercise in bridge-building, and more than just another orchestra. West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, January 30 and 31 and February 2 and 3 at Carnegie Hall. carnegiehall.org

Luis Castilla

FUN

Krista Bonura

ON THE TOWN

sm ART list the

11/12/12 3:26 PM

Success Starts Here.

You will be amazed how much your child will achieve at World Class Learning Academy. From the age of two, your child will begin learning a new language. From age three, your child will discover reading. And from the age of four, they will learn a musical instrument. Imagine what your child will achieve by age 11. Chosen by over 1500 schools worldwide, our innovative, international curriculum helps students achieve well beyond expectations for their age. World Class Learning Academy is part of a successful network of international schools where students’ accomplishments rank among the highest in the world. Students from our schools have been accepted to the world’s most renowned colleges and universities, including Harvard, McGill, MIT, Oxford, Princeton, and St Andrews.

To find out more, call to schedule a private tour.

World Class Learning Academy, New York A World Class Learning School Inspired. Successful. Empowered.

www.wclacademy.org • 212.600.2010 • 44 East 2nd Street • New York, New York 10003 • infowcla@wclacademy.org

Template-Full.indd 1

8/14/12 9:07 PM

▼

for Her

SHOPPINGNEW YORK

A trio of elegantly handcrafted, blown-glass bottles, from Egypt, to hold perfume, cotton balls, what-nots on a feminine vanity. All from MacKenzie-Childs, in the company’s inimitable patterns. From $68 to $88. MacKenzie-Childs, 20 West 57th Street (Fifth/Sixth Avenues); 212-570-6050; mackenzie-childs.com

▼

“Blu Intermezzo” by Kim, from Wempe, is a lavish 18-kt. rose gold necklace with extraordinarily striking stones: one showstopping teardrop tourmaline, 53 colored gemstones, and 18 brilliant-cut diamonds. $42,775. Wempe, 700 Fifth Avenue (55th Street); 212-397-9000, 800-513-1131; wempe.com

great gifting Swell ideas for your special

someone

We start thinking seriously about gift-giving this time of year. But in truth, we give presents all year long. It’s just that when the calendar says November/December, we get a little more industrious, doing a lot more planning. And justifiably so, as it is definitely the time to shower a special someone with a pleasing surprise or a thank-you—whether it’s something unique for a particular her or him, or for the family pet, or for your children’s beloved teachers, your personal trainer, or your favorite hair stylist. Perusing these pages, we think we’ll tempt your shopping genes with some swell ideas for gifts, perfect to stash under the tree, to tuck into a stocking, or to hide in a secret spot where the recipient will find it serendipitously! The best reasons to give a gift are because you feel like it, because you treasure the gift yourself, and you value the person it’s earmarked for. Ruth J. Katz

▼ Cozy as can be, from Donna Karan Home Collections, a 50” x 70” plush cashmere blankie, that rolls up handily for travel. $350. donnakaranhome.com

▼ Perfect for snowy or just plain bad weather, Zoubaby’s rubber boots. Personalize them in any one of four monogram styles and pick from a selection of eight different color threads, sizes 6-11. $98. zoubaby.com

022-27 GiftsFeature.indd 22

11/12/12 3:31 PM

▼

Designer Jeung-Hwa Park stunning scarf is but one style among her collection of her wool and silk scarves, worked in a combination of knitting, felting, and hand-dyeing, among other techniques. Price range from $125 to $450. Museum of Arts and Design, 2 Columbus Circle (59th Street); 212-299-7777; madmuseum.org

▼

▼ From Tokyo Milk, a duo of rich, creamy soaps, in lemony-yellow packaging. $ 12 each. New London Pharmacy, 246 Eighth Avenue (22nd/23rd Streets); 212-243-4987; newlondonpharmacy.com; tokyo-milk.com

Philip Stein‘s “Signature” round watch (quartz movement) with a single diamond bezel and classic mother-of-pearl dial on an interchangeable gunmetal ostrich strap. $2,160. Bloomingdale’s, 1000 Third Avenue (59th/60th Streets); 212-705-2000; bloomingdales.com; philipstein.com

▼

From Carmen Marc Valvo Couture, exclusively at the Maximilian Fur Salon at Bloomingdale’s, an aubergine-dyed Russian sable coat. Price upon request. Maximilian Fur Salon at Bloomingdale’s, 1000 Third Avenue (59th/60th Streets), 4th Floor; 212-705-3335; maximilian.com

▼ Hand-woven, hand-antiqued, metallic nappa leather “Architect” tote from Lance Wovens. With canvas handles and lining, nickel findings, and a removable pouch; available in a variety of color combos and in a smaller size, (the “Studio” tote). $650 and $450. Bergdorf Goodman, 754 Fifth Avenue (57th/58th Streets); 212-753-7300, 800-558-1855; bergdorfgoodman.com; lancewovens.com

022-27 GiftsFeature.indd 23

11/12/12 3:32 PM

for him

SHOPPINGNEW YORK

▼

“Cylinder” cufflinks from master jewelers Reinstein Ross, worked in 20-kt. peach gold with amethyst stones. $4,950. Reinstein Ross, 29 East 73rd Street (Fifth/Madison Avenues); 212-772-1901; 122 Prince Street (Greene/Wooster Streets); 212-226-4513; reinsteinross.com

▼

The “Rallye” from Frey Wille’s Art Collection features a band of the company’s signature, colorful enamel work on the buckle on this fine-quality leather men’s belt. $1,140. Frey Wille, 727 Madison Avenue (63rd/64th Streets); 646-682-9030; frey-wille.com

great gifting

Swell ideas for your special someone

▼

The new, show-stopping Breguet “Tradition” has a 40-mm. case and is water-resistant to 30 meters; limited edition in 18-kt. red gold with an alligator strap. $27,600. Breguet Boutique, 779 Madison Avenue (66th/67th Streets); 212-288-4014; 866-458-7488; breguet.com

From Loominus, exclusively for Barneys, soft-asbutter chenille scarves for the well-dressed man who wants to be warm and stylish at once. Colors and patterns vary; 10” x 72”. $295. Barneys New York, 660 Madison Avenue (61st Street); 212-826-8900; 888-822-7639; barneys.com; loominus.com

▼ A fun 4 gig flash drive is based on a guitar designed by luthier Hermann Hauser. The original is in the in The Metropolitan Museum’s collection, and was used by Andrés Segovia. $26.95. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1000 Fifth Avenue (82nd Street); 800-662-3397; store.metmuseum.org

022-27 GiftsFeature.indd 24

11/12/12 3:33 PM

▼

A stylish way to get away: Bally’s “Marley” roll-on-board elegant, calf suitcase, measuring 14” x 19” x 7”. $2,295. Bally, 628 Madison Avenue (59th Street); 212-751-9082; bally.com

▼ From ski aficionado Bogner, a Finish-made, stylish down jacket with removable fur collar and year-ofthe-dragon embroidery. $2,098. Saks Fifth Avenue, 611 Fifth Avenue (49th/50th Streets); 877-551-7257; 212-753-4000; saksfifthavenue.com

▼ For those unexpected moments: The Hemergency Kit from Pinch Provisions contains everything (22 items) a gentleman might need, from basics like a toothbrush and toothpaste to a styptic pencil and stain remover pads. The Mini contains 13 necessities. $25 and $13, respectively. Henri Bendel, 712 Fifth Avenue (55th/56th Streets); 212-247-1100; henribendel.com; pinchprovisions.com

022-27 GiftsFeature.indd 25

11/12/12 3:34 PM

for the HOME

SHOPPINGNEW YORK

▼

Not just another angler’s almost-true story: This fish tale is from Marimekko’s good-looking “Hauki” collection, featuring the catch-of-the-day, shown graphically on an organic cotton oven mitt, a half pike on each side. $24. Marimekko NYC Flagship, 200 Fifth Avenue (23rd/24th Streets); 212-843-9121; marimekko.com

▼

Designer Hervé Gambs’ exotic and exquisite faux fleurs are always in fashion. This beautifully wrought cymbidium orchid comes in a variety of colors, is about 7” x 7”, and is fragrantly perfumed. $38. Kisan, 125 Greene Street (Prince/West Houston Streets); 212-475-2470; kisanstore.com

great gifting

Swell ideas for your special someone

▼ From that master metalworker, Georg Jensen, a stainless steel bowl with the most fluid, organic lines imaginable. Simply stunning. $230. Georg Jensen, 687 Madison Avenue (61st/62nd Streets); 212-759-6457; 800-546-5253; georgjensen.com

A welcome house gift for even the most finicky hostess, Neuhaus’”Luxury” presentation box holds about 40 pralines in sumptuous flavors and is handsomely deisgned. $80. Neuhaus, 500 Madison Avenue (52nd/53rd Streets); 212-644-4490; neuhaus.be

▼

022-27 GiftsFeature.indd 26

11/12/12 3:34 PM

▼ What fun for those family-andfriends nights dedicated to home theatre. From the extraordinarily well-stocked Wayfair home goods website, an antique, brass popcornmaking machine, with a brass finish, stainless kettle, fold-back doors; measures 64” H x 18” W x 16” D. $2,178.40. wayfair.com

▼

Italian holiday cakes are a perennial favorite, and these from Armani/Dolci are sure to please: the classic Panettone, the delicious Veneziana, and the always welcome Pandoro. Prices range from $8 to $45, depending on size. Armani/Dolci, 717 Fifth Avenue (55th/56th Streets); 212-339-5950; armani.com

So elegant, you’ll not want to spoil it by pouring tea into it, but then again, what could be more comforting, than to drink a soothing beverage from such a stylish, handmade cup? Qing Mei Painting Chawan tea cup, embellished with gold, from Mihoko’s 21 Grams. $500. Mihoko’s 21 Grams, 16 West 22nd Street (Fifth/Sixth Avenues); 212-741-0021 mihokos21grams.com

▼

022-27 GiftsFeature.indd 27

The “Caviar Assortment” from Caviar Russe includes a variety of American and Caspian Sea caviars, house-made blinis, creme fraiche, and caviar spoons, all packed in a Caviar Russe insulated gift bag. From $145. Caviar Russe, 538 Madison Avenue (54th Street/2nd Floor); 212-980-5908; caviarrusse.com

11/12/12 3:35 PM

028-29 TechArt.indd 28

By Ruth J. Katz

With so many marvels on the market, here’s our guide to some of the best new gadgets and gear.

tech time

SHOPPINGNEW YORK

Bullhorn for the iPhone. cwonder.com

ne of my new best friends is Dustin. Not as in Hoffman (I wish), but as in a gizmo from Brookstone, the catalogue company that brings us every device and gadget designed to help us do things better, faster, smarter. My Dustin is a little $20 disk-cleaner for the screen of a smart phone and an electronic reader. He’s the size of a Brillo pad and is equipped with both terry and microfiber cleaning cloths to whisk away nasty, greasy blotches and pesky finger prints (and paw prints for when the dog purposefully circumnavigates the living room just so he can step on the iPad). You may have some new best friends, too: In the process of freeing yourself from the physical desk, you’ve probably acquired an arsenal of ancillary widgets and appliances (not to mention the new iPad Mini). Technology has untethered us on the one hand, but on the other, it’s opened the market up for us to buy—and need!—all kinds of novel, sexy, fun equipment and contraptions. In the words of Shari Gibons, the COO of BuQu Tech, a division of Battery-Biz, Inc., the leading U.S.-based manufacturer and distributor of rechargeable batteries, adapters, and chargers for portable electronic devices, “Technology today allows for cordless connection and our mission is to help extend that power option so as you stay onthe-go longer with all your mobile devices.” BuQu Tech’s latest whiz-bang device is Magnetyze, a protective case, desk stand, car charger, wall charger, and multi-bay docking station all in one, which is presently available for the iPhone 4 (other models coming) and is, in a word, a wonder, especially at $69.99. There are other marvels on the market, even for the aforementioned dog, including Tagg—The Pet Tracker from Snaptracs, Inc. ($99.95, plus a monthly service fee), which is a system equipped with GPS and wireless capabilities (that connect via mobile device/phone/computer) enabling pets to remain in touch with their owners (sans barking) and gives fresh meaning to the command “stay.” There are, as you’d expect, however, more smart devices for bipeds than quadrupeds: From Triple C Designs are fashion-oriented charging pads (the Power Mate Plus) and phone cases that match; an origamistyle iPad case that reconfigures itself into more positions than the Flying Wallendas; and a simple phone easel to allow for hands-free talk. An even more useful device for your digits to firmly hold your phone is the HANDeBand from Ribbed Tee Designs, created for use with one or two fingers in the grip. And speaking of body parts, there are all manner of new-shaped earphones from Denon (many models about $350), too, for maximizing your iTunes

experience, including the Exercise Freak earphones (about $150). Also for gym rats is Belkin’s EaseFit Plus armband, ideally suited to cradle your smartphone while you work out. For chefs there are Belkin’s kitchen accessories for the iPad 2, which include fridge and cabinet mounts and a stand and stylus for the cook. A “space-age” pen that will knock your socks off is the Livescribe pen (two models, the Echo and the Sky, from $119.95 to $249.95), just released to the marketplace; it is a little wizard that records audio tied to your handwritten notes (which you need to take on the company’s “dot” paper). It is sheer genius, with a camera loaded into the pen. For the not-so-advanced, simple styluses abound and the Virtuoso Metro Stylus and Pen ($17.99) from Kensington is a well-designed, comfy one. Kensington has been a leader in computer security for some thirty years, and also manufactures countless accessories. Two must-haves are its ClickSafe Keyed Laptop Lock ($44.99), indispensable if you travel, and the clever, all-encompassing accessory for iPads, the KeyFolio SecureBack protective case with keyboard and lock built in ($119.99). For those inclined to skip all the bells and whistles and just get a functional and fun e-reader case, there are models from everyone under the sun, from a fuchsia, faux leopard-print Diane von Furstenberg number to a furry case from another Seventh Avenue big name, designer 3.1 Philip Lim; leather goods firms like Bottega Veneta, Hermès, and Gigi New York (sold at Bergdorf Goodman) produce cases in a rainbow of hues and textures. Phone cases are even more pervasive and varied: The handsome deer-skin models ($95) from the Neue Galerie are elegant, while Cygnett makes hefty, shock-resistant models in silicone called the WorkMate Pro ($19.99), sold with a screen protector and microfiber cleaning cloth. The Candy Shell cases (Speck Products, with prices ranging from $20 to $40) are a favorite with a hard outer shell and soft rubbery center, in trendy color combos and in several configurations, including cases with a springloaded compartment to hold credit cards. Whatever your preferences, whether you want to have every gadget under the sun, or strip your technology to the lean and mean, heed the words of Bryan Hynecek, Design Director at Speck Products, who cautions that you may well have only one device in the future: “Regardless of the number of devices you have—PDA, cell phone, digital camera, and so on—we’re heading toward consolidation down to one device that acts like your personal butler, with more things that will transfer out of your pocketbook and wallet and into the phone as apps, and soon you’ll have less stuff to carry around.” n

11/12/12 3:32 PM

Denon’s “Exercise Freak” ear phones. usa.denon.com

CandyShell’s “SmartFlex Card” phone case. speckproducts.com

HANDeBand to firmly hold your cell phone on your finger. handeband.com

BuQu Tech’s Magnetyze phone charger (and more!) buqutech.com/magnetize

Workmate’s “Pro-Orange’ phone case. us.cygnett.com

[above] Ugg Classic “U” logo earmuff with speaker technology; [right] Echo “Bow & Bouclé Touch Glove.” both at lordandtaylor.com Diane von Furstenberg iPad case. dvf.com

iPad case from Graphic Image. graphicimage.com

Tagg—The Pet Tracker, with GPS. amazon.com

“iCharge All” and iPhone Clip. both from triplecdesigns.com

Belkin’s “Chef Stand + Stylus 2” and refrigerator mount for the serious cook. belkin.com

29 Kensington’s “Folio Trio Mobile Workstation” for iPad. kensington.com

028-29 TechArt.indd 29

11/12/12 3:33 PM

SHOPPINGNEW YORK

If ever there was a necklace to covet when making an imposing entrance, this sophisticated collier from Aaron Basha is it. Prepare for a roomful of people, mouths agape! The seven exquisite rubies are set in 18-kt. white gold, and the myriad diamonds are worked in a flexible mesh style, designed to sit around the neck like a collar. Price upon request. Aaron Basha, 685 Madison Avenue (61st/62nd Streets); 212-644-1970; aaronbasha.com

a season of sparkle ‘Tis the season, for sure, to sparkle and shine, but after the “ball drops” on New Year’s Eve, and when the holidays have become a hazy memory, there is still nothing like a glimmering piece of jewelry to rev up the temperature of an outfit. Twinkling diamonds and precious jewels can provide the perfect infusion of high-octane sparks to ferment fireworks on a gray winter’s eve. Think: One great brooch for an ebony sheath; a ribbon of rubies around your neck, against a cashmere twin set; a wrist full of burnished bangles, embellishing a naked arm. You get the idea...shimmer during the holidays and then glow through the snow. By Ruth J. Katz

This lavish, cuff-style bracelet, with over 15 carats of mixed-shape, fancycolored and white diamonds—all surrounded by an additional 24 carats of round white diamonds—will grace any wrist with a quiet elegance. The superb stones are set in 18-kt. white gold. Price upon request. By appointment only at Cora Fine Jewelry Salon, 590 Fifth Avenue (47th/48th Streets), 17th Floor; 877-922-6274; corainternational.com

030-31 JewelryFeature.indd 30

You’ll think happy thoughts when you’re sporting Paul Morelli‘s charmingly swank “Confetti” ring, set in 18-kt. white gold and black rhodium, awash with glittering yellow (.72 ct.), white (2.52 ct.), cognac (3.04 ct.), and black (2.84 ct.) diamonds. $41,000. Bergdorf Goodman, 754 Fifth Avenue (57th/58th Streets); 212-753-7300, 800-558-1855; bergdorfgoodman.com; paulmorelli.com

11/12/12 3:40 PM

Marina B, granddaughter of the renowned Sotirius Bulgari, founder of the eponymous and exalted jewelry firm, has been crafting her own line of jewelry for nearly four decades; every piece she imagines and crafts is a veritable showstopper. Here, two pairs of earrings. [above left] Jolly “Toupies” are towers of lively design, featuring azure sapphires, cerulean topaz, amber-y citrine, and baguette diamonds, set in 18-kt. yellow gold. [above right] “Aquila” are symphonies of color, with striking blue topaz, flame-red garnet, lime peridot, lemon-y citrine, snowy white cultured pearls, and diamonds, all set in 18-kt. yellow gold. Respectively, $19,000 and $11,000. By appointment only at Marina B Salon; 212-644-1155; marinab.com

Fun and frivolity are possible with designer Yael Sonia‘s “Trio” bracelet in 18-kt. yellow gold, accented with diamonds, and featuring rolling orbs of rose quartz in the golden chambers. $35,600. Yael Sonia, 922 Madison Avenue (73rd/74th Streets); 212-472-6488; yaelsonia.com

From Jacob & Co., a knock-out, diamond-pavé-set bangle, featuring 65.97 carats of diamonds, set in 18-kt. rose gold. Jacob & Co., 48 East 57th Street (Madison/Park Avenues); 212-719-5887; jacobandco.com From designer Tamsen Z, two pairs of colorful earrings to brighten any dreary winter day: [left] You’ll feel as if you’re in the pink, with these triple-threat danglers—violet tourmalines, followed by neon-rose spinels, and finished off with tanzanite drops. [right] Cascading rubelite, aquamarine, peridot, and citrine faceted stones, cut in interesting geometric shapes. Prices upon request. Tamsen Z, 783 Madison Avenue (66th/67th Streets); 212-360-7840; tamsenz.com

Italian jeweler Marco Bicego‘s “Siviglia” sapphire bracelet is meticulously crafted in 18-kt. yellow gold, and features graduated-in-size sapphires, in ombréed tones. $11,040. Saks Fifth Avenue, 611 Fifth Avenue (49th/50th Streets); 877-551-7257; 212-753-4000; saksfifthavenue.com; marcobicego.com

030-31 JewelryFeature.indd 31

11/12/12 3:41 PM

STYLENEW YORK

talking with

Dr. Franco Gussalli Beretta

The Italian-born vice president of Beretta on his love for New York, establishing Beretta as a lifestyle brand, and staying current with a company more than four centuries old. By Kaitlin Ahern

eretta, the Italian company known best for its quality firearms since it was founded in 1526, has recently established itself as a lifestyle brand with the help of its flagship store on Madison Avenue. Don’t worry— you can still ogle the beautifully made firearms (the lodge-like gun room is on the townhouse’s top floor), but you can also breathe in the scent of leather and luxury as you peruse the Italian-made outerwear, hunting and shooting gear, and accessories on floors one and two. The man behind Beretta’s extension into clothing and apparel is Dr. Franco Gussalli Beretta, the company’s vice president. Together with his brother, Pietro Gussalli Beretta, he is the 15th continuous generation of Beretta family members to own and oversee the company (his father, Cav. Ugo Gussalli Beretta, currently serves as president of the company). We spoke with Dr. Gussalli Beretta to learn how an outdoor theme thrives in the Big Apple.

[ Dr. Franco Gussalli Beretta: “We combine great outdoor wear with Italian style” ]

032-33 StyleInterview.indd 32

Q. Why did you choose Manhattan for Beretta’s flagship gallery? FGB: The idea was that we wanted to create the new world of Beretta. We had started a line of clothing and accessories, and so we thought it was very important to present our company in a different way. In the past, we were naturally a gun manufacturer, and now we wanted to present Beretta as a global lifestyle brand. So this was the first point: Let’s open a retail store. Then the second step was ‘Where?’ Both me and my father, we love New York. From our point of view, it is the best city in the world. It’s not just the best place for U.S.-based retail activity but is also the center of the world, because everybody involved in business has to go through New York. Q. You have other stores in Dallas, Paris, Milan, and London. How does the New York store compare? FGB: This is the original one. So in the heart of me and my father, it’s the ‘real’ one, our favorite. And by the way, it’s the one that has the better result. Q. Can you explain what it is you love about New York? FGB: Let’s start from when I was a young kid coming here just to play. Naturally, if you are a tourist, you can have a lot of fun here. Then the second phase, I got married [to Umberta Gnutti] and my son [Carlo] was born here. When you live here, it’s a different world. If you want to be really active, whether from a business point of view or social point of view, you get whatever you want. But if you have a family and you want to just stay with your wife and your son, you go to the park and in five minutes you are in the middle of nature. Also, when you go out a half hour or an hour [outside the city], you are really in the middle of nowhere. You can be in the center of New York, the center of business, and in less than one hour you can be in the real nature. Q. What type of person is attracted to the Beretta brand? FGB: We’ve succeeded in moving from gun manufacturer to a brand because people connect with the lifestyle. Walking into our store, they feel something special because their mind goes immediately to their outdoor experience, whether it’s a lodge in Montana or a country house in Connecticut. Q. What sets Beretta apart from other outdoor brands? FGB: Being a brand that is born and grown in Italy, we combine great outdoor wear with Italian style. It is something that came from our experience in the shotgun. In my family, there was always a double challenge. On one side we wanted to make the best product from a quality point of view, so the material, the reliability, and so on. But, on the other side, we are Italians and so we like nice things from an aesthetic point of view. So I thought that when we develop the clothing and accessory line that this should be the philosophy that makes Beretta different from the others. To make a very good product—the garments need to have very good technical characteristics to be functional for hunting—but on the other side, it must fit well and look nice.

11/12/12 3:46 PM

. uty boot, $578 r, s, $395; Overd n classic pant 95; Classic v-neck sweate tto co try un $9 [ On him: Co ic wool jacket, $255 ] ss cla try un On her: Co f, $425; Jeans, $225; Silk scar

From left to right: [ Men’s vintage leather four pockets jacket in navy, $1,595; Men’s dusty boot, $593; Women’s diamond wool quilted jacket, $1,125; Women’s chestnut boot, $761 ]

Q. With such a long history behind the brand, is it a challenge to stay current? FGB: Sure it’s a challenge, but I think this is the thing we like, to be challenged every day. Naturally we feel a responsibility. We are proud that our ancestors did such a great job, and we would like to become an ancestor for somebody. Sometimes it’s much more difficult to update a very successful product than to develop a completely new one. I always make a comparison of my company to other brands or products I love. In the car business: Porsche. The 911 is an iconic car. In the ‘70s and ‘80s, when they were trying to create a new car, the 928 was a fantastic car, but everybody criticized Porsche because they said ‘But it’s not a Porsche anymore because the Porsche is a certain shape.’ Same in the watch business and in another product that I love, the Rolex. The Rolex Mariner has always been the same, but they continue to make small modifications. These are the most difficult things, because when you are the 911 or the Rolex Mariner, how can you make a mistake? And everybody is expecting that it will still be the best. The same goes for our 92 pistol. They are so successful and they are so well known that every time we need to upgrade, it’s very difficult. But we keep working on the product. I think this is the key, no matter if it’s a shotgun or a jacket or an accessory.

032-33 StyleInterview.indd 33

Q. Did you always know you wanted to join the family business? FGB: Nobody ever told me ‘One day you will have to work there.’ My father was very straight with me and my brother [Pietro], saying ‘You need to finish your studies, graduate, and do your military service,’ which at that time was mandatory in Italy. ‘And then you will do whatever you want, but you will need to work because nothing will be given to Beretta you until you work.’ [Laughs.] And so 718 Madison Avenue it was natural that when I finished my 212-319-3235; berettausa.com responsibility to the university and the military service, I showed up and my father said ‘You want to have a job here?’ and I said ‘Yes, that would be great.’ Q. What about your son, Carlo—will he join Beretta? FGB: It will be his choice. Naturally, being 15, he is in high school. In university, he will choose whatever subject interests him. Then, if he wants, he will come to work for us. I am a strong believer that it has to be a natural choice. Q. What do you think you’d be doing if you weren’t working for Beretta? FGB: When I was a young kid, my dream was to own a pastry store. I don’t know if I had the talent to make it, but I love dessert. But now I love so much my work that it’s really difficult to say I’d love to do something else. ■

11/12/12 3:46 PM

Yael Sonia’s ingenious and sophisticated fine jewelry collection celebrates 15 years in design and creativity. Yael’s initial work was inspired by the creation of life, a mother’s love. These pieces were very personal, organic, and one-of-a-kind. Since this initial collection, her work has been more about translating the simple joys of childhood into exquisite fine jewelry. The pieces continue to evolve and are often inspired by Brazilian gemstones and the Art Deco period. The quality and expression of Yael Sonia’s jewelry crosses over artistic lines from an organic sentiment to an urban modern look. 922 Madison Ave. (73rd-74th Sts.), 212-472-6488; yaelsonia.com

New York

SHOPPING Art and Antiques Center44 – A unique and dramatic shopping experience with 70 extraordinary international antiques dealers featured in a block-long showroom of openroom settings, with aisles of antiquities (from ancient to the 19th century), 20th-century design—including Deco, Modernism, and Futurism—and unique contemporary art and objects. On-site skilled artisans provide furniture/art restoration and traditional upholstery. Mon.-Sat. 10am-5pm; closed Sun. 222 E. 44th St. (Second-Third Aves.), 212-450-7988; center44.com Lerebours Antiques - An eclectic collection of Continental and American antique, vintage, and mid-century modern fine furnishings, lighting, and art. 9:30am-5pm; Sat. 10am-5pm; closed Sun. 220 E. 60th St., 917-749-5866; lereboursantiques.com

bronze, silver, jewelry, vintage clothing and accessories, ceramics, art glass, antiquities, period furniture & lighting. Don’t miss the 3rd-floor designer room settings and over 50 showcases filled with an eclectic range of decorative pieces and collectibles. Mon.-Fri., 10am-6pm; Sat.-Sun., 8:30am-5:30pm. 40 W. 25th St., 212-633-6063; nyshowplace.com

BOOK STORES The Scholastic Store - Transport your kids into a literary wonderland at the flagship Scholastic Store in SoHo. In-store activities include the Imagination Clubhouse – a loft overlooking the store and an ideal birthday party spot – a life-size version of Clifford’s Dog House to play around in, a real-life Magic School Bus® to take you on scientific adventures, and the Klutz® Activity Center, a space where imagination reigns supreme and kids take charge of exciting crafts and activities. See their website for information on free in-store events. Mon.-Sat., 10am-8pm; Sun., 11am-6pm. 557 Broadway (Spring-Prince Sts.), stroller entrance at 130 Mercer St., 212-343-6166; scholastic.com/sohostore

Manhattan Art and Antiques Center – Featuring over 100 galleries to fit all your antique needs. Hunt down rare and exquisite art from all over the world, including Africa, China, Russia, and other areas. Open daily 10:30am-6pm, Sundays noon-6pm. 1050 Second Ave. (56th St.), 212-355-4400; the-maac.com

Department and Specialty Stores

Showplace Antique + Design Center – Featuring 4 floors and over 250 galleries with specialties in Art Deco, Art Nouveau, mid-century Modern,

Barneys New York –A cornerstone in chic, trendy New York fashion, Barneys is home to a plethora of international men’s and women’s fashion designers

034-43 NewStore-ShopList.indd 34

11/12/12 4:26 PM

SHOPPING SPOTLIGHT

New SHoPS p.38

SPeCIALTY SToreS p.35

ranging from the classically understated to the avant garde. Haute accessories, beauty products, and home furnishings continue to stamp Barneys presence as a necessity on the fashion scene. Their restaurant, Fred’s at Madison Avenue, is open for brunch, lunch and dinner. 660 Madison Ave. (61st St.), 212-826-8900; barneys.com Beretta Gallery - Beretta Gallery combines the adventure of outdoor sporting with the unwavering class that continues to mark the Beretta lifestyle brand as a beacon in the industry. The flagship three-story gallery, which makes its home in a historic New York townhouse, offers visitors access to Beretta’s collection of clothing, accessories, decorative items, and their signature merchandise dedicated to the hunting lifestyle. Open Mon.-Sat., 10am-6pm. 718 Madison Ave. (63rd-64th Sts.), 212-319-3235; newyork.berettagallery.com Bloomingdale’s – One of the world’s most famous landmark department stores. The best international fashions and home furnishings are brought together under a single Art Deco roof, in a store that encompasses a full city block and more than 500 departments on seven floors. If you work up an appetite from shopping, visit one of six restaurants, including David Burke at Bloomingdale’s, and frozen yogurt hub 40 Carrots. 1000 Third Ave. (59th-60th Sts.),

212-705-2000; 504 Broadway (Spring-Broome Sts.), 212-729-5900; bloomingdales.com Hammacher Schlemmer – America’s longestrunning catalog comes to life at their brick and mortar outpost, offering indulgent and wow-worthy gifts, the most advanced products for furthering your lifestyle, and one-of-a-kind items worth boasting about. 147 E. 57th St., 212-421-9002; hammacher.com Lord & Taylor – A beacon in American trends and designers, this flagship store has impressed shoppers since its 1914 opening. From chic and reasonably priced fashion classics, to a massive selection of shoes and accessories, Lord & Taylor continues to delight year round. 424 Fifth Ave. (39th St.), 212-391-3344; lordandtaylor.com MacKenzie-Childs - This flagship store is painting the town in their signature Courtly Check print. Featuring the full Mackenzie-Childs collection of whimsical and artistically quirky handcrafted home and garden accessories and gifts, including hand-painted ceramics, dinnerware, tableware, glassware and home furniture. 20 W. 57th St. (Fifth-Sixth Aves.), 212-5706050; 31 Main St. Southampton, 631-283-1880; mackenzie-childs.com

SPAS p.43

Macy’s – “The world’s largest store,” home to the annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, and one of NYC’s most visited attractions. Macy’s runs the gamut in goods, from home furnishings to decadent caviar, luxury and casual clothing, and everything in between. Broadway & 34th St., 212-695-4400; macys.com Saks Fifth Avenue – This paragon of unparalleled class began in 1924 as the brainchild of Horace Saks and Bernard Gimbel. Their Fifth Avenue flagship “dream store,” is highly regarded internationally and features nine floors of pure luxury, stocked with exclusive items for men and women from the world’s most desired brands. 611 Fifth Ave. (49th-50th Sts.), 212-753-4000; saksfifthavenue.com

FAsHiOn And AccessOries BCBG Max Azria – A fresh and youthful take on modern women’s design, from suits, separates, coats, dresses, handbags and accessories for women on the cusp of fashion trends. 770 Madison Ave. (66th St.), 212-717-4225; 120 Wooster St. (Prince St.), 212-625-2723; 461 Fifth Ave. (40th St.), 212-991-9777; bcbg.com

A quAlity internAtiOnAl ApprOAcH tO leArninG in tHe eAst VillAGe

Over the last 30 years, manolo Blahnik has become one of the most influential shoe designers in the world, and his winter collection is as stylish and innovative as ever. Pictured here: the neurotica ($795) and the Kahikalow ($1065), both available at their store in midtown. 31 W. 54th St., 212-582-3007; manoloblahnik.com

Nestled in the heart of the East Village, World class learning Academy opened in September 2011, bringing its elementary-aged students small classes and personalized learning in a close-knit atmosphere. Following the International Primary Curriculum and the English National Curriculum, WCLA is part of a network of schools run by World Class Learning Group since 1998, which has branches in Boston, Chicago, Charlotte, Houston, Washington, DC, Qatar and Madrid. World Class Learning Academy is an international school with a strong British bias, hence the reason UK-qualified teachers are employed from overseas. It is no accident that World Class Learning Academy is one of the only new schools in Manhattan that can share a legacy of top college placements at universities such as Oxford, Harvard, Princeton, MIT, St. Andrews and Edinburgh University. Future plans will see WCLA move through to high school. World Class Learning Academy is the school for any parent who is looking for a quality international education with personalized attention for their children. The school offers rolling admission with entry for students 2 through 11 years, and parents are welcome to tour the school throughout the year. 44 E. 2nd St., 212-600-2010; wclacademy.org

034-43 NewStore-ShopList.indd 35

11/12/12 4:26 PM

SHOPPINGNEWYORK

HEALTH and wellness “We knew there had to be a better way. So we created one.” The art of oral care is rapidly changing, and Dentistry for Health New York—where state-of-the-art technology meets non-invasive dental care—is leading the way. Founder and president Reid L. Winick, D.D.S., with nearly 20 years of experience, heads up this dental practice described as a “haven for overall wellness” that treats the patient as a “human ecosystem.” If you’re frustrated by hearing dentists tell you that you need root canals, antibiotics, gum surgery and/or extractions, Dr. Winick’s programs have helped many patients avoid periodontal surgery and the need for implants, and achieve improved overall wellness in a cost-effective manner. The idea that there is a direct connection between oral health and overall body health is the very cornerstone of this dental practice. Dr. Winick has extensive experience in general dentistry, TMJ, and craniofacial disorders and has also created a new paradigm of dental care: The Holodontic Experience. The condition of a patient’s mouth is viewed here as a barometer of bodily health and an indicator of potential disease in the future. Their tests can actually tell if you have a future risk for heart or lung disease, diabetes, inflammatory cancers, and even premature births. They also offer one of the largest green and sustainable dental offices in the United States with non-toxic paint and wall insulation made from recycled denim, bamboo flooring, and a dental vacuum that runs without water, saving 15 to 50 gallons per hour. Seeing fewer patients each day than most practices also allows them to treat each as an individual; they also specialize in treating snoring and sleep apnea, head, neck, and facial pain, and offer advanced solutions to combat halitosis. Dr. Winick is focused on his patients’ mind, body, and spirit wellness and is a national lecturer to medical doctors and other health care providers. 120 E. 56th St., 12th Floor, 212-9739425; dentistryforhealthny.com

Award-winning, self-described “gym rat” Rachael Pearl is fast emerging as one of the fitness-and-nutrition world’s newest superstars/phenoms, thanks to being one of the hardest-working, talented, and most enthusiastic fitness trainers on the planet. Though her clientele is practically a who’s-who list of NYC glitterati—including many celebrities—she works with a wide range of clients, from children suffering with learning disabilities and troubled teens to mothers, fathers, businessmen, fitness competitors, and people of all ages. Make no mistake about it: past her down-to-earth and humble demeanor, she is laser-focused and will whip you into whatever shape your potential allows. Combining her passion for all aspects of health—from cooking her own healthy gourmet recipes to transforming her client’s weaknesses into strengths—she is a hybrid between Jillian Michaels (with the sculpted body to go along with it) and Martha Stewart, and as she gets to know her clients she also understands the obstacles that are preventing them from reaching their nutrition and fitness goals. It results in her uncanny ability to recognize and help them overcome both the mental and physical obstacles that have prevented them from becoming their “best self.” Her certifications include Corrective Exercise, Sports Specific Training, Boot Camp (fast-paced circuit-type training), Kettleball, Weights, Posture, and Alignment. With degrees in Health Science, Psychology, and Dance, Pearl has developed the definitive fitness-and-lifestyle coaching company for the ages, Rachael’s Pearls of Wisdom. Pearl takes corporations and helps their employees follow better nutritional guidelines and exercise routines, with the goal of increasing both their productivity and energy immeasurably. She develops exercise and nutrition prescriptions for each client based on their individual goals and needs and helps them further succeed by providing them with practical, everyday tools that they can utilize to begin healthy behavioral changes. Pearl’s genius is that she is focused on prevention, while most health professionals are about resolving conditions already set in motion. It’s never too soon or too late to get started: Pearl can help to transform the life of anyone at any age. Training is available at her Manhattan fitness studio, or she will come to your home or hotel. For more information and to schedule an appointment, call 914-310-6607 or email rpearl2@gmail.com.

034-43 NewStore-ShopList.indd 36

11/12/12 4:26 PM

Burberry – This beloved British brand, synonymous with its signature house check–the camel, black, red, and white pattern–offers luxurious men’s, women’s, children’s, and babywear lines, fragrances, golf, eyewear, and home collections. Their made-to-order coat service has customized style and color options. 160 Columbus Ave. (67th St.), 212-595-0934; 444 Madison Ave. (49th St.), 212-707-6700; 9 E. 57th St., 212-407-7100; 367 Bleecker St., 212-901-3600; 131 Spring St. (Greene St.), 212-925-9300; burberry.com

Giorgio Armani – The alpha and omega of understated, power-drenched Italian fashion. The Italian designer’s flagship features suits, elegant sportswear, outerwear, and evening wear for men and women. 760 Madison Ave. (65th St.), 212-988-9191; giorgioarmani.com

Louis Vuitton – From the quintessential leather design brand, the shop focuses on the timeless elegance of men’s and women’s fashions, handbags, watches and jewelry, and shoes. 116 Greene St. (Prince St.), 212-274-9090; 1 E. 57th St. (at Fifth Ave.), 212-758-8877; louisvuitton.com

Carolina Herrera – Elegant, ultra-feminine, up-tothe-minute women’s dresses and fragrances. CH Carolina Herrera (802 Madison Ave. (68th St.), 212-744-2076 ) has clothing for men, women, and kids, as well as travel accessories. 954 Madison Ave. (75th St.), 212-249-6552; carolinaherrera.com Chanel Boutique – Showcasing the iconic, classic and timeless elements of Coco Chanel’s style, with handbags, accessories, shoes, and ready-to-wear by Karl Lagerfeld. 15 E. 57th St., 212-355-5050; 139 Spring St. (Wooster St.), 212-334-0055; 737 Madison Ave., 212-535-5505; chanel.com Diane Von Furstenberg – From her signature wrap dress designs to flirty sportswear and accessories, DVF is pure chic heaven. 874 Washington St. (14th St.), 646-486-4800; 135 Wooster St., 212-542-5754; dvf.com DKNY – Lifestyle clothing, accessories, and more embracing the fun styles of New York from Donna Karan. 420 West Broadway (Spring St.), 646-6131100; 655 Madison Ave. (60th St.), 212-223-3569; dkny.com Dolce & Gabbana – Ultra-modern Italian fashions, including men’s formalwear and more adventurous women’s fashions. 825 Madison Ave. (69th St.), 212-249-4100; dolcegabbana.com Donna Karan – Classic elegance and modern glamour shine at this three-story home to the famed designer’s collection. 819 Madison Ave. (68th St.), 212-861-1001; donnakaran.com Elie Tahari – Detail oriented, subtly elegant pieces, including ready-to-wear fashions and accessories, suits, cutting-edge sportswear and dresses. 417 West Broadway (Spring St.), 212-334-4441; elietahari.com Escada – The German-based company offers high-end, modern, and elegant women’s apparel and accessories. ESCADA SPORT represents understated city chic. The company brand also encompasses licenses for eyewear and fragrances. 747 Madison Ave. (65th St.), 212-755-2200; escada.com Façonnable – A French high-end retailer specializing in tailored men’s and women’s clothing. Featuring two floors of brightly striped shirts and gabardine trousers for him, and narrow suits and spangly gear for her. Rockefeller Center, 636 Fifth Ave. (51st St.), 212-319-0111; faconnable.com

034-43 NewStore-ShopList.indd 37

11/12/12 4:27 PM

THESHOPPINGNEWS

Christian Louboutin When you say “tattoo”—a word that, parenthetically, comes to us via French Polynesia—you think body art. But that genius designer, Christian Louboutin, has opened a “shoe tattoo” parlor in his new, Meatpacking District men’s footwear boutique, and the tattoo salon here ain’t for your corps, but rather for your cœur—that is to say, for your spirit, soul, and pleasure. Because the artisans doing the tattooing are embroiderers from that renowned French embroiderer-to-the-stars, the atelier of Jean-Francois Lesage. Now men can have a copy of a real tattoo stitched methodically and artistically on their shoes—or they can design something whimsical, personal, or whatever, and have true, one-of-a-kind footwear. The shoe store itself is a vision of unique architecture: The approximately 1,500-square-foot boutique encompasses an abandoned section of Gotham’s landmarked High Line and there are architectural elements of the High Line visible. Six former skylights, salvaged from the celebrated Park Avenue Armory, have been retrofitted and are embellished with mirrors and hung as chandeliers. Parts of the floor are cobbled with leather handworked by Mexican artisans. Footwear ranges from the fashion-forward Gareth to the Louis sneaker to the Rollerboy loafer. 808 Washington Street (Horatio Street); 212-255-2056; christianlouboutin.com

new

Men’s

stores

not to miss

By Ruth J. Katz

Paul & Shark

Although Paul & Shark (founded in 1977) has had a presence in the city previously, this new, 2,200-square-foot emporium, opening as we go to press, will be the company’s Big Apple flagship, and the corporation’s largest store to date. (Paul & Shark already has 250 stores located in 60 countries around the world.) The Italian luxury-goods firm (which started nearly 100 years ago, and was originally solely a knitwear firm) behind the brand is crafting the shop as only those Italians do it—with the most sumptuous and sensual of materials, a suitable match to the handsome merchandise mix within. Rich wenge wood, with its coppery and chestnut hues, and raw stone tiles in earthy tones elegantly trick out the fixtures, floor, and walls. A dramatic glass staircase transports shoppers up to the second floor where a wall of glass allows customers to peer down to the first floor. The casual merchandise, mostly sportswear, ranges from the preppy-with-a-twist to highly stylized European looks. This shop will also offer an expanded women’s salon. Prices range from about $200 to $250 for sport shirts; $300 to $600 for knitwear; and $900 to $1,600 for outerwear and luxury goods. 667 Madison Avenue (61st Street); 212-452-9868; paulshark.it

034-43 NewStore-ShopList.indd 38

11/12/12 4:27 PM

Marc Jacobs – A constantly evolving trendsetting collection pins Marc Jacobs on the fashion map year after year. Casual-chic fashions for men and women including simple dresses, classic tailored suits, and formal wear. Mon-Sat 11am-7pm Sun 12pm-6pm. 163 Mercer St. (Houston-Prince Sts.), 212-343-1490; 385 Bleecker St. (Perry St.), 212-924-6126; marcjacobs.com Marimekko – With its playful name, Mari being an anagram for founder Armi Ratia’s name, and mekko meaning ‘dress’ in Finnish, this textile and clothing design company is renowned for its exciting and innovative prints and colors. The flagship store offers home decor, apparel, bags and accessories, fabric collections, and much more. 200 Fifth Ave. (23rd-24th Sts.), 212-843-9121; 1262 Third Ave. (73rd St.), 212-628-8400; 58 Park Ave, 212-879-9779; us.marimekko.com Michael Kors – Polished, chic American sportswear and accessories for men and women from the design maven himself. Rockefeller Center, 610 Fifth Ave., 212-582-2444; 667 Madison Ave. (61st St.), 212-980-1550; michaelkors.com Polo/Ralph Lauren, Madison Avenue – American clothing legend Ralph Lauren’s NYC retail outposts. The jewel in the crown of the more than 145 stores worldwide, with authentic antique furniture, women’s wear, accessories, leather goods, home furnishings, and antiques.. 888 Madison Ave. (72nd St.), 212-434-8000. Ralph Lauren’s first men’s-only store is located across the street at 867 Madison Ave. (72nd St.), 212-606-2100. Children’s Clothing at 878 Madison Ave., 212-606-3376; ralphlauren.com Prada – The Italian specialist in luxurious minimalist fashion offers a range of men’s and women’s ready-to-wear, shoes, bags, and furnishings. 841 Madison Ave. (70th St.), 212-327-4200; 45 E. 57th St., 212-308-2332; 724 Fifth Ave. (56th St.), 212-664-0010; 575 Broadway (Prince St.), 212-334-8888; prada.com Stella McCartney – The trendy boutique featuring au courant, animal-friendly fashions for women in the heart of downtown Manhattan. Stella McCartney’s designs take fashion forward trends mixed with classic patterns and a cutting edge twist. 112 Greene St. (Prince St.), 212-966-7550; stellamccartney.com

FURS The Fur Salon at Saks Fifth Avenue – A vast and rich array of elegant furs from top designers. Fur salon services include made-to-measure garments, storage, cleaning, alterations, repairs, and more. 611 Fifth Ave. (49th-50th Sts.), 212-940-4465; thefursalon.com Maximilian at Bloomingdale’s –Offering an extensive collection of premier designer furs of the highest quality and design. 1000 Third Ave. (60th St.), 212-705-3335; maximilian.com

Jewelry & Watches Aaron Basha – An upscale jewelry boutique furnished with high-fashion jewelry pieces, celebrity worthy gems, and their distinctive jeweled baby shoes and assortment of baby charms. They also feature heirloom-quality jewelry, with bracelets, clasps, cuff links, chains and more. 685 Madison Ave. (61st St.), 212-644-1970; aaronbasha.com Cora International – As one of the world’s leading manufacturers of the largest and some of the rarest diamonds in the world, Cora has been in business for over 30 years. Unlike other diamond companies, their NYC headquarters house the sales, manufacturing and design facilities, allowing them to maintain control over the fine quality jewels that they produce. 590 Fifth Ave. (47th-48th Sts.), 17th Floor, 212-781-2672; corainternational.com De Beers Jewellery – The definitive name in quality diamonds. With over 120 years of diamond experience to draw on, De Beers go well beyond the ‘4Cs’ of carat, clarity, color, and cut to capture unmatched fire, life, and brilliance, providing unparalleled diamond designs. The creation of timelessly elegant diamond pieces—from selecting the world’s finest diamonds to impeccable craftsmanship and sophisticated designs—is the De Beers difference. 703 Fifth Ave. (55th St.), 212-906-0001; debeers.com Fred Leighton – A celebrity jewelry favorite, renowned for an extraordinary collection of vintage and estate jewelry from the 19th and 20th centuries, ranging from the Victorian

034-43 NewStore-ShopList.indd 39

At Its new location, MacKenzie-Childs Expands Its Lifestyle Brand With its signature Courtly Check, a symbolic pattern incorporating black and white check, and subtle hints of whimsical color, MacKenzie-Childs has established its place as a frontrunner of inventive, refreshing home décor, and now plans to enlarge its real estate in their new midtown location on 57th Street. In mid-November, MacKenzie-Childs will leave its existing location and move just down the street, trading up to bigger digs to showcase their growing brand. Rebecca Proctor, Creative Director of MacKenzie-Childs, explains the transition: “We’ve had a wonderful time in the current space,” she says, “but [MacKenzie-Childs] was ready for change and something bigger, and we needed more room to tell our story. We love the idea of theatre in retail and [the new store] is a bigger theatre piece. It gives us a little more freedom.” As MacKenzie-Childs switches up their New York flagship, the company is also emphasizing its newest design venture, Parchment Check. It plays off of the success of Courtly Check, but focuses on the intricacies of a delicate, golden cream-colored pattern sans iconic black, while still pulling in an array of classic colors that add to the brand’s handiwork technique. Parchment Check is featured on a variety of goods, from serving bowls and tea kettles to photo frames and hanging lamps. Proctor also noted that MacKenzie-Childs just revealed their largest holiday collection to date, which will be prominently highlighted during the height of the holiday season in the new flagship space. The new MacKenzie-Childs location is slated to open mid-November at 20 West 57th Street. The existing storefront is located at 14 West 57th Street. For more information, visit mackenzie-childs.com or call 212-570-6050. – Melanie Baker

11/12/12 4:27 PM

era to Art Deco to retro and modern masterpieces. The collection features signature creations as well as works and signed pieces by the great makers in jewelry history, including Cartier, Van Cleef, Rene Boivin and Suzanne Belperron. 773 Madison Ave. (66th St.), 212-288-1872; fredleighton.com Frey Wille USA – Since the 1950s, Frey Wille has produced artistic jewelry of precious enamel, utilizing its unique design concept. An exceptional design philosophy, innovative artistic creations, and brilliant color from the creative team of artists, goldsmiths and experts of fine enameling make for exquisite exclusive jewelry for enthusiasts across the world. 727 Madison Ave. (63rd-64th Sts.), 646-682-9030; frey-wille.com Georg Jensen – Trendsetting, luxury jewelry and watches, faithful to the unique Danish design language and committed to high quality and craftsmanship. The collection focuses on gold and sterling silver jewelry. 687 Madison Ave. (62nd St.), 212-759-6457; 125 Wooster St. (Prince St.), 212-343-9000; georgjensen.com Jacob & Co - This luxury timepiece and diamond jewelry house was founded over 25 years ago in NYC. Jacob & Co has solidified its position as one of the world’s leading luxury watch and jewelry houses with the introduction of the legendary Five Time Zone technology. The brand continues its dedication to the highest standards of craftsmanship, revolutionary design and innovation, offering the finest quality Swiss made timepieces and precious jewelry for both men and women that embody elegance. 48 E. 57th St., 212-719-5887; jacobandco.com Kwiat – Founded in 1907, this jewelry brand has a century of experience in the diamond industry and a reputation as one of the world’s leading diamond and diamond jewlery companies, dedicated to exceptional craftsmanship. 725 Madison Ave. (63rd-64th Sts.), 212-725-7777; kwiat.com Reinstein/Ross– Pairing vibrant precious stones and classical goldsmithing techniques, Reinstein/Ross jewelry is designed and hand-fabricated in NYC, in their Madison Ave. shop. Reinstein/Ross jewelry is distinctly contemporary, but reminiscent of Etruscan, Indian and Egyptian jewelry and art, and has a timeless quality. Often featured in magazines, movies and fashion events, the work of Reinstein/Ross has influenced an entire generation of jewelry designers. Custom orders welcome. 122 Prince St. (Wooster St.), 212-226-4513; 29 E. 73rd St. (Madison Ave.), 212-772-1901; reinsteinross.com Stephen Russell - Offering one of the most important and carefully chosen vintage jewelry collections available today, complemented with a collection of original contemporary designs. 970 Madison Ave. (76th St.), 212-570-6900; stephenrussell.com Tiffany & Co. - Luxurious merchandise with the tradition of quality, showcasing a wide variety of jewelry including the gold and silver signature collections. Other items include china, crystal, silver, watches and clocks, and fragrances. 727 Fifth Ave. (57th St.), 212-755-8000; tiffany.com Tourneau - A luxury-watch store featuring over 8,000 styles from more than 100 world-famous brands. You can even trade in your old watch for a new one. The TimeMachine on 57th St. is a state-of-the-art watch emporium. The Shops at Columbus Circle, 212-823-9425; 12 E. 57th St., 212-758-7300; 510 Madison Ave, 212-758-3265; tourneau.com Wempe - With over 125 years of tradition and experience, Wempe offers an impressive selection of fine timepieces and clocks, exquisite 18-karat gold and diamond jewelry, cufflinks, and watch straps. Among the brands in its Europeanstyle salon with an elegant and inviting atmosphere, are Patek Philippe, A. Lange and Söhne, Rolex, TAG Heuer, Cartier and Jaeger-LeCoultre. Wempe has earned its strong reputation for exceptional customer service with its state-of-theart service center. 700 Fifth Ave. (55th St.), 212-397-9000; wempe.com

034-43 NewStore-ShopList.indd 40

Yael Sonia - Known for cutting-edge designs, playful gem geometry, and taking an innovative, artistic approach to jewelry making, Yael Sonia has become synonymous with modern sophistication. All pieces are handmade at her studio/ showroom in Sao Paulo, Brazil and available at the first Yael Sonia art boutique

11/12/12 4:27 PM

(and the only one in America), located on Madison Avenue. 922 Madison Ave. (73rd-74th Sts.), 212-472-6488; yaelsonia.com

Shoes Botticelli - Celebrating 40 years of timeless Italian footwear, Botticelli is rooted in history and quality, offering traditional classics alongside each season’s essentials. Rockefeller Center, 620 Fifth Ave., 212-582-6313; 55 W. 49th St., 212-768-1430; botticellishoes.com

NY Hotel Urgent Medical Services - A prime resource for travelers should illness arise, NY Hotel Urgent Medical Services offers premier 24-hour urgent care, full-service travel medicine services, and house call services. Medical care is provided in the comfort and safety of your hotel room. Dr. Ronald Primas has over 20 years of experience as one of NY’s finest internists. 952 Fifth Ave. (76th St.), Suite 1D, 212-737-1212; travelmd.com

NYMetroSleep - Dedicated to the identification, diagnosis, and treatment of sleep disorders—not only to individuals within the New York metro area, but also to visitors from around the globe. With their ambulatory sleep testing program, they provide you with a simple sleep diagnostic screening device that they retrieve the next day, enabling you to potentially initiate treatment as soon as the following night. 718-684-6393; nymetrosleep.com

Cole Haan - This global flagship Cole Haan location showcases high-quality handcrafted men’s and women’s footwear, accessories and outerwear. Each product blends craftsmanship, design and innovation giving it distinctive character. Rockefeller Center, 620 Fifth Ave., 212-765-9747; colehaan.com Jimmy Choo - A celebrated force in women’s shoe design, Jimmy Choo shoe lines include house, evening, bridal, sandals, and more, as well as matching handbags. 716 Madison Ave. (63rd64th Sts.), 212-759-7078; 645 Fifth Ave. (51st St.), 212-593-0800; 407 Bleecker St. (W. 11th St.), 212-366-1305; jimmychoo.com Manolo Blahnik – A pair of Manolo Blahnik shoes puts an A+ on any closet. The shop sells inspired designs from one of the world’s most influential footwear designers. 31 W. 54th St., 212-582-3007; manoloblahnik.com Stuart Weitzman – Timeless and elegantly crafted shoes and handbags for women. 10 Columbus Circle, 212-823-9560; 625 Madison Ave. (59th St.), 212-750-2555; 2151 Broadway (76th St.), 212-873-0983; stuartweitzman.com

HEALTH and wellness Dentistry for Health New York - Founder and president Reid L. Winick, D.D.S., with nearly 20 years of experience, heads up this dental practice described as a “haven for overall wellness” that treats the patient as a “human ecosystem.” If you are looking for options to help avoid gum surgery and/ or extractions, Dr. Winick’s programs have helped many patients avoid periodontal surgery and the need for implants, and achieve improved overall wellness in a cost-effective manner. 120 E. 56th St., 12th Floor, 212-973-9425; dentistryforhealthny.com Jan Linhart, D.D.S., P.C. - Cosmetic dentist Dr. Jan Linhart has been listed as one of America’s top dentists by Castle Connolly Consumer Guide and by the Consumers’ Research Council of America. Dr. Linhart has mastered the various modern, pain-free cosmetic dental techniques and procedures that can transform your smile, giving you a renewed sense of self-confidence and dental health. 230 Park Ave. Suite 1164 (46th St.), 212-682-5180; drlinhart.com

034-43 NewStore-ShopList.indd 41

11/12/12 4:27 PM

SHOPPINGNEWYORK

Oriens Living - “Don’t just survive…thrive!” One of NY’s finest healing centers and a sanctuary for high achievers to address the core challenges they face with their physical, emotional and spiritual health in today’s world. Connect with peers and experts for support as you move towards sustainable success for your health. Specializing in acupuncture, holistic remedies, massage, non-surgical facelift options, general health and wellbeing. Elizabeth Carpenter, MS, L.Ac. is founder & director and recommended by numerous health professionals. 36 W. 44th St., Suite 1212, 212-213-5785; oriensliving.com

TELEVISION The HBO Shop - A retail space featuring a multimedia showcase of HBO’s® award-winning programming, plus tons of fan swag to keep you on top of your True Blood or Boardwalk Empire obsessions. 1100 Ave. of the Americas (42 St. & 6th Ave.), 212-512-SHOP; hboshop.com

Electronics/PHOTO The Apple Store - All Apple, all the time. Head over for your tech haul of the latest MacBook model, iPhones, iPods, accessories for your Apple gear, and other hardware from printers to software, and lots more. 767 Fifth Ave. (59th St.), 212-336-1440; 103 Prince St. (Greene St.), 212-226-3126; 1981 Broadway (67th St.), 212-209-3400; 401 W. 14th St., 212-444-3400; Grand Central Terminal; apple.com B&H Photo Video - The world’s largest camera and video super store, servicing professionals and everyday consumers for three decades. With an top notch staff, including industry pros and a full line of still, digital, video, home and portable entertainment, pro audio equipment, computers and accessories, it’s the professional’s source. B&H encourages you to try almost every item on the floor before you buy. 420 Ninth Ave. at 34th St., 212-444-6615; bhphotovideo.com DataVision - With a 30,000 square foot flagship, DataVision is NYC’s largest independent computer and video retailer. Browse and purchase from a widespread selection of computers, software, peripherals, digital cameras, camcorders, MP3 players, DVDs, and more. 445 Fifth Ave. (39th St.), 212-689-1111; datavis.com

J&R Music and Computer World - J & R is stocked with a large selection and amazing deals on audio, video, digital, SLR & professional cameras, computers & software, PDAs, iPods & MP3 players, kitchen essentials, housewares, CDs, DVDS, and more, including the J&R Apple Store and J&R Jr. for kids technology needs. 23 Park Row (across from City Hall Park), 212-238-9000; jr.com Sony Store - Try your hand at sophisticated hi-tech Sony products at this flagship location. Offering a comprehensive array of music, video, and multimedia material in a sleek, elegant shopping environment, the Sony Store is a list topper. Sony Plaza, 550 Madison Ave. (55th-56th Sts.), 212-833-8800; store.sony.com

CAVIAR Caviar Russe - One of America’s largest caviar importers. Whether your palate prefers Beluga, or Osetra, Caviar Russe offer a decadent selection of smoked fish, shellfish, foie gras and charcuterie, caviar accompaniments, and gourmet pantry items. The restaurant component offers a tasting menu, dining a la carte, and a raw bar. 538 Madison Ave. (54th-55th Sts.), 2nd Floor, 212-980-5908; caviarrusse.com

TOYS Build-a-Bear Workshop - Kids can get creative making a furry best friend to take home at Build-a-Bear. Choose from over 30 bears, bunnies, dogs, and more to stuff, sew up, and dress up in unique outfits, accessories, sounds, and even a message you record. The fun continues at home at buildabearville.com—an online world stuffed with fun! 565 Fifth Ave. (46th St.), 877-789-BEAR; buildabear.com FAO Schwarz - The pioneer in children’s toys, where there is no shortage of magic or imagination. Their staff gives expert help with Personal Shopping, Toy Soldier Tours, Big Piano Dance Lessons, Private Party Planning, Concierge Service and Corporate Sales. In business for over 150 years, FAO gives lets kids reign in a toy-filled paradise. 767 Fifth Ave. (58th St.), 800-426-8697; fao.com Toys“R”Us Times Square - Theme park meets mega toy land at Toys “R” Us. Prepare to be entranced by this 110,000-square-foot toy store, which features a 60-foot indoor Ferris Wheel, a 4,000-square-foot Barbie dollhouse, a 20-foot animatronic T-Rex dinosaur & much more. 1514 Broadway (44th St.), 1-800-869-7787; toyrsrustimessquare.com

Luxe Treatments: Guerlain Spa at The Waldorf=Astoria Hotel

If you’re seeking out a five-star spa experience, delve into the luxurious world of pampering at Guerlain Spa, located inside the Towers of New York’s lauded Waldorf=Astoria Hotel. Signature services include the Orchidée Impériale Prestige Treatment, a body massage and facial package that features deluxe Guerlain products that deliver premier anti-aging benefits, priced at $475. Popular choices also include the 50-minute and 80-minute customized massages and facials, tailored to the needs and desires of the client. Spa Director Angela Portella emphasizes the unique, personalized environment that spa-goers receive at Guerlain. “[At Guerlain] we deliver superb attention to detail,” Portella says. “Each treatment room features an en suite environment, a personal bath, shower, and vanity.” Portella also spoke to the customization of their clientele’s visit. “We perform a pre-arrival consultation and ask questions, from what their food and beverage preferences are, to music preferences, and which final touches they would like added to their service.” Final touches include a complimentary shoeshine and jacket steaming for men, and makeup application for women. Guerlain also offers the ultimate in romantic spa treatments for two. The spa’s VIP couples suite features a dual showerhead steam room, two 80-minute massages, champagne truffles, decadent French petit fours, an assortment of authentic French cheese, and romantic jazz music to set the tone. The exclusive 2-hour room time runs at $495. While Guerlain Spa calls the Towers at The Waldorf=Astoria its home, all services are open to the public, as well as hotel guests. If you’re in the market for the finest in French skincare, makeup, and fragrances, shoppers can find a full boutique of Guerlain products in the lobby of the Waldorf=Astoria. To book your opulent Guerlain experience, call 212-872-7200 or visit guerlainspas.com. The Guerlain Spa at the Waldorf=Astoria is located at 100 E. 50th St. – Melanie Baker

034-43 NewStore-ShopList.indd 42

11/12/12 4:27 PM

day

spas

Manhattan Indulgence: Metro to the Max By Griffin Miller

Spa Editor

Jet setters, sofa surfers and spa sophisticates, your “me” time has arrived. Somewhere in The City there’s a massage table marked “reserved” and a facial with your name on it. It’s nice how pampering melts the chill out of winter.

Platinum Pampering for a World-Class Clientele: Trump Spa™ New York The name says it all… particularly when you realize the design of the newly renovated Trump Spa™ at Trump International Hotel & Towers on Central Park came from none other than Ivanka Trump herself. With an impeccable eye for detail, comfort and style, Ivanka – who oversaw the spa’s dramatic makeover – opted for rich woods, inlaid stones and polished Italian marble to create an elegant and inviting ambiance for hotel guests seeking a tranquil in-house getaway laced with exclusive spa treatments. And while Trump Spa New York is a compact 6,000 square feet (including reception area, three treatment rooms, 55-foot heated Salt Pure lap pool, workout area, steam and sauna facilities, and manicure-pedicure room featuring a wall embellished with hand-embroidered cherry-blossoms), it also boasts one wonderful ironic touch: the well-appointed changing/locker rooms are stocked with bottles of spring water -- Trump Ice (cue flashback to season one of The Apprentice) – bearing the smiling face of The Donald on the label. As for the treatment menu, while it is refreshingly straightforward—massages, body therapy, skin care, hair removal, and nail care—the range and quality of the treatments are stellar. Take Trump Spa’s massages: a handful are listed but the possibilities are endless—as I discovered luxuriating on a massage table as Carlos, my brilliant masseur, customized every aspect of my massage from scented oils to heated lava shells to choice of pressure. Transcendently Trump. trumphotelcollection.com/central-park/spa-new-york-city.php [The spa is for hotel guests and residents only, so book your stay accordingly. And since you’re a guest of Ivanka and Donald, it’s only fitting that “snacks” come directly from the hotel’s fivestar restaurant, Jean Georges.]

Savoring the Sublime SoHo-Style: York Spa The street-level entrance to York Spa is deceptive. Yes, it has a lovely multi-windowed corner façade, but upon entering you are met with a classic New York nail salon – not a spa amenity in sight. Once you’ve informed the receptionist you’ve arrived for spa services, your brush with the everyday evaporates and York’s highly personalized approach to pampering takes over. Led down a discreet staircase, you step into York’s large, decadently inviting spa lounge: beautifully lit, subtly decorated and dominated by a generous number of oversized leather chairs and ottomans. After changing into your spa robe and sandals, you instinctively sink into one of the massive seats and stretch out complacently as a spa staffer covers your legs with a plush white towel. Read, chat, sip a complimentary beverage and abandon all stress: this quiet time is York’s cushy preamble to their spa treatments. I was intrigued by the York Signature Massage—a fusion of Swedish, Deep, Shiatsu, and Thai massages. The experience and masseuse were amazing, as was the aesthetician assigned to my follow-up treatment, the Hydro Marine, one of the best moisturizing facials ever. Post-treatment you are invited to return to the world of laid-back comfy chair bliss, a plate of fresh fruit, tea, water or juice, and an open-ended R&R experience. One final perk: Spa owner Alan Tak is almost always on hand interacting with clients, taking suggestions and ensuring everyone’s spa interlude is as close to perfect as possible. Insider scoop: Spa regulars and celebrity guests (yes, word of York has reached the VIP set) are offered a glass of wine with their fruit. But if you know to ask (and now you do)… cheers! yorkspabeauty.com

Thinking Outside the Spa: SPOONK! If you’re like me, bidding adieu to a fabulous spa experience requires a take-home indulgence. Anything, really, from a lotion or serum to a signature robe, candle, or headband. Taking this obsession to the next level, I now seek out products and innovations that bring spa-like sensations into the home… or hotel room. The most recent one to win my heart is Spoonk, named by its Swedish originators after Pippi Longstocking’s pronunciation of “spunk.” An acupressure massage mat that alleviates aches and stress, it’s also known for releasing endorphins that improve energy and sleep. Made of eco-friendly materials, each Spoonk features 6,000+ stimulation points in the form of spiked flowerets (on which you lie). Sounds scary, but it’s unbelievably cool once you surrender, and trust me, you will, working up to the recommended 20 to 35 minutes a day. Spoonk’s four designs are priced between $60 and $70 online at spoonkspace.com.

034-43 NewStore-ShopList.indd 43

11/12/12 4:28 PM

Don’t-miss picks for seasonal giving –– or a little self-indulgence.

the Gift guide

The oldest department store in America, Lord & Taylor has a reputation for attentive customer service and high-quality merchandise focused on apparel and accessories. Pictured here: Tote bag with logo from Michael Kors ($198) and Pompom Key Chain from Michael Kors ($38). Available at lordandtaylor.com. 424 Fifth Ave. at 39th St., 212-391-3344

Rare and unique vintage photographs by world-renowned artist Albert Watson—including images of Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Kate Moss, Alfred Hitchcock, and many others—are available at Hasted Kraeutler. This selection of works celebrates Watson’s finest images, spanning 40 years of the photographer¹s career. Each of these important photographs are available for sale exclusively at their gallery at 537 W. 24 St. Please visit hastedkraeutler.com for more images, or call 212-627-0006 for further information.

MacKenzie-Childs’ iconic enamelware tea kettles have made their debut in Parchment Check™. Ample bodied, exquisitely detailed, and just plain gorgeous, you may find yourself leaving this charming piece on the stovetop for kitchen beautification, or place it on display filled with fresh-cut flowers or greens. A perfect gift. 20 W. 57th St., 212-570-6050; mackenzie-childs.com

Aaron Basha, known for their playful charms, has set the standard for the chic and fanciful. Their fun, lighthearted jewels have adorned celebs and sophisticates alike. Handmade from 18k gold, diamonds, and enamel, each jewel is created with detailed precision. Basha’s charms have reached iconic status and remain at the forefront of modern yet, equally classic jewelry design. 685 Madison Ave. (61st-62nd Sts.), 212-644-1970; aaronbasha.com

044-47 Shop-HolidayGuide.indd 44

11/12/12 3:48 PM

special promotion

All gift items in the Beretta Gallery are supplied by internationally renowned manufacturers. They are intended to add a touch of class to the setting, whether it be a townhouse or a mountain lodge; the elegance of an item from Beretta Gallery will certainly not go unnoticed. A selection of accessories and furnishings for a lifestyle enriched by good taste, love of nature and the quest for quality and substance. This is Beretta’s lifestyle, an unmistakable style that knows no bounds. Pictured here: Selection of hand engraved crystal made in Germany ($135 to $550). 718 Madison Ave. (63rd and 64th Sts.), 212-319-3235; berettagallery.com

For over 30 years, Cora has been one of the most trusted and revered names in the diamond industry, especially when it comes to special stones in large sizes, fancy cuts, and fancy colors. Their Sweetheart Ring features a 10ct heart-shaped colorless diamond surrounded by .69ct of round brilliant cut pink and white diamonds. Set in 18kt pink gold and platinum. Their one-of-a-kind Vitrail Pendant Earrings, dazzle with over 15cts of table cut colorless diamonds, suspended from 1.05ct of round white diamonds. Set in platinum. For more information please contact their Fine Jewel Salon at 212-781-2672; corainternational.com

From Caviar Russe: the Artisanal Smoked Fish Sampler, which includes smoked salmon, smoked sturgeon, smoked trout and smoked salmon caviar with house-made blinis and crème fraîche packed in a Caviar Russe insulated gift bag. Starting at $125. Caviar Russe is a leading caviar purveyor, retail and online boutique and luxury restaurant, open from Mon. to Sat.,12pm noon to 10pm and on Sun. 12 noon to 4pm. 538 Madison Ave. (54th-55th Sts.), 2nd Floor; caviarrusse.com. For more information or to make reservations, call 212-980-5908, email info@caviarrusse.com, or visit opentable.com.

Frey Wille has launched their newest collection, Hommage à Egon Schiele. Inspired by the Austrian artist Egon Schiele, the contemporary design Bohemian Air captures the charming intimacy of colorful garments fluttering in the wind between weather-beaten houses on an idyllic riverfront. As personified by Schiele,the people of Bohemia seized the fresh spirit of elation and hope as they looked into the future. Bohemian Air reflects this pioneer atmosphere in its intense and sophisticated design. 727 Madison Ave. (63rd-64th Sts.), 646-682-9030; freywille.com

044-47 Shop-HolidayGuide.indd 45

11/12/12 3:48 PM

the Gift guide

Don’t-miss picks for seasonal giving –– or a little self-indulgence.

This book by Henry Leutwlyer provides a rare, behind-thescenes look at The New York City Ballet, one of the world’s greatest ballet companies. This 488-page clothbound hardcover book, from renowned publisher Steidl, offers nearly 300 stunning photographs, providing an abstract portrayal of a world that is experienced first-hand by few. Available at nycballet.com

Lerebours Antiques offers an eclectic mix of antique, vintage, and modern styles. Those seeking to beautify any interior will find treasure in this diverse collection of fine furnishings, lighting, and fine art. Available at their shop conveniently located on the Upper East Side or visit lereboursantiques.com. 220 E. 60th St., 212-308-2275

Marimekko, the Finnish design house known for its bold use of color, prints, and patterns, has an array of products available ranging from apparel to interiors, bedding, ceramics, stationery, and more. A perfect holiday gift to cozy up to this holiday season is the Kajo Nightdress in a beautiful light gray adorned with bright yellow circles of various sizes. Made of soft cotton and elastin, it is the sophisticated and stylish way to stay comfortable during the colder months. $135. 200 Fifth Ave. (23rd-24th Sts.). See marimekko.com for a list of stores.

Candy-colored for the holidays! Reinstein/Ross, Goldsmiths is the ultimate holiday shopping destination. Pairing vibrant precious stones and beautiful shades of high carat gold, Reinstein/Ross jewelry is designed and hand-fabricated in New York City, in their Madison Avenue shop. Distinctly contemporary, but timeless, their collection ranges from simple hoop earrings to fabulous rings, from exceptional wedding bands to signature show pieces that find their way onto fashion runways and red carpets around the globe. Pictured here: Jaipur Ring with carved ruby, granulated Archer Ring with cushion-cut lavender sapphire, and Penta Ring with orange sapphire. All in 20k Peach Gold. 29 E. 73rd St., 212-772-1901; 122 Prince St., 212-226-4513; reinsteinross.com

044-47 Shop-HolidayGuide.indd 46

11/12/12 3:48 PM

SPECiAl PRoMoTion

Say “i do” to a stunning fancy yellow radiant-cut diamond engagement ring from Jacob & Co., featuring 3.19ct center diamond, surrounded by 1.13ct of micro-pave set yellow diamonds. Handcrafted in 18K yellow gold. 48 E. 57th St., 212-719-5887; jacobandco.com

Wempe Jewelers presents its latest creation: The Wempe Chronometerwerke Glashutte wristwatch in 18K yellow or steel limited special edition. Calibre CW3 offers hand-wound manufacture movement with a stop seconds function and small seconds sub dial and a 42-hour power reserve. The yellow gold is limited to 20 pieces and steel to 60 pieces worldwide. Complete with officially tested German chronometer according to Din 8319 standard. Available exclusively at Wempe. open Mon.-Sat., 10am-6pm, Sun., noon-5pm. 700 Fifth Ave. (55th St.); 212-397-9000, 800-513-1131; wempe.com

Maximilian at Bloomingdale’s features an extensive collection of premier designer furs of the highest quality and design, including this exclusive: a Christian Cota azure degradé dyed patchwork coat ($2,395). 1000 Third Ave. (60th St.), 4th Floor, 212-705-3335; maximilian.com

The Kite Earrings (pictured here in 18K yellow gold with lemon Quartz; available in various gemstones and white gold by special order; $6,800) by Yael Sonia, are one of the latest additions to her Kite Collection. The delicate and airy collection, inspired by children’s toys, includes uniquely cut gemstones that create an amazingly luminous and sophisticated quality to each piece. Yael Sonia’s creations are timeless, and her ingenious designs have gained her public acclaim and international awards such as the Tahitian Pearl Trophy Award for her “Spinning Wheel” necklace. Yael Sonia’s fine jewelry is all handmade in her studio/showroom in Sao Paulo, Brazil. in addition to her studio, Yael Sonia Jewelry can be purchased currently in Rio, Paris, Hong Kong and new York City. 922 Madison Ave. (73rd-74th Sts.), 212-472-6488; yaelsonia.com

044-47 Shop-HolidayGuide.indd 47

11/12/12 3:49 PM

AT HOME INnEW yOrK

ANTIQUES

As the blustery winter air settles over New York, city dwellers cozy up and yearn for moments of sunshine. Exciting, unconventional lamps from a variety of origins, curated by some of the city’s best antiques dealers, can bring back the warmth. From art deco designs to poignant, eye-catching shapes, here is a selection of antique and vintage lamps that will even brighten your outlook on a chilly Manhattan day. Even better, these breathtaking lighting options will make a style statement long past the final frost. By Melanie Baker

Lerebours Antiques

city lights

Keep the Manhattan chills away—and make a design statement—with antique lamps that warm up a room.

The-MAAC.com

ETHEREAL ART DECO

VINTAGE 1970s DUO

OPALINE OEUVRE

RARE JAPANESE PLIQUE-A-JOUR

Appropriately titled, “The Wave,” this etched glass lamp is a divine art deco option by Erté (Romain De Tirtoff). The round glass shape highlights a delicate, yet striking etched tempestuous wave pattern that effortlessly sweeps into the portrait of a woman. From the late 1980s in America, this piece is inscribed and numbered “51/99” and rests on a bakelite base. Price upon request. Available at Paul Stamati Gallery (#90). The Manhattan Art & Antiques Center, 1050 Second Avenue, 212-754-4533; stamati.com

Two’s company with this duo of 1970s American vintage table lamps. The bodies of the lamps alternate gorgeous chrome and brass, offering a reﬂective quality, and added dimension to a room’s design. This mid-century set leaves a lot of creativity in the hands of the buyer when it comes to choosing lampshades. Pair together on a surface or spread the two pieces around a room to create a cohesive look throughout a space. $2800. Showplace Antique + Design Center, 40 West 25th Street, 212-633-6063; nyshowplace.com

Hailing from France, circa 1920, these blue opaline glass lamps feature a bold color pop, combined with refined detailing to bring the right amount of spark and elegance to your lighting concept. Each lamp holds two light fixtures for maximum glow to play against the rich blue base. $5400. Lerebours Antiques, 220 East 60th Street, 212-308-2226; lereboursantiques.com

From the Meiji Period in Japan, this exceptional and rare globe-styled lamp is decorated intricately in the plique-a-jour (French for “letting the light in”) cloisonné style. The fair blue and green glass features exquisitely detailed chrysanthemums. The blue cloisonné base showcases delicate kiku ﬂowers at the neck and a scrolled wave design that matches ﬂawlessly with the lamp’s design. Price upon request. Available at Flying Cranes Antiques (Gallery #55, 56, & 58). The Manhattan Art & Antiques Center, 1050 Second Avenue, 212-223-4600; flyingcranesantiques.com

048-51 AtHome.indd 48

11/12/12 4:29 PM

DÉCOR

1 4

ﬁne art for the ﬂoor

Whether modern or antique, these beautiful rugs transform a room.

From a cozy wool rug to a timeless antique carpet, it’s true that what’s laid on the floor can transform a room in one fell swoop. As president and owner of Doris Leslie Blau, Nader Bolour, says, “It’s like putting a soul into a body. The eye always goes to the floor when someone enters a room.” This season, select a vibrant wool rug for warmth or go with wintry blues for a refreshing look. By lisa chung WALK LIKE AN EGYPTIAN 1 Hand-knotted in a geometric pattern adopted from an ancient Egyptian design, this soft, chunky Portuguese wool rug, “Primitif,” embodies coziness and warmth. “Wool is the perfect fiber for winter,” says Barbara Barran, president of Classic Rug Collection, Inc. For elegance, Barran suggests adding a touch of silk to the custom rugs available in any size, color, shape, pattern and fiber in her showroom, where she provides one-of-a-kind pieces to ensure clients take home designs that are “exactly what they want.” $5,215. Classic Rug Collection, Inc. D&D Building, 979 Third Ave., Suite 1805, classicrug.com

048-51 AtHome.indd 49

TRULY TIMELESS 2 More than a century old, this Persian Malayer rug from the late 19th century is one of hundreds of antique and vintage rugs available at Doris Leslie Blau. Bordered by a delicate ﬂoral pattern, the oversized 23’7” by 15’ year-round antique rug features a playful palette of reds, blues, greens, and beiges. $120,000. Doris Leslie Blau, Interior Design Building, 306 E. 61st St., 7th Floor, dorisleslieblau.com

ICY BLUE 3 Jonathan Adler for The Rug Company Studio Collection brings a splattering of contemporary pieces highlighting the design company’s signature groovy graphics and bold colors. A hand-knotted Tibetan wool rug, “Syrie Blue” draws inspiration from Islamic ceramic tiles, and presents a fresh take on the classic blue and white color combo, transforming a space into a cool, welcoming retreat. $2,538. The Rug Company, 88 Wooster Street, therugcompany.com

JEWEL TONES 4 A palette of rich, opulent jewel tones is enhanced by a luxurious silk composition of the Aquasilk Rug collection by ABC Carpet & Home. Hand-woven in India using the finest recycled Sari silk this 8’ by 12’ rug is overdyed with translucent layers of color to create an iridescent silk surface. $13,700. ABC Carpet & Home, 888 Broadway, 6th Floor, abccarpet.com

11/12/12 4:30 PM

REAL ESTATENEW YORK

the

brownstone life

With all the space of a home outside the city, these Manhattan residences offer unparalleled elegance and privacy and, of course, lush garden escapes. By Karli Petrovic

ophistication meets charm in Manhattanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s historical brownstones. Some of the most sought-after real estate in the city, these properties offer owners an opportunity to escape from the noise of the city into the quiet of a private oasis. Inside these elegant residences are expansive rooms, high ceilings and plenty of wall space for personal art collections. Not to mention lush gardens and beautiful stoops for decorating every season. Experience Turtle Bay With A Terrace

[ The beauty of this private enclave begins with the high-arch entrance. Step into a living room complete with stained-glass windows and a grand bookcase or escape to the terrace for a view of the same Turtle Bay Gardens Katharine Hepburn enjoyed. ]

048-51 AtHome.indd 50

Built in the late 1800s, the private home at 225 East 48th Street has had only two owners in more than 40 years. On the market for $3.7 million, the current stewards are a married couple who have lived in the brownstone since 1975. The previous owner was a French chef, who filled the home with the scent of delicacies that the current residents enjoyed long after they first moved in. The propertyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s architectural appeal begins at the door with a lovely stoop entrance. Highlights in the living room include a wood-paneled bookcase and three floor-to-ceiling windows. The first level, also known as the garden level, opens to a secluded retreat in the Turtle Bay Gardens, a common area of trees and shrubs and a perfect place to shed the stress of city life. A trip up the main staircase in the center of the house leads to a powder room, eat-in kitchen and formal dining room. Open the doors in the dining room for a breathtaking view of a terrace that overlooks the gardens. This provides the perfect backdrop for multi-

11/12/12 4:30 PM

[ This four-story Upper East Side home allows its residents the luxury of a fireplace in the garden, as well as plenty of wall space as a blank canvas for personal art collections. ]

course dinner parties. The master bedroom dominates the third floor with a private bath and a view of the gorgeous floriculture in the backyard. Another bedroom with full bath resides on the same floor, but the current owners converted it into a library. The top floor is comprised of another bedroom, bath, laundry room and additional closet space. Katharine Hepburn, June Havoc, Tyrone Power, Garson Kanin, Stephen Sondheim, Leopold Stokowski, Maxwell Perkins, Henry Luce, Dorothy Thompson and E. B. White are a few of the famous who have lived in this private enclave, designated the Turtle Bay Gardens Historic District in 1966. “For many people, owning a brownstone is much more appealing. You control your own destiny,” says Beatrice Ducrot, senior vice president at Stribling & Associates. “Special kinds of people desire these homes. The owners are more independent. They don’t want to be part of the mold and do things their own way.” The Art Collector’s Townhouse For a newly renovated space with a flexible layout, tour the 10 rooms and 5,000 square feet at 109 East 81st Street. With an asking price of $10 million, the Upper East Side property has four bedrooms and four and a half baths across four stories with 20-foot wide proportions. Exposed brick, floor-to-ceiling windows and hardwood floors give the space a classically comfortable feel. A fitness room, chef’s kitchen and central air conditioning compliment timelessness with modern conveniences. Sunlight comes through the many windows, showering the home in natural light. On the first floor, an inviting lush garden comes complete with a large outdoor fireplace — this brownstone actually has three fireplaces — and a Lynx gas barbeque. “The garden is one of nicest I have seen,” says Michael Pellegrino, senior vice president and associate broker with Sotheby’s International Realty. “When you are in the center of the garden looking east, it is like looking in the middle of the park.” The kitchen has windows that overlook the garden and the dining room and powder room fill out the rest of the garden floor. A second-floor library has three south-facing windows, while the living room has a fireplace and windows that offer a view of the landscaped retreat out back. The master bedroom is on the third floor and an additional bedroom, two bathrooms and a dressing room are also available. On the fourth floor, the central skylight offers a rare Manhattan glimpse of the heavens in a just-off Park Avenue residence. “This property is for people who are looking for a very sophisticated lifestyle,” Pellegrino says. And for art lovers, adds Pellegrino, “There is an immense amount of space for hanging artwork. It’s ideal for people with massive art collections.” n

048-51 AtHome.indd 51

11/12/12 4:31 PM

THEATRENEW YORK

celebrity PROFILE

Richard Schiff The former resident of The West Wing takes his place alongside the smoking hot cast that’s making the revival of David Mamet’s Glengarry Glen Ross the must-see drama of the season. By Griffin Miller

hould you happen to be a friend, critic, close acquaintance, or family member of Richard Schiff, here’s a tip: DO NOT tell him in advance when you plan on going to see him in Glengarry Glen Ross at Broadway’s Schoenfeld Theatre. Better you should opt for a post-performance ambush backstage, as the Emmy-winning actor has a pronounced aversion to even a hint of audience disclosure before the final curtain. “I don’t want to know who’s out there—I much prefer to say afterwards, ‘It’s so cool you came,’” he says. In Schiff’s case, this is not so much shyness as it is personal preference—a recurring theme throughout his career as well as his life, even when the subject turns to what inspired him to go into acting in the first place. Early On… “All along, I really just followed a curiosity. When I’d see a movie or a play when I was young, they would take me on a kind of journey, and now and then the path would move me to do something proactive,” he says, adding that the curiosity aspect led to his “sort of fall into the City College of New York, where I was lucky to be invited into the acting program.” After graduating in 1983, Schiff landed his first professional job: the role of Lyle Britten in James Baldwin’s Blues for Mr. Charlie. “It was at the Masonic Temple in Fort Greene [Brooklyn] and I was paid 35 bucks a shot,” he recalls. Still, his performance received notice from a number of New York theatre groups—attention that, oddly, managed to dull his passion for appearing on stage. “I guess I felt it was too high a mountain to climb every night. I didn’t act again for 10 years.” In lieu of performing, he founded Off-Broadway’s Manhattan Repertory Theatre, where he served as the company’s artistic director, successfully directing and producing until the politics of running things began to disillusion him and he slowly considered drifting back to acting. But not without coercion from his instructor at the time, celebrated New York drama teacher Bill Esper. “He insisted everyone get up and work in every class,” Schiff says. “It was nerve-wracking for me. I lived in terror for two years, until Esper challenged me to do a Shaw one-act and for the first time I committed to every aspect of the performance.” His hallelujah moment? “When I realized I finally, completely, got it.”

This led to a series of Off-Broadway roles but no agent, so in 1988, in the aftermath of a divorce, he headed to Los Angeles. And it was there he found himself taking part in the first table read of Glengarry (the film) with Al Pacino as Ricky Roma. The role Schiff read was David Moss, which eventually went to Ed Harris. Nevertheless, he made an impression: a chance encounter with Pacino and producer Harold Becker led to a key role in the 1996 Pacino mpvie City Hall. Reluctant Breakthrough: The West Wing A couple of years later, when he was offered the part of White House Communications Director Toby Ziegler in Aaron Sorkin’s politically heady new series The West Wing, “My dominant feeling was, ‘This is great’—but how long can you play one role? My film career was upwardly mobile at that time so I had mixed feelings about taking on Toby… but obviously it was something I couldn’t turn down.” The show’s scripts, in particular, proved especially seductive to an actor of Schiff’s artistic leanings. “The material elicits Odets, Sturges, Capra, and Shakespeare all at once, so as an actor you’re always reaching… and challenged to bring your best. It’s exhausting and exhilarating.” As for his overall tenure with the groundbreaking series, he says he now realizes how very special the experience was. “It will never be replicated.” Homecoming: New York, Pacino… Glengarry Fast forward to present day and his return to New York to start work on Glengarry. After years on the West Coast, he admits to having no real emotional ties to La La Land, viewing it as a rather relentless cul-de-sac of show biz banter. He credits taking up golf with the preservation of his sanity out west. “I just prefer New York and getting that sense of city, even if does mean a tiny apartment,” Schiff says. In fact, as soon as he arrived in Manhattan he got a bike off of craigslist so he could ride to work and troll the city at his own pace. “Since we’ve been here I’ve seen plays, films, and interacted with people not in show business. And when I talk to people in the coffee shop it isn’t about what I do for a living.” Which is not say he isn’t having the time of his life in Glengarry, playing

052-55 TheatreFeature.indd 52

11/12/12 4:46 PM

Scott Landis

SCHIFF EXTRAS Did you know that Richard Schiff…  …was born in Bethesda, Maryland on May 27, 1955 and

Scott Landis

grew up in New York.

[ Top: (back row) Jeremy Shamos, David Harbour, Richard Schiff, and Murphy Guyer; (front row) Bobby Cannavale, Al Pacino and John C. McGinley; above, John C. McGinley and Richard Schiff in a scene from the show; top right: The late John Spencer as White House Chief of Staff Leo McGarry, Martin Sheen as President Jed Bartlet and Richard Schiff as White House Communications Director Toby Ziegler in the award-winning television series “The West Wing,” for which he won an Emmy and two nominations ]

the role of George Aaronow, a mild-mannered real-estate salesman on the downturn who runs the risk of being steamrolled by his fast-talking colleagues. “My character isn’t as colorful as the others,” states Schiff. “He comes across as though he might be a little lost, like he’s in the wrong play. So as a character he was hard to find because he doesn’t tell you what he’s thinking.” And of course, there’s the fun of sharing a project with Pacino, who Schiff calls “a walking funny museum,” something that audiences have picked up on over the years in the clownish aspects he’s brought to a number of roles. “He loves actors and what he does… something I’m just getting to myself.” And if he’s just coming around, it doesn’t hurt that he has great respect for every one of his fellow cast members. “I’m working with this amazing bunch of guys,” he concludes. “This level of quality in a single cast… unbelievable.” n

 …attended Bronx High School of Science in New York but

left to drive a cab so he could start college early (he took night classes at Washington Irving High School).

 …in addition to winning the Primetime Emmy for Outstanding

Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for The West Wing in 2000, also shared two Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble Emmys for the show in 2001 and 2002.

 …is a recipient of the “Townsend Harris” medal for post-

graduate achievement from the City College of New York (an award also bestowed on James Cagney, Paddy Chayefsky and Zero Mostel, as well as 11 Nobel Laureates).

 …attended the White House Correspondent’s Association

Dinner in D.C. in May, 2010.

 …received a Peace Award from the Coalition for a Livable

World.

 …has contributed to The Independent in London, his specialty

being U.S. politics.

 …has costarred in over 50 films including Stephen Spielberg’s

The Lost World: Jurassic Park, Spike Lee’s Malcolm X, David Fincher’s Seven, and Danny DeVito’s Hoffa.

 …will be seen playing Dr. Emil Hamilton this coming June

in the latest Superman flick, Man of Steel, directed by Zack Snyder.

 …and wife Sheila Kelley have been married since 1996 and

have two children, Ruby and Gus.

052-55 TheatreFeature.indd 53

11/12/12 4:46 PM

THEATRENEW YORK

holiday bonanza:

the theatrical compendium

Talk about your seasonal windfalls, the 2012 roster of holiday shows is ho-ho-ho-ing and dreidel-dreidel-dreideling into the hearts and stage-struck spirits of extended families throughout The Big Apple. So let the holiday cheer ring out as you pick one, two (or a few!) of winter’s most festive theatre stocking stuffers!

Courtesy PaparazziByAppointment.com

Carol Rosegg

Joan Marcus

By Griffin Miller

[S cenes from Annie, A Christmas Story, The Musical and Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas The Musical ]

Annie

That virtuoso symbol of spunky optimism, Little Orphan Annie, is back on Broadway just in time to boost spirits today—and “Tomorrow” —as she overcomes the machinations of the evil Miss Hannigan (two-time Tony winner Katie Finneran) and her cohorts—during The Great Depression, no less—to become the adored adopted daughter of billionaire Daddy Warbucks. Christmassy Climax: the grand finale takes place at the Warbucks mansion filled with holiday decorations, gifts, pint-sized guests, and smiles galore, culminating with the upbeat number “A New Deal for Christmas.” (Winner of 7 previous Tony Awards including Best Musical, the 2012 production is directed by Tony, Drama Desk and Pulitzer Prize winner James Lapine,) anniethemusical.com

A Christmas Story, The Musical

The Broadway adaptation we’ve been waiting for as we don our bunny pajamas and switch on our leg lamp is here! Based on the 1983 cult film that continues to convert new generations to the yuletide universe of young Ralphie Parker—the 1940s “everykid” whose goal is to find a Red Ryder Air Rifle under the family Christmas tree—has arrived on the Great White Way wrapped in triple-dog-dare holiday flare. Directed by Tony winner John Rando, this heartfelt new show has been produced by Peter Billingsley, the film’s original Ralphie, and features Dan Lauria (the Dad on The Wonder Years) as onstage narrator (voiced by Jean Shepherd in the film, whose semi-autobiographical stories it was based on). achristmasstorythemusical.com

open run

through 12/30

That naughty-to-nice Seussian villain known as the Grinch is making his third NYC appearance 2006, when he and his unDr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas willing sidekick, Max the Dog, made their Broadway debut. This time around, the furry green one is hatching his evil plot to hijack Whoville’s favorite holiday at the Theater at Madison Square Garden. Keep your ears peeled for songs from the classic The Musical

12/13 to 12/30

animated version: “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch” and “Welcome Christmas.” theateratmsg.com/grinch

Elf the Musical

Will Ferrell may have started it all with his 2003 film, but ever since its record-breaking Broadway run in 2010, this charmer of a show about Buddy, a human baby who grew up at the North Pole believing he was an elf, has been claimed as a first-rate asset by musical theatre fans and fans-to-be. As the story goes, Santa (now played by Seinfeld’s Newman, aka Wayne Knight) gives Buddy permission to travel to NYC to find his birth father (a name on the infamous “naughty list,” no less). Featuring a “Sparklejollytwinklejingley” score, Elf the Musical is packed with Tony-honored talent, including: director/ choreographer Casey Nicholaw; book writers Thomas Meehan and Bob Martin; and actress Beth Leavel reprising her role of Emily. elfmusical.com

Radio City Christmas Spectacular

The 2012 edition of this cherished holiday production is unique in that it commemorates 85 years of the Radio City Rockettes in New York, which means that in addition to such annual traditions as the Rockettes’ famous “March of the Wooden Soldiers” number, The Nutcracker scene and the Living Nativity, this year also boasts a Rockette costume retrospective celebrating their many unique looks throughout the decades. radiocitychristmas.com/newyork

through 1/6

through 12/30

052-55 TheatreFeature.indd 54

11/12/12 4:46 PM

[ Scarlett Johansson in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof; Barry Manilow in a limited Broadway concert engagement ]

Author Katharine Holabird and illustrator Helen Craig’s beloved mouse heroine and friends return to Vital Theatre in their Angelina Ballerina: The Very Merry Holiday popular holiday production where they sing, dance, and discover the true spirit of season isn’t about the gifts you give, but the cheer you spread to others. vitaltheatre.org Musical

through 1/13

The Apollo Theater’s Christmas & Kwanzaa Festivities

December 15: Coca-Cola Holiday Special, 3 to 7pm (free to all with Santa, giveaways and choir performances!); Amateur Night Holiday Special, 7:30pm (young musicians, singers, and dancers ranging in age from 11-18 take the stage); December 20: Sweet Honey in the Rock, 8pm (this female a cappella group’s stunning harmonies celebrate all things holiday from faiths and religions across the globe; December 28: Kwanzaa Celebration - Regeneration Night, 7:30pm (The Apollo pulls out all the stops with this evening of dance and music honoring Kwanzaa’s principles of family, community and culture). [Note: Kwanzaa officially begins 12/26] apollotheater.org

Mummenschanz: NYC Holiday Engagement

Celebrating 40 years of imagination and visual magic, this worldwide phenomenon returns to New York with a beguiling show highlighting both their well-known witty and weird creations along with a number of “playful, colorful creatures that have rarely been performed in the USA and Canada.” mummenschanz.com

Poppy Seed Players’ Judy and the Maccabees

On December 9th (the second night of Hanukkah), check out this charming re-imagining of the ancient Hanukkah story in which a feisty young girl leaves her father to help the Maccabees in their fight against King Antiochus. kaufman-center.org

12-15 through 12/26

12-11 through 1/6

Broadway Openings December, January and February – typically quiet months when it comes to The Great White Way – are breaking with tradition this year thanks to six starry new productions. * Prior Tony Award Winner

+ Prior Tony Award Nominee

CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF

A major revival of Tennessee Williams’ Pulitzer Prize-winning classic starring Scarlett Johansson* as Maggie the Cat, Benjamin Walker as Brick, Ciarán Hinds. as Big Daddy and Debra Monk* as Big Mama. catonahottinroofbroadway.com

HANDS ON HARDBODY

Based on the 1997 documentary of the same name, this new musical about a competition at a car dealership marks the return of both Keith Carradine+ (The Will Rodgers Follies) and Hunter Foster +(Urinetown) to Broadway. handsonahardbody.com

MANILOW ON BROADWAY

Grammy-winning pop superstar Barry Manilow returns to his hometown (he was born in Brooklyn, after all) for a limited 17-performance concert engagement. Act fast… Manilow is a major sell-out magnet! manilowonbroadway.com

THE OTHER PLACE

Three-time Emmy winner Laurie Metcalf+ stars in this Broadway premiere by Sharr White, directed by twotime Tony winner Joe Mantello+ and co-starring Daniel Stern. theotherplacebroadway.com

PICNIC

William Inge’s Pulitzer Prize-winning masterpiece in its second Roundabout Theatre revival (the first was in 1994) with Ellen Burstyn*, Sebastian Stan, Maggie Grace, Reed Birney, Elizabeth Marvel and Mare Winningham in her Broadway debut. roundabouttheatre.org

Rodgers & Hammerstein’s CINDERELLA

The Broadway premiere of the sparkling musical originally written for television in 1957 by the legendary composing team of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II. Starring Laura Osnes+ in the title role, Santino Fontana as the Prince, Victoria Clark* as Cinderella’s fairy godmother, and Harriet Harris* as Madame, the heroine’s stepmother. cinderellaonbroadway.com

previews 12/18/12; opens 1/17/13 previews 2/23/13; opens 3/21/13

previews 1/18/13; opens 1/24/13; thru 2/9/13 previews 12/11/12; opens 1/10/13; thru 2/24/13 previews 12/14/12; opens 1/13/13; thru 2/24/13

previews 1/21/13; opens 2/21/13

052-55 TheatreFeature.indd 55

11/12/12 4:46 PM

ON THE TOWN

THEATRE

Joan Marcus

New York

Marking just over seven years on the Great White Way, Jersey Boys is still drawing big audiences with its chronicle of the life and celebration of the songs of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. The show currently stars (from left) Matt Bogart (as Nick Massi), Jarrod Spector (as Valli), Drew Gehling (as Bob Gaudio), and Jeremy Kushnier (as Tommy DeVito). Gehling and Kushnier are recent additions to the production while Spector has returned to the role of Frankie after a brief hiatus. For tickets, call 212-239-6200 or visit jerseyboysbroadway.com.

Please call the box offices for showtimes. All listings subject to change BROADWAY The Anarchist - (Play) David Mamet writes and directs Patti LuPone and Debra Winger as two powerful women forced to engage in a cage match of wits. John Golden Theatre, 252 W. 45th St., 212-947-8844; theanarchistbroadway. com (In previews for a 12/2 opening) Annie - (Musical) Alongside her signature pal dog, Sandy, the little orphan’s set her sights on making us grin from ear to ear as she inspires a whole new millennium. Palace Theatre, 1554 Broadway, 877-250-2929; anniethemusical.com The Book of Mormon - (Musical) South Park’s Matt Stone and Trey Parker join forces with Avenue Q’s Tony-winning co-creator Robert Lopez to make their musical-writing debut, about a pair of mismatched Mormon boys sent on a mission to a place that’s about as far from Salt Lake City as you can get. Eugene O’Neill Theatre, 230 W. 49th St., 212-239-6200; bookofmormononbroadway.com Cat on a Hot Tin Roof - (Play) Scarlett Johansson, Ciarán Hinds, and Benjamin Walker star in this revival of the classic Tennessee Williams play. Richard Rodgers Theatre, 226 W. 46th St., 212-239-6200; catonahottinroofbroadway.com (Previews begin 12/18 for a 1/17 opening)

Chaplin - (Musical) Rob McClure stars as the legendary silent film star in this new musical about the Little Tramp. Barrymore Theatre, 243 W. 47th St., 212-239-6200; chaplinbroadway.com Chicago - (Musical Revival) Kander and Ebb’s “musical vaudeville” follows murderous vixen Roxie Hart, who locks horns with prison diva Velma Kelly when they both vie for the attentions of the hottest lawyer in town: Billy Flynn. Ambassador Theatre, 219 W. 49th St., 212-239-6200; chicagothemusical.com A Christmas Story, The Musical! - (Musical) The story from a cherished movie classic that’s enchanted millions is now a musical spectacular. In 1940’s Indiana, a bespectacled boy named Ralphie has a big imagination and one wish for Christmas: a Red Ryder BB Gun. Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, 205 W. 46th St., 877-250-2929; achristmasstorythemusical.com (Through 12/30) Cinderella - (Musical) Originally presented on television, this famous fairy tale has been re-fashioned and set to music by two great masters of the musical: Rodgers and Hammerstein. Musical highlights include “In My Own Little Corner”, “A Lovely Night”, “Do I Love You Because You’re Beautiful?” and “Impossible.” Broadway Theatre, 1681 Broadway (53rd St.), 212-239-6200; cinderellaonbroadway.com (Previews from 1/21 for a 2/21 opening) Dead Accounts - (Play) Katie Holmes and two-time Tony Award winner Norbert Leo Butz star in the new comedy by Theresa Rebeck. Music Box Theatre, 239 W. 45th St., 212-239-6200; deadaccountsonbroadway.com

056-59 TheatreList.indd 56

11/12/12 4:34 PM

ON THE TOWN SPOTLIGHT

performing arts p.64

Elf - (Musical) The musical based on the Will Ferrell film returns. Al Hirschfeld Theatre, 302 W. 45th St., 212-239-6200; elfmusical.com (Through 1/6) Evita - (Musical) Ricky Martin, Olivier Award-winning Argentinean actress Elena Roger, and Tony winner Michael Cerveris star in the revival of Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s dazzling musical. Marquis Theatre, 1535 Broadway (45th-46th Sts.), 800-745-3000; evitaonbroadway.com Glengarry Glen Ross - (Play) Al Pacino stars in this revival of the David Mamet classic. With Bobby Cannavale. Schoenfeld Theatre, 236 W. 45th St., 212-239-6200; glengarrybroadway.com (Through 12/30) Golden Boy - (Play) A 75th-anniversary production of the Clifford Odets classic about a young violinist who is torn between pursuing a career in music and earning big money as a prizefighter. Belasco Theatre, 111 W. 44th St., 212-239-6200; lct.org (In previews for a 12/6 opening; through 1/20) Grace - (Play) Paul Rudd returns to Broadway with Michael Shannon, Emmy winner Ed Asner, and Kate Arrington in the Craig Wright play. Cort Theatre, 138 W. 48th St., 212-239-6200; graceonbroadway.com (Through 1/6)

museums p.70

Sightseeing p.82

The Mystery of Edwin Drood - (Musical) You choose the murderer in this whodunit based on the unfinished novel by Charles Dickens and adapted by Tony Award winner Rupert Holmes. Starring Chita Rivera. Studio 54, 254 W. 54th St., 212-719-1300; roundabouttheatre.org Newsies - (Musical) Set in turn-of-the-century NYC, the tale of a charismatic newsboy who dreams of a better life far from the hardship of the streets. Nederlander Theatre, 208 W. 41st St., 866-870-2717; newsiesthemusical.com Nice Work If You Can Get It - (Musical) Tony winners Matthew Broderick and Kelli O’Hara, director Kathleen Marshall, and the songs of George and Ira Gershwin meet in this musical screwball comedy by Joe DiPietro (Memphis). Imperial Theatre, 249 W. 45th St., 212-239-6200; niceworkonbroadway.com Once - (Musical) With 8 Tony Awards, the new musical based on the Academy Award-winning film tells the story of an Irish musician and a Czech immigrant drawn together by their shared love of music. Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre, 242 W. 45th St., 212-239-6200; oncemusical.com

Hands on a Hardbody - (Musical) Under a scorching sun for days on end, armed with nothing but hope, humor and ambition, ten hard-luck Texans fight to keep at least one hand on a brand new truck in order to win it. With music by Trey Anastasio (Phish) and Amanda Green. Brooks Atkinson Theatre, 256 W. 47th St.; handsonahardbody.com (Previews from 2/23 for a 3/21 opening) The Heiress - (Play) Jessica Chastain (The Help) makes her Broadway debut in a new production of this unforgettable drama, alongside Academy Award nominee David Strathairn and Dan Stevens (Downton Abbey). Walter Kerr Theater, 219 W. 48th St., 212-239-6200; theheiressonbroadway.com (Through 2/10) Jersey Boys - (Musical) Based on the life story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. Filled with just about every major Four Seasons hit, from “Sherry” and “Rag Doll” to “You’re Just Too Good to Be True.” August Wilson Theatre, 245 W. 52nd St., 212-239-6200; jerseyboysbroadway.com The Lion King - (Musical) The Tony- and Olivier Award-winning stage version of Disney’s celebrated animated feature follows the lion cub Simba as he struggles to accept the responsibilities of adulthood and his destined role of king of the jungle. Featuring Grammy-winning numbers by Elton John and Tim Rice. The Minskoff Theatre, 200 W. 45th St., 866-870-2717; disneyonbroadway.com Mamma Mia! - (Musical) This hit musical incorporates 22 ABBA songs into a story about a single mother and her daughter on the eve of the daughter’s wedding—and three men who could be her father. Winter Garden Theatre, 1634 Broadway (50th St.), 212-563-5544; mamma-mia.com Manilow on Broadway - (Concert) Grammy-winning singer Barry Manilow returns to Broadway for the first time in over two decades to perform “Mandy,” “I Write the Songs,” “Copacabana,” and more. Limited engagement. St. James Theatre, 246 W. 44th St., 212-239-6200; manilowonbroadway.com (1/18-2/9) Mary Poppins - (Musical) Based on the P.L. Travers stories and the Oscarwinning film, this fast-paced, heartwarming musical about the world’s most famous nanny boasts numbers from both the original film as well as new songs. New Amsterdam Theatre, 214 W. 42nd St., 866-870-2717; disneyonbroadway.com

056-59 TheatreList.indd 57

11/12/12 4:34 PM

theatreNEWYORK

The Other Place - (Play) Laurie Metcalf stars as Juliana Smithton, a neurologist whose life is about to break apart. Juliana must piece together a world where fiction melds with reality. Directed by Joe Mantello. Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, 261 W. 47th St., 212-239-6200; theotherplacebroadway.com (Previews begin 12/11 for a 1/10 opening) The Performers - (Play) A romantic comedy about two high school friends who reconnect at the Adult Film Awards in Vegas. Starring Cheyenne Jackson, Daniel Breaker, Ari Graynor, Alicia Silverstone, and Henry Winkler. Longacre Theatre, 220 W. 48th St., 212-239-6200; theperformersonbroadway.com

girl chasing her dreams. Helen Hayes Theatre, 240 W. 44th St., 212-239-6200; rockofagesmusical.com Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella - (Musical) The fairy tale legend makes its Broadway debut with stars Laura Osnes and Santino Fontana and classic songs made famous by the timeless composing duo of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II. Broadway Theatre, 1681 Broadway (53rd St.), 212-560-2194; cinderellaonbroadway.com (Previews begin 1/21/13 for a 2/21/13 opening)

Peter and the Starcatcher - (Play) With 5 Tony Awards, the story of how one lost boy became Peter Pan delights on Broadway. Brooks Atkinson Theatre, 256 W. 47th St., 800-745-3000; peterandthestarcatcher.com

Scandalous: The Life and Trials of Aimee Semple McPherson - (Musical) A new musical based on the life of the world’s first media superstar evangelist, whose passion for saving souls equaled her passion for making headlines. Book, lyrics, and additional music by Kathie Lee Gifford. Neil Simon Theatre, 250 W. 52nd St., 800-745-3000; scandalousonbroadway.com

The Phantom of the Opera - (Musical) Featuring the music of Andrew Lloyd Webber, Phantom has achieved the kind of reputation and following most shows only dream of. Exquisitely produced and performed, this is truly theatre at its finest. Majestic Theatre, 247 W. 44th St., 212-239-6200; phantombroadway.com

Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark - (Musical) A new take on the mythic tale of Peter Parker, who’s bitten by a radioactive spider and wakes up with supernatural powers. With music and lyrics by Bono and the Edge of U2. Foxwoods Theatre, 213 W. 42nd St., 800-745-3000; spidermanonbroadway.com

Picnic - (Play) William Inge’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play returns in a striking new production helmed by acclaimed director Sam Gold. Passionate, sensual and delightfully funny, Picnic is a timeless American classic about the line between restraint and desire. American Airlines Theatre, 227 W. 42nd St., 212-719-1300; roundabouttheatre.org (Previews begin 12/14 for a 1/13 opening; through 2/24)

War Horse - (Play) At the outbreak of WW1, young Albert’s horse is sold to the cavalry and shipped to France. He’s soon caught up in enemy fire, and fate takes him on an odyssey before he finds himself alone. Vivian Beaumont Theatre, 150 W. 65th St., 212-239-6200; warhorseonbroadway.com (Through 1/6) Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? - (Play) Steppenwolf ensemble members Tracy Letts and Amy Morton face off as one of theatre’s most notoriously dysfunctional couples in Edward Albee’s masterpiece. Booth Theatre, 222 W. 45th St., 212-239-6200; virginiawoolfbroadway.com (Through 2/24)

David Hawe ©BMP

Rock of Ages - (Musical) A true crowd-pleaser with a high-energy retro score made up of 1980s hits by Journey, Bon Jovi, Styx, Twisted Sister, Poison, Asia and Whitesnake. The show tracks an aspiring young rocker and a small-town

BLUE MAN GROUP

056-59 TheatreList.indd 58

Blue Man Group has updated their wildly popular theatrical show, running at the Astor Place Theatre. Taking a closer look at the technology that both surrounds and isolates us, BMG showcases technogeek ingenuity while uniting the audience in primal, collective exhilaration. Signature moments combine with breathtakingly fun new pieces for an explosive evening of entertainment. 434 Lafayette St., 800-BLUEMAN; blueman.com

11/12/12 4:34 PM

ONTHETOWN

Wicked - (Musical) Set in Oz before the arrival of Dorothy, this knock-out production follows the friendship between two girls who grow up to become the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good Witch. A modern-day classic. Gershwin Theatre, 222 W. 51st St., 212-307-4100; wickedthemusical.com

OFF-BROADWAY Avenue Q - (Musical) Singing puppets and their human neighbors make up the residents of Avenue Q, a fictional New York City street where a collection of twenty-somethings struggle to find their way in the world. New World Stages, 340 W. 50th St., 212-239-6200; avenueq.com

TICKETING Dream Seats NY - From sold-out shows to the hottest tickets in town, Dream Seats has you covered. Whether you are looking for tickets to a big Broadway show, seats to a Knicks game, or a sold-out concert at Madison Square Garden, Dream Seats NY is your go-to private ticket broker. They specialize in premium seating for all events—first 20 rows. 212-279-1213; dreamseatsny.com

Hello Tickets - Hello Tickets prides itself on providing superior service and developing relationships with many NYC hotels and concierges. They deliver exactly what hotel guests desire no matter the event, budget, or special requests. Contact your hotel concierge and ask them to call Hello Tickets for info on theater, concerts, Lincoln Center, sporting events and more. Or call Hello Tickets direct and mention Promenade for the best service in the Big Apple. 212-691-3131; hellotickets.net

Blue Man Group - (Spectacle) The trio of postmodern clowns combines music, comedy and multimedia theatrics to produce a unique form of entertainment. Astor Place Theatre, 434 Lafayette St. (so. of Astor Pl.), 212-254-4370; blueman.com The Fantasticks - (Musical) A romantic classic centered on the simple love story of a boy, a girl, two fathers, and a wall. Snapple Theater Center, 1627 Broadway, 212-307-4100; thefantasticks.com My Sinatra - (Musical) Cary Hoffman stars in the long-running musical about one man’s obsession with Frank Sinatra. Sofia’s Downstairs Theater, 221 W. 46th St., 866-811-4111; mysinatra.com Old Jews Telling Jokes - (Comedy) Created by Peter Gethers and Daniel Okrent, Old Jews... showcases five actors in a revue that pays tribute to and reinvents classic jokes of the past and present. The show also features comic songs—brand new and satisfyingly old—as well as tributes to some of the giants of the comedy world and to the brilliant raconteurs from the website that inspired the show. Westside Theatre, 407 W. 43rd St., 212-239-6200; oldjewstellingjokesonstage.com Perfect Crime - (Mystery) The long-running hit cat-and-mouse thriller about a wealthy female psychiatrist who has returned to America and a bizarre murder. Snapple Theater Center, 210 W. 50th St., 212-307-4100; perfect-crime.com SILENCE! The Musical - (Musical) This naughty satire of Silence of the Lambs features a singing chorus of floppy eared lambs narrating the action as Buffalo Bill gleefully dances a hoedown while kidnapping hapless Catherine Martin and evades FBI agent Clarice Starlin. Even Dr. Hannibal Lecter, scary as ever, sings about the life he’d like to lead someday outside the prison walls. The Elektra Theatre, 673 Eighth Ave., 212-352-3101; silencethemusicalnyc.com Stomp - (Musical) Springing from Brit clubs and an urban aesthetic, this eight-member theatre of percussion has caused sensation after sensation at each of its international appearances—and what can only be called a big bang in the Big Apple. Orpheum Theatre, 126 Second Ave. (7th St.-St. Marks Pl.), 212-307-4100; stomponline.com

056-59 TheatreList.indd 59

11/12/12 4:34 PM

OPERANEW YORK [A n early technical rehearsal of Rigoletto ]

Ron Berard/Metropolitan Opera

Rigoletto goes to Vegas After many reinterpretations of the classic opera originally set in 16th-century Mantua, the Met’s new production takes place in the glitz and decadence of the Strip.

By Martin Bernheimer

emember Rigoletto? Remember Verdi’s beloved, tune-filled, melodramatic opera, completed in 1851? The one about a tragic hunchbacked jester, his virginal daughter and the lusty duke who seduces her? Remember the historic setting, 16th-century Mantua? Forget all that. For some reason, many modern productions contradict the dramatic

framework in hand-me-down masterpieces. Doing so has become fashionable. Americans, often resistant to artistic change, decry (un)poetic license and call the unconventional stagings “Eurotrash.” Europeans, more curious, perhaps, about the possibilities of expressive adventure, prefer a nicer term, “Regietheater.” Loosely translated, that means “director’s theater.”

060-61 OperaFeature.indd 60

11/12/12 4:02 PM

Nick Heavican/Metropolitan Opera

And so it is, for better or worse, with Rigoletto. The groundbreaking reinterpretation must have been the version created by Jonathan Miller for the English National Opera in 1975, crucially revised in 1982. It is still revived in London, and a vivid souvenir can be seen on a DVD released by Kultur. Miller’s most bracing innovation involved moving the action to Little Italy in Manhattan, ca. 1950. Invoking the spirit of The Godfather, he made the Duke a Mafia capo and Rigoletto his bartender/henchman. Everyone sang, of course, in English. In 1991, Elijah Moshinsky retained the Mafia theme for a Rigoletto he staged in Sydney for Opera Australia. His visual inspiration, however, was the post-war decadence of Fellini’s epochal film La Dolce Vita. In 2002, James Macdonald created a Rigoletto for the Welsh National Opera in which the locale turned out to be an emphatically hedonistic Washington D.C. in the early 1960s. And, yes, the central philanderer bore a striking resemblance to President John F. Kennedy. Initially, the irreverent effort drew mixed reviews. Critical responses became relatively positive, however, during a revival two years ago. Moving from the possibly ridiculous to the probably preposterous, Doris Dorrie moved the opera to the planet of the apes in her Munich production of 2005. The cinematic avant-gardist made the Duke of Mantua a gorilla, his court populated by hairy baboons. Rigoletto wore a space suit. Gilda resembled a refugee from Star Wars. Bavarian witnesses swear they can still hear the boos. Just this May, Lindy Hume introduced a milder yet still brash vision of Rigoletto at the New Zealand Opera. Audiences in Auckland and Wellington saw the tale of lust, murder, revenge and political immorality unravel in the contemporary Italy of prime minister Silvio Berlusconi. The critic of The Listener sided with the majority when he found the result “intelligent and coherent….a must-see.” Until now, the Metropolitan Opera has treated Rigoletto with cautious respect. The most recent production, staged in 1989 by Otto Schenk, concentrated on cardboard realism and traditional ritual. At worst it provided an unobtrusive, picturesque background for a mellifluous concert in costume. If all had gone as planned, it would have been replaced on January 28 by Rigoletto as envisioned by Luc Bondy. His presentation of Puccini’s Tosca at the Met in 2009, however, was not a success, and, for reasons officially unexplained, Verdi’s early masterpiece has been quietly reassigned. The man now in charge is Michael Mayer, the Broadway pro who won a Tony Award in 2007 for the daring quasi-rock musical, Spring Awakening. He has never directed an opera before. And – surprise! – he has chosen to bring back the Mafiosi. For his period he has revisited the 1960s. That isn’t exactly revolutionary at this juncture. For his setting he has chosen something equally untrue but untried: sleazy easy Las Vegas. Mayer has told an AP interviewer that he wants to examine “a recent

[Ž eljko Lucic as the title character ]

world that captures the decadence of the Duke’s palace. The participants are in pursuit of power, money, and beauty. Las Vegas in the ‘60s is such a world, where a kind of prankster energy could go bad – it’s the epitome of the kinds of events that happen in Rigoletto. Vegas was always the locus of a decadent society.” Mayer envisions the womanizing bad-guy tenor, now just called Duke, as a character like Frank Sinatra. His entourage includes figures who bear obvious resemblances to Sammy Davis Jr. and Jackie Gleason. Instead of the Verdi’s elegant palace, Mayer and his designer, Christine Jones, give us a glitzy casino. The garish neon of the Strip flashes in the background. Rigoletto serves as his boss’ sidekick, yes-man and sometime comedian. Monterone, the man who dares curse Duke, turns up as an Arab tycoon. Sparafucile becomes a shady hitman who runs not an inn on the outskirts of town but a sex club. Maddalena, his voluptuous sister, works, of course, as a hooker. The new production is conducted by Michele Metropolitan Opera metoperafamily.org Mariotti. Born in Urbino, a walled city southwest of Pesaro, he turns out to be the only Italian involved in the production. While Gilda is portrayed by the lovely German soprano, Diana Damrau, all the other principals are Slavic. The celebrated baritone Željko Lucic, born in Zrenjanin, Serbia, undertakes the hard-tocast title-role. Piotr Beczala, a fast-rising tenor from Czechowice-Dziedzice, Poland, gets to sing the hit tune, “La donna è mobile,” as Duke. Štefan Kocán, a young bass from Trnava, Slovakia, plays the assassin Sparafucile, and Oksana Volkova, a mezzo-soprano from Minsk whose home base is the Bolshoi in Moscow, makes her Met debut as sexy Maddalena. Stubborn purists may find this Rigoletto disconcerting. Esthetic libertines may not. Neither camp, in any case, should find it boring. n Pulitzer Prize-winner Martin Bernheimer covers music in New York for the Financial Times. His last piece in Promenade was on the new fall season.

060-61 OperaFeature.indd 61

11/12/12 4:02 PM

DANCENEW YORK

a Garth Fagan moment at Alvin Ailey The Lion King’s choreographer lends a signature piece from his own dance company to the Ailey dancers who get to perform it this season.

Paula Summit

By Sylviane Gold

[ Garth Fagan Dance in Garth Fagan’s From Before ]

good dancer is a good dancer and a great dancer is a great dancer,” says Garth Fagan. “I can sort them out in a hurry.” So Fagan, whose vivid choreography for The Lion King won him a Tony and whose virtuosic dance company has been thrilling audiences for 40 years now, isn’t worried about handing off one of his signature pieces to the men and women of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. “I’ve worked with dancers in pointe shoes, and what have you,” he says in the musical cadences of his native Jamaica. “I’ve been around the block.” But most of his dances haven’t. They’ve stayed with the dancers he handpicked and trained for his Rochester-based troupe. So it’s something of an event that his 1978 masterpiece From Before will have nine performances during the Ailey season at City Center, from Nov. 28 through Dec. 30. It’s a hip-thrusting, chest-rippling, arm-slicing whirlwind of Afro-Caribbean stompa, jumps, balances, and turns, to a percussive score by the late,

062-63 DanceFeature.indd 62

Grammy-winning composer Ralph MacDonald. Setting it on dancers who have not been drilled in his exacting style will be, he says, “a pleasant challenge” – a challenge Fagan is looking forward to. “The Ailey dancers have always been wonderful,” he notes. “I just want to be sure that I get across to them that this is rooted, grounded, weighted work, and that everybody in this piece is dancing for themselves – enjoying it internally, and not showing off to the audience.” That’s not to say the audience – especially the demonstrative Ailey audience – won’t be responding. From Before has a way of bringing down the house, and Fagan remembers in particular a long-ago performance at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, part of a program that included the Ailey company and Eartha Kitt. “When I got offstage,” he recalls, “Alvin was waiting in the wings with Eartha Kitt. ‘You took the show, baby, you took the show,’ he said to me’.” The ensuing embrace, Fagan says, was unforgettable. “I’m glad

11/12/12 4:03 PM

the audience loved it, but that Alvin Ailey loved it, and that he was very supportive in getting my company going, that was the biggest thrill…. Alvin is gone now, but we have to keep his work and his legacy alive.” That legacy will be on view during the company’s City Center season, with multiple performances of Ailey’s gospel masterwork Revelations and in a new production of Ailey Classics, an anthology of highlights from his choreography that closes with a complete Revelations. (There will also be a world premiere by the rising choreographer Kyle Abraham, and newto-Ailey works by Jiri Kylian and company director Robert Battle.) Fagan, who took classes with Ailey when Fagan first came to New York to pursue a dance career, says they had an “older brother, younger-brother” relationship, and he is an outspoken, unabashed fan. “I have not seen any dance – of any language, any culture, any gender – that has moved me like Revelations,” he says. He points out that it speaks to audiences all over the world: “They don’t have to know about our lifestyle in America. They just have to know Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre New York City Center; alvinailey.org what’s beautiful, and what’s strong, and what’s moving.” The same could be said of From Before, which Fagan based on “the movement of my teenage years and of my youth.” Bringing together elements of Jamaica’s mix of European influences – British, French and Spanish – with the rhythms and vocabulary of Africa, the work is “a real celebration of African culture in the New World,” he says. “In Jamaica we have all of those cultures bumping.” And in From Before, they are strutting and gliding and spinning in one dizzying, expansive party. Will the Ailey dancers pull it off? “I’m looking forward to something fabulous,” he says. n Sylviane Gold has written about the arts for The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today and Dance Magazine. Her last piece for Promenade was on Stravinsky/Ballanchine: The Collaboration at New York City Ballet.

062-63 DanceFeature.indd 63

Paul Kolnik

[C horeographer Garth Fagan ]

Steve Labuzetta

Let It Snow

[ The snow scene in George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker ]

“Where are the snows of yesteryear?” a French poet famously asked. Around the Koch Theater at Lincoln Center, where it snows profusely on George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker year in and year out, everyone knows the answer: last year’s snow is in the New York City Ballet’s warehouse in New Jersey. Made of flame-retardant paper the size of hole-puncher circles, it is trucked to Manhattan, along with the miraculously growing Christmas tree, the giant cuckoo clock, and the flying sleigh, just in time for the 49 Nutcracker performances that run from Nov. 23 to Dec. 30. At each intermission, says Marquerite Mehler, NYCB’s production stage manager, the snow is swept up, cleared of any stray bobby pins, screws or nails with a giant magnet, and re-used. At American Ballet Theatre, which brings Alexei Ratmansky’s Nutcracker to the Brooklyn Academy of Music for 12 performances, from Dec .7-16, they prefer snow made of flame-resistant tissue paper, cut into half-inch and quarter-inch squares. And they dump it after each show. “It kills me from an environmental standpoint,” says James Whitehill, ABT’s director of production. But this way when the dancers swallow a snowflake or two – it happens – it’s fresh. The technology that creates the blizzard that closes the first act of both Nutcrackers was probably in use for the ballet’s original premiere in St. Petersburg in 1892. Cloth bags with perforations on one side are hung above the stage in a U-shape, with the pierced side higher than the solid side. To make the snow fly, stagehands at each corner of the bag shift its position so that the perforations are lower, and they control the rate of flow by shaking the bag. At the height of the “Waltz of the Snowflakes,” the New York City Ballet nycballet.com stagehands are moving as strenuously, if not American Ballet Theatre abt.org as gracefully, as the dancers. – Sylviane Gold

11/12/12 4:03 PM

New York

PERFORMING ARTS CULTURAL CENTERS

This year’s Radio City Christmas Spectacular, running through December 30, features fan favorites and classics such as “New York at Christmas,” where the Rockettes board a real double-decker bus and the high-energy tap number, and “The Twelve Days of Christmas.” Bonus: This 2012 edition is celebrating 85 magical years of the Rockettes with an experiential archive exhibit at Radio City Music Hall commemorating the past, present and future of the legendary precision dancers. Visit radiocitychristmas.com for playing schedule and to reserve tickets.

Please call the box offices for showtimes. All listings subject to change. Beacon Theatre – The Monkees (12/2); Billy Connolly (12/6-7); Cyndi Lauper & Friends (12/8); Gov’t Mule (12/30-31); Lynyrd Skynyrd (1/15); Umphrey’s McGee (1/18); Scooby-Doo Live! Musical Mysteries (2/22-24). 2124 Broadway (74th-75th Sts.), 212-465-6225; beacontheatrenyc.com Brooklyn Academy of Music – Dance: And lose the name of action (12/4-8); American Ballet Theatre’s The Nutcracker (12/7-16). Music: love fail (12/6-8); Timber (12/13-15); Where (we) Live (12/19-22); John Cale - Life Along the Borderline: A Tribute to Nico (1/16); John Cale - Paris 1919 (1/18-19). Opera: NYC Opera’s Powder Her Face (2/15-23); New York City Opera’s The Turn of the Screw (2/24-3/2). 30 Lafayette Ave., 718-636-4100; bam.org

Carnegie Hall – Chucho Valdés Quintet (12/1); The MET Orchestra (12/2); Ensemble ACJW (12/2); Egberto Gismonti, Danilo Pérez, Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Chucho Valdés (12/4); Arnaldo Antunes, Orquestra Imperial (12/5); Piotr Anderszewski (12/6); Venezuelan Brass Ensemble (12/7); Música nueva (12/8); Simón Bolívar/Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela (12/9-11); The New York Pops (12/14-15); New York String Orchestra (12/24, 28); Ensemble ACJW (1/9); Dirty Projectors (1/11); The Philadelphia Orchestra (1/17); American Composers Orchestra (1/18); Marilyn Horne Song Celebration (1/19); Carnegie Hall Family Concert: Mambo Mania (1/20); Nicolas Hodges (1/21); Julia Fischer (1/22); Dorothea Röschmann, Malcolm Martineau (1/23); Radu Lupu (1/24); Loudon Wainwright III (1/26); Renée Fleming, Susan Graham, Bradley Moore (1/27); West-Eastern Divan Orchestra (1/30-31, 2/2-3); Daniil

064-65 PerformArtsList.indd 64

Trifonov (2/5); Venice Baroque Orchestra (2/6); Orchestra of St. Luke’s (2/7); Susanna Phillips, Myra Huang (2/8); Brentano String Quartet (2/12); Kristian Bezuidenhout (2/12); Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra (2/13-14); 3 Cohens: Anat, Yuval, and Avishai (2/15); Miró Quartet (2/15); Dianne Reeves and Friends (2/16); Alash (2/16); Ensemble ACJW (2/18); Nathan Gunn, Julie Gunn Pacifica Quartet (2/19); Standard Time With Michael Feinstein (2/20); The Philadelphia Orchestra (2/22); Magdalena Kožená, Yefim Bronfman (2/23); Discovery Day: The Rite of Spring (2/23); The English Concert (2/24). 57th St. & Seventh Ave., 212-247-7800; carnegiehall.org Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts – Great Performers: Calder Quartet - Sunday Morning Coffee Concerts (12/2); What Makes It Great? with Rob Kapilow: Brahms (12/3); Andreas Scholl, countertenor; Tamar Halperin, piano (12/8); Collegium Vocale Gent Choir and Orchestra (12/15); Budapest Festival Orchestra (1/20); Vertavo String Quartet - Sunday Morning Coffee Concerts (1/27); Angelika Kirchschlager, mezzo-soprano; Ian Bostridge, tenor; Julius Drake, piano (2/3); Timothy Andres, piano - Sunday Morning Coffee Concerts (2/24); What Makes It Great? with Rob Kapilow: Chopin (2/25); Joshua Bell, violin (2/27). American Songbook (1/304/20): Lea Salonga (1/30); Valerie Simpson (1/31); Karen Akers (2/1); Cécile McLorin Salvant (2/1); Rob Fischer Celebrates Kander & Ebb (2/6); Bonnie “Prince” Billy (2/7); Stephanie Blythe: We’ll Meet Again - The Songs of Kate Smith (2/9); Sondre Lerche (2/13); Mavis Staples (2/14); Kristin Chenoweth (2/15); Tom Morello: The Nightwatchman (2/16); Kathy Mattea (2/27); Lost in the Trees (2/28); The Songs of Tom Kitt & Brian Yorkey (3/1); Ingrid Michaelson (3/2). Columbus Ave. btw. 62nd & 65th Sts., 212-875-5000; lincolncenter.org

11/12/12 4:04 PM

ONTHETOWN

Madison Square Garden – One Direction (12/3); The Who (12/5); Z100’s Jingle Ball 2012 (12/7); Jason Mraz (12/11); The Killers (12/14); Leonard Cohen (12/18); Phish (12/28-31); Passion Pit (2/8); 137th Annual Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show (2/11-12); Maroon 5 (2/16); Lady Gaga (2/22-23). 4 Pennsylvania Plaza (Seventh Ave. & 32nd St.), 212-465-5800; thegarden.com

2/24); The Sleeping Beauty (2/13-24). Columbus Ave. & 63rd St., 212-496-0600; nycballet.com

Metropolitan Opera Company – Don Giovanni (11/24, 12/1, 6, 10); La Clemenza di Tito (11/28, 12/1, 5, 8, 11, 15, 20); Aida (11/29, 12/3, 7, 12, 15, 19, 22, 28); Un Ballo in Maschera (11/30, 12/4, 8, 14); Les Troyens (12/13, 17, 21, 26, 29, 1/1, 5); The Barber of Seville (12/18, 22, 26, 27, 29, 1/3, 5); Maria Stuarda (12/31, 1/4, 8, 12, 15, 19, 23, 26); Turnadot (1/2, 7, 10); Il Trovatore (1/9, 12, 16, 19, 24); La Rondine (1/11, 14, 18, 22, 26); Le Comte Ory (1/17, 21, 25, 29, 2/2, 5); Rigoletto (1/28, 2/4, 8, 12, 16, 19, 23); L’Elisir d’Amore (1/30, 2/2, 6, 9); Parsifal (2/15, 18, 21, 27); Carmen (2/9, 13, 16, 20, 23, 26, 3/1); Parsifal (2/15, 18, 21, 27); Don Carlo (2/22, 25, 28). 212-362-6000; metoperafamily.org

New York Philharmonic – André Watts and Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 (12/5-6, 8, 11); Daniel Harding Conducts Schumann and Sibelius (12/13-15); Holiday Brass (12/16); Handel’s Messiah (12/18-22); New Year’s Eve (12/31); Jean-Yves Thibaudet and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7 (1/3-5); Zukerman, Eschenbach, Bruch, and Bruckner (1/9-12); Maazel, Bronfman, Brahms, and Sibelius (1/16-19); Shostakovich, Lutosławski, and Tchaikovsky’s Romeo and Juliet with Lorin Maazel and Jennifer Koh (1/24-26); Symphonic Sondheim (1/29); All-Beethoven with Radu Lupu and Christoph von Dohnányi (1/31-2/2); Christoph von Dohnányi Conducts Brahms and Beethoven’s 5th (2/2); Brahms’s Violin Concerto and Bartók’s Concerto for Orchestra (2/6-9); Chinese New Year Celebration (12/2);

New York City Ballet – George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker (through 12/30); Winter Season (1/15-

New York City Center – Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater (11/28-12/30); New York Gilbert & Sullivan Players (1/4-20); Fiorello! (1/30-2/3); Pacific Northwest Ballet (2/13-16). 130 W. 56th St., 212-581-1212; nycitycenter.org

Tchaikovsky’s Pathétique and Brahms’s Piano Concerto No. 2 (2/14-16); Brahms, Bloch, and Rouse (2/21-22); Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Carousel (2/27-3/2). Avery Fisher Hall, Broadway & W. 65th St., 212-875-5656; nyphil.org Radio City Music Hall – Radio City Christmas Spectacular (through 12/30); Nas (12/31); Ed Sheeran (1/30); Keane (1/31); FUN. (2/2); Sarah Brightman (2/8). 1260 Sixth Ave. (50th St.), 212-307-7171; radiocity.com The Theater at Madison Square Garden – Trey Songz (12/5); Z100’s Jingle Ball Viewing Party 2012 (12/7); Dr. Seuss’ How The Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical (12/13-30); The Disco Biscuits (12/31); Garden of Laughs (1/26); Sesame Street Live Elmo’s Super Heroes (2/7-18). 4 Pennsylvania Plaza (Seventh Ave. & 32nd St.), 212-465-5800; thegarden.com The Town Hall – A Prairie Home Companion with Garrison Keillor (12/1, 8, 15, 22); Richard Goode, piano, with Sarah Shafer, soprano (12/9). 123 W. 43rd St. (Broadway-Sixth Ave.), 212-997-1003; the-townhall-nyc.org

064-65 PerformArtsList.indd 65

11/12/12 4:04 PM

ARTNEW YORK

Picasso in Black and White…

and shades of grey ‘I think he was more interested in the line and the structure of his painting,’ says the Guggenheim exhibit curator—‘much more than in the color.’ By Karin Lipson

Photo: Herbert List/Magnum Photos

[ Pablo Picasso in front of The Kitchen (La cuisine, 1948) in his rue des Grands-Augustins studio. ]

he use of color might seem a key concern for an artist. But for Picasso, the towering figure of 20th century art, color wasn’t all-important. “The fact that in one of my paintings there is a certain spot of red isn’t the essential part of the painting,” he once told his companion Françoise Gilot. “You could take the red away, and there would always be the painting.” “Picasso Black and White,” at the Guggenheim Museum through Jan. 23, does indeed “take the red away”—along with virtually every other color of the palette. Presented as the first major exhibition to focus on Picasso’s use of black and white, the sweeping show features 118 paintings, sculptures and works on paper. Spanning his career, they range from 1904 to 1971 (just two years before his death at age 91). And all of them hold back the color. Visitors needn’t hunt for a “black-and-white” period akin to his Blue Period or Rose Period. As the exhibition makes clear, Picasso repeatedly employed a limited palette throughout his career, whether to work out a knotty compositional problem, express a singular emotion or, as he regularly did, explore a different artistic path. “He’s always inventive, very creative,” said Carmen Giménez, the Guggenheim’s Stephen and Nan Swid curator of 20th century art, who organized “Picasso Black and White” (with the aid of associate curator Karole Vail). “When everyone was settled down in Cubism, he broke with Cubism and went to Neo-Classical. And he was never a Surrealist, but he flirted with it,” she said. In the course of his explorations, Picasso produced an outpouring of black-andwhite works, said Giménez, a Picasso scholar who has curated numerous exhibitions on the artist. “He has done thousands of them.” Despite its austere title, “Picasso Black and White” is alive with inky blacks (and their opposite, white) and countless versions of grey. (As Gertrude Stein said of his early still lifes: “There is infinite variety of grey in these pictures, and by the vitality of painting the greys really become color.”) So we get the leached-out, blue-greys of his 1904 “Woman Ironing” (painted toward the end of his Blue Period, when Picasso was desperately poor and mourning the death of a friend); the peachy tint in the 1908 “Study for The Dryad (Nude in a Forest)”; the grey-browns of Cubism; the cool whites, evoking ancient Greek and Roman sculpture, of the Neo-Classical figure paintings. Many of the works are from private sources—most notably the Picasso family— and some have never been on public view before. In part, that is because Picasso

066-69 MuseumsFeature.indd 66

11/12/12 4:06 PM

ÂŠ 2012 Estate of Pablo Picasso/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. Photo: Robert Bayer, Basel

[ Seated Woman in an Armchair (Dora) (Femme assise dans un fauteuil [Dora]), 1938. Fondation Beyeler, Riehen/Basel ]

066-69 MuseumsFeature.indd 67

11/12/12 4:06 PM

ARTNEW YORK

[ The Milliner’s Workshop (Atelier de la modiste), Paris, January 1926. Musée national d’art moderne/Centre de création industrielle, Centre Pompidou, Paris, Gift of the artist, 1947 ]

68 [ Head of a Horse, Sketch for Guernica (Tête de cheval, étude pour Guernica), Grands-Augustins, Paris, May 2, 1937. Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, Madrid, Bequest of the artist ]

066-69 MuseumsFeature.indd 68

11/12/12 4:06 PM

[ Woman Ironing (La repasseuse), Bateau-Lavoir, Paris, spring 1904. Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, Thannhauser Collection, Gift, Justin K. Thannhauser ]

[ Marie-Thérèse, Face and Profile (Marie-Thérèse, face et profil), Paris, 1931. Private collection ]

seems to have placed a special value on his black-and-white works. “He didn’t want to part with them,” Giménez said. One famous exception was “Guernica”—his anguished response to the aerial bombing of a Basque town during the Spanish Civil War —which was painted for the 1937 World’s Fair in Paris. (The curator has a deep personal connection with this era: As she writes in the exhibition catalog, she is “the Spanish daughter of an exiled republican forced to leave his country” with the victory of the fascist general Francisco Franco. Her father fled to Morocco, where Carmen Giménez was born. “In my house we had a reproduction of ‘Guernica,’” she said. “Many, many republicans had that. And my father really loved Picasso.”) Inevitably, the question arises: Why did Picasso use black and white so often? “I think he was more interested in the line and the structure of his painting—much more than in the color,” the curator said. And, she noted of his black-and-white oeuvre, “he used it differently” depending on his purposes. He used it when decrying the horrors of war (though, the show points out, these tended to be complex compositions, and Picasso often reduced his palette when working out difficult compositional problems). In addition to several studies for “Guernica” (the monumental painting itself is in the Reina Sofia museum in Madrid), the exhibition features such

066-69 MuseumsFeature.indd 69

war-related works as “The Charnel House,” completed in 1945, as newsreels and photographs documented the horrors discovered within newly liberated Nazi concentration camps. Another, very different, reason to restrict his palette, the show suggests, was Picasso’s desire to reconnect to his fellow Spanish painters, especially Velásquez and Goya, with their own uses of black and grey. Among Picasso’s art-historical reinterpretations here is a version of Velásquez’s Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum “Las Meninas” (“The Maids of 1071 Fifth Avenue; 212-423-3840; guggenheim.org Honor”)—the first and largest of his 44 variations on the subject. Ultimately, said Giménez, “he became free of all this history and had a good time.” So he did, producing in his late years a series of sensual images of voluptuous nudes: reclining, playing with little cats, or engaged in more ribald activities. “I think he maintained the same intensity” throughout his life, Giménez added. “In the beginning, and at the end, too, he looks like a very young artist.” n Karin Lipson, a former arts writer and editor for Newsday, is a frequent contributor to The New York Times. Her last article in Promenade was on the Warhol show at the Met.

11/12/12 4:06 PM

070-73 MuseumsList.indd 70

On view December 4 through March 17, Matisse: In Search of True Painting at the Metropolitan Museum of Art explores Henri Matisse’s (1869-1954) process with 48 vibrantly colored canvases that show the French artist repeating compositions in order to compare effects, gauge his progress, and, as he put it, “push further and deeper into true painting.” Pictured here: The Large Blue Dress (1937). See listings for more information.

11/12/12 4:07 PM

NEW YORK

MUSEUMS All exhibits are subject to change American Folk Art Museum – Foiled: Tinsel Painting in America (through 1/13); Ooh, Shiny! (through 1/13); Highlights from the Historical Society of Early American Decoration (ongoing). Tues.-Sat., noon-7:30pm, Sun., noon-6pm. Free. 2 Lincoln Square, Columbus Ave. btw. 65th & 66th Sts., 212-595-9533; folkartmuseum.org American Museum of Natural History – Spiders Alive! (through 12/2); Creatures of Light: Nature’s Bioluminescence (through 1/6); The Butterfly Conservatory (through 5/28); Picturing Science: Museum Scientists and Imaging Technologies (through 6/24). Open daily, 10am-5:45pm. Suggested general admission $19; seniors/students, $14.50; children 2-12, $10.50. Central Park West at 79th St., 212-769-5100; amnh.org

Numerous long-term installations are also on view. Wed., Fri.-Sun., 11am-6pm, Thurs., 11am-10pm. Suggested contribution $12; seniors/students, $8; under 12, free. 200 Eastern Parkway (Washington Ave.), 718-638-5000; brooklynmuseum.org Bronx Museum of the Arts– Urban Archives: The Rituals of Chaos (through 1/6); Bronx Lab: Style Wars (through 1/6); Juan Downey: The Invisible Architect (opens 2/12). Thurs., Sat.-Sun., 11am-6pm, Fri., 11am-8pm. Free. 1040 Grand Concourse (165th St.), 718-681-6000; bronxmuseum.org Center for Architecture – The Edgeless School: Designing for Education in the Digital Age (through 1/19). Mon.-Fri., 9am-8pm, Sat., 11am-5pm. Free. 536 LaGuardia Pl. (Bleecker-W. 3rd Sts.), 212-683-0023; aiany.org

Asia Society and Museum – Bound Unbound: Lin Tianmiao (through 1/27). The Rockefeller Collection and the Contemporary Art Collection are on occasional view (check website). Tues.-Sun., 11am-6pm, Fri., 11am-9pm. $10; seniors, $7; students, $5 with ID; under 16, free. 725 Park Ave. (70th St.), 212-288-6400; asiasociety.org

China Institute – New “China”: Porcelain Art from Jingdezhen, 1910-2012 (through 12/9); Dunhuang: Buddhist Art at the Gateway of the Silk Road (opening 2013). Daily, 10am-5pm, Tues. & Thurs., 10am-8pm. $7; students/seniors, $4; under 12, free. Free admission Tues. & Thurs., 6-8pm. 125 E. 65th St. (Lexington and Park Aves.), 212-744-8181; chinainstitute.org

Brooklyn Museum – Jean-Michel Othoniel: My Way (through 12/2); GO: a communitycurated open studio project (12/1-2/24); Mickalene Thomas: Origin of the Universe (through 1/20); Materializing “Six Years”: Lucy R. Lippard and the Emergence of Conceptual Art (through 2/3); Aesthetic Ambitions: Edward Lycett and Brooklyn’s Faience Manufacturing Company (through 6/16).

El Museo del Barrio – Voces y Visiones: Gran Caribe (through 12/9); Caribbean: Crossroads of the World (through 1/6). Tues.-Sat., 11am-6pm, Sun., 1pm-5pm Suggested admission $9; seniors/ students, $5; under 12, free. Free admission the third Saturday of every month and for seniors on Wed. 1230 Fifth Ave. (104th St.), 212-831-7272; elmuseo.org

The Frick Collection – Mantegna to Matisse: Master Drawings from The Courtauld Gallery (through 1/27); Vincent van Gogh’s Portrait of a Peasant (Patience Escalier) (through 1/20); Precision and Splendor: Clocks and Watches at the Frick Collection (1/23-6/23). Tues.-Sat., 10am-6pm, Sun., 11am-5pm. $18; seniors, $15; students, $10 with ID; pay-what-you-wish Sun., 11am-1pm. 1 E. 70th St., 212-288-0700; frick.org Grey Art Gallery at NYU – Toxic Beauty: The Art of Frank Moore (through12/8); Beat Memories: The Photographs of Allen Ginsberg (1/15-4/6). Tues., Thurs., Fri., 11am-6pm, Weds., 11am-8pm, Sat., 11am-5pm. Suggested admission $3. 100 Washington Square East, 212-998-6780; nyu.edu/greyart The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum– Picasso Black and White (through 1/23); A Long-Awaited Tribute: Frank Lloyd Wright’s Usonian House and Pavilion (through 2/13); Gabriel Orozco: Asterisms (through 1/13); Kandinsky 1911-1913 (through 4/25). Sun.-Weds., Fri., 10am-5:45pm, Sat., 10am-7:45pm. $22; seniors/ students, $18; under 12, free. 1071 Fifth Ave. (89th St.), 212-423-3500; guggenheim.org International Center of Photography – Rise and Fall of Apartheid: Photography and the Bureaucracy of Everyday Life (through 1/6); Roman Vishniac Rediscovered (1/18-5/5); We Went Back: Photographs from Europe 1933-1956 (1/18-5/5). Tues.-Weds., Sat.-Sun., 10am-6pm, Thurs.-Fri., 10am-8pm. $14; students/seniors, $10; under 12, free. Pay what you wish Fri., 5-8pm. 1133 Sixth Ave. (43rd St.), 212-857-0000; icp.org

A NEW REsOURCE FOR THE FERTILE MIND

thought

.org

A new website for the intellectually curious popped up over the last few months: ThoughtGallery.org, a single resource for all the top lectures, presentations, talks, seminars, panel discussions, and similar events in New York City. Check out thoughtgallery.org for special gallery tours at places such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art; find interesting artist panels at the Museum of Modern Art, the Brooklyn Museum, and more; discover author appearances and book signings throughout the city; and take part in lively discussions concerning history, politics, economics; and much more covering a wide range of topics. Be the first to know and sign up for updates—including when new events are announced—at thoughtgallery.org/join.

070-73 MuseumsList.indd 71

11/12/12 4:07 PM

MuseumsNEWYORK

Japan Society – Silver Wind: The Arts of Sakai Hoitsu (1761-1828) (through 1/6). Tues.-Thurs. 11am-6pm, Fri., 11am-9pm, Sat. and Sun., 11am-5:30pm. $12; students/seniors, $10; under 16, free; free Fri., 6-9pm. 333 E. 47th St., 212-832-1155; japansociety.org

of Contemporary Glass (through 4/7). Tues.-Sun., 11am-6pm, Thurs.-Fri., 11am-9pm. $15; students/seniors, $12; high school students and under 12, free; Thurs., 6-9pm, pay-what-youwish. 2 Columbus Cir. (near Eighth Ave. & W. 58th St.), 212-299-7777; madmuseum.org

The Jewish Museum – Crossing Borders: Medieval Manuscripts from the Bodleian Libraries (through 2/3); Sharon Lockhart | Noa Eshkol (through 3/24). Fri.-Tues., 11am-5:45pm, Thurs., 11am-8pm. $12; seniors, $10; students, $7.50; under 12, free; free Sat. 1109 Fifth Ave. (92nd St.), 212-423-3200; thejewishmuseum.org

The Museum of Biblical Art – Louis C. Tiffany and the Art of Devotion (through 1/20); More Precious than Fine Gold - The English Bible in the Gilded Age (through 1/20); Ashé to Amen (2/155/25).Tues.-Weds., Fri-.Sun., 10am-6pm, Thurs., 10am-8pm. Free. 1865 Broadway (61st St.), 212-408-1500; mobia.org

The Metropolitan Museum of Art – Regarding Warhol: Sixty Artists, Fifty Years (through 12/31); Christmas Tree and Neapolitan Baroque Crèche (through 1/6); Historic Images of the Greek Bronze Age - The Reproductions of E. Gilliéron & Son (through 1/6); Colors of the Universe: Chinese Hardstone Carving (through 1/6); Designing Nature - The Rinpa Aesthetic in Japanese Art (through 1/13); British Silver - The Wealth of a Nation (through 1/20); Faking It - Manipulated Photography Before Photoshop (through 1/27); Extravagant Inventions - The Princely Furniture of the Roentgens (through 1/27); Buddhism Along the Silk Road - 5th-8th Century (through 2/10); George Bellows (through 2/18); Turkmen Jewelry from the Collection of Marshall and Marilyn R. Wolf (through 2/24); Matisse: In Search of True Painting (12/4-3/17); African Art, New York, and the Avant-Garde (through 4/14); Bashford Dean and the Creation of the Arms and Armor Department (through 9/29). Tues.-Thurs., Sun., 9:30am-5:30pm, Fri.-Sat., 9:30am-9pm. Recommended admission $25; seniors, $17; students, $12; under 12, free. 1000 Fifth Ave. (82nd St.), 212-535-7710; metmuseum.org

Museum of the City of New York – The World of D.D. and Leslie Tillett (through 1/6); From Farm to City: Staten Island 1661-2012 (through 1/21); Activist New York (ongoing); London Street Photography, with “City Scenes: Highlights of New York Street Photography” (through TBD). Open daily, 10am-6pm. Suggested admission $10; seniors/students, $6; under 12, free. 1220 Fifth Ave. (103rd St.), 212-534-1672; mcny.org

The Morgan Library & Museum – Dürer to de Kooning: 100 Master Drawings from Munich (through 1/6); Beatrix Potter: The Picture Letters (through 1/27); Fantasy and Invention: Rosso Fiorentino and Sixteenth-Century Florentine Drawing (through 2/3). Tues.-Thurs., 10:30am5pm, Fri., 10:30am-9pm, Sat., 10am-6pm, Sun., 11am-6pm. $15; seniors/students/children under 16, $10; 12 & under, free; free Fri., 7-9pm. 225 Madison Ave. (36th St.), 212-685-0008; themorgan.org Museum of American Finance – Checks & Balances - Presidents and American Finance (through 11/30). Numerous long-term exhibits are on display, including the Alexander Hamilton Room. Tues.-Sat., 10am-4pm. $8; students/ seniors, $5, under 6, free. 48 Wall St. (William St.), 212-908-4110; moaf.org Museum of Arts & Design – The Art of Scent: 1889-2012 (through 2/24); Doris Duke’s Shangri-La - Architecture, Landscape, and Islamic Art (through 1/6); Daniel Brush - Blue Steel Gold Light (through 2/17); Playing With Fire - 50 Years

Museum of Jewish Heritage - A Living Memorial to the Holocaust – Through Soviet Jewish Eyes: Photography, War, and the Holocaust (through 4/7); Emma Lazarus: Poet of Exiles (through 2/24); Hava Nagila: A Song for the People (through 5/2013). Sun.-Tues., Thurs., 10am-5:45pm, Weds., 10am-8pm, Fri., 10am-3pm (through 3/8). $12; seniors, $10; students, $7; 12 & under, free; free Wed., 4-8pm. 36 Battery Pl., 646-437-4202; mjhnyc.org Museum of Modern Art – MoMA Studio: Common Senses (through 11/19); Projects 98: Slavs and Tatars (through 12/10); Quay Brothers: On Deciphering the Pharmacist’s Prescription for Lip-Reading Puppets (through 1/7); Eyes Closed/Eyes Open: Recent Acquisitions in Drawings (through 1/7); Alina Szapocznikow: Sculpture Undone, 1955-1972 (through 1/28); New Photography 2012 (through 2/4); Tokyo 1955-1970 (through 2/25); The Shaping of New Visions: Photography, Film, Photobook (through 4/29). Sat.-Thurs. (closed Tuesday), 10:30am-5:30pm, Fri., 10:30am-8pm. $25; seniors, $18; students, $14; 16 & under, free. 11 W. 53rd St., 212-708-9400; moma.org Museum of the Moving Image – Phil Solomon: American Falls (through 11/25); Ongoing exhibitions include the interactive DVD Dead Drop. Tues.-Thurs., 10:30am-5pm, Fri., 10:30am-8pm, Sat.-Sun., 11:30am-7pm. $12; seniors/students, $9; children 3-12, $6; children 3 & under free. Free admission Fri., 4-8pm. 36-01 35th Ave., Astoria, Queens, 718-777-6888; movingimage.us Museum of Sex – Action: Sex and the Moving Image (ongoing); F*ck Art - A Street Art Occupation (through 1/21). Mon.-Thurs., Sun., 10am-8pm, Fri.-Sat., 10am-9pm. $17.50; students/seniors, $15.25. 233 Fifth Ave. (27th St.), 212-689-6337; museumofsex.com

National Academy Museum – An American Collection – Second Rotation (through 1/13). Weds.-Sun., 11am-6pm. $15; seniors/students, $10; under 12, free. 1083 Fifth Ave. (89th St.), 212-369-4880; nationalacademy.org National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Institution – Infinity of Nations: Art and History in the Collections of the National Museum of the American Indian (ongoing); Up Where We Belong: Native Musicians in Popular Culture (through 8/11). Open daily, 10am-5:00pm, Weds., 10am-8pm. Free. Alexander Hamilton U.S. Custom House, 1 Bowling Green (Broadway), 212-514-3700; americanindian.si.edu Neue Galerie – Ferdinand Hodler: View to Infinity (through 1/7). Thurs.-Mon., 11am-6pm. $20; students/seniors, $10. 1048 Fifth Ave. (86th St.), 212-628-6200; neuegalerie.org New Museum – Come Closer: Art Around the Bowery, 1969-1989 (through 1/6); Rosemarie Trockel: A Cosmos (through 1/13); Judith Bernstein: HARD (through 1/20). Weds., Fri.-Sun., 11am-6pm, Thurs., 11am-9pm. $14; seniors, $12; students, $10; 18 & under, free. 235 Bowery (Prince St.), 212-219-1222; newmuseum.org New-York Historical Society – The Landmarks of New York (12/14-2/18); The Dream Continues: Photographs of Martin Luther King Murals by Vergara (1/18-5/5); John Rogers: American Stories (through 2/27); Nature and the American Vision: The Hudson River School (through 2/21); WWII & NYC (through 5/27). Tues.-Thurs., Sat., 10am-6pm, Fri., 10am-8pm, Sun., 11am-5pm. $15; seniors, $12; students, $10; 5-13, $5; under 5, free. Pay-as-you-wish from 6-8pm Fridays. 170 Central Park West (77th St.), 212-873-3400; nyhistory.org New York Public Library (Humanities and Social Sciences Library) – Charles Dickens: The Key to Character (through 1/27). Call 212-869-8089 for a recording of all current exhibitions. Open daily. 42nd St. & Fifth Ave., 212-340-0830; nypl.org New York Transit Museum – Tues.Fri.,10am-4pm, Sat.-Sun., 11am-5pm. $7; seniors/children 2-17, $5; seniors free on Weds. The New York Transit Museum Gallery Annex in Grand Central Terminal presents changing exhibitions. Boerum Pl. & Schermerhorn St., Brooklyn, 718-694-1600; mta.info/museum The Noguchi Museum – Hammer, Chisel, Drill: Noguchi’s Studio Practice (through 4/28). Weds.-Fri., 10am-5pm, Sat.-Sun., 11am-6pm. $10 (pay-what-you-wish first Fri. of the month); students/seniors, $5; under 12, free. 9-01 33rd Rd. (Vernon Blvd.), Long Island City, Queens, 718-204-7088; noguchi.org

070-73 MuseumsList.indd 72

11/12/12 4:07 PM

ONTHETOWN

The Paley Center for Media – “Leading Today’s Media Conversation,” The Paley Center for Media is a hub for the cultural, creative, and social significance of television and radio. Weds.-Sun., noon-6pm, Thurs., noon-8pm. $10; seniors/students, $8; under 14, $5. 25 W. 52nd St., 212-621-6600; paleycenter.org

The Rubin Museum of Art – Masterworks (through 1/7); Candid (through 1/14); Casting the Divine (through 2/11); The Place of Provenance (through 3/5); Gateway to Himalayan Art (through 1/6/2014). Mon., Thurs., 11am-5pm, Weds., 11am-7pm, Fri., 11am-10pm, Sat.-Sun., 11am-6pm. $10 (free Fri., 6-10pm); seniors/students/artists with ID, $5; under 12, free. 150 W. 17th St., 212-620-5000; rmanyc.org Scandinavia House: The Nordic Center in America – Saga Sites: Landscapes of the Icelandic Sagas (through 1/12); New Wave Finland: Contemporary Photography from the Helsinki School (1/24-4/6). Tues.-Sat., noon-6pm. Weds. till 7pm. Admission varies by exhibition. 58 Park Ave. (37th-38th Sts.), 212-779-3587; scandinaviahouse.org Skyscraper Museum – Urban Fabric: Building New York’s Garment District (through 1/20); The Woolworth Building @ 100 (opening 1/2013). Weds.-Sun., noon-6pm. $5; seniors/ students, $2.50. 39 Battery Pl., 212-968-1961; skyscraper.org The Studio Museum in Harlem – Fore (through 3/10); Gordon Parks: A Harlem Family 1967 (through 3/10). Thurs.-Fri., noon-9pm, Sat., 10am-6pm, Sun., noon-6pm. Suggested donation $7 (free on Sun.); seniors/ students, $3; under 12, free. 144 W. 125th St. (Lenox Ave.-Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. Blvd.), 212-864-4500; studiomuseum.org Whitney Museum of American Art – Wade Guyton OS (through 1/13); Trisha Baga: Plymouth Rock 2 (through 1/27); Richard Artschwager! (through 2/3); Sinister Pop (through TBD). Weds.-Thurs., Sat.-Sun., 11am-6pm, Fri., 1-9pm. $18 (pay-what-youwish Fri., 6-9pm); seniors/students/ages 19-25, $12; 18 & under, free. 945 Madison Ave. (75th St.), 212-570-3600; whitney.org

Queens Museum of Art – Ada Bobonis: Stages, Mountains, Water (through 1/6); Caribbean: Crossroads of the World (through 1/6); The Neustadt Collection of Tiffany Glass (ongoing); A Watershed Moment: Celebrating the Homecoming of The Relief Map of the New York City Water Supply System (ongoing). Weds.-Sun., noon-6pm. Suggested donation $8; seniors/students, $4; under 5, free. New York City Building, Flushing Meadows Corona Park, 718-592-9700; queensmuseum.org

SINISTER POP The Whitney Museum’s Sinister Pop exhibit explores the “darker” side of pop art with works by Johns, Ruscha, Oldenburg, and Warhol, as well as artists not usually associated with the movement, including William Eggleston whose Untitled (c. 1972, printed 1980) is pictured above, Peter Saul, Christina Ramberg, and Vija Celmins, among others.

MUNCH’s THE SCREAM One of the world’s most iconic works of art, Edvard Munch’s The Scream (1895), will be on view at the Museum of Modern Art through April 29. Of the four versions of The Scream made by Munch between 1893 and 1910, this pastelon-board from 1895 is the only one remaining in private hands; the three other versions are in the collections of museums in Norway. Also on view at MoMA: The Artist in Place: The First 10 Years of MoMA PS1 (through 1/1); Tokyo 1955-1970: A New Avant-Garde (through 2/25); Christian Marclay: The Clock (12/21-1/21); Inventing Abstraction, 1910-1925 (12/23-4/15). See listings for more information.

070-73 MuseumsList.indd 73

11/12/12 4:07 PM

New York

Walter Plunkett (1902 – 1982), Costume for Katharine Hepburn as “Amanda Bonner” in Adam’s Rib, MGM , (1949) Black silk, Kent State University Museum, Gift of the Estate of Katharine Hepburn, 2010.12.4.

ART GALLERIES COLLECTIBLES

An icon of theatre, film, and fashion, Katharine Hepburn (above left, in Adam's Rib; right, the dress she wore in the film) and her unique fashion sense is the subject of a new exhibition at The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts: Katharine Hepburn: Dressed for Stage and Screen (through 1/12). The exhibition—created in conjunction with a new book, Rebel Chic—includes over 40 costumes and clothing items from Hepburn’s personal collection. Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center, 40 Lincoln Center Plaza, 917-275-6975; nypl.org/locations/lpa. Admission is free.

074-77 GalleriesList.indd 74

11/12/12 4:08 PM

All exhibits subject to change Antonelle Fine Art - Featuring works by impressionist Patrick Antonelle. By appointment. 30 W. 39th St., 917-743-9704; antonellefineart.com Peter Blum Gallery - Contemporary American and European art. 526 W. 29th St., 212-244-6055; peterblumgallery.com

10am-6pm. 980 Madison Ave. (76th-77th Sts.), 212-744-2313; 555 W. 24th St., 212-741-1111; 522 W. 21st St., 212-741-1717; gagosian.com Galerie Lelong - Contemporary art from the United States, Europe, and Latin America. Lin Tianmiao: Badges (through 12/15). Tues.-Sat., 10am-6pm. 528 W. 26th St., 212-315-0470; galerielelong.com

Bonni Benrubi - Contemporary photography. Abelardo Morell- Rock Paper Scissors (through 12/22). Tues.-Sat., 10am-6pm. 41 E. 57th St., 13th Floor, 212-888-6007; bonnibenrubi.com

Galerie St. Etienne - The oldest gallery in the U.S. specializing in Expressionism and self-taught art. Egon Schiele's Women (through 12/28). Tues.-Sat., 11am-5pm. 24 W. 57th St., 212-245-6734; gseart.com

Cheim & Read - International contemporary artists. Tal R: The Shlomo (through 12/22). Tues.-Sat., 10am-6pm. 547 W. 25th St., 212-242-7727; cheimread.com

Gallery Henoch - Contemporary American, European, and Asian painting and sculpture. Tues.-Sat., 10:30am-6pm. 555 W. 25th St., 917-305-0003; galleryhenoch.com

Clic Bookstore & Gallery - Emerging photographers. Centre St.: James and Karla Murray - New York Nights (12/3-1/13). Mon-Sat., 11am-7pm; Sun., noon-6pm. 424 Broome St., 212-219-9308; 255 Centre St., 212-966-2766; clicgallery.com

Gladstone Gallery - Contemporary art. 24th St.: Huong Yong Ping (through 12/22); Carroll Dunham (through 12/22). Mon.-Fri., 10am-6pm. 515 W. 24th St., 212-206-9300; 530 W. 21st St. 212-206-7606; gladstonegallery.com

James Cohan Gallery - Contemporary art. Trenton Doyle Hancock: ...And Then It All Came Back to Me (through Dec.). Tues.-Sat., 10am-6pm. 533 W. 26th St., 212-714-9500; jamescohan.com

Valerie Goodman Gallery - Specializing in 20th-century European decorative arts, furniture and lighting, and French contemporary artist Limited Editions. 315 E. 91st St., 917-208-0302; valeriegoodmangallery.com

CRG Gallery - Well-established and emerging contemporary American/European artists. Steven Bindernagel (through 12/22). Tues.-Fri., 10am-6pm, Sat. by appointment. 548 W. 22nd St., 212-229-2766; crggallery.com

Graham - 19th- & 20th-century American paintings, American & European sculpture. American Paintings and Sculpture - New York to California (through 12/21). 32 E. 67th St., 212-535-5767; jamesgrahamandsons.com

CUE Art Foundation - Exhibitions featuring under-recognized artists. Mike Metz: Curated by Joseph Masheck (12/8-1/26). Tues.-Sat., 10am-6pm. 137 W. 25th St., 212-206-3583; cueartfoundation.org

Howard Greenberg Gallery - Photography. Joel Meyerowitz Part II (12/7-1/5). Tues.-Sat., 10am-6pm. 41 E. 57th St., 212-334-0010; howardgreenberg.com

Dâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Amelio Gallery - Contemporary art featuring international emerging and mid-career artists. 525 W. 22nd St., 212-352-0325; dameliogallery.com Foley Gallery - Contemporary photography, painting, sculpture. Henry Leutwyler: Ballet (through 1/6). Wed.-Sat., 12pm-6pm, and by appointment. 97 Allen St., 212-244-9081; foleygallery.com Zach Feuer Gallery - Contemporary art in all media by emerging and mid-career artists. Tues.-Sat., 10am-6pm. 548 W. 22nd St., 212-989-7700; zachfeuer.com Gagosian Gallery - Modern and contemporary art, including works by de Kooning, Hirst, Picasso, Twombly, and Warhol. Madison Ave.: Richard Serra (through 12/22); Cy Twombly: The Last Paintings (through 12/22). 2Tues.- Sat.,

Greenberg Van Doren - Contemporary fine art. Alan Shields: Maze (through 12/21). Mon.-Fri., 10am-6pm. 730 Fifth Ave. (57th St.), 212-445-0444; gvdgallery.com Stephen Haller Gallery - Contemporary paintings. Geometry of Longing (group exhibition) (through 12/22). Tues.-Sat., 10am-6pm. 542 W. 26th St., 212-741-7777; stephenhallergallery.com Hammer Galleries - Featuring works by 19thand 20th-century European and American Masters. Objects In Space: Calder, Leger, & Miro (through 1/28). Mon.-Fri., 9:30am-5:30pm, Sat. 10am-5pm. 475 Park Ave. (58th St.), 212-6444400; hammergalleries.com Hasted Kraeutler - Contemporary photography. Albert Watson: Vintage Photographs Celebrating the 20th Anniversary of the Cyclops (through 1/17); Michael Benson: Planetfall (opening Feb.).

074-77 GalleriesList.indd 75

11/12/12 4:08 PM

GALLERIESNEWYORK

[ Wall Street - Winter ; May in Central Park ]

Courtesy of Hirschl & Adler Galleries

Tues.-Sat., 11am-6pm. and by appointment. 537 W. 24th St., 212-627-0006; hastedkraeutler.com Hauser & Wirth - Emerging and established contemporary artists. Phyllida Barlow ...later (through 12/22). Tues.-Sat., 10am-6pm. 32 E. 69th St., 212-794-4970; hauserwirth.com Hirschl & Adler Galleries - 18th-, 19th& 20th-century American and European art. Tues.-Fri., 9:30am-5:15pm, Sat. 9:30am-4:45pm. 730 Fifth Ave., Fourth Floor, 212-535-8810; hirschlandadler.com

Dubbed the “American Renoir” and called “the foremost impressionist painter of our century,” by Manhattan Arts magazine, Patrick Antonelle has been creating his masterful works for over 30 years. Reproductions of his work (which include the many facades and moods of New York City, Central Park, and their environs) are available online at antonelle fineart.com and at Patrick's Fine Art in midtown, offering wider audiences a chance to experience “his painterly manifestations of a world more romantic, nostalgic and caring than the one we currently inhabit.” By appointment only. 30 W. 39th St., 917-743-9704; antonellefineart.com; patart21@aol.com

Hosfelt Gallery - International, emerging and mid-career artists. Anoka Faruqee: The Sum Is Greater Than Its Parts (through 12/29). Wed.-Sat., 10am-6pm. 531 W. 36th St., 212-563-5454; hosfeltgallery.com

New Perspectives at the 59th Annual Winter Antiques Show

Steven Kasher Gallery - Contemporary photography and social/historical/artistic photography of the 20th century. Tues.-Sat., 11am-6pm. 521 W. 23rd St., 212-966-3978; stevenkasher.com

Courtesy of Hirschl & Adler Galleries

On January 25, America’s most distinguished antiques event, the Winter Antiques Show, returns to New York City for its 59th year. Seventy-three vendors will display fine art and antiquities from around the globe including America, England, Europe, and Asia, dating from ancient Roman days to mid-century Modern. Notable pieces to be featured in the 2013 show include J. Howard & Co.’s Index Horse Weathervane, circa 1855, and Arthur Dove’s painting Primaries, circa 1940, presented by Thomas Colville’s Fine Art. The show recently added awe-worthy exhibitors to the lineup, including Cove Landing, Delaney Antique Clocks, Didier Ltd., Glass Past, Carlton Hobbs LLC, Derek Johns Ltd., Theo Johns Fine Art Ltd., Magen H, and Allan Katz Americana. These exhibits will bring a new perspective in historic and modern jewelry, fine art, furniture, and décor to the showings that have been deemed [ “Old Paris” Vase with a Portrait of classical tradition by annual attendees. TwentyThomas Jefferson ] nine committees have the job of vetting for authenticity everything that is featured at the show. All the items are available for purchase by established collectors and first-time buyers alike. Admission to the Winter Antiques Show is $20, and all proceeds will benefit East Side House Settlement in order to help provide access to quality education and technology training for impoverished students in the South Bronx. Expert lectures, book signings, and an award-winning catalogue are complimentary with admission. The show will be held daily through February 3 at the Park Avenue Armory, 67th St. and Park Ave., Mon.-Wed., and Fri., noon-8pm, and Sun. and Thurs. noon-6pm. For more information, a calendar of events, or to purchase tickets, visit winterantiquesshow. com or call 718-292-7392. – Kara Faulk

Hunter College Bertha and Karl Leubsdorf Art Gallery - Times Square Show Revisited (through 12/8). Tues.-Sat., 1-6pm. 68th St. & Lexington Ave., 212-772-4991; hunter.cuny.edu/art/galleries/

Paul Kasmin Gallery - Contemporary and modern art. David LaChapelle - Still Life (through 1/19); Deborah Kass: My Elvis (Jan.Feb.). Tues.-Sat., 10am-6pm. 293 Tenth Ave. (27th St.); 511 27th St., 212-563-4474; paulkasmingallery.com Lehmann Maupin Gallery - International contemporary painting, sculpture and photography. Robin Rhode (1/10-2/16). Tues.-Sat., 10am-6pm. 540 W. 26th St., 212-255-2923; 201 Chrystie St., 212-254-0054; lehmannmaupin.com Lerebours Antiques - A collection of American antique, vintage, and mid-century modern fine furnishings, lighting, and art. 220 E. 60th St., 917-749-5866; lereboursantiques.com Luhring Augustine - Late-19th century to contemporary American and European paintings, drawings, sculpture, photography and video works. Guido van der Werve (through 12/16); Glenn Ligon (through 12/8). Tues.-Sat., 10am-6pm. 531 W. 24th St., 212-206-9100; 25 Knickerbocker Ave., Brooklyn, 718-386-2746; luhringaugustine.com Luxembourg & Dayan - Modern and contemporary works of art. A New Novel by Bjarne Melgaard (through 12/22). Tues.-Sat., 10am-5pm. 64 E. 77th St., 212-452-4646; luxembourgdayan.com

074-77 GalleriesList.indd 76

11/12/12 4:08 PM

ONTHETOWN

Marlborough Gallery - Important contemporary masters. Robert Lazzarini (damage) (through 12/22); Yoshiaki Mochizuki (through 12/22). Mon.-Sat., 10am-6pm (Chelsea location), 10am-5:30pm (57th St. location). 40 W. 57th St., 212-541-4900; 545 W. 25th St., 212-463-8634; marlboroughgallery.com Barbara Mathes Gallery - 20th-century, and contemporary American and European masters. Elementi Spaziali (through 1/5). 22 E. 80th St., 212-570-4190; barbaramathesgallery.com Yossi Milo Gallery - Contemporary photography. Chris McCaw: Marking Time (through 1/19). Tues.-Sat., 10am-6pm. 245 Tenth Ave. (24th-25th Sts.), 212-414-0370; yossimilo.com Morrison Hotel Gallery - Fine art music photography. Jenice Heo: Neil Young Series (through Dec.). Mon.-Thurs., 11am-6pm; Fri.-Sat., 11am-7pm; Sun., noon-6pm. 124 Prince St. (Wooster-Greene Sts.), 212-941-8770; www.morrisonhotelgallery.com The Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology - Ivy Style (through 1/5); Fashion & Technology (12/4-5/8). Tues.-Fri., noon-8pm; Sat., 10am-5pm. Seventh Ave. at 27th St., 212-217-4558; fitnyc.edu The Pace Gallery - 20th-century art, including works by Calder, LeWitt, Nevelson, Noguchi, Picasso, Rauschenberg, Rothko, and many others. 534 W. 25th St.: Chuck Close (through 12/22). 32 E. 57th St., 212-421-3292; 534 W. 25th St., 212-929-7000; 508 W. 25th St., 212-989-4258; 510 W. 25th St. 212-255-4044; thepacegallery.com

Courtesy of Hasted Kraeutler

Ro Gallery - Original paintings, graphics, photographs, sculptures from over 5000 artists. Visit their website for live and timed art auctions. Gallery by appointment. 47-15 36th St., Long Island City, 800-888-1063; rogallery.com Michael Rosenfeld Gallery - 20th century American art. Mon.-Sat., 10am-6pm, or by appointment. 24 W. 57th St., 7th Floor, 212-247-0082; michaelrosenfeldart.com Luise Ross Gallery - Self-taught artists from North America and Europe. Mon.-Fri., 10am-5:30pm. 511 W. 25th St. #307, 212-343-2161; luiserossgallery.com Spanierman Modern - Modern and contemporary paintings, watercolors, works on paper, drawings, and sculpture. Dan Christensen: The Early Sprays, 1967-1969 (through 1/15). Mon.-Sat., 9:30am-5:30pm. 53 E. 58th St., 212-832-1400; spaniermanmodern.com Frederieke Taylor Gallery - Conceptual art. By appointment only. 145 E. 29th St., Suite 1A, 646-230-0992; frederieketaylorgallery.com 303 Gallery - Contemporary photography, film, paintings, and sculpture. Tues.-Sat., 10am-6pm. 547 W. 21st St., 212-255-1121; 303gallery.com Tibor de Nagy Gallery - Contemporary paintings. Tues.-Sat., 10am-5:30pm. 724 Fifth Ave. (56th-57th Sts.), 212-261-5050; tibordenagy.com Viridian Artists - Works in the abstract mode, including oils, pastels on paper, prints, and sculptures. Picture perfect 2: curated by Vernita Nemec (through 12/15); Elizabeth Featherstone Hoff, Solo Exhibition (2/25-3/16). Tues.-Sat., 12-6pm. 548 W. 28th St., 6th Floor, 212-414-4040; viridianartists.com

[F ounder Sarah Hasted and business partner Joseph Kraeutler pose in their Chelsea gallery, Hasted Kraeutler ]

Hasted Kraeutler is a contemporary art gallery committed to the representation of established artists from around the world, working in all mediums. Founding partners Sarah Hasted and Joseph Kraeutler bring more than 25 years of experience to the gallery. The pair represents an impressive catalog of artists who work in the genres of narrative, landscape, still life, portraiture, conceptualism, and abstraction. From December through January 17, Hasted Kraeutler will exhibit ALBERT WATSON : Vintage Photographs Celebrating the 20th Anniversary of Cyclops. The works exhibited are unique vintage platinum-and-silver prints, which the artist has printed himself and span 40 years of the photographer’s career. This exhibition celebrates the 20th anniversary of Cyclops (Callaway Editions, 1994), Albert Watson’s first major monograph. Each photograph is one of a kind. Rarely exhibited works excluded from the original selection for his book Road Kill are also on view at their gallery at 537 W. 24th St. For more information, visit hastedkraeutler.com or call 212-627-0006.

074-77 GalleriesList.indd 77

11/12/12 4:08 PM

TRAVELcruises

afloat in America and abroad

Sailing the Mediterranean on Silversea’s gracious Spirit and the Mississippi on the grand American Queen: Fabulous fare and splendid sights. By Ruth J. Katz

Exploring 8 Mediterranean ports of call

ulip, Lily, Rosa. No, these are not the appellations on garden seed packets, but rather the soubriquets of quaint, private domiciles on the island of Malta, where conferring a moniker on a home is a conventional charm. It’s a mere hint to the appeal of the island, the first among eight equally captivating ports of call on a leisurely, luxurious journey on Silversea Cruise’s newest ship, the Spirit, christened in 2010. If you’ve never traveled with Silversea, then consider making it a nonnegotiable item on your bucket list. You’d be hard pressed to find, anywhere, a more considerate, attentive staff (the guest-to-crew ratio on the Spirit is 1.4 to 1, tough to beat in the industry); more tasty and tempting fare; and more well-appointed, glamorous vessels afloat. It is no wonder that for nine years, Condé Nast Traveler has voted it the Best Small-Ship Cruise Ship Line and for seven years, Travel + Leisure named it the World’s Best Small Cruise Ship Line; the Spirit stylish spa was also voted by Condé Nast Traveler as the top spa at sea this year. This remarkable spa, with its secluded aft deck (tricked out with obscenely oversize, languor-inducing chaises longues) and its sybaritic treatments may entice you to stay on board when you anchor dockside, but don’t be lazy. Each of the stops on my 14-day journey was so fascinating that it would have been a sacrilege to have skipped one.

Which brings me back to Malta: It is strategically situated to the mainland, and has been, therefore, a desirable foothold by waves of occupying conquerors from the Phoenicians, Carthaginians, and Normans, to the Order of St. John of Jerusalem. (The 60 kilometers of fortification walls around the island attest to it.) Inhabited for over 7,000 years (current population is about half a million) it is a delicious mélange of cultures, boasting narrow, cobbled stone streets, limestone cliffs, and bucolic countryside, not to mention nine UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Valletta, the capital, offers many sights, but the single, do-not-miss destination is the ornate, baroque St. John’s CoCathedral, with its famed Caravaggio, The Beheading of St. John. For uberadventurous thrill-seekers, Silversea can even arrange an electrifying abseiling session, rappelling off the island’s rocky outcroppings. For the more sedentary who favor shopping over scaling mountains, my Mediterranean meanderings included a trio of Greek isles—Rhodes, Crete, and Santorini—which did, in fact, offer impressive bargain-hunting, but also presented history, culture, and exciting outings. Rhodes’ Old Town is a UNESCO World Heritage site, and is rife with Medieval architecture, churches, a superb Archaeological Museum, and the Museum of Decorative Arts. You’ll want to see Lindos, where the famed Acropolis is perched on a bluff. As you navigate the final ascent to it, look for the celebrated relief of a

078-81 TravelFeature.indd 78

11/12/12 4:15 PM

pposite page: [ The Spirit at sea ] O This page from top: [ Fine cuisine on board; dreamy Sorrento on the Amalfi Coast; whitewashed Santorini in the Greek Isles ]

Rhodian trireme (warship), dating from 180 B.C., etched into the mountain. Whitewashed Santorini is the remains of a massive volcanic caldera and has several cities worth a look-see: Oia, a storybook town, is punctuated with winding streets, lined with galleries and craft emporia; Pyrgos is a village of lovely homes and the remains of a Venetian castle; Fira presents an overwhelming view and exotic treats. Crete, the fifth- largest island in the Mediterranean and the biggest of the Greek isles, was home to the ancient Minoans who flourished for about four hundred years, from 2000 B.C. to 1600 B. C., and it is here, not surprisingly, that there is a gem of an archeological museum. The island was also the birthplace of El Greco. A veritable cornucopia of sightseeing came with our stop in the Naples area, where an excursion to Pompeii is de rigueur. Buried in 79 A.D. by fierce Mount Vesuvius, and preserved under 20 feet of pumice and ash for nearly two centuries, the city is compelling, from its Stabian Baths to its brothel to its theatres and shops. There is even evidence that the Romans had streetside stalls with fast food. And if the idea of ancient, Classical vittles gets your salivary glands stirring, remember that on board the Spirit there are so many choices for round-the-clock fine and casual dining, that you can feast whenever and on whatever your heart craves. In the main dining salon, The Restaurant, many signature dishes were designed by Relais & Châteaux, but if you hanker for succulent steak-house fare, say, lamb chops or lobster tails, just ask. One of my favorite spots for a hearty breakfast was La Terrazza, aft on deck seven, with its 180-degree panoramic view, and its bountiful buffet. There is Asian cuisine at the specialty eatery, Seishin, and haute cuisine (with impressive wines) at Le Champagne, and food nearly all day long poolside (stay away from the make-your-own sundae bar!). If you feel the need to work off calories, there are limitless on-board activities (yes, shuffleboard) and a gym, of course. Even with the ship at capacity (540 passengers), you’ll never stand in a queue for a StairClimber or treadmill. Nighttime shows are entertaining, the video library is extensive, and the daily enrichment lectures, enlightening. But you may just want to chill out on deck with a tantalizing drink, and allow the staff to pamper you. Hailing from dozens of countries—Croatia or the Czech Republic, Montenegro or Morocco—the crew makes each and every guest feel like a crowned sovereign, and that is worth every penny. n

[ the details ] Expect to pay about $550 per person, per day; tipping is not permitted and cruises are inclusive, save for things like spa treatments or a small up-charge for a specialty restaurant. 877-215-9986; silversea.com.

078-81 TravelFeature.indd 79

11/12/12 4:15 PM

TRAVELcruises

Clockwise from top left: [ The period kitchen at Houmas House; 300-year-old oak trees at Oak Alley; the Mark Twain Gallery on the ship; a nighttime fireworks show above the American Queen. Inset: orange mint juleps ]

Cruising the Mighty Mississippi in Style

o what did I come home with from my enchanting idyll lollygagging around the Mississippi on board the American Queen Steamboat Company’s magnificent vessel, the American Queen, the largest paddlewheel steamboat ever built? Lotsa’ heartwarming memories—and a few coveted bottles of Fat Mama’s Knock-You-Naked Margarita Mix. (Don’t ask about how effective it is.) Sure, you can probably buy the mix—but certainly not the reminiscences—on Amazon, but it just won’t taste the same as when you acquire it in the Big Easy. My journey began and ended in the renewed Crescent City, and in between were absolutely delightful stops in Vacherie, St. Francisville, Natchez, Baton Rouge, and Darrow. But before we set sail, I had an opportunity to perform a little on-board recon, and discovered the vessel’s most evocative rooms on deck two—the Mark Twain Gallery, Ladies’ Parlour, and Gentlemen’s Card Room, where the fairer sex has been known to crash

078-81 TravelFeature.indd 80

the figurative gatekeeper. These three chambers are soberly furnished with exquisite period-style pieces and each room is so inviting, you’ll want to stake a perch in each on different days, for snoozing—or preferably, reading Mark Twain, accompanied by a mint julep. When the vessel was ready to push off, fanfare began—music everywhere!—and a thrilling, jolly calliope emitted tuneful favorites. Our first stop was the breathtaking Oak Alley Plantation, the grande dame of the illustrious River Road. This Greek-revival, antebellum manse is reached through a regal allée of twenty eight 300-year-old giant oaks, meeting celestially, and forming a canopy of wild, untamed branches. The setting is majestic. You’ll learn a great deal of history just touring a home like this: Its 16” solid brick walls kept residents cool in summer, warm in winter; to facilitate air flow, windows are positioned for cross ventilation; antebellum air conditioning consisted of ice blocks, positioned in piles of straw with

11/12/12 4:16 PM

afloat in America and abroad

[ The American Queen dockside ]

ceiling fans constructed of a single board, perpendicular to the ceiling, on a pull cord. Chairs are shockingly low, as are doorknobs, but your guide will explain that the average man and woman were just 5’4” and 5’ respectively. Rolling pins near each bed were used to beat down lumps in the horsehair/ straw mattresses. (You can also garner much background from the on-board riverlorian, who lectures daily and is also available in the ship’s chart room.) After a half-day touring Oak Alley, I returned to the American Queen and spent a guilt-free, languid afternoon reading on deck three, where America’s Front Porch proffers big, ol’ rockers. In between chapters, I helped myself to tidbits of frosty soft ice cream, freshly baked cookies, beignets; you get the idea—the 24-hour buffet here is plentiful. Food on board in general was dee-vine, courtesy of executive chef Regina Charbonneau, a renowned cookbook author and teacher, as well, whose menu design might include grilled catfish or shrimp po’boy or parchmentencased pompano, topped with julienne of spinach, sweet red peppers, carrots, lump crab meat and caper-lemon butter. (At breakfast, stock up on the homemade biscuits—you’ll not find better anywhere in the South.) Parenthetically, a highlight of our stop in Natchez was a visit with Charbonneau (a seventh-generation Natchezian), who opened her handsome home (a bed and breakfast), Twin Oaks, where she had prepared an extravagant feast. Natchez was a flourishing commercial center and in 1860, when there were 21 millionaires in the States, and 11 of them were here! Another interesting stop was St. Francisville, a charming village with a lovely historic district around Royal and Prosperity Streets, a landmark synagogue (one of the state’s oldest), and the interesting Grace Church Cemetery,

078-81 TravelFeature.indd 81

where a lone Yankee, Lieutenant Commander John E. Hart, the master of the Union warship, Albatross, is buried. Every June, his interment is re-enacted, during a commemoration of the “Last Day of the War.” No matter what city you explore with the American Queen, the ship arranges for a hop-on-hop-off bus, and I would strongly suggest riding it at least for one loop to get a sense of each town. The last stop was the Houmas House Plantation, a crown jewel of the River Road, which is owned today by a visionary New Orleanian, Kevin Kelly, who bought the property in 2003, determined to revive this special plantation (that once had 300,000 acres!); the stately estate now reflects the best parts of each period of its rich history and currently there are various venues on the property for events, strolling, idling, dining, or shopping (the improbably grandiose gift shop will blow you away). Evening activities usually include a stage show, Broadway- or Sinatrathemed, or—a voyage highlight—a delectable conversation with “Mark Twain.” After the evening’s program, if you still crave action, there’s soulful jazz or Dixieland music somewhere on board. I usually just hung out on the deck outside my cabin, heady with the sight of the Mississippi snaking by, contemplating the South of yesteryear and Twain’s world, prompting me to remember the bard’s apocryphal comment that Old Man River is “too thick to drink, too thin to plow.” n

[ the details ] A typical seven-night voyage starts at $2,395 inclusive, per person; the ship has itineraries in the Upper and Lower Mississippi. 888-749-5280; americanqueensteamboatcompany.com.

11/12/12 4:16 PM

New York

Sightseeing

Harry Potter fans visiting the city, rejoice: you’re getting another chance to step inside the famous wizard’s magical world with Harry Potter: The Exhibition having returned to Discovery Times Square (226 W. 44th St.), scheduled through April 7. The 14,000-square-foot “experiential” exhibition features dramatic displays inspired by the Hogwarts film sets and displays the amazing craftsmanship behind authentic costumes and props from the films. Included are some newly added never-before-seen artifacts from the epic series finale, as well hundreds of authentic artifacts displayed in settings inspired by the film sets—including Hagrid’s hut (above)—and more. Visit discoverytsx.com or harrypotterexhibition.com for more info.

Apollo Theater – “Long Live The Music” at Harlem’s world-famous theater. Check out the famous Apollo Amateur Night every Wednesday at 7:30pm, and soak up music culture at the Apollo Music Café and Salon Series. 253 W. 125th St. btw. Seventh & Eighth Aves., 212-531-5337; apollotheater.org Bike and Roll NYC – An exciting way to exercise and see the sights, Bike and Roll operates rentals and tours out of numerous convenient locations in Manhattan and Brooklyn. Pedal through Central Park, cruise the Brooklyn Bridge, and visit the 9/11 Memorial. Kids’ equipment available. Call or visit website for additional locations. Pier 84, Hudson River Park, W. 44th St. & the Hudson River, 212-260-0400; bikenewyorkcity.com BODIES...The Exhibition – Get in touch with what lies beneath the surface at this captivating exhibit, which showcases real human bodies. More than just an anatomy lesson, the exhibit displays the human body in several stages and conditions. Explore systems of organs and tissues that connect us all as humans Exhibition Centre at the South Street Seaport, 11 Fulton St., 888-9BODIES; bodiestheexhibition.com Central Park (centralparknyc.org) – Belvedere Castle (79th St. south of the Great Lawn, 212-772-0210) - This famed, whimsical landmark is within sight of the Delacorte Theatre (summer home of the Public Theater/New York Shakespeare Festival.) The Henry Luce Nature Observatory at Belvedere

Castle is a permanent interactive exhibit focusing on how to observe, record, and identify the plants and wildlife that exist in Central Park’s rich and diverse natural habitats. Bethesda Terrace (mid-Park at 72nd St.) - Reconstruction has restored the Victorian stonework and steps to the acre-sized esplanade. Carousel (mid-Park at 64th St., 212-879-0244) - Nostalgic turn-of-the-century merrygo-round open daily, weather permitting. Central Park Zoo (64th St. & Fifth Ave., 212-439-6500; centralparkzoo.com) - From a steamy rain forest to an icy Antarctic penguin habitat, the zoo features natural tropical, temperate, and polar environments with dozens of fascinating animals, from leafcutter ants to polar bears, plus monkeys, sea lions, and cute penguins. Open Mon.-Fri., 10am-5pm; weekends, 10am-5:30pm thru October. Open daily, 10am-4:30pm, in November. The Conservatory Garden (Fifth Ave. near 105th St.) - A lush and dazzling six-acre garden. The Dairy (mid-Park at 65th St., 212-794-6564) - The main visitor information center, set in a vintage Victorian Chalet. Horseand-Carriage Rides (212-736-0680) wait on the Central Park So./59th St. side of the Park. Sheep Meadow (66th to 69th Sts. on the west side of the park) is a lush, 15-acre quiet zone open for passive play and skyline admiring. Strawberry Fields (71st to 74th St. near Central Park West) - A 2.5-acre Interna-tional Garden of Peace dedicated to the memory of John Lennon. Swedish Cottage Marionette Theatre (enter at Central Park West & 81st St., 212-988-9093) - Shows for the general public. Call for current schedule. Tisch Children’s Zoo (Fifth Ave. btw. 64th & 65th Sts., 212-439-6500) - This wildlife center echoes and reinforces the pastoral landscape of Central Park by creating a rustic

082-85 SightseeingList.indd 82

11/12/12 4:37 PM

ONTHETOWN

Enchanted Forest with soft paths and native plantings. Youngsters will love the bewitching area, which suddenly unfolds into a magical place filled with birds flying freely overhead, contained in a virtually invisible net suspended in the trees, and a petting zoo. Circle Line Downtown – Offering the ultimate tourist sea excursion, the Circle Line Downtown’s ZEPHYR sails the harbor with a narrated tour of landmarks, including the Statue of Liberty, Empire State Building, and more. The ZEPHYR departs daily at 10am, 11:15am, 12:30pm, 2pm, 3:30pm & 5pm. Opt for classic New York Water Taxi tours, or the thrilling SHARK speed boat adventure. Special cruises this winter include Breakfast With Santa ZEPHYR Cruise (12/15); ZEPHYR New Year’s Eve Cruise (12/31); NYC Audubon Winter EcoCruise (1/6, 13, 20, 27 & 2/3). 877-979-2542; circlelinedowntown.com CitySights NY – Experience unobstructed views, of New York City with hop-on, hop-off flexibility atop signature double-decker buses that glide by main attractions and top neighborhoods. Buses are enhanced with state-of-the-art sound systems and dedicated, knowledgeable guides who know the ins-and-outs, and even some fascinating anecdotes of the metropolis’ best-known spots. City Sights also feature combo tickets, day trips, and more. They offer tours in four languages (Italian, French, German, and Spanish). 212-812-2700; citysightsny.com Discovery Times Square – NYC’s first large-scale exhibition center presenting visitors with limited-run, educational and immersive exhibit experiences while exploring the world’s defining cultures, art, history and events. The popular Harry Potter: The Exhibition returned on November 3. Post-exhibit, indulge at the Cake Boss Café, featuring treats from TLC star Buddy Valastro. Also on view: Spy - The Exhibit (through 3/31). Open Sun.-Thurs., 10am-8pm; Fri.-Sat., 10am-9pm. 226 W. 44th St., 866-987-9692; discoverytsx.com Empire State Building – From the Observatory on the 86th floor, reached by express elevator in less than a minute, Manhattan is an unforgettable spectacle day or night. You’ll enjoy the panoramic view, which, on a clear day, reaches 80 miles in each direction. Visitors may also enjoy the free changing exhibits in the lobby. Tickets to the 102nd floor observatory sold only upon arrival. Daily, 8am-2am; last elevator at 1:15. $25; $22 (seniors, 62+); $19 (6-12); free (under 5). 350 Fifth Ave. (34th St.), 212-736-3100; esbnyc.com

Grand Central Terminal – Not just the central hub of commuter transportation, this landmark masterpiece boasts a vast, and dramatic sunken central room, ornamented by a ceiling depicting constellations and an information booth adorned with a beautiful, recognizable clock. Visitors can enjoy fine dining and retail opportunities throughout the terminal. Grand Central Holiday Fair (through 12/24); 11th Annual Holiday Train Show (through 2/10). 42nd St & Park Ave., 212-532-4900; grandcentralterminal.com Gray Line Sightseeing Tours – Daily tours by open-top deluxe doubledecker buses and luxury coaches including the ALL LOOPS TOUR, a 2-day ticket hop-on and off with 50+ stops from Times Square and Broadway to Harlem to Brooklyn. 777 Eighth Ave. btw. 47th & 48th Sts.; PABT, 42nd St. & Eighth Ave.; Times Square, Broadway btw. 46th & 47th Sts., 800-669-0051; newyorksightseeing.com Harry Potter The Exhibition – Experience the amazing craftsmanship of more than 200 authentic costumes and props from the Harry Potter films displayed in settings inspired by the films sets. While touring through the exhibition space, discover iconic items such as Harry’s original wand and eyeglasses, the Marauder’s Map, Gryffindor school uniforms as well as costumes worn at the Yule Ball. Discovery - Times Square Exhibition, 226 W. 44th St., 866-987-9692; discoverytsx.com Helicopter Flight Services Tours – Fly high above New York City via helicopter and get one of the best views around. They offer three helicopter tour options that include breathtaking views of the Statue of Liberty, NY Harbor, the Chrysler Building, Central Park, Columbia University, the George Washington Bridge, Yankee Stadium and the Financial Center. They also offer customized tours and hourly rates. Mon.-Fri., 9am-6pm; Sat., 9am-5:30pm; Sun., 9am-4:30pm. Reservations are recommended. Customized after-hours tours available upon request. Downtown Heliport (Pier 6 & the East River), 212-355-0801; heliny.com Hornblower Cruises and Events – Hornblower offers world-class dining cruises aboard state-of-the-art luxury yachts set against the sparkling New York City skyline and offering innovative, fun features and freshly prepared cuisine. The new Hornblower Hyrbid offers the most eco-friendly cruise experience with

New York City is teeming with celebrities, but there’s only place you can guarantee yourself some star-spotting: Madame Tussauds in Times Square. Spirit of New York is an interactive exhibit celebrating many of the city’s greatest icons and defining cultural moments. You can immerse yourself in everything that is “New York” with a vibrant walk through the city’s history along with iconic wax figures of yesterday and today; stand alongside Marilyn Monroe in a classic movie scene; ring the bell at the Stock Exchange; and reflect at the 9/11 Memorial. See our Madame Tussauds listing for more information.

082-85 SightseeingList.indd 83

11/12/12 4:37 PM

SIGHTSEEINGNEWYORK

leading technology. Cruises include the Starlight Dinner Cruise (featuring a fourcourse, seated dinner, dancing, live entertainment, and optional full open bar), Skyline Brunch Cruise, Sights & Sips Cruise, and the Cocktail Cruise. 212-2067522; hornblower.com Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum – The museum complex includes the 900-foot-long aircraft carrier with seven full decks and four theme halls; the guided missile submarine Growler; an extensive aircraft collection including the A-12 Blackbird and the British Airways Concorde; and the Space Shuttle Pavilion, which allows visitors to get up close to the Space Shuttle Enterprise. Pier 86, W. 46th St. & 12th Ave., 212-245-0072; intrepidmuseum.org Liberty Helicopter Tours – Thrilling airborne tour options in modern jet helicopters including The Big Apple ($150/person); New York, New York ($215/ person); Romance/VIP Tour ($995/person). Switch it up with the Soar and Sail/Big Apple, a combo package, which includes a helicopter and harbor cruise experience. Tours depart Monday – Saturday from 9am-6:30pm and Sundays from 9am-5pm. Reservations required for 6 or more passengers. Downtown Heliport (Pier 6 & the East River), 212-967-6464; libertyhelicopters.com Madame Tussauds New York – Rub elbows with the Hollywood elite, sports heroes, and political heavyweights…well almost. At Madame Tussauds, you can view, and take snapshots with over 200 wax replicas of your favorite stars. The famed Madame Tussauds wax museum in London has a spectacular NYC version in Times Square that has solidified itself on any tourist’s must-go list. Visit the museum’s Cinema 4D experience that puts you in the midst of all the action, including adventures with Marvel Super Heroes.

082-85 SightseeingList.indd 84

Open 365 days a year at 10am. $36; $29 (4-12). 234 W. 42nd St. (Seventh-Eighth Aves.), 866-841-3505; nycwax.com National 9/11 Memorial – Expanded over about 8 acres of the 16-acre site, the memorial includes two acre-size square reflecting pools, featuring North America’s largest manmade waterfalls cascading down the eight sides of the pools. In the spaces the towers previously occupied, there’s a cleared space for gatherings and special ceremonies called the “Memorial Grove,” and over 400 swamp white oaks including the “Survivor Tree,” a callery pear nursed back to health following the attacks. Advance visitor passes are required. To reserve a pass, visit 911memorial. org or call 212-266-5200. 1 Albany St. at Greenwich St. NBC Studio Tour – Stroll through the halls of NBC, the NBC Sharp Globe Theater, and the studios of some of NBC’s most popular shows, including SNL, Today, and others. Tours run every 15 to 30 minutes, seven days a week. Reservations recommended. Mon.-Thurs., 8:30am-5:30pm; Fri.-Sat., 8:30am-6:30pm; Sun., 9:15am-4:30pm (schedule subject to change). 30 Rockefeller Plaza, 49th St. btw. Fifth & Sixth Aves., 212-664-3700; nbcstudiotour.com New York Water Taxi – Tours include the Hop-On/Hop-Off pass, with stops at Fulton Ferry Landing, South Street Seaport, Battery Park, Greenwich Village (Christopher St.), and West 44th St. The NYC Audubon Winter EcoCruise (1/6, 13, 20, 27 & 2/3) allows riders to look out for harbor seals and learn about other NYC winter animals at Governors Island and surrounding island rocks, in addition to a tour of the harbor’s landmarks. 212-742-1969; nywatertaxi.com OnBoard Tours – NY See It All! is NYC’s most comprehensive 5-1/2-hour

Rockefeller Center is one of the most iconic landmarks in the world. In addition to the Top of the Rock observation deck (featuring stunning views such as the one above), they offer a host of dining and shopping options, the NBC Studio Tour, and the Rockefeller Center Tour. (See listings for more information.) Plus: The famed Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree will remain lit until 11pm on January 7, and the Rink at Rockefeller Center (therinkatrockcenter.com) is open through April. rockefellercenter.com

11/12/12 4:37 PM

ONTHETOWN

tour, which combines driving with short walks and includes a harbor cruise to see the Statue of Liberty, Brooklyn Bridge, Empire State Building and more. Departs at 8:30am, 10, 12:30pm, and 2 every day. $79.99; under 12, $59.99 (Fri.-Sun., $89.99/$69.99). Other exciting tours include NY See The Lights!, ideal for the holiday season. 212-852-4821; onboardnewyorktours.com Radio City Music Hall – Explore the iconic concert hall on tours that bring music and design history to life. The famous Radio City Stage Door Tour, takes visitors behind-the-scenes of the theater, lounges and corridors of Radio City (daily, 11am-3pm; $19.95; seniors & under 12, $15). Tickets sold at Radio City on the day of the tour. For design-savvy visitors, hop on the Art Deco Tour for a closer look at the innovative mind of interior designer Donald Deskey. Tickets available only at Radio City Sweets and Gifts (Sixth Ave. btw. 50th & 51st Sts.). The Career Educational Tour gives groups all the perks of the Stage Door Tour, plus insider info on what it takes to run a landmark like Radio City (contact Group Sales at 212-465-6080). 1260 Sixth Ave. (50th St.), 212-307-7171; radiocity.com

and anti-conjuror Dan Sperry, a spooked out retail store, the Crypt Cafe, two bars, and more, Times Scare promises “an unforgettable night of shock illusion.” Open Tues.-Sun. 669 Eighth Ave. (42nd St.), 212-586-7829; timesscarenyc.com Top of the Rock – Capture the most comprehensive and stunning view of New York City up to 70 floors above street level at Rockefeller Center. The brain-

child of John D. Rockefeller, the original deck was designed to evoke the upper decks of a 1930s grand ocean liner. The historic value remains, however Top of the Rock is chockfull of modern, innovative features, with three decks featuring outdoor terraces and indoor space. Open daily, 8am-midnight. Last elevator goes up at 11pm. Reserved-time tickets available. 30 Rockefeller Center (W. 50th St. btw. Fifth & Sixth Aves.), 877-692-7625; topoftherocknyc.com

THE RIDE – A spectacular immersive and interactive entertainment experience that moves you through midtown as an ever-changing show featuring actors, performers, and citizens unfolds before you. Each vehicle features over 3,000 LED lights, 40 video screens, an IMAX Theater’s worth of audio equipment, cutting-edge speakers, and “floorshaker” sound system technology that emulates everything from passing subways to a thumping nightclub. Box office at Madame Tussauds, 234 W. 42nd St., 866-299-9682; experiencetheride.com Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Times Square – Ripley’s isn’t for those with a weak stomach. Witness the juggernaut of human oddities and mind-blowing wonders from real life stories. Open daily, 9am-1am. 234 W. 42nd St. (Seventh-Eighth Aves.), 212-398-3133; ripleysnewyork.com Rockefeller Center Tour – A look into the rich history and breathtaking artistry of NYC’s most famous landmark. Tickets available at the Top of the Rock box office (50th St. btw. 5th & 6th Aves.). 212-698-2000, ext. 5; rockefellercenter.com Spy: The Secret World of Espionage – Declassified CIA artifacts ensures a classified good time at this Discovery Times Square exhibit. Get an inside look at the real world of intelligence, displaying actual items from the CIA vault. Go undercover by creating your own disguise and using voice manipulation, try your hand at navigating a laser field. Gadgets aside, viewers will learn about the important faces behind some of the most top-secret cases in history. 226 W. 44th St., 866-987-9692; discoverytsx.com Times Scare – Halloween never ends at this year-round, state-of-the-art, interactive haunted attraction in the heart of Times Square. With live magic shows featuring coveted shock illusionist

082-85 SightseeingList.indd 85

11/12/12 4:37 PM

TEN

DININGNEW YORK

TOP restaurants

RAYMI

CALLE OCHO

This enormous restaurant inside New York’s Hotel Excelsior is named for 8th Street, the site of the annual festival in the Cuban area of Miami known as Little Havana. It has a long bar with dark red leather seats, red walls, and an open kitchen within the dining room that turns out Pan-Latin cuisine. Executive Chef Rodney Mitchell provides a dozen ceviches to choose from, and the most popular appetizer is the Arepa served on a Colombian sweet corn cake, like a soft, sweet cookie with a mound of tender pulled beef (ropa vieja), marinated onions, and chopped tomato salad. Datiles are dates stuffed with almond and wrapped in crispy bacon. Bistec, a Cuban-style “steak frites”-type entrée with watercress and tomato salad, includes yucca fries made from the cassava, a potato-like root vegetable. They are just as addictive but a bit lighter than French fries. A very popular dish for the table is Chef Mitchell’s version of Paella, meant to be shared.

Noah Fecks

The International Latin Brunch on weekends is so popular you will need to make reservations far in advance. With a pitcher of tequilaspiked sangria (red or white), enjoy a Cuban Sandwich of roasted pork, ham, cheese, pickles, and chimichurri fries; the latter are potato fries dressed with a tangy vinaigrette of green herbs and spices. Try fried eggs in a dish called Vaca Frita al Caballo, a Cuban skirt steak with Latin pork fried rice and avocado. Dinner daily from 6 to 10:30pm; Friday-Saturday to 11:30 pm; weekend brunch noon to 3 pm.

This high-ceilinged, spacious newcomer in the Flatiron District calls itself a “Peruvian Kitchen and Pisco Bar” and holds many culinary treats. But first, have a Pisco Sour, a tasty, foamy cocktail made with Peru’s national drink, a type of distilled brandy mixed with lime, egg whites, and some secrets. You will get a little bowl of Cancha with your drink; this is Andean popcorn, which is not popped—it is boiled, then fried, then salted, and you can’t stop eating it.

Location 43 West 24th Street • 212-929-1200 • richardsandoval.com/raymi

086-90 Dining-TenTop.indd 86

NYC

In the amazingly large kitchen, Chef Erik Ramirez creates the authentic cuisine of Peru, from the coastal areas known for ceviche and tiradito (a Peruvian version of sashimi), to the mountains, where potatoes and meat rule. A flavorful and elegant Fluke Tiradito is garnished with a few slivers of sweet potato, aji amarillo (yellow chile), and chalaca, a dressing of onions, peppers, and lime juice. The Causa of the Day is a must. This native treat is built on a base of mashed yellow potato spiked with key lime, onion, oil, and amarillo and topped with a variety of treats, such as cubes of tuna ceviche. The Anticucho is a traditional preparation of grilled meat served on wooden skewers—sort of a Peruvian shish kebab. One delicious version is hangar steak glazed and grilled and dressed with salsa. Main courses include Pan Roasted Chicken Breast with creamy aji amarillo sauce, roasted baby potatoes, olives and quail eggs. Don’t leave without trying the Picarones: ring-shaped fritters (Peruvian doughnuts) from a dough made with yellow squash or pumpkin, served warm with a molasses sauce. Talk about addictive! Lunch weekdays, 11:30am to 2:30pm; dinner daily 5 to 11 pm, later on Friday and Saturday. Location 45 West 81st Street • 212-873-5025 • calleochonyc.com

11/12/12 4:13 PM

luscious Latin By Marian Betancourt

ROSA MEXICANO

Crema Julietta Ballestero, chef and owner of Crema, a chic restaurant in Chelsea, comes from a family of artists and focuses her cuisine not only on flavor and technique, but color, architecture, and finishing flourishes, such as edible flowers. Crema’s understated decor of salmon stucco and mirrored walls is highlighted by jars of bright yellow lemons on the bar. A small back patio with big orange umbrellas provides a romantic dining spot in warm weather. Ballestero is from Monterey but trained here at the International Culinary Institute, and likes to fuse her native cuisine with international touches. Dishes for the table to share include Ensalada Campesina, an assortment of grilled vegetables, avocado, panela cheese, and green aioli with cumin-lime vinaigrette. A house favorite is the Callo de Hacha Con Chile Morita y Mango: dry scallops are pan-seared in the smoky chile morita, set on a sweet corn cake, and topped with avocado mousse, mango salsa, chipotle aioli—and a purple flower. It’s as tasty as it is beautiful to look at. An outstanding appetizer is the Taquitas (small rolled up tortillas) de Chilario with slow-cooked pork, chile ancho, jalapeno vinegar, chipotle-cilantro drizzle, and crema. The adobomarinated grilled skirt steak, Tacos de Carne Asada, is paired with black beans in corn tortillas with a killer chile tomatillo sauce on the side that will leave you wanting more. Ballestero glazes Pekin duck breast for a popular entrée, Magret de Pato en Mole, served over mole poblano with roasted plantains, pomegranate honey, crema, and a potato cheese enchilada. Lunch and dinner noon to 10:30pm, Thursday to 11 pm; Friday and Saturday to midnight; Sunday 10pm.

The original Rosa Mexicano opened on the Upper East Side in 1984 and retains an intimate, cozy charm—unlike the noisier newcomer at Union Square. Here, in a small, simply decorated bar area and L-shaped dining room of traditional salmon-colored stucco walls with black tiles and paper cutouts fluttering overhead, diners enjoy conversation along with some serious eats prepared by Chef Ignacio Cotzomi. As in all the Rosa Mexicano restaurants (there is another in Lincoln Center and others in many cities), guacamole is prepared tableside, as mild or spicy as you like. This demonstration makes you want to eat more of it than you might otherwise. A starter of Garlic and Lime Smoked Ribs may change your mind forever about what you think ribs should taste like. These are tossed in a delicious and sticky piloncillochipotle glaze that will have you licking your fingers. The accompanying salad of jicama, mango, and cucumber will help cool down your palate. On a winter day, have some Tortilla Soup, a Mexican chicken soup to warm the soul, with pasilla chile, grilled chicken, avocado, shredded cheese, crema, and strips of crispy tortilla.

Location 1063 First Avenue • 212-753-7407 • rosamexicano.com

086-90 Dining-TenTop.indd 87

NYC

The Jumbo Lump Crab Enchiladas entrée comes with a fabulous creamy tomatillo sauce and it goes down easy like comfort food. You don’t realize how much heat it packs until your eyes begin to tear. Mucho delicioso! There are many classics to choose from, such as the Steamed Lamb Shank coated with three chiles, garlic and spices wrapped in parchment paper and steamed until fork tender. Dinner 5 to 10:30 pm weekdays; 4 to 11:30pm Saturday; to 10:30pm Sunday. Location 111 West 17th Street • 212-691-4477 • cremarestaurante.com

11/12/12 4:13 PM

TEN

DININGNEW YORK

TOP restaurants

Ofrenda

El Parador Café Founded in 1959, Murray Hill’s El Parador Café claims to be the oldest authentic Mexican restaurant in New York, but there is nothing dated or old-fashioned about this busy and congenial place. Twinkling light from the dark cutout lanterns hanging from a beamed ceiling lends an air of festivity. Carved wooden frames enclose indigenous art displayed on the white brick walls. The café has been owned by Manuel Alejandro for many years and his son, Alex, a graduate of the International Culinary Institute, is the host. Classic Mexican cuisine is key here and the signature appetizer, Lobster Salpicon, is a chilled half-lobster salad with corn, scallions, tomato, Serrano, and mesclun. Aguachile de Cameron, a shrimp ceviche, is served simply with celery, jalepeno, and lime, and is always on the menu. If you have never tried a Fire Roasted Chile Relleno stuffed with peanut butter, you are in for a treat; this appetizer is paired with a second relleno stuffed with anejo cheese. Pork Tenderloin Carnitas with mole negro, rice, avocado, and cilantro are tender and tangy. A classic entrée—indeed, the national dish of Mexico—is the Mole Poblano, a half-chicken braised in the mole sauce. Another specialty of the house is Bouillabaisse Veracruzana, a Latin take on the French classic. The tasty Ropa Vieja Mexicana is braised and shredded flank steak with fried green plantains, black beans, and salsa. Coconut and peanut brittle crumbled over Mexican Fried Ice Cream is a delicious way to end your dinner. Lunch and dinner Monday-Saturday, noon to midnight; closed major holidays and summer Sundays.

Ofrenda is a cantina-like bistro in the West Village with small candlelit tables, mismatched wooden chairs, and little cabinets of curiosities on the walls. Owner and host Jorge Gomez, 29, considers it like his home, where guests find genuine Mexican food served elegantly in an unpretentious setting. By your second visit, the staff will know your name. The bar serves 240 types of tequila in a variety of recipes made with fresh juices, many of them created by Gomez.

Location 113 Seventh Avenue South • 212-924-2305 • ofrendanyc.com

086-90 Dining-TenTop.indd 88

NYC

Chef Mario Hernandez is from a culinary family in Cuernavaca Moreles and worked with American luminaries such as Douglas Rodriguez. He uses his native products and spices to create sophisticated Mexican fare that will haunt your culinary memory. Empanadas filled with spinach, corn, manchego, and chile amarillo are accompanied by a delicious roasted peach-onion salsa. The Gordita is a wow: Tender habanero- and coffee-braised pork, a slice of pork belly, pickled red onion, cilantro, and a Yucatan salsa of crushed toasted pumpkin seeds and tomato is all encased in a crunchy corn bun; a sort of Mexican slider. Try the Tacos de Chapulin, grasshoppers from Oaxaca, with pasilla mescal salsa—a very earthy dish with a sweet-heat essence. The Costilla Tatemade entrée of slow braised short ribs is served with mescal pasilla salsa, grilled nopal salad, and black beans flavored with pipicha, which is a piney, minty herb similar to cilantro. Red pomegranate seeds float in the dish, and you will treasure each one for that burst of tangy sweet juice when you bite into it. Ofrenda means “offering,” and this is a wonderful one. Dinner Monday-Saturday, 4 to 11pm; later Thursday-Saturday; weekend brunch, 11am to 4pm. Location 325 East 34th Street • 212-679-6812 • elparadorcafe.com

11/12/12 4:14 PM

luscious Latin VERMILION

MAYA To celebrate the 15th anniversary of his first New York restaurant, Richard Sandoval went all out. The space was expanded and redesigned to create a convivial place for relaxing and enjoying conversation and good food with friends. There are lounge areas, banquettes, and a communal table. The new Tequilaria Maya is happy hour central, and 100 different tequilas are available. Should you choose to own a bottle, you can rent a storage locker for future visits. Another recent addition is the weekend “bottomless margarita brunch.”

Noah Fecks

Vermilion is a big restaurant in a big building with a menu of big flavors. With floor-to-ceiling windows, it is the culinary corner office. Owner Rohini Dey, PhD, has straddled the corporate and academic worlds, and her entrepreneurial spirit took hold when she decided to give a boost to the food of her native India by combining it with a Latin template. Indian food served in America, she thought, was bland, so she opened the first Vermilion in Chicago. Dey, who is involved in promoting women in the culinary arts, showcases the cooking of various well-known guest chefs at the New York restaurant (such as Sue Torres of Suenos).

Noah Fecks

Sandoval’s love of whimsy and combining new flavors shows in the four house guacamoles for the table. Try the one with diced tuna tartare mixed with serrano, chipotle, and sesame seeds, and served with wonton chips (rather than tortilla chips) for a lighter crunch. Don’t pass up the Smoked Brisket Taco topped with a creamy chile slaw, pickled onion, and avocado. There’s a delicious Enchilada with huitlacoche and wild mushroom, roasted garlic, cheese, and poblano chile sauce. A signature entrée is Lobster and Shrimp Yucatan served on a long, elegant plate with creamed corn, watercress, chile de arbal sauce, and habanera rouille. Maya’s revamped menu includes more family-style dishes to share, such as the Cazuelas (Mexican slow braises). The Beef Short Ribs version is drop-dead delicious in a tamarind mole with root vegetables, black beans, and rice. Each component is placed in its own dish on a tray so you can serve and dish out as much or as little as you like. Dinner daily 5 to 10pm, later on weekends; Tequilaria until midnight; brunch on weekends from 11am to 3pm.

Location 480 Lexington Avenue • 212-871-6600 • thevermilionrestaurant.com

086-90 Dining-TenTop.indd 89

NYC

Signature Latin-Indian entrees include Caldeirada de Peixe, a traditional Brazilian seafood stew with Indian seasoning and tomato rice. Another is Chili-Glazed Blackened Tamarind Ribs served with avocado fritters and tomatillo pachadi, a type of chutney. Tandoori Skirt Steak is seared over a flame and served with chorizo and a jicama citrus roll. Side dishes offer the best of both worlds with basmati rice and plantain chips. Lunch Monday-Friday; dinner Monday-Saturday from 5pm; closed Sunday; tasting menus with 10 elements from $90 to $110.

Kyle Dean Reinford

The lounge and bar on the first floor is a place to indulge in some signature small plates with a cocktail. Duck Vindaloo Arepa—shredded marinated duck brushed with pomegranate molasses with curry leaf mango—is a delicious pairing of two intense cuisines. Try Tamarind Cilantro Shrimp served with cool daikon slaw, or the tangy Tomatillo Gazpacho with crispy eggplant fritters.

Location 1191 First Avenue • 212-585-1818 • richardsandoval.com/mayany

11/12/12 4:14 PM

TEN

DININGNEW YORK

TOP restaurants

FONDA

SUENoS Suenos is a below-street-level Chelsea hideaway with three brightly colored rooms, an enclosed courtyard garden, and stunning wall art in the form of folk-like dream boxes by Lucas Moran. Owner/chef Sue Torres grew up on Long Island but did not discover Mexican cuisine until after culinary school, when she worked at a high-end Mexican restaurant. She says she will never tire of cooking the cuisine because of the abundance of chiles, herbs, and spices and the many layers and nuances using them. The signature appetizer, Lobster Sopes, is an example of such nuances. Adabo chile is poached in coconut milk and its oil seeps into the milk to provide a totally new spice experience. The lobster is then poached in a silky reduction of this sauce and served in a house-made, crispy, chile-spiked corn cup. Corn is ground by hand at the restaurant with a Molino and lava stone, providing a base for making all of the restaurant’s tamales, tortillas, and gorditas. On Sundays and Tuesdays, you can create your own tacos or tostados with a variety of fillings such as tequila-flamed shrimp and tamarind-glazed hanger steak for $35 per person. A popular entrée is the Chile-Rubbed Goat steamed in Mexican beer (Negra Modelo) served with mashed green plantains. The wet chile rub gives the dish its large flavor. The Crispy Duck Confit with sweet plantains, goat cheese Gordita, and pipian (a type of green mole) is another winner. A special four-course tasting menu is available for $50. Dinner Sunday-Saturday from 5 to 11pm, later on Saturday; closed Mondays.

Stephen Smith, Imaginare Co.

Avenue B is the newest location for Roberto Santibanez’s Fonda restaurants; the first is in Brooklyn. This champion of Mexican cuisine, author of Truly Mexican, and a Latin cuisines advisor for the Culinary Institute of America showcases some of the best Mexican food you are likely to find anywhere in this simple and charming restaurant with a small lounge, a bar, and tables in the back. (Fonda means “tavern” or, “small restaurant.”)

Location 40 Avenue B • 212-677-4098 • fondarestaurant.com

086-90 Dining-TenTop.indd 90

NYC

The Tres Leches dessert is literally to die for—the Cajeta-soaked sponge cake contains three milks and is topped with rompope (eggnog) sauce, whipped cream and toasted slivered almonds. Dinner daily from 5 to 10pm; later Thursday-Saturday; brunch weekends, 11am to 4pm.

Stephen Smith, Imaginare Co.

Mole is a rich and complex staple of Mexican cuisine and a closely guarded secret among the moleros (mole masters), a role Santibanez enjoys here; try his spicy hazelnut mole served with Shrimp and Scallop Enchiladas. The salsas are also terrific. Salsa verde is so fresh and green you will think you are in an herb garden. Try some with Fish Salpicon, a signature appetizer salad of chopped white fish slightly cooked and crunchy onions, Serrano chiles, and cilantro—meant to be rolled into a hand-pressed corn tortilla. Squeeze on some lime and add a big dollop of salsa verde. Tlacoyo con Hongos is a black bean masa “boat,” so called because it is a torpedo-shaped corn cake layered with bean spread, big chunks of sautéed shitake mushrooms, salsas, cheese, and crema. Mushrooms are marvelous in this setting and you will want more.

Location 311 West 17th Street • 212-243-1333 • suenosnyc.com

11/12/12 4:14 PM

Promenade PICKS Oceana

A staple of NYC’s seafood-dining scene located in a glittering and expansive Rockefeller Center space, Oceana offers a 165-seat dining room, private rooms providing an additional 106 seats, and additional outdoor seating for 60 during the warmer months. A huge, custom lobster tank announces the open kitchen and the striking raw bar greets Oceana’s entrants with one of the largest displays of fresh fish in the city. Raw bar diners who snag a seat at this luxuriously appointed beacon of seafood are privy to a daily selection of oysters and clams on the half shell, crudos, ceviches, caviar plates and chilled seafood — among which marinated razor clams and the spicy smoked tuna roll are stand-outs.

Hakkasan New York After opening their first (and flagship) restaurant in London in 2001—becoming the only European Chinese restaurant to receive a Michelin Star in 2003—and later expanding with a second London location and into Miami, Mumbai, Abu Dhabi, and Dubai, the world-renowned Chinese restaurant finally arrived in New York City this past April, bringing their modern Cantonese cuisine, impeccable service, and unparalleled dining experience to Manhattan. It was most certainly worth the wait.

Although any restaurateur or chef will tell you that the greatest reward is getting a positive response from patrons, Oceana has sustained quite a few more tangible ones as well. Oceana just earned its sixth Michelin star for 2013, and in his three-star review, former Times critic Frank Bruni wrote, “The fish was excellent, and superbly cooked. More than that, it was a vessel for an exhilarating voyage around the world, through culinary traditions as disparate as Italian and Indian.” Live jazz is offered every Saturday from 9pm-midnight (no cover or minimum with dinner; a two-drink minimum without), and “Buck a Shuck” Sundays, through the end of December, feature the chefselected Oyster of the Day for $1 at the cafe or at the bar. NYC

Photos: Mark Whitfield

A pure and natural ethos characterizes Executive Chef Ben Pollinger’s cooking style. Through his innovative compositions, traditional preparations of whole fish and other offerings are transformed into superb global cuisine, such as the bold flavors of his Halibut Saltimbocca with spinach, prosciutto, confit tomato and sheep’s milk ricotta. House smoked fish, specialty condiments, and artisan breads baked on premises further showcase his careful attention to detail.

Location 120 W. 49th St. • 212-759-5941 • oceanarestaurant.com

The menu follows that of Hakkasan’s other locations, utilizing the recipes of London-based Corporate Executive Chef Tong Chee Hwee, who has been with the restaurant since its inception, with International Development Chef Ho Chee Boon helming the New York kitchen. (Chef Ho, who relocated here from Bangkok for the launch, has developed a few menu items that keep locally sourced ingredients and influences in mind.) What also stands out is the opulent interior (designed by the design team of Gilles & Boissier, who also worked on the Miami and Abu Dhabi locations): a deep blue color scheme with red and pink undertones and blue- and red-hued frosted glass and mirrors installed throughout, and a lovely 60-foot bar and 80-foot entranceway lobby.

NYC

Signature dishes include: Crispy Duck Salad with pomelo and pomegranate seeds and Stir-Fry Lobster with Wild Mushrooms in XO Sauce; Roasted Silver Cod with Champagne & Chinese Honey; and Stir-Fry Black Pepper Rib-Eye Beef with Merlot. Featured cocktails include the Plum Sour, the Zesty Martini, and the Smoky Negroni, a cocktail created with Grand Marnier smoke infusion, Ransom Old Tom gin, Antica Formula vermouth, and Campari. Locations 311 W. 43rd St. • 212-776-1818 • hakkasan.com/newyork

092-105 DiningList.indd 92

11/12/12 4:55 PM

American ABC Kitchen - Jean-Georges Vongerichten, Dan Kluger, and Phil Suarez impress diners inside ABC Carpet & Home with a mission to “engage in regionally-grown, organically focused cuisine that is rooted in cultivating a safe relationship with the environment and our table.” Indulge taste buds with main plates like wood oven roasted Maine lobster. ABC Carpet & Home, 35 E. 18th St., 212-475-5829; abckitchennyc.com

blends 21st-century elegance with rustic New York charm. Try the surf like fresh, raw oysters and truffle crusted DB sea scallops, even the turf like steak au poivre and chateaubriand for two. Meer and Pat La Frieda’s epic City Hall burger brainchild is certainly one to order. 131 Duane St. (West Broadway-Church St.), 212-227-7777; cityhallnewyork.com CO-OP Food & Drink - A modern American brasserie and sushi bar that combines inventive American cuisine by Executive Chef James London

with an authentic New York experience. CO-OP pairs Keller’s interpretations of modern American cuisine with sushi, sashimi, and other raw items overseen by sushi chef Stephen “Neo” Wong (Sushi of Gari, Megu). Dinner hours Mon.-Sat., 6pm-close. Breakfast also served Mon.-Fri., 6:30am-10:30am and Sat.-Sun., 6:30am-3pm. 107 Rivington St., 212-796-8040; co-oprestaurant.com Doral Arrowwood - Located on the property of Westchester County’s Doral Arrowwood hotel and

Aldea -Named after the Portuguese word for village, Aldea’s seasonal, New American menu is inspired by the Iberian Peninsula and Chef George Mendes’ heritage. Searching for the rustic and elemental properties in his cooking, Mendes breaks down his menu between land and sea, and allows the cutting edge flavor combinations to guide palates. 31 W. 17th St., 212-675-7223; aldearestaurant.com Beacon - Chef/co-owner Waldy Malouf transports guests on a fiery culinary ride, as food is cooked over a wood fire to enhance flavors. New American fare gets Malouf’s wood roasted treatment, from oysters to seasonal vegetables, creating dishes. Note: Beacon will be closing on Dec. 29 following dinner. 25 W. 56th St., 212-332-0500; beaconnyc.com Blue Smoke - Danny Meyer’s award-winning BBQ joint menu includes spareribs Kansas City-style (saucy), Memphis baby back ribs, and Texas salt and pepper beef ribs. Catch side dish fever with sweet potato wedge fries with maple dip and Jackie’s fry bread with chipotle butter. Check out live music at the Jazz Standard downstairs after you leave the BBQ pit. 116 E. 27th St., 212-447-7733; bluesmoke.com The Breslin Bar and Dining Room - Located in the trendy Ace Hotel, The Breslin takes a cue from its hip clientele and pushes the envelope on gastropub fare. Chef de cuisine Peter Cho offers creative terrine options on the lunch and dinner menus, while lamb burgers, crispy octopus, and market price ribeye for two round out the experimental flavor profile. Ace Hotel, 16 W. 29th St., 212-679-2222; thebreslin.com Bryant Park Grill - Overlooking Bryant Park and set behind the landmarked New York Public Library, this American cuisine gem features romantic dining settings ideal for dates, events, or a night out with friends. From fun and filling salads, to prime meats and fresh seafood, the restaurant’s high-end, traditional menu is a crowd pleaser. 25 W. 40th St., 212-840-6500; arkrestaurants.com B. Smith’s - Popular television personality B. Smith’s aptly named landmark, focuses on flavors from the American south, from mouthwatering macaroni and a plethora of cheeses, to fried green tomatoes, and southern cornmeal crusted catfish. Ideal for pre-theater dining, B. Smith’s offers discounts with Broadway ticket stubs to select shows. 320 W. 46th St., 212-315-1100; bsmith.com City Hall Restaurant - Just a few blocks from “the other City Hall,” this sophisticated Tribeca mainstay

092-105 DiningList.indd 93

11/12/12 4:55 PM

DININGNEWYORK

William “Willie” Degel—owner of Uncle Jack’s Steakhouses and Jack’s Shack all-natural eatery and star of the Food Network’s high-rated hit series Restaurant Stakeout—has brought a brand new face and standard to high-end NYC steakhouses and a new awareness of the behind-thescenes workings of the restaurant/ hospitality industry to the public with his TV show. From day one he’s held a distinct vision and set his restaurants apart from other steakhouses by paying attention to details. A self-described “obsessive perfectionist,” Willie gets involved in every aspect of the business. See (and taste) for yourself at Uncle Jack’s: 440 Ninth Ave. (35th St.), 212-244-0005; 44 W. 56th St., 212-245-1550; 39-40 Bell Blvd., Bayside, Queens, 718-2291100; unclejacks.com; Jack’s Shack: 671-A Glen Cove Ave., Glen Head, NY, 516-676-7001; jacksshack.com

picturesque golf course, diners are treated to three dining options. Dine al fresco at Mulligan’s Outdoor Cafe, which overlooks the ninth green and features salads, light dishes, and grilled specialties. The PUB has a wrap-around bar and fireplace as well as 14 high-definition flat-screen TVs, pool tables, dartboards, and a dance floor. The light, airy Atrium serves buffet-style lunches and à la carte dinners. 975 Anderson Hill Road, Rye Brook, NY, 914-939-5500; doralarrowwood.com Eleven Madison Park - Relive the glamorous era of Cole Porter and New York’s café society in the sleek, high-ceilinged elegance of what was once the cavernous Art Deco assembly hall of the old Met Life Building. Executive Chef Daniel Humm creates an unforgettable dining presentation with four-course culinary flights and signature tasting menus. Humm’s epicurean vision seeks to tell an authentic New York City story through innovative flavors presented with each course. 11 Madison Ave. (24th St.), 212-889-0905; elevenmadisonpark.com 48 - In Rockefeller Center’s McGraw Hill Building, an upscale cocktail lounge that restores an air of understated elegance to Midtown. Providing a refreshing divergence with its classic ambiance, innovative cocktails and irresistible food. 1221 Sixth Ave. (48th St.), 212-554-4848; 48nyc.com The Four Seasons - A New York culinary monument lives at The Four Seasons. As seasons change, so do the menu and décor at this beautiful restaurant serving excellent American seasonal specialties. The restaurant has two dining rooms: the Pool Room and with its trees and marble pool, and the wood-paneled Grill Room. One of America’s most complete wine lists. We strongly recommend that you make your reservation at least 5 to 7 days in advance. 99 E. 52nd St., 212-754-9494; fourseasonsrestaurant.com Gilt - Futuristic décor meets timeless class. Contemporary, honey-colored leather accented with white man-made materials provide harmonious contrast to the 19th-century details. The New American menu features imaginative selections, like venison tartare. Two tasting menu options are available. The New York Palace Hotel, 455 Madison Ave. (50th St.), 212-891-8100; giltnewyork.com Gotham Bar and Grill - The highly acclaimed haute cuisine of this dynamic, trendy downtown restaurant reflects the Post-Modernist, converted warehouse setting. Executive chef/co-owner Alfred Portale creates dazzling visual and provocative culinary effects with his superb, contemporary meals, piled whimsically skyscraper-like onto plates, including one of the city’s best seafood salads. 12 E. 12th St., 212-620-4020; gothambarandgrill.com Gramercy Tavern - Step foot into this classic American tavern for a taste of history and updated classic dishes from beef carpaccio to roasted and braised lamb. Chef Michael Anthony is the winner of the 2012 James Beard Award for ‘Best Chef: NYC.’ 42 E. 20th St., 212-477-0777; gramercytavern.com The Harrison - Hospitality and contemporary tastes join forces at The Harrison. This Tribeca eatery gives off the vibe of a long-time neighborhood haunt, serving comfort food with a downtown twist. 355 Greenwich St. (Harrison St.), 212-274-9310; theharrison.com

Caviar Russe is the place in New York City to find the finest caviar imported to the U.S. In addition to their retail boutique— which offers a wide range of caviar and accessories, and gift pack pairings for 1 to 10 people—the restaurant component offers dinner a la carte, crudo/raw bar, and a seven-course tasting menu. Executive Chef Christopher Agnew has just recently created an indulgent three-course Caviar Brunch menu that includes some of the finest American and Caspian Sea caviars, available Sundays, noon-4pm. And be sure to check out the wide variety of caviar delicacies on their website, where you can purchase just about anything your roe-loving heart might desire. 538 Madison Ave. (54th-55th Sts.), 2nd Floor, 212-980-5908; caviarrusse.com

092-105 DiningList.indd 94

Inside Park at St. Bart’s - Take in stunning, historic views of the Terrace at St. Bartholomew’s Church, just steps away with intricate, Byzantine-like decorative stenciling, true to the immense room’s original colors, motifs, and craftsmanship, painstakingly replicated on the 30-foot ceiling, as well as on the walls and overhanging balcony. Executive Chef Matthew Weingarten oversees the everchanging, always exciting menu. 325 Park Ave., 212-593-3333; insideparknyc.com The Libertine -Celebrity chef Todd English’s restaurant features an updated pub décor with the dignified Library Bar fit for a king one floor up, and a gourmet rustic pub fare menu. A popular stop for the neighborhood’s Financial District workers, with a menu full of imaginative house cocktails. 15 Gold St. (Platt St.), 212-785-5950; thelibertinerestaurant.com The Lion -Founding chef and partner of the Waverly Inn, John DeLucie’s restaurant offers his unique, Italian-American take on classic cuisine, including a decadent fresh raw bar, which has attracted both celebrities and serious foodies alike. 62 W. 9th St., 212-353-8400; thelionnyc.com

11/12/12 4:55 PM

Northern Spy Food Co. -Founded in 2009, Northern Spy Food Co. strives to craft a menu built around seasonality, accessibility, and quality, using locally-grown or -produced ingredients whenever possible. The décor, in sticking with the sustainable agenda “incorporates as much reclaimed and repurposed materials as possible.” Beers hail from the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast regions, while the wine list includes many New York State labels. 511 E. 12th St., 212-228-5100; northernspyfoodco.com The Park Room - Exceptional nouveau American cuisine combines with stunning views of Central Park, making for a quintessential New York dining experience. The dinner menu currently boasts entrées such as seared sea bass, ossobucco, pumpkin ravioli, and grilled mahi mahi. Helmsley Park Lane, 36 Central Park So. btw. Fifth & Sixth Aves., 212-371-4000; helmsleyparklane.com Per Se - Luxurious in its stunning views of Central Park from each table, its décor of dark woods and glittering metal surfaces and its incomparable menu featuring caviar, lobster, foie gras, and Kobe beef. Each day, two unique nine-course tasting menus are created to excite your mind, satisfy your appetite and pique your curiosity. Reservations

accepted one month in advance. Time Warner Center, 10 Columbus Circle (60th St.), 4th Floor, 212-823-9335; perseny.com The Red Cat - This popular Chelsea bistro—the creation of chef/owner Jimmy Bradley—features clean presentation mixed with cutting edge contemporary flavors such as roasted cod with savory, shiitake, sugar snaps, and Champagne tomato butter. The spot lives up to its sassy name with sporty red banquettes to match the innovative American plates. Comforting, yet confidently inventive, The Red Cat has it all. 227 Tenth Ave. (23rd St.), 212-242-1122; theredcat.com Red Rooster - Restaurateur rock star Marcus Samuelsson successfully conjures up mouthwatering comfort food celebrating the roots of American cuisine and the diverse culinary traditions of its Harlem location. Named in honor of the legendary Harlem speakeasy. 310 Lenox Ave. (125th St.), 212-792-9001; redroosterharlem.com The River Cafe - A jaw-dropping famous view, paired with a glamorous and romantic dining atmosphere creates a premier destination for discriminating foodies as well as heads of state and celebri-

ties. The cuisine, desserts, and outstanding wine list more than live up to the spectacular waterfront ambiance. 1 Water St. at the East River, Brooklyn, 718-522-5200; rivercafe.com Rock Center Cafe - Boasting up-close views of the Ice Rink, this stylish eatery offers contemporary American specialties such as crispy seared organic chicken and crab and risotto cakes. 20 W. 50th St., 212-332-7620; rockcentercafeny.com Ted’s Montana Grill - Ted Turner and famed restaurateur George McKerrow Jr.’s Rockefeller Center casual dining place features the biggest bison menu in the world. 110 W. 51st St., 212-245-5220; tedsmontanagrill.com “21” Club - One of New York’s iconic, top dining destinations. Executive Chef John Greeley balances classic ‘21’ dishes that gave the restaurant its elevated reputation, such as Dover Sole and New York’s best crab cakes with his own modern flare such as Vermont farm-raised lamb with creamed nettles, roasted eggplant and fingerling potatoes; and roasted halibut with shrimp, bay scallops, razor clams, bok choy, chanterelle and corn kernels. Dine in either the famous Bar Room or romantic Upstairs at ‘21’;

092-105 DiningList.indd 95

11/12/12 4:55 PM

DININGNEWYORK

or host an event in one of their ten private banquet rooms. Jacket required. 21 W. 52nd St., 212-5827200; 21club.com 2 West - An elegant, French-American eatery with park views, on the waterfront. Chef James Dangler leads a menu of flavorful and classic comfort foods including lobster bisque, seared jumbo sea scallops, braised short ribs, Alaskan halibut, and truffle Parmesan fries. Ritz-Carlton, Battery Park, 2 West St., 212-344-0800; ritzcarlton.com Union Square Cafe - By day, one of the hottest business-lunch spots in town; by night, a popular bistro. Owner and mega restaurateur Danny Meyer, chef Michael Romano, and executive chef Carmen Quagliata oversee this hit, serving American cuisine with Italian soul. Now serving brunch on Sat. and Sun. from 11am-2:30pm. 21 E. 16th St. (Union Sq. West-Fifth Ave.), 212-243-4020; unionsquarecafe.com The Waverly Inn - Graydon Carter’s tough-toget-into, low-lit celebrity favorite featuring traditional American fare, such as the popular “Waverly Burger.” 16 Bank St. (Waverly Pl.), 917-828-1154, waverlynyc.com

AMERICAN BISTRO The National - Known for its signature “Ugly Burger,” The National in midtown Manhattan features modern bistro dishes by renowned Iron Chef Geoffrey Zakarian and his longtime associate and Iron Chef America sous chef, Paul Corsentino.

Their philosophy of selecting perfectly sourced ingredients and setting them into unexpected combinations results in dishes that are not only fresh but accessible for all occasions. Designed by the Rockwell Group, the restaurant reflects the timeless sophistication of Europe’s grand cafes with cozy distressed leather banquettes and vintage cafe tables. 557 Lexington Ave. (50th St.), 212-715-2400; thenationalnyc.com

ARGENTINEAN Buenos Aires -Strong Argentinean flavor meets signature choice cuts of beef and the freshest vegetables—high quality food at reasonable prices in a charming, warm, cozy atmosphere.513 E. 6th St. (Ave. A-Ave. B), 212-228-2775; buenosairesnyc.com

BELGIAN Brabant - NYC’s largest authentic Belgian restaurant nestled in midtown. Noted Executive Chef Armand Vanderstigchel dishes signature Belgian Rack of Lamb Provençal, Belgium Mac and Cheese, and more classics. Check out the extensive selection of Belgian beers—10 on tap, 50 bottled. 316 E. 53rd St., 212-510-8588; brabantbelgianbrasserie.com

CHINESE Hakkasan New York - The world-renowned modern Chinese restaurant is now in New York

[ CO-OP Food & Drink ]

City, bringing their authentic Cantonese cuisine, impeccable service and unparalleled dining experience to Manhattan. Signature dishes include Stir-Fry Lobster with Wild Mushrooms in XO Sauce and Truffle-Braised Egg Noodle with Enoki Mushroom. 311 W. 43rd St., 212-776-1818; hakkasan.com/newyork Lychee House - “Modern Chinese” inspired by contemporary culinary practices and ranging from comfort food like sesame chicken to more exotic dishes. Lychee House strives for the freshest, seasonal ingredients to incorporate into their global Chinese menu. Dim Sum available on evenings, holidays and at weekend brunch. 141 E. 55th St. (Lexington-Third Aves.), 212-753-3900; lycheehouse.com

Continental Delmonico’s - Founded in 1837, Delmonico’s was the country’s first fine-dining establishment, introducing haute cuisine, wine lists, and menus written in French to the U.S. It has been returned to its former glory in its stately landmark in the heart of the Financial District, with dark mahogany and period murals that evoke the restaurant’s legendary days as the favorite haunt of the city’s power brokers. 56 Beaver St. (William St.), 212-509-1144; delmonicosny.com One If By Land, Two If By Sea - Consistently rated one of the most romantic restaurants in New York. Located in a converted carriage house, with two fireplaces and a pianist playing in the

[ VIKTOR & Spoils ]

Fine and Fun Dining at Hotel on Rivington

Opened in 2003, Hotel on Rivington’s modern, 20-story building houses 108 luxurious guest rooms with sweeping Manhattan views. The contemporary accommodations include unique amenities—soaking tubs, balconies, steam showers, and floor-to-ceiling glass walls. Located on the Lower East Side, nearby neighborhoods such as SoHo, Tribeca, and the East Village are all within walking distance. The hotel boasts two dining destinations: CO-OP Food & Drink, an American brasserie and sushi bar; and Viktor & Spoils, a Mexican taqueria and tequila bar. General Manager MarcAnthony Crimi describes the restaurants as “embracing the evolution of the Lower East Side, while staying true to the neighborhood.” 107 Rivington Street; 212-475-2600; hotelonrivington.com CO-OP Food & Drink specializes in globally inspired cuisine that is sourced from the local area. The food is meant to be shared, and creates a creative dining experience headed by Executive Chef James London, whose modern American cuisine is paired with sushi, sashimi, and other raw items. 212-796-8040; co-oprestaurant.com Viktor & Spoils serves classic and new style tacos and handcrafted, seasonal cocktails made of the highest quality tequila. Executive Chef James London oversees a menu of tacos, taquitos, nachos, and churros made of artisanal ingredients to give diners an authentic experience. 212-475-3485; viktorandspoils.com – Laura Brothers

092-105 DiningList.indd 96

11/12/12 4:55 PM

background, take in the elegant atmosphere while enjoying epicurean gems. 17 Barrow St. (Seventh Ave.-W. 4th St.), 212-255-8649; oneifbyland.com

DELIS Katz’s Delicatessen - Sometimes it’s best to leave a classic alone, as in the case of the legendary Katz’s Deli. This Lower East Side joint has been serving half-pound sandwiches of hot pastrami and corned beef, plump grilled franks, knishes, matzoh ball soup, and other deli fare since 1888. Open late Thurs. and all night Fri. & Sat. 205 E. Houston St. (Ludlow St.), 212-254-2246; katzdeli.com

is both a formal dining room and the more casual Nougatine Room. Reservations are generally taken one month in advance. Jacket and tie required. Trump International Hotel, 1 Central Park West (60th-61st Sts.), 212-299-3900; jean-georges.com La Silhouette - Executive chef Matthew Tropeano heads this highly regarded French frontrunner. The casually sophisticated La Silhouette’s very creative bill of fare is not nouveau, nouvelle, or traditional,

but modern French of a sort encountered every day in Paris. With a 26 Zagat rating, whether you select from the world-class 5-course tasting menu or dine a la carte, you won’t be disappointed. Winner of the 2011 Concierge Choice Award for Best New Restaurant in NYC. 362 W. 53rd St. (8th-9th Aves.), 212-581-2400; la-silhouettenyc.com Le Périgord - Off the beaten path, just steps past First Avenue lives a French gastronomic pillar.

P J Bernstein Deli Restaurant - Family-owned and -run since 1982, serving classic kosher-style deli cuisine including classics both old and new. Offering dine-in, carry-out, delivery and catering for all occasions. Favorites include pastrami and corned beef piled high, hearty soups, and more. Open 7 days, 8am-9pm. 1215 Third Ave. (70th-71st Sts.), 212-879-0914; pjbernstein.com

French/French Bistro Balthazar - A magnetic dining scene, filled to the brim with luminaries from the art, movie, theatre, and fashion worlds and stalwart nightlifers in a transplanted Parisian-brasserie-like atmosphere. Traditional bistro fare is served from breakfast through late-night dinner, with an extensive wine list, a raw seafood bar, breads and pastries from Balthazar bakery, and brew from roast masters Stumptown Coffee. Undeniably delicious Sunday brunch is also served. 80 Spring St. (Broadway-Crosby St.), 212-965-1414; balthazarny.com Brasserie 8 1/2 - Descend an elegant sweeping staircase to enter a world of brasserie bests. A delicate fusion of creativity and comfort, featuring a worldclass art collection, haute French cuisine, and a plush atmosphere, complemented by Latin- and Asian-influenced dishes and raw bar. 9 W. 57th St., 212-829-0812; patinagroup.com Daniel - With a four-star rating by The New York Times, Daniel Boulud’s Upper East Side treasure marries neighborhood hominess with a contemporary French menu inspired by the seasons and the market. Pre-theater prix fixe, 3 courses and paired wines $125 Mon.-Thurs. 5:30-6pm. 60 E. 65th St., 212-288-0033; danielnyc.com DB Bistro Moderne - Daniel Boulud’s casual yet trendy midtown spot -- NYC’s top French bistro according to Zagat -- is known for their DB Burger, a sirloin burger filled with braised short ribs, foie gras, and black truffles that’s earned its reputation. Three-course pre-theatre prix-fixe, $45 per person Tues.-Sat. 5:30-6pm. 55 W. 44th St., 212-391-2400; danielnyc.com/dbbistro.html Jean Georges - Contemporary French works of art created by chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten. There

092-105 DiningList.indd 97

11/12/12 4:55 PM

DININGNEWYORK

Chef/partner Jim Botsacos, along with chef David Arias, has worked diligently to create an authentic menu that includes the spectrum of Italian cuisine at Abboccato. Abboccato, meaning “pleasing to the mouth” in Italian, features all the classic and recognizable meals and appetizers native to Italy, including Casunzie, a half-moon ravioli filled with beets, gorgonzola and tossed with Italian butter and poppy seeds. They also offer a traditional Chicchetti menu, comprised of small, sharable plates, and includes dishes such as wild mushroom flatbread, served with truffle cheese and Robiola ricotta. 136 W. 55th St., 212-265-4000; abboccato.com

Nestled in Manhattan’s Midtown West neighborhood, just a block away from the esteemed Carnegie Hall, Molyvos has been known for serving soulful Greek cuisine since 1997. Named for the traditional seaside village on the Greek island of Lesvos, Molyvos takes its guests on a multi-sensory journey to the Aegean Sea and all of its bounty and beauty via menus by acclaimed Executive Chef Jim Botsacos and the largest all-Greek wine list in the US. Molyvos underwent an extensive renovation in January 2012, unveiling a new design that recalls the islands of Greece. With its clean blue, gray, and white palette, it pays homage to the rocky coast lines with sandy beaches, charming villages, white-washed houses, and bright blue skies that are emblematic of Greece. 871 Seventh Ave. (55th-56th Sts.), 212-582-7500; molyvos.com

092-105 DiningList.indd 98

Named after Lever House, the glass-box, international-style skyscraper that rises above it, Casa Lever is one of Manhattan’s ultimate see-and-be-seen dining destinations. Executive Chef Alessandro Caporale has developed a sophisticated Milanese menu ranging from classic Italian recipes to summer specials such as Squid Ink Risotto and Spaghetti alla Chitarra with Santa Barbara Sea Urchin and King Crab Meat, as well as the signature Vitello Tonnato: thinly sliced, slow roasted veal with tuna and caper sauce. Their seasonal garden offers casual yet elegant outdoor courtyard dining during the warmer months, with one of the most gorgeous settings in midtown: Park Avenue and the rotating art exhibition of the Lever House art collection. 390 Park Ave. (53rd St.), 212-888-2700; casalever.com

Long regarded as one of New York City’s superb old-school French dining rooms (it just turned 45 in April, 2012), this refined and luxurious gem is one of the longest-running four-star operations under the same management. The menu blends classical French techniques with a lighter contemporary touch, natural flavors, sauces and spices, and high-quality produce. Jacket and tie required. 405 E. 52nd St., 212-755-6244; leperigord.com Minetta Tavern - This Greenwich Village landmark—opened in 1937 and frequented by the likes of Ernest Hemingway, Ezra Pound, Eugene O’Neill, e. e. cummings, and Dylan Thomas—was renovated in 2008 as a Parisian steakhouse meets New York City tavern. Try one of several inventive cocktails and pair with classics like the Black Label Burger or Mouclade. 113 MacDougal St. (Bleecker St.), 212-475-3850; minettatavernny.com The Modern at MoMA - As sleek, elegant, and contemporary as the MoMA that houses it, The Modern, part of Danny Meyer’s elite Union Square Hospitality Group, features original French-American cuisine by chef Gabriel Kreuther. Enjoy views of the picturesque sculpture garden in the classic dining room or opt for a more casual menu at the curved marble bar in the Bar Room. Reservations accepted up to 28 days in advance. 11 W. 53rd St., 212-333-1220; themodernnyc.com Nice Matin - An uptown brunch fixture with lunch and dinner menus held in equally high regard. With warm colors, chic light fixtures, and plush chairs, this gorgeous space is lively, yet still conducive to easy conversation. The wine list and the cocktails are wonderfully imaginative. 201 W. 79th St., 212-873-6423; nicematinnyc.com Orsay - This Upper East Side brasserie features a classic Art Nouveau interior, using rich woods, traditional moldings, and mirrors. The menu marries modern French and classic fare, like the famous chicken liver mousse and foie gras, with an award-winning wine list dominated by French and American varietals. 1057 Lexington Ave. (75th St.), 212-517-6400; orsayrestaurant.com Pastis - An unassuming restaurant enjoyed that serves acclaimed fare in an unpretentious environment. The mood of bohemian chic is carried out in the décor, and Executive Chefs Riad Nasr and Lee Hanson and Chef de Cuisine Pascal Le Seac’h prepare a menu that combines hearty Provençal dishes with bistro fare. Try classics like the croquet-monsieur or steak frites and prepare your taste buds for bliss. 9 Ninth Ave. (Little W. 12th St.), 212-929-4844; pastisny.com Triomphe - Big flavors tucked in an intimate setting at the Iroquois Hotel. Offering a warm and comfortable atmosphere, both stylish and subtle, and a diverse menu of French American cuisine with an international flair. Iroquois Hotel, 49 W. 44th St., 212-453-4233; triomphe-newyork.com

11/12/12 4:55 PM

GREEK Molyvos - A midtown Greek feast that delivers authentic flavor and presentation. Ouzo flows freely and the baklava is piled high at this authentic, newly renovated Greek spot. A stunning atmosphere doesn’t prepare you for the food to come: don’t leave without trying the grilled baby octopus or cabbage doulmades, and moussaka. 871 Seventh Ave. (55-56 Sts.), 212-582-7500; molyvos.com

textiles and brightly colored lanterns combine with robust flavorful dishes that take the helm of the Dévi experience. 8 E. 18th St., 212-6911300; devinyc.com

international and eclectic

Indian

Alcala - Close to the U.N., take a palate vacation to Spain’s Basque area with regionally authentic plates like a stew of tuna fish and potatoes and desalted codfish in a sauce of dry red pepper and onion. 342 E. 46th St., 212-370-1866; alcalarestaurant.com

Darbar - Reviewers and patrons consistently give high marks to this cozy, bi-level restaurant and lounge located on the East Side. Zagat rated, Darbar is a superb choice for classic Indian food done extra right with great ambience and service. A lavish lunch buffet with new and delicious dishes is served every day, 11:30am-4pm 152 E. 46th St., 212-681-4500; darbarny.com

Blaue Gans -Renowned for its Austro-German fare, and modeled after the authentic “wholesome wirtshaus,” including traditional Wiener Schnitzel, Kavelierspitz, and a selection of different sausages. Bavarian beers on tap, and dessert specialties such as Apple Strudel, Salzburger Nockerl, and assorted cheeses. Located in the heart of Tribeca. 139 Duane St. (West Broadway), 212-571-8880; kg-ny.com

Dévi - Dévi provides diners with an upscale Indian experience, with lush authentic flavors of Indian home cooking. A prime décor of rich

Markt - Striving for the ultimate re-creation of a Belgian brasserie, Markt showcases authentic cuisine and an expansive selection of beer, relying

on simplicity, freshness, and subtle combinations to speak flavorful volumes. 676 Sixth Ave. (21st St.), 212- 727-3314; marktrestaurant.com The Spotted Pig - The pioneer of the NYC gastropub revolution. Chef /co-owner April Bloomfield presides over this West Village favorite’s menu of seasonal British and Italian fare, which uses local ingredients whenever possible, plus a beverage list that includes cask-conditioned beer. Kitchen open until 2am nightly. 314 W. 11th St., 212-620-0393; thespottedpig.com Wallsé - Austrian cuisine, imported cheeses, and wild game are the order of the day here, at chef Kurt Gutenbrunner’s elegant restaurant that has quickly become a favorite among NYC foodies and West Villagers, offering modern interpretations of classical Viennese cuisine. 4 and 6-course tasting menus with wine pairings available. 344 W. 11th St., 212-352-2300; wallserestaurant.com

Italian Abboccato - “True Italian cuisine in the heart of Manhattan,” with time-honored Italian recipes

092-105 DiningList.indd 99

11/12/12 4:55 PM

DININGNEWYORK

elevated through the talent and techniques of their chefs. Featuring plentiful first- and second/ pasta-course options, and a secondi platti list that includes fresh Arctic char, lamb chops, whole branzino, and veal sweetbreads. Nonna’s Sunday Pasta Dinner offers a family-style experience on Sunday evenings, and happy hour with the finest menu tastings takes place on the Terrazza Mon.-Sat. 3-5pm. 136 W. 55th St., 212-265-4000; abboccato.com Casa Lever - “Milan meets Manhattan” at this new restaurant from the team behind Sant Ambroeus. The atmosphere is stunning—how could it not be, located in Lever House, a masterpiece of modern architecture, and with modern art adorning the walls? Indulge in classic Milanese Italian dishes and some of the best service in the city. 390 Park Ave. (53rd St.), 212-888-2700; casalever.com La Masseria - “A farmhouse in the middle of Manhattan,” offering authentic classic dishes from the Puglia region of Italy, utilizing the freshest natural ingredients for simple, pastas, risottos, and meat and fish dishes. The warm, rustic decor blends rural Italian style, nostalgia and charm, complementing the top notch cuisine and extensive wine list. 235 W. 48th St., 212-582-2111; lamasserianyc.com The Leopard at des Artistes - Located in one of the most iconic spaces in NYC—the landmarked Hotel des Artistes, built at the turn of the 20th century, and the former home of the renowned Café des Artistes—The Leopard pays homage to Southern Italian cultural traditions with unparalleled quality ingredients, modern research, and outstanding service. Reservations recommended. 1 W. 67th St., 212-787-8767; theleopardnyc.com Locanda Verde - A casual, energetic neighborhood Italian taverna in Tribeca serving celebrated chef Andrew Carmellini’s soul-satisfying riffs on Italian cooking. Treat yourself to the addictive crostini selections, which compliment the wellrounded wine list and inventive cocktail selection. 377 Greenwich St. (North Moore-Greenwich St.), 212-925-3797; locandaverdenyc.com

Westchester County’s Doral Arrowwood hotel not only features 114 acres of rolling hills, open meadows, ponds, and a nine-hole, Robert von Hagge-designed golf course, but also three excellent dining options. You can dine al fresco at Mulligan’s Outdoor Cafe, which overlooks the ninth green and features salads, light dishes, and grilled specialties. The quintessential pub experience is offered at The PUB with a wrap-around bar and fireplace as well as 14 high-definition flat-screen TVs, pool tables, dartboards, and a dance floor. The light, airy Atrium serves buffet-style lunches and à la carte dinners amid spectacular views through floor-to-ceiling windows, an award-winning brunch, and the Saturday Night Buffet Dinner Dance. 975 Anderson Hill Road, Rye Brook, NY, 914-9395500; doralarrowwood.com

100

092-105 DiningList.indd 100

Marea - Chef Michael White offers a fresh interpretation of Italian coastal cuisine with a strong focus on impeccably prepared seafood, in addition to fresh raw selections. Dishes such as Santa Barbara sea urchin with lardo, lobster with burrata, eggplant funghetto and seaweed-marinated east coast halibut and sea scallops with endive and bagna cauda stick out as true culinary gems. 240 Central Park S. (Broadway), 212-582-5100; marea-nyc.com MODA - MODA, Italian for “style,” serves up innovative modern dishes in a chic and sophisticated atmosphere. An outdoor patio that lies beneath a three-story glass canopy overlooking 52nd Street gets extra atmosphere points. Flatotel, 135 W. 52nd St., 212-887-9880; flatotel.com

11/12/12 4:55 PM

Otto Enoteca and Pizzeria - Reminiscent of an Italian train station, Otto, or “eight” in Italian, delivers a world of pizza, cooked on a griddle instead of in an oven, that ranges from traditional margheritas to more creative interpretations, like pizza topped with cured salt pork and fresh rosemary. Sample bruschettas, antipasti, cheeses or appetizers that include eggplant caponata or chickpea fritters. Wine drinkers, from sippers to sommeliers, will enjoy a choice of 500 Italian labels. 1 Fifth Ave. (8th St.), 212-995-9559; ottopizzeria.com

Hotel, 66 Park Ave. (38th St.), 212-885-7111; kitano.com/dining/hakubai Inakaya - Japanese barbecue and quality presentation reign supreme at the first New York City outpost of the renowned eatery in Roppongi, Tokyo, located near Times Square. A traditional robatayaki restaurant, Inakaya prepares Japanese barbecue right in front of you by chefs that shuttle the dishes at you via

long wooden paddles. Everything at the restaurant is larger than life, from the shouts that greet you when you enter to the enormous dining bar to the elaborate costumes worn by waiters. 231 W. 40th St., 212-354-2195; inakayany.com Masa - Owner Masa Takayama’s four-star restaurant continues to elate sushi enthusiasts. Evoking the quiet aura of a rare temple, the décor is simple

Patsy’s - Renowned for its celebrity clientele (it was Frank Sinatra’s favorite), this landmark has been family-run since 1944. The Neapolitan cuisine is heavenly, including succulent veal chops Siciliano, spicy lobster fra diavolo, savory calamari stuffed with seafood, and more. A “must go” New York favorite. 236 W. 56th St., 212-247-3491; patsys.com PizzArte - Displays of fine Italian art engage with the dining experience, and pizzas are prepared using simple, high quality ingredients in accordance with the finest culinary traditions of Naples. Authentic dishes include polipetti alla luciana (with baby octopus), homemade pasta maccaronara (a specialty from Avellino) with seafood, and pasta alla genovese, an onion & meat sauce that’s slowly cooked for hours. 69 W. 55th St., 212-247-3936; pizzarteny.com Remi - Remi, created by renowned designer Adam D. Tihany, combines the rich traditions of Venetian cuisine with the romance and elegance of Venetian design and architecture in an updated and innovative style. Often rated among the top Italian restaurants in New York City, if not the entire U.S. 145 W. 53rd St., 212-581-4242; remi-ny.com

Japanese and sushi Blue Ribbon Sushi Bar & Grill - Featuring some of the freshest fish this side of Tokyo, served in a lovely wood-and-mural setting. Delicious cooked entrées are available for those not intrigued by the extensive raw fish selections. Quality sake options round out the pristine menu. Open 7 days; 12pm-2am. 119 Sullivan St. (Spring-Prince Sts.), 212-343-0404; 308 W. 58th St., 212-397-0404; blueribbonrestaurants.com BondSt Sushi - This high-end Japanese restaurant focuses on the finest and freshest delicacies of the sea. They boast one of the most extensive sake menus in the city, along with their own saketinis, available in the cozy, candle-lit lounge downstairs, or more formal dining areas upstairs. From playful tempura (“fish and chips”) to catch of the day raw delicacies, BondSt is sushi nirvana. 6 Bond St. (BroadwayLafayette St.), 212-777-2500; bondstrestaurant.com Hakubai - The only branch of Japan’s renowned ancient Nadaman restaurant, and one of the very few in the U.S. serving Kaiseki, which has its roots in Zen Buddhism and the traditional Japanese tea ceremony. Both the dishes and food change with the seasons. The elegant, comfortable Tatami rooms feature perfect presentation and flawless service. Kitano

092-105 DiningList.indd 101

101

11/12/12 4:55 PM

DININGNEWYORK

while the finest fish selections are prepared with painstaking care by the staff. Sit at the 27-foot-long sushi bar, and watch Masa in his zone. Time Warner Center, 10 Columbus Circle (Broadway and 59th.), 4th Floor, 212-823-9800; masanyc.com MEGU - MEGU means “blessing” in Japanese, and if you’ve sampled the modern Japanese cuisine at either of their Manhattan locations (the original in Tribeca, or the one near the UN in Midtown), you know the name is well deserved. MEGU aggregates and filters through 1000 years and 47 regions of Japanese cuisine and culture, bringing you a sense of Japanese history and community through food. The menu utilizes both authentic and avant-garde ingredients. Trump World Tower, 845 UN Plaza (47th St. & First Ave.); 62 Thomas St., 212-964-7777; megurestaurants.com

The Four Seasons Restaurant is one of New York City’s most iconic restaurants, and over the last 50 years, in the same location on East 52nd Street, it has flourished as a dining destination and one of the city’s premier power lunch venues. Offering award-winning seasonal American cuisine created from locally grown ingredients, the Four Seasons offers two dining rooms: the Pool Room is airy and romantic, with a bubbling marble pool and canopy of trees; while the Grill Room has soaring two-story windows, French walnut-paneled walls, and the restaurant’s legendary wooden bar. 99 E. 52nd St. (btw. Lexington and Park Aves.), 212-754-9494; fourseasonsrestaurant.com

Mr. Robata - Mr. Robata’s sushi pairs premium ingredients with inventive twists and techniques, like chopped o-toro with mango, or salmon with zucchini tempura. Signature dishes bring the centuries-old open-hearth grilling of rural Japan into the current New York culinary scene by infusing tastes of American classics. 1674 Broadway (52nd-53rd Sts.), 212-757-1030; mrrobata.com Next Door Nobu - Superstar chef Nobu Matsuhisa’s famous fusion menu of Asian and South American delicacies is now available at this spin-off restaurant. Featuring a simpler menu than its famed neighbor Nobu and David Rockwell designed décor, Nobu Next Door is also a joint venture of Matsuhisa, actor Robert De Niro, and Tribeca Grill restaurateur Drew Nieporent. 105 Hudson St. (Franklin St.), 212-219-0500; myriadrestaurantgroup.com Ninja New York - A one-of-a-kind, entertaining dining experience featuring a recreated 18th-century Japanese ninja village and high-end contemporary Japanese cuisine. 25 Hudson St. (Reade-Duane Sts.), 212-274-8500; ninjanewyork.com Nobu - Since its 1994 opening, celebrated chef Nobu Matsuhisa has raised the bar with his daring cuisine that fuses influences from Tokyo to Peru in partnership with restaurateur Drew Nieporent and actor Robert De Niro. David Rockwell’s lovely Japanese countryside setting showcases yellowtail tuna tartare, monkfish liver pate, both served with caviar, squid “pasta” with asparagus, butter and garlic or New Style Sashimi, seared in garlic, ginger, sesame seeds and scallions. 105 Hudson St. (Franklin St.), 212-219-0500; noburestaurants.com Riingo - The perfect balance of American comfort and Japanese minimalism is achieved at this contemporary fusion restaurant. A stark white sushi bar complements the gray marble liquor bar and dark woodwork throughout the room, bathed in warm lighting and accented with tall, lavish plants. The Alex Hotel, 205 E. 45th St., 212-867-5100; riingo.com

102

Stationed in one of the most iconic spaces in New York City—the landmarked Hotel des Artistes—The Leopard at des Artistes has ambiance to spare, with Howard Chandler Christy’s nine “Fantasy Scenes with Naked Beauties” oil-oncanvas murals situated throughout the renovated space. But the food is even more remarkable than the atmosphere. Owned by husband-and-wife team Gianfranco and Paula Bolla Sorrentino, with a kitchen headed by Chef Vito Gnazzo, the menu is rooted in the area once known as “The Kingdom of the Two Sicilies” (mid 1800s) and in the traditions of the Italian regions of Campania, Basilicata, Calabria, Apulia, Sardinia, and Sicily. The result is everyday food done with respect to Southern Italian cultural traditions, absolute quality of ingredients, modern research, and outstanding service. 1 W. 67th St., 212-787-8767; theleopardnyc.com

092-105 DiningList.indd 102

Sugiyama - Chef-owner Nao Sugiyama’s creates the finest in Kaiseki meal presentation with his own twist that emphasizes the sensory aspects of dining experience. Kaiseki dining—multi-course, prix-fixe dinners that range from the mini-Kaiseki to a majestic 14-course extravaganza—are all personally prepared behind an open counter. 251 W. 55th St., 212-956-0670; sugiyama-nyc.com

KOREAN Bann - The premier destination in New York for modern Korean cuisine. Young Choi, owner of Woo Lae Oak, got even more creative with Bann, the city’s highest-rated Korean restaurant according to Zagat. The elegant, cool ambiance is characterized by the hand-crafted copper bar and marble tables, with the flickering flames of smokeless barbecue grills in the center of each table—the fare is very eclectic. 350 W. 50th St., 212-582-4446; bannrestaurant.com Jungsik - Fine Korean dining at the hands of Chef Jungsik Yim, from crisp pork belly to delicate black cod. Open for dinner Monday through Saturday. 2 Harrison St. (Hudson St.), 212-219-0900; jungsik.kr

11/12/12 4:56 PM

Mediterranean Isabella’s - This Upper West Side mainstay serves Mediterranean-style fare. The ambiance is sunny and casual, with its split-level dining room, rattan chairs, and popular outdoor patio. 359 Columbus Ave. (77th St.), 212-724-2100; isabellas.com

Mexican/Tex-Mex

infused with fruits or spices—is available, along with cocktails inspired by the region. 65 E. 55th St., 212-307-7311; aquavit.org Vandaag - Inspired by the culture and cuisine of Northern Europe—especially Denmark and Holland—this farm-to-table restaurant utilizes ingredients from the Hudson River Valley for inventive dishes courtesy of sous chef Seth Johnson. 103 Second Ave. (6th St.), 212-253-0470; vandaagnyc.com

Seafood Blue Water Grill - Raw bar lovers unite at this majestic bank redux that hits the spot for fresh delicacies and entrées. 31 Union Square West (16th St.), 212-675-9500; bluewatergrillnyc.com Caviar Russe - This jewel box boite is one of America’s largest caviar importers, and they let you taste the caviar you are buying. In addition to the

El Parador Café - NYC’s oldest—and one of the most authentic—Mexican restaurant. Recommended dishes include the mole poblano, Mexico’s national dish with a half-chicken stewed in a complex, multilayered sauce with over 24 ingredients. Lauded for having the best ceviche by The Times, and named the city’s top Mexican restaurant by Open Table diners. 325 E. 34th St., 212-679-6812; elparadorcafe.com MAYA – Modern Mexican Cuisine and Tequila Bar - Chef Richard Sandoval innovates the Tequileria trend with his Upper East Side Mexican eatery. Spinning traditional cuisine, Maya puts emphasis on a modern menu, boasting inventive guacamoles from traditional spicy crab, refreshing ceviche, heartily packed quesadillas, and mouthwatering chef’s specials like slow roasted pork carnitas and lobster and tequila chipotle prawns. Accompanying the impressive menu is an extensive tequila list, 200 bottles strong, some of which are infused in-house, for diners to sip straight up or mixed into artfully crafted cocktails. 1991 First Ave., 212-585-1818; richardsandoval.com/mayany Ofrenda - A cozy and rustic restaurant, offering the authentic flavors of Mexican home-style cooking in all its varieties. Excellent values include pan-seared striped bass, Berkshire grilled pork chuleta, grilled sirloin steak, slow-braised short ribs, diver scallops, and corn tortilla goat enchiladas. Dinner 7 days, and Sat./Sun. brunch. 113 Seventh Ave. South (W. 10th-Christopher Sts), 212-924-2305; ofrendanyc.com VIKTOR & Spoils - A modern Mexican taqueria and tequila bar serving classic and new style tacos alongside a world-class tequila, mezcal, and cocktail program by Steve Olson, a leading expert and acting wine and spirits consultant for Bon Appetit. V&S combines Executive Chef James London’s globally influenced menu of tacos, taquitos, nachos, Elote corn, and churros with Olson’s passion and expertise for Mexican culture and artisanal products to create an authenticexperience. Tues.-Sat., 6pm-close. 105 Rivington St., 212-475-3485; viktorandspoils.com

SCANDINAVIAN Aquavit - This modern Scandinavian establishment reflects the best of minimalist mid-century Scandinavian design with its pale wood tones, soft indirect lighting, and unique tableware. The menu focuses on “seasonal Nordic cusine,” with plates like cold smoked Holland herring and aquavit steak tartare. A large selection of aquavits—potato vodka

092-105 DiningList.indd 103

103

11/12/12 4:56 PM

DININGNEWYORK

SHOWCASing THE CUISINE AND CULTURE OF AUSTRIA

retail component, which offers gift boxes and much more, their restaurant offers a tasting menu with exquisite caviar selections, dinner a la carte, raw bar, and more. 538 Madison Ave. (54th-55th Sts.), 2nd Floor, 212-980-5908; caviarrusse.com Le Bernardin - Ultra-fresh and skillfully prepared seafood served with impeccable service in an elegant venue has earned Le Bernardin a four-star rating since it opened in 1986. Veteran chef Eric Ripert surprises diners with Asian accent flavors throughout his menus, featuring fish that is “almost raw” or “lightly cooked.” The Equitable Building, 155 W. 51st St., 212-554-1515; le-bernardin.com

[ Cafe Kristall ]

Kurt Gutenbrunner grew up in a town called Wallsé on the banks of the Danube and his first restaurant in New York, which opened in the West Village in 2000, not only bears that name, but pays homage to the cuisine as well as the art and culture of his homeland. Elegant and simple, Wallsé reflects his vision and won two Michelin stars shortly after opening and three stars from The New York Times. Since establishing Wallsé, Gutenbrunner has opened four more restaurants in New York with the same intent. He presents his cuisine as a key to his culture, and his restaurants are designed by Austrian architects and furnished in the Viennese style. About 60 percent of what is served in his restaurants consists of the classics of Austrian cuisine, such as the highly popular Wiener Schnitzel, a soufflé-like veal scallop, or Zwiebelrostbraten, seared hangar steak with blaufrankisch red wine sauce. Café Sabarsky, in the Neue Gallerie of Austrian and German art on the Upper East Side, opened in 2001 and people stand in line for as long as an hour to experience the ambiance of a genuine Viennese coffee house and indulge in Einspanner, or double espresso with whipped cream in a glass, with some Sachertorte, the classic Viennese dark chocolate cake with house-made apricot confiture. The casual bistro Blaue Gans (Blue Goose) opened in 2005 in Tribeca, with vintage film and art posters adorning the walls—along with some whimsical statues of geese—to create a fun casual atmosphere like the central European wursthaus, where you enjoy a weisswurst (white sausage of veal and pork) mit brazen (warm pretzel) and Handelmaier’s mustard. It is one of Tribeca’s favorite bistros, with an extensive menu of Austrian and German dishes, beers, and wines. Café Kristall, inside the Swarovski crystallized concept store in Soho’s shopping district, is a collaboration between Gutenbrunner and Francis Reynard, with whom he had worked in Europe years ago. Surrounded by cutting-edge crystal chandeliers, Swarovski wallpaper, and floral upholstered banquets, shoppers enjoy a light lunch of open-faced sandwiches such as smoked salmon with horseradish cream, caper berries, and chives. Café Kristall has also become one of Soho’s favorite brunch spots. The smallest venue in Gutenbrunner’s empire is the The Upholstery Store, a wine bar not far from Wallsé in the West Village. Named after a former occupant, it opened in 2009 for pre-dinner cocktails or a late-night rendezvous. The Austrian-designed minimalist décor in this speakeasy-like retreat incorporates exposed brick, dark wood, vintage mirrors, and art from the Mike Weiss gallery. For information on all of Gutenbrunner’s restaurants, go to kg-ny.com. – Marian Betancourt

Oceana - Executive Chef Ben Pollinger pulls out all the stops at Oceana with a comprehensive seafood lover’s menu, featuring fresh whole fish, prime meats, naturally raised fowl, stunning desserts, and dishes that reflect the season’s freshest flavors. Complete with floor-to-ceiling windows, chef’s table, and outdoor dining, Oceana also recently introduced a renovated café area, transforming the former raw bar into a space at which to enjoy a drink and a variety of the finest oysters and other small plates. 120 W. 49th St., 212-759-5941; oceanarestaurant.com The Sea Grill - One of NYC’s top seafood restaurants, the sleek and sophisticated Sea Grill features its signature crab cakes, grilled daily fish specialties and mouthwatering shellfish platters—all with a front-row view of the Ice Rink. 19 W. 49th St., 212-332-7610; theseagrillnyc.com

Southwestern Mesa Grill - Chef Bobby Flay serves Southwestern cuisine in a whimsical setting accented in shades of Sutter’s gold, adobe terra cotta, and sage green, and boasting a kitchen view. Dining room people-watching is fun too, and the mood is relaxed and friendly. 102 Fifth Ave. (15th-16th Sts.), 212-807-7400; mesagrill.com

SPANISH/TAPAS Tio Pepe - “It’s party time at Tio Pepe,” a Greenwich Village Spanish and Mexican eatery that’s been open since 1970. Experience a lively bar scene, a sidewalk cafe, Latino music, and a main dining room with a skylight garden patio room, chandeliers, and stone and brick walls. The fresh guacamole is made to order in tableside stone bowls, the corn chips are warm, the salsa is snappy, and jumbo pitchers of margaritas and excellent sangria are the order of the day. 168 W. 4th St., 212-242-6480 tiopepenyc.com

Steakhouses Benjamin Steakhouse - Peter Luger alumnus Benjamin Prelvukaj and chef Arturo McLeod join forces to create an opulent steakhouse in the century-old Chemist Club building. Six cuts of dry-aged beef are available, from 36-ounce porterhouses to top sirloins to rib eyes to succulent filet mignon. 52 E. 41st St., 212-297-9177; benjaminsteakhouse.com Bobby Van’s - Established in 1969, Bobby Van’s boasts 8 locations throughout the Northeast including five in

104

092-105 DiningList.indd 104

11/12/12 4:56 PM

Manhattan, two in Washington, DC and the original in Bridgehampton, Long Island. The menu includes the finest USDA cuts, from filet mignon to sirloin, and seafood lovers will make room for the impressive 3 pound lobster. 135 W. 50th St.; 230 Park Ave. (46th St.); 13 E. 54th St.; 120 W. 45th St.; 25 Broad St.; visit bobbyvans.com for more info. Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steak House - This spacious steak hot spot soars two-stories high, offering diners spectacular view, and Broadway’s theatres are just a block or two away. The menu features fresh USDA aged prime beef shipped straight out of the Midwest twice a week. Lobster, fish, lamb, osso buco, and veal chops receive equal billing. Beautifully appointed private party facilities and unique wine cellar dining. 1221 Avenue of the Americas (49th St.), 212-575-5129; delfriscos.com Rothmann’s Steakhouse & Grill - Rothmann’s Steakhouse & Grill has been serving New Yorkers, celebrities, and visitors the finest quality prime dry aged beef, delicious chicken, and mouthwatering seafood for over 100 years. 3 E. 54th St., 212-319-5500; rothmannssteakhouse.com Smith & Wollensky - This iconic steakhouse has been serving up choice cuts and generous portions since 1977. Old school hospitality adds charm to the turn-of-the-century design elements. Steaks take center stage, including juicy double sirloin, chateau-briand for two, filet mignon, filet au poivre, and sliced steak Wollensky, all dry-aged in-house for 28 days. 797 Third Ave. (49th St.), 212-753-1530; smithandwollensky.com Uncle Jack’s Steakhouse - Pleasing the most discerning of steak lovers, the USDA prime steaks here—all aged for at least 21 days—include NY strip, filet mignon and a special Kobe beef, hand-massaged with sake. For the seafood lover, there are crab cakes, Australian lobster tails, a seafood platter, and more. 440 Ninth Ave. (35th St.), 212-244-0005; 44 W. 56th St., 212-245-1550; 39-40 Bell Blvd., Bayside, Queens, 718-229-1100; unclejacks.com

THAI Bangkok House - A Thai haven amidst the chain restaurant sea of Times Square. The reasonably priced food has exotic flavors that will challenge your taste buds and please your appetites. We recommend ordering a few entrées that can be shared easily with a group. Great for before or after a Broadway show. 360 W. 46th St. btw. Eighth & Ninth Aves., 212-541-5943; bangkokhouseny.com Spice Market - Stepping into this Zagat favored Meatpacking District retreat will transport you into a world of Eastern exotica, far from New York’s urban hustle and bustle. The airy, two-level room features teak floors from a 200-year-old Bombay palace, and custom-made, colonial-style furniture. Chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten draws inspiration from the best of the region’s street food and gives it a New York spin. Diners might experience culture shock as they re-emerge onto the city streets. 403 W. 13th St., 212-675-2223; jean-georges.com

VEGETARIAN Pure Food and Wine - New York City’s premier raw-foods restaurant, located in Gramercy Park, utilizing organic and seasonal fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds to create a unique, award-winning culinary experience. Nothing is heated above approximately 118 degrees in order to preserve vitamins, minerals, and enzymes. Open daily. 54 Irving Pl. (17th St.), 212-477-1010; purefoodandwine.com Quintessence - Innovators of the raw food movement, featuring exotic ingredients and tastes that form the innovative dishes at this East Village outpost. 100% organic, vegan, and raw, this unique menu includes Mexican and Indian platters, pizzas, pastas, sandwiches, “guiltless” desserts, and more. Breakfast served 10am-noon, weekdays. 263 E. 10th St., 646-654-1823; raw-q.com

105

092-105 DiningList.indd 105

11/12/12 4:56 PM

THEINTERVIEW

Georges Briguet

Le Périgord

405 East 52nd Street • 212-755-6244 • LePerigord.com

Open since 1964, Le Périgord has been host to movie stars across the ages from Liz Taylor and Richard Burton, to Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. Visiting members of the UN, faithful regulars, and French food enthusiasts have kept Georges busy for nearly 50 years.

By Kristopher Carpenter

ow’s the beef bourguignon?” It was lunchtime on a Wednesday at Le Périgord and a half-empty glass of white wine was sitting next to a very full glass of red wine, above a white china bowl of meaty brown stew; its aroma wafting up in nearly visible tendrils. Owner Georges Briguet continued: “If you want to make this bourguignon, first you go to a butcher and ask him for a cut to make a beef stew. He’ll give you the shoulder, the chuck of the shoulder.” He went on to give cooking instructions, which included braising the beef, adding turnips, carrots, celery, potato, onions, 2-3 glasses of red wine, and a little salt before a low and slow period in the oven of about 2-3 hours. “The beef is the key...If it’s the right cut, it will do all the work for you.” He had barely finished this oration when a large constituency of Uruguayan diplomats stopped in, presumably taking a break from the nearby United Nations HQ, for lunch. Georges greeted them formally, made his rounds throughout the dining room, and sat back down to chat a bit longer about his restaurant, Le Périgord, one of the oldest and best French restaurants in New York City.

106

Q. How has Le Périgord evolved over these last few decades and changed? GB: The big change, the first that comes to mind, is one that I’m actually not too happy about. The dress code. For a great many years when people came to a fine restaurant, a French restaurant with a white tablecloth, every man had a jacket and tie on. We wouldn’t even let anyone into the restaurant unless they were properly dressed. Years ago we would never have let anyone come in wearing blue jeans or shorts. If they would have been dressed that way, back then, the chef would not have cooked for them. Then about ten, or maybe 12 years ago, we relaxed the rule. The new generation came around, my children included, and for some reason they just don’t understand the art of fine dining. Q. Has the cuisine at Le Périgord changed very much with the times? GB: Yes and no. The food here is food like in France, and by that I mean, what they serve in France today is what we serve at Le Périgord. Our chef was born, raised, and trained in France. He was trained in Brittany and for part of his career he worked at Lutèce, which was one of the most famous restaurants in New York, if not the world. When it closed in 2004, he came to Le Périgord and he’s been here ever since. French children are raised in the kitchen, cooking with their mother. I think it is much, much easier for a French-born young person to be a good chef than it is for people in many other cultures. I learned so much in the kitchen with my mother, but I never cooked professionally. In the kitchen I couldn’t see all of those beautiful women in the dining room.

106 RestaurantInterview.indd 106

Q. I saw the a wide range of dishes as I entered; can you talk about the mealtime service? GB: Our cooking here is simple, elegant, classical French and our guests see food the whole time—when they walk in they see the first-course options: Canadian lobster with coriander sauce, shrimp, asparagus, celery remoulade, and the ‘famous’ artichokes. Then once they are seated, the waiter takes their order and brings them whatever they wish. They select their entrée, and wine (if they wish) and dessert is served on the “Temptation Wagon.” [The temptation wagon rolls closer.] Today we’ve got blueberry tart, apple tart tatin, chocolate mousse, chocolate mousse cake. It is known all over the country. In fact, that Temptation Wagon is why we were so successful when we opened back in 1964. Q. Do you select all of the wines yourself? GB: I was born in a vineyard. My parents made their living growing grapes in the Rhone Valley, so to me wine is like a way of life, and I order all of the wine that we serve in the restaurant. I taste all of them, I price all of them, and because I do that personally I can keep the prices on my wine list very reasonable. Sometimes I make more on the food than the wine. In many cases, people will see a bottle they know, and when they’re finished they’ll order a second bottle. If you are too greedy with the price of wine people are hesitant to order even one bottle; they might only order one glass. Q. What are your favorite places to eat in France? GB: In France, like in America, my favorite place is my home. My wife is a fantastic cook, she was born in France and her mother was a great chef as well. In France, as in New York, you can get amazing, fresh ingredients and baked goods at the markets, and that’s what my wife does when we are in France. She goes shopping for the food that we’re going to eat that night and then she cooks it. I’m always here in the restaurant, and I’m always around people, so when I take time off or when I travel, I enjoy a little solitude.

11/12/12 4:09 PM

212 980 5908 - 1 800 NYCAVIAR - www.CaviarRusse.com

Untitled-1 2

12-11-13 09:03

PROMENADE

About New York since 1934

NYLUXURY.COM

WINTER 2012-2013

theatre Maggie the Cat and Much More ■ Great Gifting ■ Brownstone Living ■ Holiday Shows ■ Fine Dining ■

12009 Dec Promenade.indd 1 Untitled-1 1

•

V I SI T OU R F L AG SH I P S T OR E ON F I F T H AV E N U E AT 3 9 T H ST R E ET

shopping For Her, For Him

winter in new york luxury properties The Brownstone Life

Fifteen Dollars

WINTER 2012-2013

L OR DA N D TAY L OR .C OM

art Picasso Sans Color

dining Cantonese, Elegant and Modern

11/8/12 6:19 PM

12-11-13 09:03