Art in London: Zetter Townhouse
November 6, 2023
The Zetter Townhouse, situated just behind the Zetter Hotel and home to one of the best cocktail bars in London, was the base of operations for some business and a nice pile of art. NPS was put into room 6.
Art included, the Tate, some theater, and a concert.
The shower is not plastic, though climbing in and out of the enormous tub is a thing, Perhaps some short stairs should be installed.
Room 6 could use a better wardrobe, and some updated less shabby furniture. But all in all it is a nice place to spend a few days.
On our way to the Tate, we stopped by Ibérica Farringdon for a bite.
Our visit to the Tate Modern is documented here.
Of course a cocktail at the Zetter Townhouse rounded out the Thursday plan. We keep reminding them what a Liberal is.
Then some business which included two very nice meals, one at Bocca di Lupo and an incredible lunch at Inko Nito.
A French dinner at Le Café du Marché was very good for London but would never fly in Paris.
Saturday afternoon was meant to start with ramen, but Mohonon was closed (fortunately that was remedied Sunday evening. Suffice it to say that Bone Daddy just does not stack up.
Waiting on line might require a beer.
Some shopping at Varvatos cost everyone a pretty penny, but was surprisingly not awful.
We just had time for a brown meal at Hawksmoor before the theater. Then it was off to see Lyonesse which was enhanced by some sugarless French 75s.
The play was quite good, a medical emergency nothwithstanding.
The next day included a run back to Soho to visit Etro. And then some incredible classical music at the barbican.
Followed by real Ramen. Mohonos is just so good…equal to Japan.
A nightcap at Boccas was not terrible. But no Fernet in an Argentinean bar?! What?! A Pisco Sour (Peru?) would have to do.
All in all, four showerheads and a quick furnishings update required for the Zetter Townhouse.
Back in New York, The Muse Hotel (IHG)
May 8, 2022
Our first foray into the city was not that long ago, but was directly impacted by COVID when both stars of Plaza Suite were infected. We went to see Hangman instead, an OK play, but not really all that. And then it was back in Virginia for the advent of the Spring green. Were some of us disappointed? Why yes we were.
So, soon enough we were back in the city to take another crack at Plaza Suite do some business on the side. The original plan was to fly in Saturday evening, so we booked a room at the Muse, one of the Kimptons of yore. Bottom line: the IHG takeover of Kimpton is complete. These days, the lobby of the Muse seems to be filled with aging midwesterners who have accumulated enough IHG points by staying at many Holiday Inns that they are splurging on a trip to Broadway and the big city. Kimpton is hip no more.
The new demographic at the Muse in NY seems to be mostly oldsters from flyover states who accumulated lots of points by staying at Holiday Inns. @Kimpton has been utterly transformed by @IHGhotels.
— noplasticshower (@noplasticshower) May 7, 2022
Times Square remains a Disneyfied tourist attraction and a traffic snarl. That’s nothing new.
The Muse does retain much of its old staff, and that is nice. But its computers are corporate and the wiggle room is gone. So our request of room 1703 was ignominiously ignored due to the fact that we expanded our stay to two nights instead of one (really with plenty of time for the hotel to adjust) and didn’t feel up to switching rooms halfway through our stay. That leaves us surly and disappointed.
Somehow I think we ended up accumulating lots of IHG points due to all of this. But guess what? NPS does not give one shit about IHG points. None. We just want really great rooms for our cash money.
Plus it rained the whole time, so 1506 was not all that it’s cracked up to be what with a soggy balcony.
It was great to see Madou.
The rain made business in Brooklyn interesting too. Traffic was a thing. Our visit to One World Observatory for dinner was hilarious with zero visibility. LOL.
Finally we ditched the tail and ended up at Katana Kitten for some real fun (thanks to Jacques for the pointer). I mean, check out this before and after!
Before Katana Kitten
After Katana Kitten
Things were blurry.
Thankfully the canary extracted us before the blurry things got much farther out of hand. They did get far enough though, and Saturday morning was hard.
Returning to 1506 after a night on the town? Nah. The Muse days are over.
At least the shower is NPS approved. A very nice one.
After recovery, we visited the Guggenheim for a Kandinsky fix. Ahhh. That and ramen will do it every time. It was a glorious afternoon.
There are times when ramen can save your life
After a nap that stretched on just a little too long, it was dinner at Junoon. Highly recommended.
Breakfast at Banter (the original one south of Washington Square) is fantastic. The mushrooms are worth talking about.
All dressed up and ready for Plaza Suite
Now it’s time to see the play and then scoot to EWR for a quick hop home.
Four showerheads and a demotion for the Muse. We miss our Kimpton.
Pullman Melbourne Albert Park Nails It
December 5, 2018
Apparently, someone from the three city tour we’re part of has been reading our supposedly secret blog entries (LOL), because when we checked in at the Pullman Melbourne Albert Park this afternoon, we were assigned a very nice room indeed. So thanks, secret blog reading lurkers! We know you’re out there.
Once again for the record, the Pullman Melbourne Albert Park is not the kind of place NPS usually frequents. This is a high level business hotel. You can always spot this category of hotel by the international air crews frequenting the lobby and the packs of Chinese tourists that wash through in waves.
View from the executive floor
At checkin, we were assigned room 9604. There is only one suite at this hotel (next door, it turns out), but there are a number of executive class rooms with a sitting area on the executive level of the hotel. Some of those rooms overlook the Albert Park lake (across the parking area and a highway). 9604 is one of those with a view.
The room itself is well appointed and spacious with room to exist.
Since it is December, it is summer here and the xmas stuff scattered to and fro all over the place is disconcerting if not outright alarming. When you wander around town in the summer heat there are many people in short xmas skirts and bad xmas t-shirts (no sweaters to be seen).
Speaking of which, when it is 99 degrees outside, the HVAC system here just can’t keep up. My in room AC ran continuously and never hit the target temperature. Time to upgrade the HVAC on this property to prepare for global warming.
The Pullman Melbourne lobby play along with xmas
Juxtaposition
Our bathroom is spacious but a bit spartan. Some of that space could have been put to use to house a better shower.
Spartan
But the shower is not plastic.
We were recognized by name on checkin (tipping us off that the fairies had become involved). There was even a welcome amenity set up for someone else in the room.
Amenity for mr dunbar
We’ll happily spoof mr dunbar as long as we get to stay in this room for the next few nights.
NPS is gratified to learn that not only do all systems break, some of them even learn!
After a quick turnaround mostly for charging devices, we headed into town. St Kilda is south of the city proper and is a suburban beach town. Like many beach towns, it’s a bit scrappy. People say “fuck” a lot in normal conversation (even in fancy restaurants), and there are more crazy ass bums here than you find in the city. It reminds NPS of the seedier parts of San Diego.
A late lunch of sushi at Ichi Ni was very good indeed.
Sushi for lunch
A walk along the beach was in order, and then an amble through town for some espresso.
Summer, bitches! pic.twitter.com/N0uxATLBLM
— noplasticshower (@noplasticshower) December 5, 2018
Street art pic.twitter.com/oqjx1M9XEU
— noplasticshower (@noplasticshower) December 5, 2018
Espresso at Leroy is worth seeking out. The walk from the Pullman into town is just over a mile. An easy walk, but not one you want to do multiple times per day. That’s why they make uber.
Leroy for breakfast and the best coffee in town
Albert Park with Melbourne in the background
A very good but overpriced dinner at Cafe di Stasio included an incredibly delicious Omelette D’aragosta. This dish is so good it warrants mention in guidebooks and they are right on all counts. Get it. The wine list is also very good. It’s the clientele that needs some finishing school.
Food @CafeDiStasio is world class. pic.twitter.com/trq0drQDP1
— noplasticshower (@noplasticshower) December 5, 2018
LOL. Same people having a cell phone chat. All the humans must go.
— noplasticshower (@noplasticshower) December 5, 2018
Yes please pic.twitter.com/mt2dqisLi0
— noplasticshower (@noplasticshower) December 5, 2018
After a half day in St Kilda, we’re ready to give our last talk and get into Melbourne. More soon.
Cocktails at Black Pearl are highly recommended. Make a reservation for the Attic space. Our bartenders were exceptionally knowledgeable and the drinks were great. Much fun was had. And, they made us a liberal.
Drinks at 1806 are a completely different scene on a Friday. Loud music and lots of energy. Not very civilized, but very good cocktails.
1806. Great cocktails in chaos. Melbourne, Australia @drinks1806. Great time for a CR#2 https://t.co/ix6qaI9oe6 pic.twitter.com/Kz0kAtPiCr
— noplasticshower (@noplasticshower) December 7, 2018
Skip the circular tram nonsense. It is overhyped and a waste of time. Just do some walking in the center of town instead. But make sure to leave time for the incredible National Gallery of Victoria (NGV). It is worth the visit.
The special Escher exhibit was worth fighting the crowds to see, especially with Sam. See lots of Escher on apothecaryshed.
Finagle your way into the dumpling place, hutong, if you can. Really worth calling and conning your way in.
Yes, hutong is as great as its stellar reputation. A delicious dinner indeed. Must visit in Melbourne. https://t.co/ExyCIKhoXP pic.twitter.com/Gpeuecfhyz
— noplasticshower (@noplasticshower) December 8, 2018
The Gin Palace is an exceptional bar, so good in fact that we visited twice—briefly before seeing a play and more properly afterwards.
Adelaide Negroni (all products from Australia)
Such ice. Wow.
Astroman is an uplifting play with some great laughs and some real feels
Four showerheads for the Pullman Albert Park and a wish for a sultry hot xmas.
Ink 48: Rocking Hell’s Kitchen in NYC
November 1, 2017
There’s nothing like experiencing a new Kimpton property for the first time. In all of our countless trips up to NY, NPS has never visited Ink 48 (though we have heard tell of it). Hell’s Kitchen is pretty far up there, but sometimes business uptown happens!
Our greeting at the front was warm and welcoming even though it was supposed to be scary. We were assigned the fantastic river-view suite 1416 (for which we thank Steph and Barry). What a great room.
Room 1416 on a gorgeous day overlooking the Hudson
The sitting room section.
The bedroom section.
And the all important huge bathroom with a distinct shower cube in the corner. Plenty of room in here, and no sign of plastic.
Glowing shower cube of 1416.
The “hot and cold” amenity was impressive and delicious.
Thanks Barry and company for the superior "hot and cold" amenity. What a welcome! pic.twitter.com/UrsWuUZsFd
— noplasticshower (@noplasticshower) October 31, 2017
Dinner at Taboon is not to be missed. Outstanding bread, delicious food, a real cocktail program, a nice wine list. Seek it out. We enjoyed ourselves so much before the play that we returned after the crash.
Spirits Bisbas
1.5 oz hendricks gin
1 oz rhubarb puree
1 oz lemon
.5 oz dry vermouth
shake. serve up in a coup. smoked paprika on top
Hey now @taboonnyc is super fantastic. Excellent food. Great people. Decent bar willing to play. We rain affection on you. @AmyBarley
— noplasticshower (@noplasticshower) November 1, 2017
We tried to see a play at Lincoln Center, but it was not to be. About an hour in to “Junk,” technical things went south and never recovered. Frankly, we expect more out of NY Theater.
We’re so sorry… technical difficulties are never fun. Live theater!
— LincolnCenterTheater (@LCTheater) November 1, 2017
The “hot” part of the amenity came in handy late night when we got back from our cocktail run at Taboon.
Thanks for the hot tea last night @kimpton ink48. Just like home in the winter. Night time rituals. pic.twitter.com/pDLrzqCcRB
— noplasticshower (@noplasticshower) November 1, 2017
Five showerheads and a warm glow for ink 48 in NY.
Eat, Think, Drink
February 26, 2017
The time has come to turn 51. And so celebration ensues—in the city, with friends.
Last minute plan refactoring required use of a federal style rental vehicle. You see, nobody has any kids left at home, and so cars no longer fit six in one go! (Unless you count the one Eli “borrowed” and took to Wisconsin.)
Das Rental Beast
Special last licks at Le Dip while Baker Bob remains in power (a one week reprise before retirement really kicks in).
Amy strikes her best Vanna pose by the bread at Le Diplomate
Larry Kilbourne is a master (and a philosopher to boot)
Fois gras parfait (huckleberry)
Then a play at Studio Theater. The Hard Problem is written by my friend Tom about the philosophy of my friend Dave. The play is very good if you can ignore the god coincidence nonsense.
Stage set at Studio Theatre for The Hard Problem
And then the crowning glory of the evening, drinks at the venerable Columbia Room in the secret booth. Thanks Dante!
Cocktail time!
Woman themed drink menu
Inspired by many of these incredibly great bartenders
Is that you Audrey?
A cocktail inspired by Becky Harris from Catoctin Creek
Yo! Forty Year Old Calvados
Last delicious licks
A perfect evening.
That’s Dr. Apartment to You (New York City)
March 3, 2013
We’ve been here before, but it was a while ago—Penthouse Apartment D (or PHD). It’s nice to have a corporation sometimes!
We’re in the city to see Kandinsky at the Guggenheim and Who’s Afraid of Virginia Wolfe. Also had some great meals (at the Guggenheim’s superior Wright Cafe and Aureole).
View from the 38th floor.
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Laundry: feature of bug?
These are not the machines you’re looking for.
One notable cocktail recipe from Aureole is the Tim’s 135
.75 oz Dubonnet Rouge
.75 oz Eagle Rare 10 year (this needs to be plussed with something hotter)
.75 Campari
.75 Lillet blanc
Shake. Express orange peel and drop in.
Off to Maialino for brunch (thanks to Jaques for helping us massage the reservation situation) before flying home.
The apartment is super convenient. Close to Penn Station. Right in the middle of everything. Beautiful view. But then there’s the laundry.
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