Browsed by
Author: Susan Salk

Soaring above the rest

Soaring above the rest

The 15-story, glass-and-chrome atrium of Conrad NY Downtown with its massive mural by Sol LeWitt, may feel quite modern, but it is traditional concepts that draw the customers through the front doors. The view; the food; the service. That’s what pulls people in, says senior food and beverage manager Joseph Mirsky. “We have a great advantage in terms of our location and our international and continental brand,” Mirsky says. “We’re one of the more upscale hotels in Lower Manhattan and…

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MAMA Oakland—the food & legend

MAMA Oakland—the food & legend

The experience at MAMA Oakland often begins with the “Legend.” It arrives at the table along with the dinner menu. And upon its page is found icons and descriptions that solve one of dinner’s bigger mysteries. Specifically, what wine should we get? Co-owner Stevie Stacionis explains. “My husband (Josiah Baldivino) and I co-own a wine shop and bar a few doors down called Bay Grape. When we decided to open our restaurant  we planned to have an extensive wine selection,…

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The Drake of Oak Brook High Tea
High Tea & glamor rediscovered

High Tea & glamor rediscovered

A sparkling silver tea service and a tower of cakes is just one of the pillars of Glamour Rediscovered; The Drake of Oak Brook, Illinois’ new branding campaign. “The Drake is an iconic name, dating back to 1927, when it was built in Chicago. The Drake Oak Brook is 18 miles away, in a Chicago suburb, and our goal is to bring back the opulence of yesteryear,” says GM Lee Hoener. “We hope our guests will enjoy a spirit of…

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New wine ideas bubble up on NJ farmland

New wine ideas bubble up on NJ farmland

On a pretty New Jersey farm where hawks once gathered to hunt the freshly tilled soil, blossoms a family vineyard, which bubbles with fresh ideas in sparkling wine and small-production varietals. The Hawk Haven Vineyard & Winery, was launched in 1997 by husband and wife Todd and Kenna Wuerker. Together they grow grapes on the farmland that has been in Todd’s family since it was purchased in 1940 by German immigrant Johan Felix Wuerker. Today, the farm is a popular…

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Independent Living Community gets Foodie treatment

Independent Living Community gets Foodie treatment

The challenge of making great food for all tastes is a high bar for any establishment. But when those meals also need to accommodate diners with restrictions, such as stroke-related swallowing issues, or sodium intake, that high bar just hit the stratosphere. Which is why the self-described foodies running the show at independent living facility Ridgmar Place of Fort Worth, Texas, approach their work every day with an all-hands-on-deck zeal to find new presentations, secret ingredients, and novel ways to…

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Annie & Friends
Annie’s Paramount: Going strong after 70 years

Annie’s Paramount: Going strong after 70 years

Annie’s Paramount Steakhouse in Washington, D.C. has been drawing a crowd since 1948. No, they’re not giving away cash. It’s more like love and understanding. The story goes that sometime in the 1970s, Annie Kaylor was working alongside her four sisters at the family owned restaurant, when she observed a two gentlemen having dinner and holding hands underneath the table. And without missing a beat, she told them, “You don’t need to hide that here.” That short declarative sentence, which…

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Pastabilities Scallop Pasta
From pasta to Food Network & famous hot oil

From pasta to Food Network & famous hot oil

Long before Pastabilities earned its stripes as a popular Syracuse restaurant, gourmet food merchandiser, and Food Network star, they were hitting home runs serving simple, fresh, homemade pasta; cafeteria style in downtown Syracuse. And from those humble beginnings sprang a well of creativity and success. Thirty-seven years later, their daughter and front-of-house manager Ryland Heagerty, reports that the oldest continually run restaurant in Syracuse has grown and stretched into something quite special. “We’re turning 37 next week,” Heagerty says. “And…

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Tom and Cynthia Rosicki
Champagne corks popping at Sparkling Pointe

Champagne corks popping at Sparkling Pointe

An elegant ballet of tiny bubbles, a symphony for the senses is how some describe the champagne produced on the small Long Island vineyard, Sparkling Pointe. To those who imagine fine winemaking can only be done in regions of France or the United States west coast, the team at Sparkling Pointe begs to differ. On Nov. 4, Sparkling Pointe founders Tom and Cynthia Rosicki took home an armful of prestigious awards, including two Best in Class, as well as gold…

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Changala Wine & Pup
Vineyard caters to family & dogs

Vineyard caters to family & dogs

Off the beaten path in Paso Robles, Calif. awaits a vineyard and tasting room that welcomes the entire family, even the four-footed members. “Besides offering our customers great red blends, Changala Winery strives to be very welcoming, warm, with no pretensions,” says Barbara Hooker, spokesperson. “It’s a little bit of a drive for people, which takes them through wine country to a secluded tasting room where customers can bring their kids and their dogs.” With outdoor seating positioned near Willow…

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St. Ann’s Wine Bar & Friends
Making hay with a wine bar

Making hay with a wine bar

The kitchen was a madhouse. It was Thanksgiving in the late 80s. The club house at The Fair Grounds racetrack in Louisiana seated around 2,000; and on that holiday, all eyes were on the kitchen doors. They remained stubbornly closed. Hungry guests began to wonder why. Finally, Vicky Bayley stood up and decided to find out what was going on. Part of a longtime horse racing family, she’d worked alongside her Thoroughbred-trainer father and eventually went to work for the…

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