Friday, August 22, 2008

Day Three

 

I started the morning with an early breakfast at Empire Diner (open 24 hours, great staff) in Chelsea, then I strolled up 10th Avenue to 59th and over to Central Park. I wandered throught the park for several hours, snapping shots of all the usual suspects.
 

By the time I got to the reservoir, the feet were starting to protest. Bear in mind this is day three of a LOT of walking. I walked a little farther, coming out at East 91st and walking back down Fifth Ave. I wasn't planning to check out the Met as I was on a deadline, but I saw that the featured artist was Turner and I caved. The gallery is overwhelming. Do not go here unless you (a)know exactly where and what you want to see and have incredible willpower, or (b)you have a day or two to kill. Unfortunately, I have no willpower or the requisite skill needed to navigate the museum and I spent 3 hours in there without seeing a stitch of Turner's work! I still enjoyed every minute.... But time was ticking. I needed to get back to Chelsea, eat lunch, shower and change and get back to Grand Central in the early afternoon. Every stop was agony. I am not exaggerationg. It was hot, I had switched to running shoes in an effort to ease the fatigue on my feet, but they were just shredding my poor toes. Somehow, I made it to Chelsea. Within a few blocks of home, I spotted brgr. Yes, another beefy lunch! The burger was better than the one from Better Burger, ironically. And the Blueberry Pomegranate milk shake was gone in 60 seconds. Refreshed, I made it the last few blocks and crashed in front of my air con for 15 minutes.
I was out the door again before long. I switched to flip flops to let my swollen feet breathe and packed the gold flats fro my dressy restaurant look. I was so excited.... Stone Barns Farm, here I come...
I successfully purchased a ticket to Tarrytown and found the right platform for the 2:54 train. The ride itself was pretty, coming up along the Hudson River, about 40 minutes or so. A 20 minute cab ride and I was there
 

 

It was a peaceful oasis in the country after my 3 days of nothing but New York. I ambled through the gardens, checking out the beautiful tomatoes and eggplant, flowers, chickens, pigs, cows... Well you get it, its a farm. I spotted a chef smoking corn in a back parking lot. I hoped the corn would make an appearance at my meal.
at 5 pm on the dot, I was ushered to my table. The room is beautiful, light with high, heavy beamed ceilings. The service was impeccable. I think there was a body for every table in the room. I ordered an elderflower royale (their take on kir royale) while I waited to hear about my meal. I was offered a menu which was simply two pages of food. Everything that is in season and available right now. THe server asked me if I had any allergies or dislikes. Was I adventurous or conservative? Did I want the 5 course or the Farmer's Feast. Considering I had been planning and anticipating this dinner for several weeks, I opted for the Feast.....

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I hear you about the Met. I've only been there once and spent about 2.5 to 3 hours, and I think I only saw three rooms of it. I'm going to the MoMA in October because there's a Picasso statue exhibit. NYC has great museums, but after a few hours, I just need to get outside and walk, you know? Your trip out of the city looks/sounds grand. So glad you had a great trip.