Dubai 2012

Here’s a quick list of 5 must-see things in Dubai

1)   Top of Burj Khalifa – for fantastic views of Dubai, don’t expect anything else

2)   Dubai Mall – biggest mall in Dubai with A to Z of all stores you can imagine – plan to spend a couple of days. Pick up Bateel dates, Wafi baklavas, Lauderee macaroons etc

3)   Mall of Emirates – easier to navigate than Dubai mall. Ski Dubai is a fun couple of hours for kids. Pick up some original glazed Krispy Kreme donuts.

4)   Desert Safari – you got to do it once. Cruise the desert sands on a range rover, watch some belly dancing and eat an Arabic dinner.

5)   Atlantis Marine & Water Park – fun day playing in the water for kids, expect it to be crowded on a holiday

Where to stay in Dubai

1)   Ascott Park Place, Sheikh Zayed road – for families who need the space, get a 2/3 bedroom apartment on a 30+ floor for lovely views of Old town Dubai, easy 10-min access to Dubai mall with a Olympic length pool & amazing gym

2)   The Address, Palace Hotel, Old Town – apparently the “place to stay in Dubai”

3)   The Atlantis – free entry into the water park, access to 20 odd restaurants and the beach

Where to eat in Dubai

1)   Wafi Gourmet – Lebanese food with incredible view of the Dubai fountain and Souk al Bahar

2)   Nassimi Beach – on the beach in Atlantis Hotel, fantastic sushi & the works

If you haven’t been to the US in a year like I have and are missing some of the US chains, indulge in Romano Macroni Grill, PF Changs, California Pizza Kitchen, Chilli’s, TGIF, Cheesecake Factory etc in Dubai Mall

Where I would have liked to eat if I wasn’t traveling with kids or a group with closed palates

1)   Thipatara, Palace Hotel for Thai

2)   Trader Vic’s, Crowne Plaza for Polynesian

3)   Almaz by Momo, Mall of Emirates for Arabic-Moroccan

Cruise Checklist for the future

Now that I'm a veteran of 5 cruises, I figured its time I put together a checklist for the next one, not exactly a packing checklist but more a practical and essential one.

Cabin category
1)  A cabin with a balcony/veranda is the barest minimum - I think next time I'm going to get a suite - you just have to book really early to get a great deal
2) Get the concierge class or the higher class - better rooms, better service and nice perks make the extra money worth it

Cabin location
1) Get a cabin on the ship on the highest deck possible - higher the deck, better the room
2) Get a cabin near the elevator in the middle of the ship or you will spend a lot of time walking to and from your cabin to access the restaurants and common areas
3) If you are traveling as part of a big group, get cabins close to each other and connecting ones early or your travel agent will automatically assign you

Shore excursions
1) Its better you book the first port of call's shore excursion in advance as it will be sold out
2) Other ports of call, you need to book on the day that you board
3) If you know someone in the cities, it will be 1/2 the price to venture on your own but it does have some risks associated
4) For big cities, a free shuttle may be available, and if you've already visited before and know what you want to do, just opt to do that and skip the shore excursion



Tips

1) Always check the weather before you leave and change your packing list accordingly - it was supposed to be summer in New Zealand but instead it was raining - a wind breaker is absolutely essential no matter what the weather

New York Recommended restaurants list

NYC Restaurants

Posting recommendations from my friends on my blog for easy access as I'm heading to NY this week:)

Aravind's list is below:

Mario Batali restaurants – Mario Batali is a famous Italian chef in the US and has his own show on the food network. Some of his NY restaurants are as follows:

• Bappo (his most famous restaurant – food is amazing but pricey) In the West Village
• Lupa (cheaper alternative, but just as good) (in Soho)
• Del Posto –  in the trendy Meat Packing District
• Italian Wine Merchants (more exclusive and they have an amazing selection of wine tasting) – near Union Square
• Casa Mona – great Spanish tapas place (Aravind's favorite Batali restaurant). It’s in Irving Place – two blocks from Union Square)
• Bar Jamon  - Next to Casa Mona – great place to get some wine before eating at Casa Mona
• Otto Enoteca and Pizzeria –Great pizzeria (near Union Square)

Other good Italian restaurants

• Da Silvano (in the west village and great place to sit outside and people watch – it’s a cool part of town with lots of other restaurants).  Plus the wine and food are excellent
• Nearby is Magnolia Bakery – amazing cupcakes and line sometimes goes out the door and around the corner
• La Caverna – cool cave-like set up and they have an underground waterfall – food is pretty good but not has good as the other places. Also great place to hang out afterwards and get some drinks – music is good and there is dancing late night Place is in the Lower East side right below the East Village
• Cucina di pesce – Great affordable Italian food – low key and romantic place (east village)
• Lambardi’s Pizza – nice, chill place – it’s america’s oldest existing pizzeria.  They serve the famous new york style pizza.  They do not take reservations so there tends to be a line on weekends.  The place is located on the Lower East Side
• If you go here, you should go to Rich and Riches (rice pudding place) – very New York-style desert place (was in the movie Hitch)

Enough Italian, lets move to Asian

• Nobu – The most famous high end - Japanese restaurant (they have sister locations in Los Angeles, Las Vagas and London).  There are two Nobu restaurants in NY and a Nobu to Go.  The famous one (original) is in Tribeca.  Food is amazing and I’m sure they have non-veg (it is very expensive)
• Tao – cool set up with a Buddha statue in the middle similar to the Buddha bar in Paris.  Good for happy hour drinks – power banker scene after work though). This place is in Midtown between Madison and Park
• Buddha Bar – nice place to eat and get a drink after work – same people who did Buddha Bar in Paris. It’s in the trendy Meat Packing District
• Gyu-Kaku Japanese BBQ – you cook the food, one of my favorite restaurants in the city,  but not the best if you are non-veg. It’s in the East Village.  I’ll stop with the Japanese places because I know you don’t like them that much
• Kittichai – great Thai in Soho which is right below the west village – the chef was the main chef at the Four Season’s in Bankok before coming to NY. 
• Spice – good cheap Thai food near Union Square – caters to the NYU crowd
• Siagon Grill – cheap, good Vietnamese food also near Union Square

Jean-George restaurants (Jean-George is arguably the top chef in fine dinning – 6 of his 18 restaurants are in NY – you’ve eaten at Spice Market, but here are a few more

• Jean Georges (in the Time Warner center at Columbus Circle – good views of the park).  This is the only other Jean-George restaurant I’ve been too.
• Nougatine (in the Time Warner center as well)
• Mercer Kitchen
• Vong
• 66
• Spice market (meat packing district)

Here a few more cool spots you might want to try out:

• Sarabeths – they have a few of them in the city – amazing  brunch place (very NY brunch scene)
• Lovely Day Café – brunch place but you can get both American and Thai brunch foods – in lower east side. (also very NY brunch scene)
• Eatery – Times Square – great brunch but service can be snotty
• Peter Lugars – Prob. not going to work for you, but this place is considered the best steakhouse in the country.  It’s in Brooklyn and they only take cash.  New york is famous for a number of famous steak places)
• Agave – Good Mexican food in West Village – also great to seat outside and people watch
• Dos Cominos – you should go to the one in Soho – better ambiance and can sit outside in the summer time – plus it is a much cooler part of town
• La Cocina– this place is on 30^th and 3^rd in Murray Hill – Food is cheap and good – nothing special though
• Per Se – The top of the line French food in the city. It’s in the Time Warner Center and is considered one of the best restaurants in the city.  It’s very expensive – expect to spend about $200 - $300 per person - you get a five to nine course meal though (Thomas Keller restaurant).

 Here's the list from Ananthi, probably more recent than Aravind's list:

The following are a little bit on the fancy side:

1. http://www.oneluckyduck.com/purefoodandwine/

2. http://rougetomatenyc.com/

3. http://www.peterluger.com/ (cash only but the best steak!)

4. http://www.gramercytavern.com/

5. http://www.buddakannyc.com/

6.http://www.wd-50.com/ (molecular gastronomy)

7. http://www.rivercafe.com/ (awesome view, great food, perfect for romantic evening!!) 

Low Key but still some of my favorites

1. http://www.frankiesspuntino.com/17/17_menu.html

2. http://www.blockheads.com/

3. http://www.thekatirollcompany.com/ (if you miss indian food)

4. http://www.firstpizza.com/

5.http://www.gustorganics.com/

6. http://www.google.co.in/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=donut+plant&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&redir_esc=&ei=OKNpTp_HCIa0rAfq3vWkBQ

7.http://www.rosamexicano.com/Locations/NewYorkNYUnionSquare/tabid/97/Default.aspx

8. http://www.bluefinnyc.com/?gclid=CLrBrcy2j6sCFUEa6wodly2eAA

9. http://www.buttermilkchannelnyc.com/ (Great place but it is in brooklyn) 

great place to have a drink 

1. http://www.flatironlounge.com/index_main.html

http://thedarbynyc.com/

Western Mediterranean Cruise

Cruising the blue waters of the Mediterranean is a beautiful once-in-a-lifetime experience filled with historical and monumental sights, arts and culture, cafe hopping and boutique shopping, palazzos and fountains, and exotic cuisines and delicious pizzas. 

The Celebrity Century was our home away from home for 7 days and 7 nights. Launched in 1995 and refurbished in 2006, the Celebrity Century has a capacity of 1800 passengers. Excellent service, contemporary decor, good mix of restaurants, bars and entertainment make the Celebrity Century a wonderful haven to cruise the Mediterranean. 

Our Ports of Call were:

Cannes, France

Portofino, Italy

Florence & Pisa, Italy

Rome, Italy

Naples/Capri, Italy

We boarded the ship in Barcelona, shopped in Cannes, was charmed in Portofino, had lunch in Florence, saw the leaning Tower of Pisa, had an absolutely fantastic day in Rome,  ate the best Pizza ever in Naples and then sailed back to Barcelona. 

Barcelona, Spain

We spent a day exploring the sights of Barcelona.

We visited Sagrada Familia, a Roman Catholic church designed by Catalan architect Antoni Gaudi which was started in 1882 and expected to complete only in 2026. 

We took a Barcelona City Tour on a Hop-on-Hop-off panamonic bus deck that allowed us to get off at different locations and explore at leisure. We also visited the Museu Picasso that has one of the most extensive collections of the Spanish artist, Pablo Picasso. We shopped at El Corte Ingles, Barcelona's largest department store

Cannes, France
Cannes was beautiful and picturesque beyond my expectation. I have never seen waters so blue as on the French Riveria. From being a small fishing village, Cannes has transformed to a glamorous and expensive destination for the rich and famous.








Portofino, Italy

Portofino is a small Italian fishing village located in the province of Genoa on the Italian Riviera. The town crowded round its small harbor is considered to be among the most beautiful Mediterranean ports. 

Florence, Italy

Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany. It is considered the birthplace of the Renaissance and the art capital of Italy being the birth place of several artists including Leonardo da Vinci & Michelangelo. We visited the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Flore and the Leonardo da Vinci museum in Florence. From Florence, we drove to Pisa and visited leaning tower of Pisa. 

Rome, Italy

The day we spent in Rome was filled with beautiful sights - the Piazza Navona square with its 3 fountains, the Roman Pantheon temple, the amazing Trevi fountain, the incredible Colosseum, and St. Peter's Basilica. 

Sri Lanka 2011

We went to Sri Lanka for the EO Coimbatore retreat. We were 120 people from both Chennai and Coimbatore including about 25 children.

Getting to Heritance Ahangalla
We flew Kingfisher airlines from Chennai to Colombo and then took a SriLankan airtaxi service from Colombo to Bentota. The take off port for the sea plane is a 30 min drive from Colombo airport and Bentota landing waters is also a 30min drive to the hotel we were staying in. The sea plane ride is only 20min and is a fun ride once you take off - there is no air conditioning so it gets really hot and claustrophobic as you wait for it to take off. Once the sea plane takes off, it is an amazing experience and the views below are breathtaking. The landing is super smooth as the plane hits the Bentota waters. The transit time from Colombo airport to the resort took 2 hours while driving down from the airport to Ahangalla can take anywhere between 2-4 hours depending on the traffic.

Heritance Ahangalla
Heritance Ahangalla welcomes you with a wonderful view of a magnificent pool and the temptation of the beach. Fresh, sweet and icy cold watermelon juice was served along with milk toffee, a Sri Lankan delicacy. The Heritance Ahangalla is part of the Aitken Spence group. The hotel has 154 rooms, 2 restaurants, 2 pools, a gym & a spa. The standard rooms are very minimalistic but every room faces the sea. The beach is nice with fine sand. Barbecue dinner at the beach with Baila music was lovely. The gym & the spa could do with some upgrading and renovation and are sadly lacking in ambience and facilities. We had most of our meals at the coffee shop and the appams at breakfast are to die for. Most people also appreciated the sambols (different chutneys) and I also liked the coconut roti. I was rather disappointed with the sea food at the hotel as I compare & recall the delicious food at Vivanta Exotica in Bentota. The service is also a big letdown and communicating with the staff was a big strain. Apart from the pool, there is no entertainment for the children.

Water sports
The closest water sports centre is at Bentota with only Banana boat rides, Jet ski (with a professional sitting behind you and riding it) and Tube ride (or Donut). The Tube ride was so fast and rough that it threw off 3 of the girls out of the tube when riding a wave that had me almost get a panic attack. I would have loved parasailing or jet skiing all by myself. The kids nevertheless had a blast on both the tube and the banana boat where they enjoyed getting toppled

Gaulle
Gaulle is only 45 minutes from Ahangalla/Bentota and is definitely worth the visit. It has an old fort, a world heritage site and a huge budda at the memorial for the train wreck that was caused by the Tsunami. It also has several classy hotels including the Amangalla, Lighthouse & Fort Gaulle. We stopped at Ammangalla for tea - the scones served with cream and jam are scrumptious. For a bigger group, the silver stand, a 3-tier platters of sandwiches, vegetable rolls, cakes & tarts will be overwhelming. The elegantly decorated hotelmwith high ceilings an impeccable architecture is a perfect place to relax and sip a cup of tea in Gaulle. Quaint shops are only a stone's throw from Amangalla and have some interesting artefacts and accessories for the home. Barefoot, the Colombo store also present and has interesting toys for children and a variety of tea. I really enjoyed my afternoon out at Gaulle with 6 pretty women - Kiru, Ashu, Suj, Lakshmi, Vysh & Sitara.

Getting back from Ahangalla
Flying back from Europe seems easier than flying back from Ahangalla. We departed from the hotel at 1030am and reached home (Coimbatore) only by 830pm. 10 hours is too long a journey from a place not too far away fromTamil Nadu.

Despite the long travel time and a few hiccups on the trip, I think the entire experience at Sri Lanka was "just" fabulous as 1) I had the opportunity to spend time with some smart, funny & amazing women, 2) I had my first sip of pink champagne and 3) I also experienced my first sea plane ride.

Come back to this space in October to learn about my September travels to New York, Barcelona and Costa Brava. Can't wait:):):):)

Thailand Nov/Dec 2010

I am trying to cover the 2 trips that I made to Thailand - once in November with Hari for our 10th wedding anniversary and the second time in December for New Year with family. It was Esha's first trip abroad and we tried to do kids activities.

Bangkok

Can you believe that November was my first trip to Bangkok. I was honestly not too eager and had low expectations. When you've travelled the World like I have (never said I was modest;)) and love big cities like New York, Paris, London, Barcelona and Amsterdam - you wonder what's the big deal about Bangkok. But boy was I in for a surprise - a delightful one I admit.

Thanks to Kiki (who's always right and whose opinion I value pretty high as we're so snobbish alike) we stayed at Sukhumwit with easy access to the sky train. The Sheraton Grande on Sukhumwit is a 2 min walk to the Asok BTS sky train and in 4 stops you can get to Siam.

Siam Paragon - best upscale mall in Bangkok with stores like Gucci, Armani, Jimmy Choo, Louis Vuitton, Hugo Boss, Coach, Prada, Jim Thompson, Zara, and Mango. The flagship store is the Paragon Dept stores and I was flabbergasted by the swimsuit section - too much to choose from. You cannot leave Thailand without shopping at Jim Thompson - its everywhere - the airport, most hotels, most malls and its so easy to pick up gifts for friends & family. If you love cars like I do, browse through the car showrooms in the mall to see a fleet of Lamborghinis, Aston Martins, Bentleys, Porsches & Jaguars.

The food court is massive and has a great choice of Thai food. We had hagen das ice-cream everyday - cappuccino truffle is the flavour of the week;) There's also a Krispy Kreme but you can forget about getting in line and waiting over an hour despite how tempting those doughnuts may be especially with the "hot" sign flashing.

I think if you have only a day or two to shop, Siam Paragon is good enough but if you want to go bargain shopping or are looking for slightly less expensive stuff. Below is a list of shopping centers:

Siam Center - reasonably priced stores like FCUK, Promod and lot of other apparel, shoe, sunglasses stores

MBK - chaotic, filled with small stores ranging from Tag-Heur to Lacoste to tiny electronic stores that sell fake iPads. I would give it a miss unless you're looking to buy Ralph Lauren or A&F polos.

We dined at 2 restaurants in Bangkok - Coco, a chain of fondue-type restaurant in Time Square right next to our Hotel that had the best green curry ever and Basil, an award-winning restaurant in our hotel that had an amazing grilled salmon. Coco, is a very casual place, not a fine dining restaurant but Basil has a very elegant decor.

Koh Samui

Koh Samui is the 3rd largest island in Thailand and an hour's flight from Bangkok. We took an early morning flight from Bangkok to Koh Samui. There are only 2 flights a day - the other option would have been an evening flight.

We weren't prepared to be greeted by open transfer buses from the aircraft to an open airy terminal. Was wondering why Coimbatore airport couldn't be expanded likewise.

Anantara Lawana, Samui

A short 5-7min ride from the airport. Greeted with iced Ginger tea and an orchid garland we had to unfortunately wait 5 hours for our room but at least in an alternate room.

I would recommend this resort only if you stay in the seaview pool villa or the 2 bedroom royal villa.

It has only 2 restaurants - Sky Hug & Oceans kiss

Sky Hug - has only 8 tables, each one very private, romantic and overlooking the beach, kind of like an open tree house. Sipping a glass of dry prosecco and a Singa beer , we shared a lemongrass sea-bass for entree and a warm chocolate pudding for dessert.

Oceans kiss - we had our breakfast here. The choice of freshly cut fruits & juices are amazing. My favourite is the fresh guava & Hari's is the traditional orange. I could spend hours about the fruits. Watermelons & sapotta haven't tasted sweeter.

There's a 24 hour family mart right across the street that has beer, absolut and even grey goose, apart from sunscreens and any toiletries that your missed packing.

One of the things I enjoyed at Koh Samui was the cooking class I went to. Pai Cooking School is on Chewang Beach and has private cooking sessions. I learned to make Shrimp Fried Rice, Green Curry & Chicken with cashewnuts.

Chewang beach

The advantage of staying at Anantara is the close proximity to the array of shops, bars and restaurants on Chewang beach. Shopping on Chewang beach is bargain hunting but I sure did pick up some awesome junk jewellery that everyone loved back home. We also checked out 2 fabulous restaurants on Chewang Beach - Red Snapper, and Rice, an Italian one. If you're staying on a resort on Chewang beach, I would recommend you eat only breakfast there as the choice of restaurants on the beach is incredible.

Bangkok for New Year

We ended up staying at the same hotel we stayed in November - Sheraton Grande Sukhumwit as we had not complaints at all - spacious rooms, nice breakfast, easy access to sky train and they allow you to check-in early. Invariably flights from Chennai arrive into Bangkok early morning and especially with kids, you better stay at a hotel that is accomodating with respect to check-in and check-out time. We actually checked in at 6am and checked out only at 5pm without paying any additional fee. Next time I would like to stay at the Intercontinental or the
Grand Hyatt Erawan but I would definitely stay on Sukhumwit and try to be closest to Siam station.

Siam Ocean World

Esha absolutely loved the Ocean World at Siam Paragon Mall. She was most fascinated by the sharks we saw as we took a glass bottom boat ride.

Apart from Siam Paragon & Siam Center, we checked out Central World this time.

Central World

It is a great mix of UK stores like Next, Dorothy Perkins and US stores like Aldo, Nautica, Toys R us. It was Esha's first visit to Toys R us and she went quite crazy and almost got lost. Central World is not as crowded as Siam Paragon somehow and dining there is also more fun with an upscale choice of restaurants. The mall is equidistant from both Chit- Lom and Siam stations but I thought the Siam one was more convenient.

Wat Pho or Temple of Reclining Buddha

The only sight-seeing we did was visit the Temple of Reclining Buddha on New Year's day. It was crowded and it was difficult navigating through thousands of people in the temple. The sheer size of the buddha statue is breathtaking and the temple is beautiful. What Esha enjoyed the most about the visit was the ferry ride that we took back to the city center.

A day in Bangalore- 19 Oct 2010

Drove to Bangalore on work and headed straight to UB city for dinner.

Shiro
The ambience is simply mind blowing and makes me feel like I've been transported to my favourite Asian restaurant, Buddakkan, which you by now must be sick of, if you've been reading my blog. Although we had reservations at Toscano, couldn't stop dragging my party to Shiro for drinks and starters. With my beloved uncle, out of sheer respect and a bit of fear, we stuck to virgin cocktails. Kiru's piña colada was creamy and delicious and my orange mojito made me wish for more & more with a tinge of rum. The cheese rolls filled with cream cheese and dipped in sweet chilli sauce was the perfect starter. The Korean chilli potatoes weren't too bad.

Toscano
Obviously it's not near as classy as Shiro but the casual, outdoor italian restaurant has thin crust Italian pizza and awesome desserts. Kiru had crepes and I had lemon cheesecake with strawberry campote.

Stay away from Fortune JP Celestial in Race Course
I've stayed before at the Fortune JP Cosmos on Crescent road near Sigma mall and I thought this one wouldn't be any different. At Rs 3500/- I guess I can't expect much especially including tax and breakfast. One room had dirty water in the door way from a leaking light above and the other one hadn't even been cleaned with the bed messy too. Well atleast the sheets were clean. Next time I'm sticking to the IRIS which is the best hotel to stay in at the city.

Cubbon Pavillion, ITC Gardeniea
We had a business meeting at the ITC Gatdeniea and we tried to eat a quick lunch at the buffet. But trust me the food here is not meant for quick business lunches. The buffet is elaborate, innovative and indulging. The anti-pasti section had an amazing choice of salads and sushi. I love the soup cups. The desserts were yummy too!!

8 nights in New York

This trip to New York was one of the best trips ever to my favorite city in the World all thanks to Kirupa who flew in from San Francisco to join us for a long weekend for his first visit to New York. We stayed in Manhattan for 8 nights and dined at some of my all-time favorite New York restaurants and also checked out some ultra cool lounge bars.

Rosa Mexicano at Union Square

9 East 18th Street (Bet. 5th Avenue & Broadway)

212-533- 3350

www.rosamexicano.com

Gucamole en Molcajete - freshly made gucamole at the table, served with tortilla chips and salsa

Chicken Enchiladas - tasted good but the creamy green tomatillo sauce was just too sour

Chicken Tortilla Pie - this was delicious consisting of baked corn tortillas filled with pulled chicken and roasted peppers served with poblano cream sauce

Average cost/person - $30

Recommended by HTT Today and Amanda, one of our customers.

ThaiNy

394 3rd Avenue (Bet. 28th & 29th street)

212-696-2888

www.thainyrestaurant.com

Wasabi shrimp dumplings - the taste of wasabi was quite mild to our surprise but delicious nevetheless

Exotic Tom Yum Spicy Lemongrass Shrimp soup - It was fantastic for my sore throat

Thai Red curry with sticky rice - with bamboo shoots, this is one of the best thai red curries we've ever had

Spicy Noodle - not really spicy but looked great and tasted even better

Chicken Volcano - when served, flaming alcohol is poured, literally creating a fiery volcano

Average cost/person - $30

Recommended by Anto

Buddakan

75 Ninth Avenue (Bet. 15th & 16th street)

212-989-6699

www.buddakannyc.com

Fabulous decor, delicious food and great service makes us keep going back to this restaurant which has a long list of recommended items.

Edamame dumplings - the only vegetarian starter if you don't eat mushrooms

Tuna tartare spring roll - my favorite appetizer

Chili rock shrimp - loved it the first time but not as much the second

Boneless spare ribs - everyone's favorite - looks great and I just have to take their word that it is awesome

Vegetable rice - the coconut curry foam they serve with it makes it amazing, again the perfect vegetarian main course if you don't eat mushroom - need to request not to make with meat stock

Lobster fried rice - best rice for non-vegetarians

Crying chocolate - chocolate ganache served with coffee ice cream - not enough but to die for

Average cost/person - $50

Recommended by our most valued customers who love this place

Dos Caminos Mexican Kitchen at Park Avenue

373 Park Avenue South (Bet. 26th & 27th St)

212.294.1000

With over 100 selections of Tequila, this restaurant is a must-visit if you love Tequila. You can choose from margaritas, frozen margaritas, and Tequila flights (tasting of 3 different tequilas).

White sangria - love this sangria which has peach, mango and orange fused with wine and spanish brandy

Gucamole - my favorite "made fresh to order" gucamole, they just seem to get "spicy" just perfect and better than Rosa Mexicano

Jalapenos Rellenos - too too spicy for me, had me drinking glasses and glasses of water but everyone else seemed to love it

Chicken Tinga Tacos - the pulled chicken with sweet and spicy roasted tomato sauce is the best entree

Farmer's market vegetable Quesidilla - great entree for vegetarians but it has mild mushrooms which they can serve without too

Average cost/person - $30

Recommended by my cousin Arvind who lives in New York

Del Posto

85 Tenth Avenue (bet. 15th & 16th st)

212-497-8090

www.delposto.com

This is the only Mario Batali restaurant that I've dined at. This was my third visit and I don't think I'll go back for a long time as there was nothing different since my first visit. It sure is extravagant and totally impressive and everything a fine dining italian restaurant should be.

The 5-course meal will take about 3 hours so you better not make any plans after dinner and start early at 530 so everyone can get home early especially if it is a week night.

Ricotta Pansoti with wild asparagus & black truffles - best pasta

Roasted Turbot with Caponatina, crunchy fregola & moorish spices - best entree

Tartufo al Caffe - the dark chocolate dessert was disappointing

Cost/person - $150

Recommended by an executive in our ad ageny

The Place, West Village

310 W 4th St (Bet. Bank st & 12th st)

212.924.2711

www.theplaceny.com

Homemade goat cheese ravioli - i avoided the goat cheese but everyone else loved this ravioli that had roasted beets and toasted walnuts

Vegetarian moussaka - this entree filled with layers of eggplant, zucchini, potatoes and fresh herbs baked in a a becamel sauce was delicious but too much to eat even though i skipped the appetizer

Warmed triple chocolate cake - best dessert - was tempted to do an encore

Cost/person - $50

Recommended by my cousin Arvind who lives in the same neighborhood

Heartland Brewery, Empire State

350 5th avenue (Bet. 33rd & 34th st)

212.563.3433

www.heartlandbrewery.com

Spicy French fries & Chicken Quesidillas were scrumptious especially with Harvest wheat beer

Cost/person - $25

Recommended by Hari

Angelo's Pizza on 53rd Street

1697 Broadway

212.245.8811

www.angelospizzany.com

Perfect place to sip a few glasses of Prosecco and eat some Pepperoni/Margarita pizza before heading out to Broadway theater for an evening musical.

Fried Zucchini & Eggplant with Garlic Yogurt dip - zucchini & eggplant chips were delightful

Cost/person - $20

Serafina Broadway

210 W 55th street (Bet. Broadway and 7th avenue)

212.315.1700

www.serafinarestaurant.com/serafina/broadway

This is a lovely restaurant in the broadway district for pizza and pasta before the show or for drinks and dessert after.

Tiramisu & Affogato espresso are simply divine desserts that are great to share

Cost/person - $30

Recommended by Anantha, Vikram Bava's cousin, who lives in Brooklyn

Here is a list of bars and lounges that we visited, recommended by Karen, Arvind's girlfriend

Flute bar and lounge

205 West 54th Street

212-265-5169

www.flutebar.com

Perfect place for champagne. Comfortable sofas, Live DJ on weekends but no dance floor

Ava Lounge

Penthouse and Rooftop of DREAM Hotel

210 W 55th Street (Bet. Broadway & 7th avenue)

212.956.7020

www.avaloungenyc.com

Panaromic views of Time Square to Hudson River and broadway lights, contemporary decor and great music makes it the perfect bar for late late saturday nights

Hudson Bar, Hudson Hotel

356 W 58th Street

212.554.6000

www.hudsonhotel.com

Lit glass floor, hand painted ceiling and french design furniture makes the Hudson bar a dazzling place for an exciting saturday evening/early sunday morning;)