Kick'n it Tel Aviv

Follow us to the beautiful Mediterranean shore lines of Tel Aviv and Hertzelia...from exposed skin and tini bikinis, to pretty girls and boys kick'n it beachfront, we're going to the Holy Land for one heck of a party!

Afternoon rooftop parties with internationally renowned resident DJ's, and sunsets that could send you straight to heaven...

Check out Time Out Israel (online magazine)

This place comes pretty close to anything you've ever wanted and imagined...we take off at 11:55pm TONIGHT. Grab your iPod, Ray Bans and lather on that SPF and let's go! I promise, Israel won't let you down...she awaits you with open arms.

See you @ baggage claim!!

Kick'n it w/Keith McNally

Restaurateur, Keith McNally of Balthazar, Pastis, Schiller's Liquor Bar, Odeon, Lucky Strike, Morandi, Pravda, Minetta Tavern, and most recently (opened in February 2010), Pulino Bar & Pizzeria http://www.pulinosny.com/, brings affordability, great taste, and appealing eye candy to NYC’s East Village.

McNally’s baby resides on the notoriously busy corner of Houston & Bowery with downtown’s trendy crowd swarming on the street corner hoping to be seated inside (or out) to get a taste of Nate Appleman’s brick oven pizza and modern Italian antipasti (http://www.menupages.com/restaurants/pulinos-bar-pizzeria/menu).

Pulino’s corner is truly the crossroads between the Lower East Side (LES), SOHO, East Village, NoLita, and (Meat Packing’s rival), the Bowery. Seaming that it was a Saturday night between the hours of 8pm and 11pm in downtown Manhattan, I was surprised my mother and I were seated so quickly. It could have been the Hebrew connection we had with the Maitre D, or simply our modest party of 2 on such a busy night.

With Daniel Boulud’s more affordable (than Daniel), burger joint, DBGB (http://www.danielnyc.com/), across the street, Pulino’s competitive prices may also attract the price conscious customer. The rise of the sister restaurant has become more common in Manhattan over the past few years. As fashion designers create a sister line such as DKNY is to Donna Karan, or Polo is to Ralph Lauren, CK is to Calvin Klein, so too is DBGB to Daniel Boulud and Pulino to Balthazar, Pastis, Minetta Tavern. With antipasti ranging from $8.00 for the Roasted Olives (with dried fruit & almonds) to $15.oo for the Smoked Sablefish (with bottarga, celery, capers & dill)...The pizzas are priced anywhere from $9.00 for the Bianca (extra virgin olive oil & sea salt), to $18.00 for the Gamberi (rock shrimp, speck, tomato, garlic & oreganoand). The most expensive bites on the menu are $29.00 for the Roasted Scallops (with grapefruit, olives, shallots, herbs & radicchio) and the NY Strip (with anchovy butter, potatoes, rosemary & parmigiano). http://www.menupages.com/restaurants/pulinos-bar-pizzeria/menu

Pulino follows a similar model like sister restaurant, Schiller’s Liquor Bar, (http://www.schillersny.com/), where the wines are listed by category under the headings “cheap, decent, and good,” except at Pulino, if you opt to not buy a full bottle of wine, you have the option to get an 18 oz. carafe categorized under red/white, “light, medium, full body.” They are $18.00 and serve approximately three glasses of wine…AMAZING!

Kick'n it on Fire Island

Thanks to an invite from a girlfriend (Shera), this past weekend was my first on Fire Island. Shera and her college friends (roommates and coworkers) rented a beautiful beach house in Ocean Beach for the weekend of July 4th, and invited me to join in the festivities. 100% of the house was single, professional, pretty girls from NY, NJ, and CA. In fact, I’ve never met a group of females less competitive and catty than this group. I instantly made new friends and couldn’t have been more welcomed by them (so thank you ladies). Some of the girls were graduates of University of Michigan; some went to Indiana and Syracuse. All of them knew how to play Flip Cups and Beer Pong along with the rest of Ocean Beach! I felt a little left out at first but once I learned the rules of the games, I was playing with the big dogs in no time!

I truly did not know what to expect when I first got to Fire Island. I mean, all I knew was that it was low key, no cars, flip flops, BBQ’s, and tons of beach time! It wasn’t hard to get out there from NYC at all.

I purchased a $30.00 “weekend getaway” at Penn Station (http://www.mta.info/lirr/getaways/Beach/OceanBeach.htm) which covers 1 round trip train ticket to Bay Shore, 2 one way taxi rides w/David Brothers (http://www.davidbroscarservice.com/) from the train station to the ferry, and a round trip ferry ride to and from Ocean Beach. David Brother’s taxi also offers shuttles to and from NYC to the Ocean Beach ferry station for about $25.00 one way and the ferry runs every hour and costs $17.00 for a round trip ticket.

**Fire Island Fact**

It runs 32 miles east to west and one mile north to south and is located south of Long Island.

I was so excited to get out of New York for the weekend and our forecast was PERFECT (90 degrees and sunny all weekend long).

“I’m going to greet you at the ferry. It’s like the movies…are you going to run into my arms?” (text message sent to my phone from Shera @ 5:30pm Friday July 2nd).

I got off the ferry to find a crowd of people meeting and greeting each other. I spotted Shera waiving her hands at me, sporting her Carrera aviator sun glasses, cut off denim shorts and a Rolling Stones vintage T-shirt with flip flops (this was definitely NOT the Hamptons)!!

(walk to the beach)

Ocean Beach is a hybrid of young 21-26ish year old post college grads kick’n it at the beach and young families vacationing at their beach houses for the weekend. The town is cute (literally), with no cars on the island…just Radio Flyer wagons and bicycles as means of transportation! All structures are dollhouse-like and I found myself flashing back to fond memories of summer camp. The mission on the island was to drink beer, get some sun, and hopefully do the “walk of shame” out of some cute boy’s share house the following morning. I couldn’t tell whether I belonged or not.

From beer games like Flip Cups to Beer Pong and $5.00 cover charges to get into dive bars on the island, I wasn’t quite sure the night scene was my ‘thing.’ I was a trooper and did go out one of the three nights I was kick’n it on Fire Island. I managed to learn how to play Flip Cups like a champ, and acquired a mild taste for beer (that only lasted for one night).

Now don’t get me wrong, Fire Island is one HOT place to party! If you’re between the age of 21 and 26, with a standard deviation of approximately 3 years on both ends of the curve then this is the place for you. The beach was crowded (which I totally did not mind), but from a snapshot, it sort of looked like MTV’s The Jersey Shore, minus the tattoos, and Snooki’s bouffant! With Michigan University in the lead and Syracuse University and Indiana University right behind it…it truly felt like I was crashing a college reunion.

(the Seasons Bed & Breakfast)

Please don’t misread this blog for a bad review. Quite the contrary! If you don’t have anything good to say, then don’t say it at all.

Fire Island is fun, fun, fun. If you’re looking for Spring Break during the Summer months of June-August, and don’t care for expensive bottle service, polo and golf or high heels and pretty manicured boys in fancy cars, then Ocean Beach @ Fire Island is where it’s at!

Had I spent my summers in Fire Island three to four years ago, I would have probably been raving about how this was the best place on earth!

However…I think I’ve missed the boat ;-)