Summer In The City | Travel

Who to watch, where to go, what to eat and more.

The New Dominique Ansel Dessert to Obsess Over

No more waking up at 5:00 a.m. for a chance at scoring the elusive cronut at Dominque Ansel’s SoHo bakery. Now, as an “after-school special,” Ansel is offering a Chocolate Chip Cookie Milk Shot straight out of the oven and available for customers at 3:00 p.m. Though we think it might be wise to start queueing up right after lunch.

Ai Weiwei at Brooklyn Museum

The Chinese artist and activist arrives at the Brooklyn Museum this spring with a new exhibit. “Ai Weiwei: According to What?” will feature his signature large-scale works made out of everything from backpacks to ancient pottery, highlighting the troubling human rights violations of his native country. Don’t miss “S.A.C.R.E.D,” a haunting series of fiberglass dioramas, which re-creates scenes from the 81 days that Weiwei was imprisoned for alleged tax evasion in 2011.  April 18–August 10

Station

When the quest for a Long Island restaurant serving exceptional food without the fanfare of white tablecloths proved futile, Rafe Worthington and his partner, Marina Rutherfurd,opened Station last year in the hamlet of East Quogue. From Memorial Day to Labor Day, the restaurant offers an easygoing approach to fine dining, with dinner served in a cozy indoor space or on outdoor picnic tables laden with mason jars of wildflowers and succulents. Argentinian executive chef Lucia Soria’s farm-to-table menu offers classics such as tuna ceviche and pork Milanese and refreshes recipes with accents of citrus and mint. And while her South American background is evident in the flavors, more than anything, dishes are light and seasonal. “Much of what we use—from some of the wines to the watercress—comes from Long Island,” says Worthington. Building on last year’s success, Station will offer weekend brunch and an expanded outdoor dining and bar area, where mixologist Chris Barry creates festive cocktails known as “Jollifications.” Also on the docket this summer is a variety of live dance music, from a five-piece Cuban son band to DJ Carlos Meija, encouraging guests to linger late into the evening.

412 Montauk HighwayEast Quogue, New York
631.996.4050

NYCB Family Saturdays

Join us for these Saturday morning one-hour presentations designed especially for family audiences. Featuring short works and excerpts from New York City Ballet's diverse repertory, NYCB artists guide you through the program, offering insights on the music and choreography. These performances are the perfect introduction to New York City Ballet and the world of classical dance!

David H. Koch Theater

Enter via Lobby

West 63rd Street & Columbus Ave

Belmont Stakes
The third leg of the Triple Crown—by far the area's biggest horse-racing event—takes place in Elmont (yes, that's Elmont, just east of Queens—not Belmont, the Bronx neighborhood), New York. There's a full day of eight stakes races, starting at 11:35am, and it costs only $10 to sit in the grandstand. Most notably, California Chrome—assured that he'll be allowed to race with nasal strips—could win horse racing's Triple Crown by finishing first at Belmont, which would make him the first to do so since Affirmed in 1978. 

June 7
Belmont Park

Shaken & Stirred BurlesqueEvery Wednesday at 9:30pm, Sugar Shack Burlesque brings a bit of vaudeville to The Delancey. Expect a fresh lineup of campy stars weekly, along with go-go dancers and DJs, including hostesses Scooter Pie and Runaround Sue, who intend to spin you deep into a decadent, lipstick-stained night.

The Delancey

All info originally found HERE.

Can we go already?! Like right now...

Have a great night!

XO, Erica

Beauty Sleep | Beauty

So I've really been trying to get back to sleeping 7-8 hours per night - this 5 hours of sleep isn't doing it for me. So I decided to hit up my FAV go to's sot see if any of them have advice or the best things to help. I'm so please to announce that the first placed I looked had exactly what I was looking for. I wandered over to Lauren Conrad's website and after browsing for a few I came across just the thing I was looking for. Below you will find her post - I thought some of your would enjoy it! Hope you are having a great week!!

Sleeping is one of the most important parts of our 24-hour days. We spend around a third of our time in slumber, rejuvenating our bodies and minds from a day filled with thinking and moving. That said, the way we wake up from our dreams can set the tone for the entire rest of the day. And, similarly, the way we drift off into sleep can make a difference between getting a good night’s sleep and a great night’s sleep. I’ve thought a lot about my own before-bed and early morning rituals, and I’ve recently turned to two sweet sips that let my mind and body know whether it should be waking up or winding down…

When I wake up, I make myself an iced vanilla almond coffee smoothie to go along with breakfast. It’s basically just your regular cup of coffee thrown into a blender with almond milk, ice cubes, vanilla extract, a little protein powder, and almonds. When it’s time to get ready for bed, I whip up a warm cup of almond milk, honey, vanilla, and cinnamon. The combination of flavors is extremely relaxing. As a bonus, both of these drinks use similar ingredients, so you can buy them in bulk and use the entire week.

Without further ado, here are two sweet sips that will have you early to bed and early to rise…

Rise & Shine: Vanilla Almond Coffee Smoothie

Ingredients:

• 1 cup coffee, chilled
• 4-5 ice cubes
• 1 cup vanilla almond milk
• 1 scoop of your favorite protein powder (we love Perfect Fit or Isagenix)
• 2 drops vanilla extract
• 5 almonds (for extra protein)

Put all ingredients into a blender and blend until it becomes a smoothie consistency. Add more ice cubes if you prefer. Top with fresh coffee beans and enjoy!

Sleepy Time: Soothing Cinnamon Milk

Ingredients:

• 1 cup almond milk
• 1 tsp honey
• 2 drops vanilla extract
• A pinch of cinnamon

Pour the milk into a microwave safe mug and cook it in the microwave until the milk begins to foam. Stir in the honey and vanilla, then sprinkle with cinnamon. Enjoy warm.

Try making these drinks in the morning and at night, and notice how they get your body in gear. These are also great solutions to try if you often have trouble sleeping, or if you tend to feel groggy in the mornings.

                                            See you in a couple days! XO, Erica

Summertime Chow | Healthy & Fit

So over my super busy weekend I got an email from my FAV California trainers >> Karena & Katrina from TONE IT UP! I love getting their emails to encourage me throughout the week to keep me motivated in the gym and in the kitchen. This weekend they sent out a great email with a link to their new post 5 Healthy Memorial Day Recipes. Here are my favorites - I can't wait to add these into my rotation!!

Mediterranean Turkey Burgers

makes 4-5 servings

Ingredients

• 1 pound 98% fat free organic ground turkey
• 1/2 cup egg whites
• 3 tbs olive oil
• 3 tbs fat free feta cheese
• Dried organic unsweetened cranberries
• Fresh crushed garlic
• 1/4 cup spinach
• Salt & Pepper to taste

Directions

Divide 1 pound of organic low fat ground turkey into 4-5 patties. Next, add in cranberries, feta, garlic & spinach to each patty with your hands.  Combine egg whites and olive oil in separate, medium sized bowl. Take 1 patty and dip in the egg mixture the moisture. Once all ingredients are thoroughly combined, form a patty. Grill over medium heat for about 4 minutes on each side, or until fully cooked. Serve with a whole wheat bun or on portobello mushrooms with your favorite condiments.

Grilled Summer Peaches

Makes 4 – 8 servings

Ingredients

• 4 peaches
• 4 Tbs. grapeseed Oil
• 4 tsp. of raw honey
• Optional – Greek Yogurt for garnish

Directions

Preheat grill to medium. Halve and pit your peaches and brush them all around lightly with grapeseed oil. Place them on the grill cut side down. Grill for 3-4 minutes until grill marks appear. Flip and grill the other side. Serve warm, with a drizzle of honey. If you like add a spoonful of Greek Yogurt!

What about cocktails!?

Create a refreshing summer sparkler by adding a bit of champagne to these amazing Lemonade recipes!

Watermelon Rosemary Lemonade is perfect for a summer celebration!

                                                              See you in a couple days! XO, Erica

Vogue's All About Big Brows | Beauty

Oh.My.Gosh First off I'm so sorry it's taken me this long to post again. It's been a crazy week - way to much to post about right now (tomorrow I promise!!) but everything is FINALLY back to normal and I wanted to share a post with you that is super close to my heart. VOGUE is like my all-time fav magazine. I mean who doesn't love Vogue?! Especially the September issue - it's only 3 months away! WHOOHOO. I am always online looking at vogue to see what's going on in the fashion world and today I came across something that I wanted to share. BROWS!!! Yup those bushy or barely there brows are a new love of mine. I used to be all about letting them be natural and do whatever they wanted but randomly I would find them out of control - especially since my brows look nothing alike. I was never really taught how to groom them so I never did. UNTIL I started watching Nicole Guerriero's youtube channel - if you don't know who she is check out her channel and be ready to fall in love with her funny videos and GORGE hair and makeup tutorials. So I started really getting into taking care of my skin and using quality makeup. Which brings me back to my brows. I had no clue where to start so one day when I was at my local ULTA I discovered the Benefit Brow Bar where (by appointment) they will sit you down do measurements of your face and show you where you brows should arch depending on the dimensions of your face. Then with a quick wax and massage with some almond oil you are good to go. I also asked them what they were using to fill in my brows and they pointed me to Benefit Cosmetics Brow Zings that has part wax and part powder with two different brushes and some mini tweezers. I'm obsessed with it!! So if you were lost like I was give your brows a few weeks to grow back and then make and appointment! This brings me back to the original reason for this post. VOGUE did a post about the most amaze brows in history!! Here is the post and my fav pics from the top 27. See the original post HERE.

>>>>

If it’s true that the eyes are the windows to the soul, then the brows may be a map of the psyche. Artist Frida Kahlo certainly understood their visual impact, letting her own conceptual arches roam as freely as her imagination. Even before she’d established her iconic bombshell status,1940s film star Lauren Bacall’s sensual set seemed preternaturally knowing—even before she’d established her iconic bombshell status—while a ’60s-era Catherine Deneuve’s tawny blonde brows read like a study in controlled elegance. Things got bushier in the ’70s, and then again in the more-is-more ’80s. Until, acting as a beacon of ’90s minimalism, Kate Moss’s bleached brows in Steven Meisel’s 1992 “Grunge & Glory” shoot for Vogue established the cult of the anti-brow, opening up a rebellious new chapter in beauty history that lasted through Rooney Mara’s The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo transformation in 2011. Present-day brow muses, like Arizona Muse, keep things on the fuller side of natural, but when in doubt, they seem to swear by one rule: Bigger is always better. 

                                             XO, Erica

The Londoner | Re-Post

OH MY GOSH. I was just wondering around my fav blogs yesterday and I came across a new post from Rosie over at The Londoner and I almost fell off of my bed. I was completely blow away by the pics and entire post. I actually think I scrolled back up to the top and went through it again before I closed my computer, turned my light off and fell asleep thinking about the AMAZE photographs and time that she had in the city. I hope you love it as much as I did! XO

I left the city for a little while.

And when I say "a little while", I mean it.

24hours, to be exact.

I headed out to Connecticut to have dinner with some friends, stayed over at their house, went out for breakfast and came right back again!

Coming back meant passing through the awe inspiring Grand Central Station.

So Gossip Girl.

And out into the glistening, sun soaked streets of New York.

For dinner that night I hooked up with Sante, one of PJ's best friends for supper.

He took us to a little Argentinian place, Oficina Latina, in Little Italy.

Where he insisted we start with tequila. (Very bad man.)

Not quite the tequila slammers I'm used to (err... I mean the one's I've heard about, mum).

These ones come with slices of orange and lines of sugar, cinnamon & coffee.

Sante showed me how to do 'em.

You press your orange into the lines...

Knock back the shot and bite into the orange.

Truly disgusting.

So we ordered another round.

Then we set about asking for food.

And waited with a little guacamole, inexplicably served in a skillet.

The place is pretty cool.

They play loud music, the staff are chipper and will only take your order if you smile, which is fair enough I guess.

I didn't find the "Suck My Cocktails" tees all that hilarious, but some people did so maybe I was just being grouchy!

And to be fair, the cocktails you suck on are pretty damn fantastic.

We had ceviche scallops.

Tacos (you can never have too much of a good thing!)

Octopus (not brilliant, don't order).

Crispy fish tacos.

And the most amazing beef short ribs with gargantuan fries.

It was so much fun to hang out with Sante & Pj, who just happen to be two of my favourite photographers.

You're probably already a fan of Sante's work, even if you don't realise it. He's shot some of your favourite pictures.

He's the most fascinating guy with the most incredible stories!

I hope he's going to let me pin him down for a proper interview some time soon, until then you can always take a look at his diaries.

But be warned, he will laugh at you if you accidentally eat an entire chilli (thinking it's meat) and subsequently have to order a glass of milk.

Just saying.

PJ hasn't been around quite as long but his images are still pretty mind blowing.

More on his website.

Not the easiest pair to sit between and take photos of food!

Both of them rearranging, tutting and saying "no, no, do it this way..."

Talk about intimidating! But I suppose we learn best in the deep end, right?