yk

DH & I spent a week in NYC and Boston in early September. We had loads of fun, ate a ton of food, and met up with a bunch of old friends. We both lived in the NE for years, and visited NYC a thousand times - so don't expect this trip report to be about Times Square or Duck Tours or Freedom Trail.

Also, we stayed with friends while in NYC, and with DH's sister in Boston, so I won't have any hotel reports. We did eat out a lot...

Our trip began with going to a wedding in New Jersey on Day 1, then spent 2.5 days in NYC, and the rest of the week in Boston.

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New Jersey, Day 1 - 9/3/06 (Wedding)

We took the first flight out of DFW to Newark. This was our first flight since the new carry-on restrictions took place. Everything went smoothly and we arrived in Newark on time.

We picked up our compact car (Kia Spectra) from Hertz ($50 all-in via Priceline) and checked in at the Newark Marriott Courtyard. I reserved the room the conventional way, after failing multiple attempts to bid for a 2.5* on Priceline.

Initially we were planning to get some lunch from nearby restaurants, but it turned out there was nothing nearby. We ended up getting a sandwich and a salad from the "Quik Mart" next to the hotel lobby.

We had time for a nap before heading out to West Orange for my friends' wedding. It was held at the Manor Restaurant. The weather held up, the place was gorgeous, and the food was fabulous! The celebration lasted all night and we finally left around midnight.

The Manor
http://www.themanorrestaurant.com/
111 Prospect Ave
West Orange, NJ 07052

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Manhattan & Queens, Day 2 - 9/4/06 (Dim Sum & MoMA)

We returned the car to the airport, then decided to take the coach to Manhattan. It was $14pp 1-way. Even though (I think) it is more expensive than the AirTrain/NJ Transit, the coach is more convenient for us as it drops us off at Grand Central. Even though it was Monday, it was Labor Day, so traffic was very light.

We arrived at my friends' apartment around 11:30am, and they drove us out to Flushing, Queens for some authentic dim sum. We went to Ocean Jewels Seafood Restaurant. I was amazed by how prosperous the Chinatown is in Flushing, and the quality of food is excellent. Some of the items we had are not available in Dallas.

Ocean Jewels Seafood Restaurant
13330 39th Ave
Flushing, NY
Phone: 718-359-8600


In the afternoon, we went to MoMA, mainly to see the Dada show. We met up with fellow Fodorite 111op (very) briefly - he was kind enough to get us free admission tickets. The exhibition hall was packed! We didn't find the show that interesting, and were certainly glad that we didn't pay $20pp for admission.

We then toured the permanent exhibits, which haven't significantly changed since our last visit a year ago.

On the second floor, the Out of Time exhibit just opened a few days earlier. Of the memorable ones include a Rachel Whiteread installation, a room of 15 Gerhard Richter paintings, and Warhol's film, Empire.

We left MoMA at closing time (5:30p) and spent some time at the shop. We found a gift for DH's sister, whom we would visit later in the week. We had dinner plans with a friend in Chelsea at 7p, so we decided to walk there.

Our friend suggested dinner at Mare. As the weather was nice, we sat outside on the sidewalk. We shared a fried calamari to start, and I ordered diver scallops for my entree. The food was great.

Mare Seafood Restaurant
http://www.chelseadining.com/mare/index.php
198 Eighth Ave
New York, NY 10011
212 675-7522

yk

Manhattan & Bronx, Day 3 - 9/5/06 (Met, NY Botanical Garden)

We woke up to cloudy skies. The Metropolitan Museum of Art was on our schedule for the morning.

We arrived at the Met around 10. Admission has gone up from $15 to now $20, but we were able to get in for free, thanks to our Dallas Museum of Art membership. Several exhibitions closed the day before, including the Raphael Colonna Altarpiece.

We went to see the Rembrandt exhibit, which comprised of his etchings and drawings (not paintings), then went to the musical instrument section. We walked through the European Paintings section - noting the 5 Vermeers, and the Duccio (we never saw anyone else looking at it), and the Flemish Primitives.

At 20 minutes before noon, we took the elevator to the Met roof and waited for Cai Guo-Qiang's "black cloud" to appear at noon. There were a few more "permanent" installations on the roof by him, including 2 fake crocodiles stuck with knifes and scissors that were confiscated at airports.

At noon, the black cloud appeared. And disappeared very quickly. One would easily miss it if one were to blink. I found it a bit anti-climatic.

We took the subway to Grand Central Station and bought Metro-North tickets ($9.50pp r/t) to the NY Botanical Garden. With 40 minutes to spare before our train, we had a quick bite at the food court inside Grand Central.

The train ride was easy and quick, but it started to rain as soon as we arrived at the Garden. I wish I had picked a different day to come, but given our limited time in NY, we had no other option. The only reason we wanted to go to the NYBG is the Chihuly Exhibit.

http://www.nybg.org/

The upside of the rain was the Garden was completely deserted. Fortunately, it never rained too hard, and we each had an umbrella. The Chihuly exhibits are quite nice, but I didn't think it was worth the $20 admission fee. The NYBG also felt more like an arboretum than a garden, meaning that there were mostly trees and shrubs instead of cultivated flowers fields.

We headed back to Manhattan around 5p and returned to our friends' apartment for a brief rest. Later that evening, we met them for dinner at Yama for sushi on 49th Street. Yama is one of the few places where one can be full from eating sushi without breaking the bank.

YAMA 49
http://yamarestaurant.com/index.html
308 East 49th Street
New York, NY 10017
212-355-3370

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Manhattan & Boston, Day 4 - 9/6/06 (Morgan Library)

After the rain subsided the night before, we had clear blue sky and beautiful weather. On our way to the Morgan Library, I kept my eyes open for breakfast option.

I couldn't believe it when I saw Sarge's! I had gone there a number of times in my younger days, when I could still eat an artery-clogging breakfast. But hey, what the heck, we ventured in.

DH opted for a low key breakfast - toasted bagel. I ordered French Toast, which came out to be 3 thick slices. I felt ill after eating most of it.

Sarge's
http://www.sargesdeli.com/index.htm
548 3rd Avenue (between 36th & 37th Sts)
New York, N. Y. 10016
(212) 679-0442


We arrived at the Morgan Library and Museum just after 10:30a ($12pp). We liked the new Renzo Piano entrance and addition.

The actual office used by Morgan is now open to the public (it used to be roped off). In it hangs a Hans Memling portriat and a Memling panel. The panel was displayed at the Met when the Morgan was closed for the reconstruction.

The Morgan's manuscript collection is magnificent, including three copies of the Gutenberg Bible. A special exhibit of Rembrandt's etchings and drawings is on display, which we found some were the same as we saw at the Met the day before. To my disappointment, the musical manuscripts were not on display. The room was closed for installation of an upcoming exhibit on Bob Dylan.

We really enjoyed our visit to the Morgan, and certainly will consider revisiting again in the future.

http://www.themorgan.org/

We had lunch at the AQ cafe at the Scandinavia House. It is at a perfect location for us, on the way between the Morgan and my friends' apartment. As I was still full from the french toast breakfast, I only ordered the soup of the day. After much persuasion by me, DH went ahead and ordered the Smörgåsbord. We weren't completely sure what was on the plate, but we figured out a few - smoked salmon, Swedish meat balls, herring etc. DH thought it was ok, while my soup is too salty. But for such a good price right in Manhattan, I guess we can't expect too much.

AQ Cafe @ Scandinavia House
http://www.scandinaviahouse.org/cafe.html
58 Park Avenue (between 37th and 38th Streets)
New York, NY 10016

We returned to our friends' place, picked up our luggage, and went to Penn Station to catch the Amtrak to Boston. I was able to get our 2 tickets for only $4. My ticket is free, thanks to my Amtrak Guest Rewards points. I also cashed in 5000 AMEX points for a $50 Amtrak GC, which I used to purchase DH's ticket, which was $54. This is the regular regional train, not the fancy Acela. Despite some technical problems along the way, we arrived in Boston only 10 minutes late. While on the train, we had dinner from the cafe car. It was edible, though not something I would want unless I had no other choice.

We took the T to Kendall Square, where DH's sister met us there. We would stay at her place in E Cambridge for the next 4 nights.

yk

Boston, Day 5 - 9/7/06 (Big Dig, Milton)

DH's sister took the day off to hang out with us. We headed out toward the waterfront near the Aquarium to check out the area. Since my last visit 4 years ago, the ugly I-93 which ran right through downtown has been demolished. It was the main idea behind the notorious Big Dig, which has been ongoing for over a decade and the cost has been skyrocketing. It is nice that the I-93 eye sore is now gone, but is it worth all this time and money?

We stopped at Faneuil Hall for lunch. I had a lobster roll with clam chowder, and DH had broiled salmon with rice.

After lunch, DH wanted to go to Milton Academy, where he had attended eons ago. We set off on this expedition. Even though I had lived in Boston for almost 8 years, I had no idea one can reach Milton by public transportation. After an hour, we finally reached there (20 minutes on the T, 10 minutes on a shuttle, then a 20-minute walk). The best reward from this outing was stopping at The Ice Creamsmith for some homemade ice cream. DH & his sister were frequent visitors there when they were young. It is amazing that it has been in business in the same location for over 30 years!

The Ice Creamsmith
http://www.theicecreamsmith.com/
2295 Dorchester Avenue
Dorchester Lower Mills, MA 02124
617-296-8567

On our way home, we stopped by the Frank Gehry building at MIT.

Later that evening, we took the bus to Harvard Square to have dinner with DH's friends at Casablanca. I had the Grilled Portobello (with arugula, polenta fries, garlic vinaigrette) as appetizer, and Grilled Double Cut Pork Chop (w/polenta purée, Napa cabbage, oyster mushrooms, hazelnuts and apple sauce) for my entree. We were so full that we had to skip dessert.

Casablanca Restaurant
http://www.casablanca-restaurant.com/
40 Brattle Street
Cambridge, MA 02138
617-876-0999

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Boston, Day 6 - 9/08/06 (MFA, Gardner Museum)

We had a relatively early start. We arrived at the MFA at around 10:30am.

http://www.mfa.org/index.asp

Even though our DMA membership got us free admission to the permanent collection (normally $15pp), we still had to pay a $8pp supplement for the special exhibition, Americans in Paris. Given at it was a Friday morning, I was surprised by how crowded it was. We found the exhibition so-so, definitely not the caliber of some other blockbuster shows.

I was somewhat disappointed at the MFA's permanent collection on European paintings. I know the MFA is famous for its Greek and Roman collection, but the European collection only took up 2 or 3 rooms. I was happy to see Rogier van der Weyden's Saint Luke Drawing the Virgin, which was thought to be inspired by Jan van Eyck's The Virgin of Chancellor Rolin, now at the Louvre. After another hour or so, we decided to head over to Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum.

http://www.gardnermuseum.org/

We arrived at the Gardner Museum at 1:30pm. Our ticket stubs from the MFA gave us a $2 discount, making the admission $10pp. As we were starving, we went to the Gardner cafe for lunch. The food is absolutely wonderful, surrounded by beautiful trees and shrubs. I had a carrot soup (with curry flavor) to start, followed by a pasta dish. The cafe used most of the ingredients from local organic farms. We finished lunch just in time for a 2:30pm guided tour.

The docent was very knowledgable, and guided us through the 3 floors of the museum, as well as the beautiful (but roped off) courtyard. We spent quite a bit of time in front of the huge canvas of Sargent's El Jaleo. Other fabulous gems at the Gardner include Raphael's Count Tommasso Inghirami, and a small panel by Fra Angelico. Apparently, there is a drawing by Michelangelo, but I was unable to locate it. There is also a predella by Raphael which is part of the Colonna Altarpiece, and is on loan to the Met exhibition.

In the Dutch Room on the second floor, someone in our tour pointed out several empty frames hanging on the wall. They were left in place ever since the famous theft occured in 1990, when 13 pieces of artwork was stolen from the museum, including Vermeer's The Concert. I wonder if I will ever get to see this piece of work. We finally left the museum at around 4pm.

It was such a beautiful day that we decided to take a walk. We followed Huntington Avenue and passed the BSO Symphony Hall, until we reached the huge headquarters of Church of Christ, Scientist. It must be immensly rich to be able to afford such a large piece of land in the most expensive address in Boston.

We then headed towards Newbury Street and took a look at No. 360. It is a building converted into lofts and apartments by Frank Gehry. Someone we knew considered moving there, but why would anyone pay >$3000 a month to live on the busiest and noisiest corner in Boston (corner of Mass Ave & Newbury, with Mass Pike running right beneath it)?

I was unable to resist the temptation of J.P. Licks, so I got a small coffee oreo ice cream.

J.P. Licks
http://www.jplicks.com/
352 Newbury Street
Boston MA 02115
617-236-1666

We continued walking East on Newbury Street, and I was surprised to see quite a number of familiar shops and restaurants which seem to survive the high rent on Newbury. One of the newcomers is Johnny Cupcakes (http://www.johnnycupcakes.com/), which we heard on NPR a few weeks ago. We wonder how long this fad will last, as we didn't see any customers in the store (we didn't go in though).

Finally, we reached Arlington Street, then we walked pass Four Seasons and finally caught the T from Boylston station and headed back to DH's sister place.

The East Cambridge neighborhood where we stayed has a significant Portugese population, and hence, several Portugese restaurants. I requested going to one for dinner that night. We went to O Cantinho, which has excellent food in a casual setting. I wish we had such diversity here in Dallas.

O Cantinho
http://www.atasca.com/ocantinho/index.html
1128 Cambridge Street
Cambridge, MA 02139
617-354-3443

yk

Boston, Day 7 - 9/9/06 (Harvard)

The Harvard University Art Museums offer free admission on Saturdays from 10 to noon, so we took advantage of that.

http://www.artmuseums.harvard.edu

We started at the Fogg, which houses the European paintings. I was quite impressed by the collection of a university museum. Its strengths are Italian Renaissance and 19th-c French (including quite a number of David, Ingres). The Busch-Reisinger museum, connected to the Fogg, houses mostly German Expressionism paintings, including several by Max Beckman. It also has a beautiful Klimt.

With another 30 minutes to spare, we quickly crossed the street and entered the Sackler Museum. Its collection consists of ancient Greek and Roman artifacts, and 2 floors of Asian art. Among the Asian art are several cave paintings from Dunhuang Caves in China.

For lunch, we met us with my friends at Henrietta's Table in the Charles Hotel. On Saturdays, they offer a $26 three-course brunch, or one can order a la carte. The weather was beautiful, so we got an outdoor table (in the hotel courtyard). Our concensus on the food was it was just ok. However, it was a very nice area to sit and chat, and we never got "rushed" by our waitress during our two-hour brunch.

Henrietta's Table
http://www.henriettastable.com/
One Bennett St
Cambridge, MA 02138
(617) 661-5005


After lunch, we met up with a friend of DH in Harvard Sq whom he hadn't seen for years. We went for a nice, long walk along the Charles. She then drove us to Inman Square where we had coffee at 1369 Coffee House. We finally parted around 5.

1369 Coffee House
http://www.1369coffeehouse.com/
1369 Cambridge St.
Cambridge, MA 02139
617-576-1369


Craving for Korean food, that night we had dinner at Wu Chon House in Union Square in Somerville. I had a spicy squid with tofu and vegetable soup, which made my nose ran all night, but satisfied my craving.

Wu Chon House Restaurant
http://www.wuchonhouse.com/index.php
290 Somerville Ave
Somerville, MA 02143
(617) 623-3313

After dinner, we stopped by a Italian street festival in East Cambridge. It is the annual Festival of the Healing Saints, Cosmas and Damian.
http://www.cosmas-and-damian.com/

We even watched Frankie Avalon on the stage for almost an hour. It was a nice way to end our vacation, and nice to see that there are still areas of Boston which haven't completely been gentrified yet.

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Boston & Dallas, Day 8 - 9/10/06

Our flight out of Logan was scheduled for 10:30a, so we left at 8. We decided to try out the new Silver Line to get to the airport.

http://www.allaboutsilverline.com

I was misled by its name to believe that it is a subway, just like the rest of the T lines (Red, Blue, Orange, and Green). I also mentally linked it with London's Jubilee line. You can see the surprise on my face when I found out it is just a bus! The only difference is that part of the route is underground in a dedicated tunnel, which makes traffic not an issue. The Silver Line makes 3 stops in the newly-developed Waterfront district near the Convention Center. I was amazed at how much new construction there is.

At the bus stop right before we entered the infamous Ted Williams Tunnel (which ceiling collapsed in July and killed a woman), the bus was briefly searched by police and a bomb-sniffing dog. Our bus passed the test and we safely arrived at Logan without any incident. Our flight was on time and we arrived back in Dallas at 1:30pm.

yk

The many things I enjoyed on this trip include:

- Seeing lots of old friends and DH's sister
- Museum-hopping
- Eating various ethnic cuisines at affordable prices, which is lacking here in Dallas. During this 1-week trip, we had:

Chinese (Dim Sum in Ocean Jewels in Flushing)
Japanese (Yama)
Korean (Wu Chon)
Scandinavian (AQ Cafe)
Mediterranean (Casablanca)
Portugese (O Cantinho)

gail

What a wonderful trip report - you have discovered some restaurants in Boston area that I had not heard of and will now put on my list to try.

You are not alone in thinking the Silver Line is a train - so did I and almost everyone I know in Boston area who does not ride it.

ggreen

yk, thanks so much for a great trip report! As a native of MA now "gone native" in NYC, I really appreciated all your insights - and some new restaurants to try! This was one NYC trip report that is actually very useful for me, with your opinion on the Chihuly and your interest in art. I haven't been to the Morgan since the renovations were completed, and now I'll put it back on my list. Thanks again!!

P.S. Have you ever been inside the Mapparium at the Church of Christ, Scientist? about 8 people at a time can stand inside an acoustically tuned stained glass rendition of the globe. (Guided tours only.) It's a brief but interesting experience.

yk

ggreen-

Unfortunately, we only learned about the Mapparium later that day when DH's sister told us about it. I guess there's always the next trip to Boston!

TKT

So glad to hear you enjoyed O Cantinho,
I live close to there and it is a true hidden gem.

cmcfong

Wonderful report, yk, you do such a great job. I am headed back to Boston next month (lived thirty years ago at 236 Newbury St) and I can hardly wait to see what's new...and what's still around. Thank you for posting.

ggreen

yk, the Mapparium only registered on my radar about 2 or 3 years ago - and really I only ventured inside because we were staying at The Colonnade across the street from the church compound. I enjoyed it as something different to see and also for the artistic/craft side of it, but since the time allowed inside is brief (I can't remember exactly - maybe 15 min?), I wouldn't go out of my way for it. However, it's good to know about for when you're in the area the next time!

I was just up in Boston for two days. When we passed a JP Licks, I had to go in - thanks to you! Yum!!

Anonymous

Hey, yk, greetings from Milton, I didn't realize you'd been through here! Yes, we do have plenty of public transit. We like to say that we have the Red Line at one end of town and skiing (in the Blue Hills) at the other end.

You might have walked past my house, or the birthplace of the first President Bush... What, you thought he was born in Texas? Ha, ha, they're Yankees! Younger Pres Bush is a Connecticut Yankee, born in New Haven!

travelbear

Thanks for the wonderfully detailed trip report. I hope reports like yours encourages more people to post trip reports once they return home.

PS - you have done the inverse of my wife and I. We grew up in Texas, moved to DFW after graduation and now live in NYC. It is great to see others reporting about the "return home." We are heading to Texas next weekend for my high school reunion and look forward to posting a similar report in reverse.

ccrosner

Ok, Anonymous, I live in Milton too! Do you mean you live in the Bush house or were just referring to it?

I was going to compliment yk on her trip report. And especially to compliment her and her dh on the stopover at the Ice Creamsmith in Lower Mills, Dorchester. The IC is a big family favorite here. One of my favorite late winter rituals is to scoop my kids up from school and take them to the IceCreamsmith. They open (after a 3 month break) on March 1st so we try to go on that day. Makes us feel like winter might actually end Also, their pumpkin ice cream is "to die for".

Anonymous

Nope, I live in the Columbines, two blocks from our future Governor. But I'm in the Lower Mills frequently dropping off eBay styff at the Post Office. People who want small-town living sometimes don't realize that it's available in urban neighborhoods.

TKT

Lower Mills is great. Do they still have that coffee hosue/cafe owned by a religious group?

yk

My goodness! If I had known, we could have arranged a GTG at The Ice Creamsmith!

I lived in Brookline (near Coolidge Corner) for a couple of years. And one of the favorite winter outings we (me & my roommate, and a few other classmates who lived nearby) had was heading to the J.P. Licks on Harvard Street at night for a study break.

We never had to worry about our ice cream melting as it was freezing cold out!

ccrosner

I think the coffee house TKT refers to is Common Ground (or is it Common Market?). It's still there. I've only been for lunch once and had a delicious sandwich.

Anonymous--we must know each other. I live ONE block from the future governor in the Columbines. Do you recognize my name?

Anonymous

I'm afraid I am not sociable in the neighborhood; I do not know the names of people two doors down from me, much less a whole block away.