Showing posts with label 1. Entertainment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 1. Entertainment. Show all posts
Theater Parking in NYC
Check out Icon Parking which allows you to park your car for $10 in the Theater District. Unheard of for New York City!
The Crepe Escape...
If I was looking for someone to cater our wedding, I would've totally gone with this:
The Crepe Escape!
Check it out, it sounds absolutely delicious!
The Crepe Escape!
Check it out, it sounds absolutely delicious!
Wine and Champagne picks for your party
The following suggestions were compiled for my wedding but you can adopt them for any party...
Red, white, or rosé wine?
Consider serving equal amounts of one red and one white wine if the reception includes a meal or hors d'oeuvres. If you want to pour just one wine with the meal, go with a dry rosé.
Top White Wine Picks:
Sauvignon Blanc:
2007 Geyser Peak California Sauvignon Blanc ($12.00 per bottle)
2007 Matua Valley Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc, New Zealand ($12.00)
Pinot Grigio:
2007 Nobilo Regional Collection East Coast Pinot Gris, New Zealand ($13)
2006 Four Graces Dundee Hills Pinot Gris, Oregon ($18)
Chardonnay:
2007 Valley of the Moon Russian River Valley Unoaked Chardonnay ($16)
2006 Beringer Stanly Ranch Carneros Chardonnay ($20)
Top Red Wine Picks:
Cabernet Sauvignon:
2005 Charles Krug Peter Mondavi Family Yountville Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon ($26)
2005 Three Thieves The Show California Cabernet Sauvignon ($13)
Pinot Noir:
2006 Belle Vallée Willamette Valley Whole Cluster Pinot Noir, Oregon ($16)
2006 Sebastiani Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir, California ($18)
2005 Domaine de la Croix Jacquelet Mercurey ($23)
Rose Wines:
2007 Beckmen Vineyards Purisima Mountain Vineyard Santa Ynez Grenache Rosé ($18)
2007 Frog's Leap La Grenouille Rouganté Napa Valley ($14)
2006 Mas de Gourgonnier Rosé, France ($16)
Top Sparkling Wine Picks:
Zonin Special Cuvee Brut Prosecco ($11)
Maschio Cavalieri dei Valdobbiadene Brut ($20)
Greg Norman Estates Sparkling Pinot Noir/Chardonnay, Australia ($15)
Top Champagne Picks:
Piper-Heidsieck Brut ($33)
Nicolas Feuillatte Brut ($30)
Janisson & Fils Tradition Brut ($34)
Top Sparkling Wines to be served with dessert:
Most sparkling wines are labeled "brut"- i.e. they're quite dry and contain less than 1.5% sugar. Therefore, look for a "demi-sec" sparkling wine with 3.3%-5% sugar to complement the dessert:
Mumm Napa Valley Cuvee M ($19)
2004 Schramsberg California Cremant Demi-Sec ($37)
2006 Ceretto Moscato di Asti Santo Stefano, Italy ($19)
Consider the season of your event:
Spring and Summer events: Select brisk white wines, dry rosés, and light- to medium-bodied red wines. Brisk whites include Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris/Grigio, unoaked Chardonnay, Riesling, and sparkling wines. Medium-bodied reds include Pinot Noir, Beaujolais, Italian Valpolicella, Spanish Rioja, and Rhone Valley Côtes du Rhône.
Winter and Fall Events: Select heavier Chardonnay, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah/Shiraz, and Zinfandel wines.
How much wine to buy?
It is better to have too much wine than not enough. You can always take the remaining bottles home for future parties. The standard 750-ml wine bottle holds 5 servings of wine. The Champagne or Sparkling Wine bottle will yield 6 servings (since it is served in flutes). Each guest will consume 1/2 bottle of wine every 2 hours. Therefore, consider having 1 bottle per person for a 4-hour party. Some people will drink more, some less and some not at all.
Reliable brands that consistently deliver good quality at very fair prices are:
California: Chateau St. Jean, Geyser Peak, Joel Gott, Kendall Jackson, Rosenblum, Sebastiani
Washington: Chateau Ste. Michelle, Columbia Crest, Hogue, Reininger
Oregon: Argyle, A to Z Wineworks, Belle Vallée, Firesteed
Australia: Greg Norman Estates, McWilliam's, Rosemount, Yalumba
New Zealand: Brancott, Matua Valley, Villa Maria
France: E. Guigal, La Vieille Ferme, Louis Jadot, Perrin & Fils
Argentina: Alamos, Andeluna, Bodega Norton
Chile: Concha y Toro, Vina Santa Rita
Italy: Castello Banfi, Falesco
Spain: Bodegas Montecillo and Bodegas Muga
Other tips and suggestions:
Red, white, or rosé wine?
Consider serving equal amounts of one red and one white wine if the reception includes a meal or hors d'oeuvres. If you want to pour just one wine with the meal, go with a dry rosé.
Top White Wine Picks:
Sauvignon Blanc:
2007 Geyser Peak California Sauvignon Blanc ($12.00 per bottle)
2007 Matua Valley Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc, New Zealand ($12.00)
Pinot Grigio:
2007 Nobilo Regional Collection East Coast Pinot Gris, New Zealand ($13)
2006 Four Graces Dundee Hills Pinot Gris, Oregon ($18)
Chardonnay:
2007 Valley of the Moon Russian River Valley Unoaked Chardonnay ($16)
2006 Beringer Stanly Ranch Carneros Chardonnay ($20)
Top Red Wine Picks:
Cabernet Sauvignon:
2005 Charles Krug Peter Mondavi Family Yountville Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon ($26)
2005 Three Thieves The Show California Cabernet Sauvignon ($13)
Pinot Noir:
2006 Belle Vallée Willamette Valley Whole Cluster Pinot Noir, Oregon ($16)
2006 Sebastiani Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir, California ($18)
2005 Domaine de la Croix Jacquelet Mercurey ($23)
Rose Wines:
2007 Beckmen Vineyards Purisima Mountain Vineyard Santa Ynez Grenache Rosé ($18)
2007 Frog's Leap La Grenouille Rouganté Napa Valley ($14)
2006 Mas de Gourgonnier Rosé, France ($16)
Top Sparkling Wine Picks:
Zonin Special Cuvee Brut Prosecco ($11)
Maschio Cavalieri dei Valdobbiadene Brut ($20)
Greg Norman Estates Sparkling Pinot Noir/Chardonnay, Australia ($15)
Top Champagne Picks:
Piper-Heidsieck Brut ($33)
Nicolas Feuillatte Brut ($30)
Janisson & Fils Tradition Brut ($34)
Top Sparkling Wines to be served with dessert:
Most sparkling wines are labeled "brut"- i.e. they're quite dry and contain less than 1.5% sugar. Therefore, look for a "demi-sec" sparkling wine with 3.3%-5% sugar to complement the dessert:
Mumm Napa Valley Cuvee M ($19)
2004 Schramsberg California Cremant Demi-Sec ($37)
2006 Ceretto Moscato di Asti Santo Stefano, Italy ($19)
Consider the season of your event:
Spring and Summer events: Select brisk white wines, dry rosés, and light- to medium-bodied red wines. Brisk whites include Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris/Grigio, unoaked Chardonnay, Riesling, and sparkling wines. Medium-bodied reds include Pinot Noir, Beaujolais, Italian Valpolicella, Spanish Rioja, and Rhone Valley Côtes du Rhône.
Winter and Fall Events: Select heavier Chardonnay, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah/Shiraz, and Zinfandel wines.
How much wine to buy?
It is better to have too much wine than not enough. You can always take the remaining bottles home for future parties. The standard 750-ml wine bottle holds 5 servings of wine. The Champagne or Sparkling Wine bottle will yield 6 servings (since it is served in flutes). Each guest will consume 1/2 bottle of wine every 2 hours. Therefore, consider having 1 bottle per person for a 4-hour party. Some people will drink more, some less and some not at all.
Reliable brands that consistently deliver good quality at very fair prices are:
California: Chateau St. Jean, Geyser Peak, Joel Gott, Kendall Jackson, Rosenblum, Sebastiani
Washington: Chateau Ste. Michelle, Columbia Crest, Hogue, Reininger
Oregon: Argyle, A to Z Wineworks, Belle Vallée, Firesteed
Australia: Greg Norman Estates, McWilliam's, Rosemount, Yalumba
New Zealand: Brancott, Matua Valley, Villa Maria
France: E. Guigal, La Vieille Ferme, Louis Jadot, Perrin & Fils
Argentina: Alamos, Andeluna, Bodega Norton
Chile: Concha y Toro, Vina Santa Rita
Italy: Castello Banfi, Falesco
Spain: Bodegas Montecillo and Bodegas Muga
Other tips and suggestions:
- Consider shopping at discount stores such as Costco and Sam's Club for the best deals.
- Keep your eye on local wine shops and supermarkets advertising specials.
- Discounters and large markets buy in huge quantities and thus get deals that they pass on to customers; mom-and-pop shops place smaller orders and don't get the same deals.
- Most stores give discounts on full-case purchases, usually ranging between 10%-20%.
- If the venue charges a corkage fee, consider negotiating it down.
- You can personalize your bottles with custom-design labels at website such as SignatureWines.com, PersonalWine.com, and Windsor Vineyards.
- Visit snooth.com for aggregated wine reviews from users or wineloverspage.com.
- If you have the time, buy few of the recommended wines and taste them at home before the party.
Movie nights at home
Netflix: We have recently signed up for Netflix, which we absolutely love. For a low monthly fee, a movie is delivered to your mailbox, you can watch it anytime at your leisure, and then -- when you are done -- drop it in the mailbox in a PRE-PAID ENVELOPE and wait for the next one. We love the selection of new releases (beats our cable which generally plays older movies). And, you can build your own list of movies so that the movies are continuously shipped to you after you return them. There is no driving to the store to pick up or drop the movie off. And the best thing – there are no late fees, no matter how long you keep the movie. Also, if you have the right equipment, you can get the instant streaming to your TV. Netlix unlimited plans start with $8.99 a month plus tax (1 DVD out at-a-time) and go up to $16.99 (for 3 DVDs). You can also select the $4.99 a month (plus tax) plan for a 1 DVD at-a-time (with a limit of 2 per month). We have the $8.99 plan which works for us. On average, we get a new movie once a week (if I mail the movie back Monday morning, there is usually a new movie in our mailbox by Wednesday-Thursday). If we managed to watch it the same day we received it (which we never do), we probably would have gotten more movies. But, you can select the plan that works the best for you based on your needs and lifestyle.RedBox: Another option is the RedBox. It is basically just that – a stand alone Red Box usually found at supermarkets or pharmacies where you can rent a movie with a swipe of your credit card. The cost is just $1.00 (plus tax) for 1 night. BUT the catch is that you have to return the movie the following evening by 9 pm or you will be charged an additional $1.00 (plus tax) for each night you are late. This option only makes sense if you remember to return the movie the next day, otherwise, if you are – like me – don’t want to be bound by any time constraints and would like to watch the movies on your own terms, you would be better off signing up for Netflix. Although Redbox is available throughout the country, when I searched the Redbox locations in Manhattan, only 2 came up -- Walgreens at 350 5th Avenue and Walgreens at 1471 Broadway. There are some additional locations in Brooklyn as well. So if you are one of the lucky ones to live near those locations, this may work for you. Also, Redbox sends out promotional codes for a FREE MOVIE every Monday to customers who sign up to receive SMS text message. In addition, you can google Redbox promotional codes to get your FREE MOVIE, just don’t forget to return it on time.
Hulu: Check out their site here where you can watch your favorite or missed TV shows and movies, all for FREE.
YouTube: Finally, don’t underestimate Youtube when you looking for clips, etc. For example, I use Youtube to watch cooking demonstration videos (for example, how to make a miso soup, or how to cut up a chicken), destination videos (for example, videos of resorts before we book our travel), music videos, or clips of shows I missed on TV. You can pretty much find everything on Youtube – I even found a video of the town I grew up in…
Now, grab some popcorn and enjoy your movies!
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