“This is our home – our hotel, we take care of it,” is the Helmsley mantra and true in every sense of the word.

‘Wicked’ is not a restaurant reviewer, but occasionally we discover a restaurant so remarkable, we would be remiss not to share it with our readers. Leona’s at the Helmsley Hotel is such a discovery. During our recent stay at the New York Helmsley, we were invited to dine in their newly renovated restaurant and bar – Leona’s. Say what you want about Leona Helmsley, she understood outstanding service. I have stayed at the New York Helmsley numerous times and every time the service has been consistently outstanding. This trip was no exception from check in to check out the service was impeccable. Leona’s restaurant was outstanding – a memorable experience and well worth writing about.

An Intimate Dinning Experience

One year ago, there was a decision to renovate the hotel restaurant and the famous Harry’s bar. Executive Chef Brian Wieler, was brought in to oversee the renovations and revitalize the culinary program . The décor, which was designed by J. Brice of Boston, is very dramatic, art deco and modern. Once inside, you lose all sense of being in a hotel. The lighting, the furniture and the comfortable chairs give you the 5 star feeling without the 5 star price and attitude.

Before our meal, we sat down with Brian for an in-depth interview. I kept feeling I had met Brian before, but just shrugged it off. We posed the usual questions asking about Brian’s background and then everything clicked. Brian was the head chef at the Tarrytown House Estates where my daughter was married two years ago.   The wedding was amazing and people still talk about the wonderful food. I finally had the chance to personally thank him for an extraordinary day and was dying to sample his cuisine again. You could hear his appreciation of food in his description of dishes and how thoughtfully he fused the flavors.  Combination’s which ordinarily seemed conflicting created an extraordinary  sensation. (i.e. the appetizer of Diver Sea Scallop atop a sweet potato puree with a drizzle of white chocolate sauce on top – sensational!)

So what makes Leona’s so special? First, the atmosphere, then the food, but even more importantly Brian is trying to make Leona’s a neighborhood restaurant by keeping prices exceptionally affordable. We all know New York has no shortage of restaurants, so how can a hotel restaurant become a neighborhood favorite. Here are some answers:

• The restaurant is an intimate and memorable dining experience
• Service is perfection – you are treated as an honored guest in their restaurant.  “Welcome, we’ll take good care of you tonight”.
• Numerous events are planned throughout the year such as wine and beer pairings with special menus to compliment the selections
• An offering of unique dishes that blend and fuse flavors from America, Mediterranean and Asian influences.  Dishes are slightly rustic and use a bounty of local fresh ingredients.
• Perhaps the best Crab Cake in America – don’t even THINK of challenging them Baltimore!

Before we left I asked Brain what his mom thought about his food, and his answer made me smile, “Well, she tells me I can cook, and she likes my cooking”. That was enough for me, mothers do know best.

Susan and I were anticipating our dining experience, and it topped all our expectations.   Since I had stayed at the Helmsley many times, an old friend Nagi, who remembered me as well, greeted us. After asking our preferences, Nagi helped choose our meal which was perfect in every way. Beginning with the Scallops and Crab Cake appetizer, we knew immediately we were in for an extraordinary dining experience. Speechless was what we were! Each bite delivered flavors new to both of us. The white chocolate drizzle on the scallops and the sweet potatoes delivered a combination of tantalizing sweet and salty. Our main courses were equally spectacular, Susan had Lamb in a rosemary jus, and I had a Sea Bass with blended citrus and herbs – each bite exploded with flavor.

Lon, the evening Chef, checked in on us and explained the cheese selection he was sending out. We also took the opportunity to ask about the fabulous Crab Cake.  His secret?  “No filler” – all crab in a crunchy crumb crust. It was clear how passionate both he and Brian are about making Leona’s a very special place by providing consistency and excellence in both food and service. The menu changes with the seasons, and their special events will keep diners returning.

Since I do not eat meat, restaurants rarely get me excited, but Leona’s is truly different. If Leona’s were in Boston, I would eat there regularly, but since it is not I will have to find reasons to return to New York more often. We know restaurant choices are endless in New York, but between the menu and the spectacular service, Leona’s should not be missed whether you are staying at the Helmsley Hotel or not. In addition, for all you New Yorkers, check out the menu and events, http://www.newyorkhelmsley.com/restaurant-new-york-hotels.asp. Who knows maybe we will meet at Leona’s Oktoberfest Event. And please say hello to Nagi for me.

NorthernOutdoors.com

Be A Really Cool Family – Go White Water Rafting On The Kennebec River! You can’t get much more refreshing than a plunge down the rapids in an inflatable boat.  The adrenaline rush all the water and amusement parks are trying to duplicate is right here in northern Maine on the Kennebec, Penobscot and Dead rivers.  Until July 15th it’s value season at Northern Outdoors – you can take 35% off standard summer rafting and lodging prices.  AND all summer long, kids raft at half price on weekdays.  On Wednesday it’s single parent day, two kids pay half price with a single paying parent.  These rivers will give you the ride of your life! 

SacoBound.com

Families wanting a slow lazy river experience can paddle a canoe down the quiet waters of the meandering Saco River.  Crystal clear waters tumble down from the White Mountains as they make their way from New Hampshire to the Maine coast.  The folks at Saco Bound can outfit you with everything you’ll need for a one day trip or 2 days with overnight camping.  You’ll hardly need to paddle as the current glides you over sandy bottomed river beds where the water is usually just a few feet deep.  Strap a tube on the back of the canoe and float down the lazy river!

Photo by Michelle McLean

For some old fashioned country fun head to the 50th anniversary celebration of Mollyockett Days in Bethel Maine from July 17-18th.

A beautiful village just down-mountain from the Sunday River Ski Resort, Bethel celebrates the life of Mollyocket a famed Indian Healer from the Peuqawket tribe who befriended early settlers in the region.

Photo by Michelle McLean

There will be all the down-home country fun you could wish for: a grand parade, all-you-can-eat pancake breakfast, farmer’s market, arts, craft and food vendors, a pig and turkey roast, frog jumping contest for the kids, chain saw carving, fun run, fiddlers and jazz band concerts, Adirondack auction, and of course we can’t forget the fireworks!

Come for the whole weekend and take advantage of specials at the beautiful Bethel Inn where kids 11 and under can stay and eat for free.

So for some summer fun that will have the whole family smiling, head north to Maine!

No longer do you have fly to England to join in the excitement of the most acclaimed tennis tournament in the world.  For 133 years Wimbledon has attracted the elite of the tennis world to compete on it’s grassy courts.  Now, thanks to HSBC, you too can test your volley skills on a replica grass tennis court in the heart of New York City.  Beginning on Monday, June 21, 2010 from 7am until 7pm (and continuing through the week), spectators can reserve court time on the replica grass court, take a clinic with pros from Prince, request a racket restringing, play Wii Grand Slam Tennis thanks to EA Sports, and even pose with a virtual Wimbledon Trophy.  To kick off the celebration, tennis greats Jim Courier and Monica Seles will play with selected fans on June 21st from 12:00 – 1pm.

The venue is in Rockefeller Center between 50th & 51st Street, between 5th & 6th Avenue.  You can reserve singles court time by calling 212-525-2367, or take advantage of walk-in tennis clinics by Prince on June 22-25 from 12:00 – 1:30 pm, and 4:30 – 6:00 pm.  Get a schedule of all the clinics and activity times  by visiting HSBC/tennis.

I don’t know how they did it, but the editors of Southern Living got the Kings of the BBQ joints all across the South to disclose their top secret recipes and techniques.  We’re talking major Pit Masters braggin’ about how they do it best – from brais’n, to marinades, to rubs and jerks, to smok’n low and slow, and all the yummy fixin’s!  I think you could party for two years and not try all the recipes in this collection!  When the editors sent us a book to review I settled down on the couch to breeze through it, and was soon shouting out, “hey look at this, wow did you know that, yum-mm we’ll have to try this, oh man look at that”!  Boy will I have fresh recipes for THIS 4th of July!

Now for the part that really won my heart….  This cookbook is also a travel guide to the South with lists of all the BBQ dens worth visiting, complete with addresses, phone numbers and websites.  You’ll also find listings of the biggest BBQ festivals and cook offs! Ha, Food Channel – you aren’t the only one who can find the tastiest food on the road!!!

Sea Palace St. Maarten

Can a week’s vacation get any cheaper than this? I’ve just been reading Arthur Frommer’s Blog (great resource of top travel info), and learned about this insanely great sale.  A full week’s vacation in a resort rental apartment (studio, 1 bedroom or 2 bedrooms) for a mere $199 per week. That’s not per person folks, it’s per unit for a full 7 days.  And these are not some flea bag properties, they are from the apartment rental division of Wyndham Hotels – Endless Vacation Rentals.  There are resort properties located all across the USA, Caribbean, Mexico and Europe!  I just can’t stop using !!!! this is such a great deal.

Here’s the main catch…. this is a “blowout” sale on the Wyndham Vacation last minute site.  You only have until 4pm on Friday 5/21/10 to reserve your vacation at this amazing price, and travel must take place within 30 days.    Can’t get away for a full week?  No problem, check out early (the price is still worth it)…. or split the booking with some friends and each stay a few days…that would be a vacation for $100!!!!

Now if you just can’t carve out some vacation time in the next 30 days, this is a site you should definitely bookmark and keep an eye on.  The last minute page always offers properties at amazing rates that are available for travel within 30 days. The standard rate right at the moment would be $349 per week for a studio apartment, up to $399 per week for a 2 bedroom – still a fabulous deal.  I think this is going to be my new go-to site for booking quick getaways.

Here’s my suggested strategy for cashing in on these offers:

Strategy #1
Pick a few locations from the destination list
Look for available frequent flyer seats and grab them
Go back to the Wyndham site and book the apt rental

Strategy #2
Select a destination that is served by a low cost airline (JetBlue, Southwest, Spirit, AirTran etc) and look for a great airfare.  Combine that fare with a one week rental from the Wyndham site.

Strategy #3
See a great airline sale…freeze some seats, check the Wyndham last minute site for an apartment rental.

Make your friends incredulous with envy…”You paid WHAT for  your vacation????!!!!!!”  You have to love it when that happens!

Maui’s well respected non-profit organization, The Pacific Whale Foundation, has established an excellent volunteer resource – VolunteeringOnVacation.org.  This foundation invites you to get involved with Maui’s preservation by participating in beach clean ups, removing invasive plant species from sensitive areas and restoring native trails.  You can read about organized group activities each day of the week and decide what task suits you the best.

PreserveHawaii.org has an expansive list of volunteer opportunities for nature initiatives on each of the Hawaiian islands.

On the Big Island you may want to participate in the Hawksbill Turtle Recover Project in Volcanos National Park, pitch in at an exotic animal sanctuary, or assist with gardening and propagation at the Greenwell Gardens.

On Kauai join the Surf Rider Organization with beach clean ups and fishing net collections, or join the Sierra Club help preserve access to an ancient beach trail.

Opportunities on Molokai include helping the Ka Honua Momona organization preserve centuries-old native fish ponds.  Join local volunteers as they begin the day with a traditional chant and end the day by sharing a locally produced lunch.

Lanai’s Culture and Heritage Center archives exhibits of thousands of years of island history and invites you to become a “curator for a day”.  Volunteers who can devote a minimum of four hours assist with the transfer of old photographs to acid-free materials or perhaps sketch  Hawaiian artifacts hand crafted from shells and wood.

On Oahu the volunteer opportunities are many.  Visitors who have a passion for botany can help convert a 12 acre state park area into a native dryland forest with lots of digging, weeding and planting.  Or you might want to go nautical and assist the Wild Dolphin Foundation who has a long list of tasks both water and land based.

For community based volunteer opportunities, visit VolunteerHawaii.org which coordinates United Way based initiatives, or ComminityWorkDay.org

Mahalo

Finding the perfect summer camp experience for your ever changing child is an ongoing challenge.

Rock Music Summer Camp – The Collective Sound, California and Oregon
Do you have a future Rocker at home who loves nothing better than to practice air guitar techniques every waking moment?  Send them off to TCS where they’ll be paired with like minded aspiring musicians, form a band, learn to write original music, improve their performing techniques in concert like settings, and a lucky few can even go on tour!
Surfing  Camp – Endless Summer Surf Camp – California & Costa Rica
Nothing is as iconic as spending the summer in a pitched tent by the beach, spending long sunny days riding the crest of a California wave.  The Beach Boys embedded this golden vision of summer in our psyche and the dream endures for every generation of prospective surf-bums.  The Endless Summer Surf Camp is an all-inclusive immersion into the surfing lifestyle, riding the waves, hanging out with friends, beach-side BBQues, not to mention expert instruction and video analysis.  It’s so popular you may never want to grow up – so they also offer adults only camps and Surf and Turf (golf and surfing camps).
Skateboarding/BMX Camp – Camp Woodward, CA, CO, WI, PA & China!
Are your energetic kids always propelling themselves several feet off the ground no matter what devise is under their feet.  Whatever your child’s wheel frenzy of the moment is, the Woodward summer camps will send them on the half-pipe ride of their dreams.  These camps offer every extreme sport instruction you can think of including skateboarding, inline, BMX mountain biking, gymnastics and cheer leading – all staged in the most impressive action sport parks imaginable!
Snowboarding Summer Camp – High Cascade – Mt. Hood, Oregon
For some lucky boarders the snow never stops falling – such is the case in the glacier bowls of Mt. Hood.  And there will be no pointy toed devices here…. its all about boarding, no skis allowed!  All you Shaun White’s in training, pack up your board and head west to Mt. Hood.  Sorry Chris…. wish these camps were around when you were one of the first boarders on the slopes – you would have loved this!
Eco Rainforest Adventure - Lodge at Chaa Creek Summer Camp , Belize
Answer the call of the wild on this one week Eco immersion into a pristine rain forest experience.  Licensed naturalist guides will lead day hikes into ancient Maya sites where campers will learn about biodiversity, natural resource conservation, Maya traditions and healing methods.  Every participant will gain a new lifelong appreciation of their relationship with ‘our fragile earth’, while interacting with the rain forest habitat.
LEGO Building Fantasy Camp – First Ever LEGO Summer Camp – Atlantis Resort, Bahamas
Everyone loves LEGOs and now your kids can have a master building experience while the whole family vacations at the Atlantis Resort on Paradise Island in the Bahamas.  Three five day Lego workshop camps will be offered in July where kids work side-by-side with a LEGO Master Builder to construct an impressive ‘mega project’.  The camp experience provides hands-on building challenges that encourage teamwork, creativity and fine motor skills, as well as fun resort activities like a resort-wide scavenger hunt with access to behind-the-scenes areas not usually open to resort guests.

So there’s no excuse for a dull summer – exciting summer camp experiences are just a few clicks away!

I’ve just returned from a girls getaway weekend at The Wentworth, and let me say a one night escape felt like days of pampering.  The delight begins as you turn right off Route 1A (first exit after the Hampton Tolls) onto Wentworth Road and ride past the pastoral golf course stretching along the ocean’s edge, and then catch your first glimpse of the gleaming white, red-roofed resort perched on a hill with commanding views of ocean in every direction.  The impact is instantaneous, beach-side grandeur of yesteryear.   There’s a smile on every face as we park the car – heads swiveling in every direction – taking in the ocean views, manicured gardens  (we’ve hit tulip/lilac season), hidden arbors and gazebos, and oh yes, let’s not forget the marina with happily bobbing yachts.  Sigh….

Entering the grand foyer we’re greeted by the ever smiling and dapper Concierge, George, who later volunteers to give us an historic tour of the property.  We hear tales of treaties signed by Teddy Roosevelt, jazz performances by Duke Ellington and Cab Calloway, and architectural wonders like the magnificent cherub entwined ‘whisper’ rotunda dome that graces the dining room.  We visit the very elegant spa, which is clearly one of the main attractions of the hotel, and then enter the pool pavilion which seems suited for a Grecian goddess – gorgeous.  The social rooms are a perfect balance between elegance and comfort – inviting rather than stiff and stuffy.  The sweeping porches dotted with wicker furniture encourage guests to sit a spell, breath in the briny sea air, and gaze off to the ever changing landscape of sea, marsh and boating channels.

And finally off to our room which is large, luxurious and offers sweeping ocean views.  Since the hotel is built on a coastal island, it enjoys entertaining water views in every direction.  We particularly love the heated marble floors in the bathroom – now that’s indulgence!  The decor is bright and dignified, with every high end amenity on your wish list.  Families love the new 1,000 sq ft, two-level marina suites built right along the water’s edge by the outdoor swimming pool, seaside restaurant and marina.  But you won’t be spending much time in your room, there are so many activities to beckon you -  golfing, boating, fishing, kayaking, canoeing, hiking, nearby antiques and outlet shopping, historic Strawberry Bank in the lively city of Portsmouth – to name just a few.  We had dinner and breakfast at the resort and both were outstanding – delicious, with interesting offerings, and prepared to perfection.  Wentworth By The Sea is a Marriott resort, so if you are lucky enough to have Marriott reward points, this is a spectacular choice for redeeming them.  Rates usually begin in the $250 per night range for a standard room and I would say this resort is worth every penny.  They do a robust wedding business all year round, making it important to book your spa services in advance if you’re visiting on a weekend.

So the next time you need a dose of pampered living, fine dining and beautiful sea views, that are close to home, head right up Rt 95 to Wentworth By The Sea.  This resort makes a perfect weekend destination for Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Anniversary or Birthday celebrations, which probably accounts for the fact that they are sold out most weekends of the year – plan your visit in advance and enjoy!