Empire State of Mind...

I'm feeling especially patriotic today, the sheer awesomeness of our military does that to me sometimes.

Another awesome thing?

The USS New York.

If you want to understand the true spirit of the United States I can think of few better examples than taking the tragedy of the September 11 attacks and literally turning it into something that will help strengthen our nation.

For more on the USS New York and its journey to pay its respects to the Twin Towers from which it was forged, go here.

Eating the Big Apple...

I just realized I never blogged about my fabulous girls trip to New York a few weeks ago. I visit the Big Apple often, and usually find myself skittering about the island at a frenetic pace visiting friends from boarding school, college, and home, hopping from event to event without really experiencing life in the big city. This time I vowed to pump the breaks and just let things take me where they may, and had one of my best trips yet! There were many great times catching up with girlfriends, long walks, and lots and lots of food. My fave restaurants were:

Gemma

The restaurant so nice, I visited twice! Located in the hotel I had chosen for my stay, The Bowery, Gemma has the same swanky hip vibe and a great menu to boot! I went my first night in for convenience, and then again with my College girlfriends Julia, Stina, and Liana for a second visit.

Cafe Gitane

My friend Berry took us here for lunch one beautiful fall day, and in the span of one wee little dining experience we ate alongside Leslie Bibb, Vanessa from Gossip Girl, and Jude Law! And the food was delish, I had the Brie and Apples plate, which is definitely my lunch bliss if I ever saw it. Apparently the Couscous with Hummus is the thing to order, and by the looks of it on the plates of other diners, I would def recommend it.

Mayahuel

If you walked past this place there is no way you would notice it. The front is tiny with tiny little windows. There is a bouncer esque gentleman at the door, but that is really the only indication that this fly dining spot exists. This lively mexican/tapasy spot is a great choice for a festive evening. The cocktails are phenomenal, and the shareable dishes are always fun for a group.

Roebling Tea Room

Ladies and Gentleman, I, Bailey Quin, took the Subway to Brooklyn on this past trip to New York to see my Beloved Isabel. And I fell in love! Brooklyn is adorable! It reminds me a lot of Chicago actually, in architecture and pace. We brunched at the deliciously hip Roebling Tea Room. I had the baked eggs and a Bloody Mary, which was more like a soup with all of the delicious olives and pickles mixed in, and was just what the doctor ordered after a night spent raging. The grits were unreal.

Sweetiepie

I visit this Greenwich Village jewel every time I go to New York. It is everything I love in life and more. I will do a longer post extolling the virtues of Sweetiepie and its fabulous owner at a later date, but suffice it to say this visit was just as fun and delicious as always.

Even more so, perhaps, because I got to introduce another kindred spirit to the joy of Sweetiepie. Laura had the Chicken Noodle Soup (her verdict: one of the best C.N.S.'s ever)

I had the Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup (Just grown up enough to be interesting, but still tastes like childhood). We each had a Sweetiepie Cocktail, and shared a trio of mini ice cream cones for dessert.

Eloise at the Plaza

Although I loved Where The Wild Things Are growing up, without a doubt my most favorite children's book was/is/will always be Eloise at the Plaza.

In fact, look over to your right...See where it says A Bit About Peppermint Bliss:

"I am Bailey.

I am 23.

I am a city child.

I live in Chicago..."

That, my friends, is a direct reference to the famous opening lines of the original Eloise book.

"I am Eloise.

I am six.

I am a city child.

I live at The Plaza."

The beauty of being an American Studies Major is that often you have the opportunity to write "highly academic thesis papers" on things you love, like Eloise. For my Explorations in American Childhood class at UT I wrote an extremely serious paper on the 1957 children's book by Kay Thompson and how:

"Up until this point there had not been a loveable “bad girl” in children’s literature, though there had been several popular “bad boy” characters. The enormous popularity of a character like Eloise in the 1950s reveals a great deal about changing attitudes on girlhood at the time; The enduring legacy of Eloise today reveals even more about American girlhood regardless of generation."

It is all very high brow and intellectual, and if you are interested in my more academic works I am happy to email you a copy, however, for our purposes all you need to know is that the Eloise series is still very much a driving force in my life.

SO!

You can imagine my horror when I found out a few years ago that Donald Trump (Mortal Enemy of Good Taste and Everything Lovely) had bought the ailing Plaza Hotel and was planning on bastardizing it into becoming part of his gold encrusted empire.

So devastated was I that I buried The Plaza and all my girlhood memories deep in the back of my mind until I found THIS delightful nugget in my internet browsing the other day!

"Come to think of it, they actually have a lot in common. Eloise (of “Eloise at the Plaza” fame) and Betsey Johnson (of funky fashion fame), that is. They both have hard-to-tame blonde locks and a girly sense of style, and they both call New York their home.

So it only seems fitting that Ms. Johnson is designing an Eloise suite at the recently refurbished Plaza Hotel, at Fifth Avenue and Central Park South. The two-bedroom suite—to be whimsically decorated in pink and black—has a notable design history.

Past Plaza suite designers have included fashion designer Christian Dior and architect Frank Lloyd Wright, who lived at the hotel for five years during the construction of the Guggenheim Museum.

Ms. Johnson, whose fashion show is scheduled to take place tomorrow at the Plaza’s Palm Court, plans to start work on the suite immediately following the conclusion of fashion week."

Of the project, Betsey herself has said:

"I'm tickled pink to be designing the Eloise room in the Plaza. When I recently moved uptown and my first granddaughter was born I rediscovered Eloise and hoped that something magical would happen between me and my favorite hotel. This is the perfect pink combo!"

BRILLIANT!!

Have I misjudged you, Donald?