Moynihan Train Hall (NYC)

Moynihan was lively on a Thursday evening, less than a week before Christmas. Nearing its fourth anniversary, the hall is a significant upgrade of Penn Station as a terminus for Amtrak in New York City. Since the pandemic, New York as a destination has decreased significantly, and we were only transferring to another train. There was enough time to be stunned into indecision about where to procure a snack. With its sleek design and amenities, Moynihan is an invitation to return to New York City.

Prior to getting food, I had to make a stop in Walgreens to buy band-aids after helping a woman retrieve her suitcase from the overhead luggage rack. Somehow, I cut my thumb right along nail and could not get it to stop bleeding. The inevitable hazards of taking low-dose aspirin. 

Middletown and the Brownstone

 

The Brownstone Café, which sits in the center of Middletown, Pennsylvania, always does a brisk business and serves as a gathering place for locals. The restaurant is always busy, it is a question of will we have to wait for a table. It is good for serving uncomplicated, but good food with friendly service. Located in a former bank, the building retains many of the accoutrements of its former tenant, including the safe and tellers’ windows. The music is appropriate for the clientele, for example, a week prior to Christmas, Merle Haggard’s “Santa Claus and Popcorn” was barely heard above the din of conversation.

The locals who frequent the Brownstone can be interesting. An elderly man sitting behind me was engaging our server in a prolonged conversation about her background. She remarked that she had moved to Middletown about eight years prior with her boyfriend. It was difficult to hear the entire conversation, but the man eventually asked if her parents knew she was living with her boyfriend. She noted that she had been with her boyfriend for eight years, so yes, they were well aware of her living situation, in a assertive yet not quite caustic tone. A couple seated behind Angie were engaged in odd conversations as well, with the woman complaining that her male companion had gotten her drunk the night before. She had previously worked at the restaurant and had, at some point, left her purse, prompting the manager to comment, “some things never change.” At yet another table, a young couple were feeding each other, perhaps in the spirit of the season like a budget conscious holiday movie.

Walking through town on a cold and cloudy afternoon, the lights at Hoffer Park did not seem to dispel the gloom of winter. Likewise, the sign inviting people to take the Santa Train from the M&H Railroad was not tempting either. The overcast skies and the damp cold, mixed with a persistent wind made being outside less than appealing.

Eastern Wood-Pewee

 

Eastern Wood-Pewee on the CVRT (Sept 2024)

Salt Point Brewery

 

Located not far from Cayuga Lake and Ithaca, this popular brewery utilizes the outdoor setting as well as local farmers and producers for its craft food and beer. The snack board, a modified charcuterie, is a mixture of local cheeses, olives, seeds, dried fruit, and cured meats. Even though we chose the Margherita, the wood-fired sourdough pizzas are interesting and unique. (For example, the pizza special on the night we were there was a peach and pork belly pizza.) For dessert, we had the excellent Nutella burdino, which immediately demanded a recipe search.

Uncle Hazy IPA

My beer of choice was Uncle Hazy IPA (6.5% ABV), definitely hazy with a slight bitter edge. I liked it enough to take a 4-pack home.

Nutella budino

The atmosphere is lively and convivial, making it difficult, especially on a Friday evening, to find a seat to have dinner.

Address: Salt Point Brewery, 6 Louise Bement Ln, Lansing, NY 14882

 

The Lochside Hotel (Islay)

 

The Lochside Hotel in Bowmore, Isle of Islay

Established in 1884, the Lochside Hotel is a quaint and comfortable place to stay on Islay. Although the rooms are small, and the hallways narrow, this is certainly by the standards of a 21st-century traveler. The dining room and bar are cozy and convivial, with a whisky menu that contains virtually all the products of local distilleries, including those with eye-watering prices.

Room 6

BRLO (Berlin)

 

Nursing a Blurred Vision IPA for a few extra minutes of enjoying pleasant, if not threatening, weather. A sparrow is trying to manage and protect a huge chunk of bread, but rivals make that job increasingly difficult. Many people are sneezing because of the high pollen levels.

Pulled kikok chicken sandwich with red cabbage-tomato salsa, beetroot yogurt, and roasted onions. BRLO Blurry Vision Hazy IPA.

Tapeo Gràcia

Sometimes, among friends, restaurants achieve a mythic status based upon the experience rather than the food. Of course, excellent food can help bolster one’s impression of a restaurant as well. Located on a nondescript street, behind the doors of an inauspicious building, Tapeo Gràcia is a warm and invitingly small dining area. Without a reservation, or eating by myself, I am frequently relegated to the bar, which is great as well. I can watch both the bartenders and cooks prepare meals for cheerful and expectant guests.  

I have fond memories of finding the restaurant after Sally, Niel, and I wandered the narrow streets of the Gràcia neighborhood of Barcelona for seemingly an hour. There are so many choices about where to eat, and it is difficult to decipher which ones are merely interesting from those that might have good food as well. The first time we stumbled into Tapeo, we thought we hit the jackpot. The following year, we attempted to retrace our steps, all of us forgetting the restaurant’s name. Just as we were about to give up, and Sally said, “the next decent restaurant,” as if by magic, we turned the corner and there was Tapeo.

I have had many good meals in Barcelona, but Tapeo remains my favorite. Without a doubt, it has interesting food and good drinks. But the ambiance and vitality of the restaurant makes it a fun place to visit.

 

May 2024 dinner:

Espárragos tempura con romesco ligero (Tempura Asparagus with Romesco sauce) 

Pan de coca con tomate (Coca bread with Tomato) 

Huevos estrellados con jamón ibérico de bellota (Broken Eggs with Iberian Ham, Bellota refers to free-range, acorn-fed ham, aged for over two years)