DRIVEN Blog
5 Restaurants, 3 Vermouths, & an Art Exhibit: The Other Side of Bridgehampton
Last month I raved on and on about the Channing Daughters Winery portion of the trip Deb and I took to the South Fork of Long Island. Having waxed so nostalgic about the week-old experience…
Springtime Sippin’ in Chelsea: Another Cultured Wine Event Rocks the House
Last Wednesday saw WAC’s first wine event of 2014, and a wealth of free-flowing delight amongst its participants. Spring & Summer Sipping, an informal investigation of warm-weather wines and their suitable food accompaniments, was attended by seventeen…
Wine List Navigation Takeaways: Let’s Eat!
What would a lesson in Wine List Navigation be without a sweet surrender to the temptation of sipping on a little vino and snacking on some strategic homemade munchies? That’s just what I encouraged at my March 26th workshop, as the ladies in…
What I’m Drinking: Obscure Gems of Italy’s Piedmont
The usual suspects? You know that’s not what I’m all about. Sure, with cuisine, I’m always excited to try a different take on a classic (it’s seldom I’ll turn down a meatball simply because I’ve had a million of ‘em). But with wine, there are just too many options these…
The Restaurant Wine Ritual: A Host’s Perspective
As a frequent business dining host, you will be taking part in the age-old honor of ordering a bottle of wine for the table. For some, the very thought of such a responsibility is intimidating, even panic-inducing, and rightly so; without a professional wine background, it is natural to feel at a loss when flipping through a comprehensive restaurant…
They Came, They Learned, They Bought: The C.Wonder Effect
thank you to all the ladies who attended last Wednesday’s C.Wonder wardrobe tutorial and discounted shopping opportunity, hosted by WAC Specialist Caroline Sill, the fashion retailer’s Manager of…
Restaurant Watch: Tapas, Anyone?
Running a business in NYC involves tons of fine restaurant dining (no complaints here). But once in a while, I have the chance to dine out just for the joy of eating. Recently, Michael and a dear friend from the west coast joined me at…
The Dining Diva: A Real Dish
In one sense, I talk about a “Dining Diva” as a professional woman who is an experienced, seasoned business diner— the master of her domain in the business meal setting (this is what I transform NYC women into with my periodical Strategic Dining℠…
Pesto Reinterpreted: Five-Minutes to Bliss
I’m having a love affair with an old darling of mine: spinach pesto! I used to always have it on hand when I cooked at my old restaurant, Goldie’s by the Bridge, where it was handy in countless ways. Recently, I made a batch utilizing the modern conveniences…
Diva-fied: The Takeaway from our Strategic Dining Workshop
There is a theory that the most organized people are always buying books on organization. Last Thursday’s Dining Divas participants might have given this theory legs. These women have oodles of emotional intelligence and are rising stars in their fields, yet…
Staying on the Wagon: The Virtues of Dieting
When asked to write this post, I enthusiastically agreed, feeling a bit virtuous having cleansed my diet of both sugar andKristiMcKee2 wheat almost entirely for six months. Early last May, I woke up one morning and decided to eliminate sugar and cut way back on…
Holiday Cheers: The Stress-Reduced Christmas Wine Shopping Experience
The holiday shopping frenzy is fully in progress, and if you’re the host of a Christmas gathering, you’re on double duty. Factor in that you may not feel confident walking into a wine shop and choosing just the right accompaniments, and…
Poppin’ Corks! WAC’s Sparkling Wine Event Bubbles Over with Insight
If you were one of the lucky participants of last Thursday’s Women’s Advancement Compact “All That Sparkles” wine event at Appellation Wine & Spirits in Chelsea, you would have walked away with not just a euphoric wine buzz and the flavor of…
Talkin’ Turkey Too: A Feast of Fizz
If you read our Thanksgiving wine blog post from last week, you hopefully dialed down your holiday stress level a bit, and narrowed the field for yourself on Thanksgiving wine choices. So, I’m back this week to complicate things all over again by letting you in on secret…
I’m Only Human, and Sometimes It Sickens Me
It can be argued that I am one of those people who inadvertently preach “do as I say, not as I do”. Evidence of this can be pinpointed in my advice to my colleagues, blog followers, friends and family that we all should make a strident effort to accommodate others, but…
Sliding Into Autumn, Fork In Hand
Farmer Market's are decadent with produce right about now! Visiting the Union Square Farmer’s Market always adds to an adventurous Saturday in New York. If you haven’t yet experienced this vast bazaar…
Serrano Ham: Join the Converted
Okay. This has nothing directly to do with Spain (or Italy, for that matter). It concerns two people living in Cold Spring, NY who share a passion for European cured hams. Michael and I have been enjoying Italian Prosciutto di Parma for decades, since long before we even met. Whether on a hero with other cured meats…
Home Made Ice Cream Brings Out the Kid in Us All!
Most homemade ice cream parlors hype theirs as being the world’s greatest. However, we are convinced that Moo Moo’s has earned the right to do so! Owner Alexi Katsetos crafts 16 of his own unique ice…
The Foundry - Home of the BALT - Best Sammie in the Land!
Foundry Café 55 Main Street, Cold Spring, NY Famous for his huevos rancheros, French toast, organic quiches, hearty soups, and the BALT— a bacon, avocado, lettuce and tomato sandwich on whole wheat bread with bean sprouts and spicy jalapeño mayonnaise, chef/owner Jeff Consaga established the Foundry Café with the aim of creating a local dining…
The Shop Not-To-Miss on September 28th in Cold Spring:
Highland Baskets at The Country Goose 115 Main Street, Cold Spring NY A fixture on Main Street in Cold Spring for nearly 30 years is romance author and shopkeeper Leonora Burton’s pride and joy. Highland Baskets is the metamorphosis of her charming and regionally admired kitchen/housewares boutique The Country Goose. Her custom gift baskets…