Rose’s Luxury: A Private Dining Story

As you know, for my 30th birthday, my boyfriend took me to Greece and no expenses were spared. There couldn’t have been a better way to kick off 30. Now a year has past and I wanted to spend it with my friends. So I selfishly asked 10 great friends to drop 150 plus dollars on a private dining experience at Rose’s Luxury…I’m the worst.

I am going to start from the beginning. Rose’s Luxury has been around for almost 5 years. I remember when it first opened which was around the time I started dating Scott. It was named the number 1 best new restaurant in Bon Appetite so you can imagine the hype. To make it even harder to get in, they didn’t take reservations so there was always a line to get in. Let’s say we tried and we failed our first and only time we tried to get a table.   The maître d’ was kind enough to give us drinks on the house. Now lets fast-forward 4 years later and I still haven’t been to Rose’s.

In the last year or so Rose’s has been taking reservations for parties of 6 to 8 but it is for their $75 per person tasting menu. Then they have a private rooftop that seats 8 to 12 people. This is a $135 per person 12-course tasting menu. Note that reservations are made a month in advance and only online with a limited number of openings. On top of that, the private room only has one seating a night.

So I made the decision to book the private room for my birthday dinner. The pressure was on because there was only one date near my birthday that worked for everyone. I had one chance and one chance only to book this table through their online portal. If I missed my window, the dinner would be off. The pressure was on! I set a calendar reminder and I asked a few friends to get on the website as well.

The day came to make the reservation. I was on their website 10 minutes before you could reserve. I must have refreshed that page over a hundred times. The clock stroke 11 and I got my reservation! Let me tell you, within two minutes practically every time slot for either reservation option was gone. It was so crazy watching it happen all in real time.

Now that the table was booked it was ensuring that the night go without a hitch.  Rose’s won’t tell you what is on the menu as an element of surprise. They ask everyone to be seated by 7 PM for dinner to start and have a cocktail hour at 6:30 PM. You must be out of there by 11 PM due to noise restraints.  The menu price does not include tax, gratuity or drinks.  I also wanted to include a wine pairing so I just upped the price to $155 per person. I wasn’t sure how the food was going to be because it wasn’t the hot spot any longer. It had dropped in the Washingtonian’s Top 100 Restaurants 2018 to spot number 66.  To say the least, I didn’t have high hopes (though their newest venture, Pineapple & Pearls, a tasting menu only, seems to get rave reviews and is number 5 on the list).

It was the night of my dinner, I was getting nervous. I had just asked everyone to pay a lot of money to sit and have dinner with me. I wanted it to be the best experience and worth the price. Scott and I were the first ones there.  The room was cute.  It was a small green house with lights streamed across the room and plants in every corner.  It was a shame it had rained because the roof was retractable but had to be closed during my dinner.  I had a glass of rosé to ease my nerves. My friends started to trickle in.   We got seated and the night was about to begin. I don’t want to give away all their secrets but the meal was FANTASTIC!

We started off with oysters and ended with desert. The wine pairing consisted of a couple different types of wine that was circulated throughout the meal. The one thing I will mention is their famous dish that was featured in Bon Appetite Magazine: Pork Sausage with Coconut Chile Sauce and Lychees. Sounds crazy I know but it was such an explosion of deliciousness in your mouth. Click here to make it at home!

We had a pasta dish, biscuits with jam, a steak number and a brunch of other things in between. At the end of the evening they gave each guest a a juice box and some cookie dough to make at home (definitely make it, it was incredible). At the end we were happy, fully bellied and tipsy from a well spent evening with friends. I would definitely indulge once again for such a delicious meal.

Disclaimer: They warned the females about wearing heels in the private room due to the nature of the floor. We didn’t listen…and they were right : )

Pool Party – DC Edition

DC summers are hot and humid.  It definitely doesn’t make it better that there is only a handful of pools to cool down at. My friend wanted to celebrate her 30th poolside so I made it my mission to find her the best venue. The most popular pool has been the Embassy Row Hotel rooftop pool but it is small with specific pool hours for non-guests. There is no question that it is a beautiful place but we wanted to be at the pool before 2 PM. I called a handful of other hotel rooftop pools but they too had limiting factors.

Then I came across the Liaison Hotel. I have lived in DC my entire life and I had never heard of this place. It is right by Union Station, near the northwest/ northeast border.  I don’t tend to travel out that way so I can see how I would miss it. A day pass was $40 per person, which is about what everyone else is charging to use other pools. Lounge chairs were first come first serve. They also had cabanas to rent at a steep $300 a day. Purchasing a day cabana would give you four guest passes and a bucket of water. Again, not sure if that is the best way to spend $300 but you only turn 30 once! It was a celebration so we splurged.

I know you must be thinking why would you pay for a cabana if there were chairs for free? By noon, when we got there, all lounge chairs had been taken. There were a lot of people but it didn’t feel too crowded. I guess the gentleman who checked us in before going to the rooftop handled crowd control. There was about 6 or 7 cabanas and most of them were booked for other celebrations.

We decorated the cabana to make it more festive, ordered endless bottles of rosé and took tons of pictures. They had a small menu, which was nice as the day went on. Service was a bit slow but it was a fun way to celebrate with your friends on a summer day. I wouldn’t do this every weekend but for a special occassion I think it would be a great change of pace for a DC summer day.

A Trip To Remember

It was the final full day of our trip. We had till noon to take in the last bit of Santorini. Right before our ride to the airport, we grabbed gyros for lunch. This was going to be the last time for authentic Greek gyros, Scott couldn’t have been more heart broken. Getting to the airport was a bit hectic. There were inexperienced ATV and Moped drivers all over the place. I didn’t understand how they weren’t afraid they wouldn’t fall off the cliff side or get hit but a car. When we got to the airport it was bigger than Mykonos’ but still pretty small. The plane ride was about an hour and forty-five minutes. The next thing I knew I was right back where my vacation had started.

We took an Uber back to the beautiful King George Hotel. They kindly upgraded us once again and we enjoyed our suite for the afternoon. We didn’t have dinner plans for the evening so we asked the concierge for a recommendation. They suggested Kuzina, they booked us a table and we got ready for the night.

During my entire trip in Greece all I wanted were authentic Greek leather lace up gladiator sandals. I did not find them anywhere on the islands so Monastiraki Market was my last hope! As we walked towards the flea market shops started to get closer together and a bit more crowded. I came across What So, a manufacturer of leather goods. They had everything, including my leather sandals. I though the night couldn’t get any better.

We walked around the market, popping into these little stores selling knickknacks. The market was alive and full of people. It was overwhelming but exhilarating. As our dinner reservation approached we were having trouble finding it. Out of sheer luck it was in front of us. We sat outside, ordered a bottle of Assyrtiko and enjoyed our last evening in Greece together. The food was great and the weather was perfect. We stuffed our faces but I had one last request before bed.

One of my good friend’s, who is Greek, told us the best view of the Acropolis is from the A for Athens Hotel. I dragged my belly filled boyfriend back to the market square to go to the rooftop of the hotel. Unfortunately the roof was partially under construction so it was even more packed then usual. We couldn’t get a nightcap due to capacity but asked to see the view for just a moment. My friend was right it was breathtaking. We took our photos, etched the view in our memories and went to bed.

We woke up, grabbed our fabulous hotel breakfast, swooned over the views and headed to the airport. We were ready to go home but would be missing this trip dearly. To ensure we weren’t jet-lagged we watched about 5 movies back to back to keep us up. We landed in Philly and went through customs which happily a breeze. We had a 6-hour layover but DC is only about two hours away. We skipped our last part of the flight, rented a car and drove home.

These 11 days in Greece I will never forget. The views, the tastes, the people, everything was absolutely amazing. I recommend it to people looking for an adventure. I also tell Scott we should have our wedding in Greece. Thought he shoots the idea down, I know he secretly loves the idea. So whether you take the trip tomorrow, or in 20 years, put it on your bucket list. You won’t regret it!

Please e-mail me or leave a comment if you have any questions or concerns. I would love to help you plan your Greece trip.

My 2018 Summer Essentials

I know summer is more than half way over but this year I couldn’t stop putting together outfits without my Stuart Weitzman heels and Cult Gaia bag.  I was boring and went with basic black…I know, I know, where is the color for summer, right? Black is my go-to but I love these two items so much I may just need to get them in all colors! Anyways, these two items have been so crucial when it comes to my outfits that I have to gush about them.

Let’s first start with the Stuart Weitzman iconic stiletto. You’ve seen these bad boys on all the celebrities. They are minimalist and chic.  They feature slim adjustable straps, a sleek heel and are made in Spain. The OG of the collection is the Nudist featuring a 4.5” heel (115mm). There is also the Nudistsong (3.95”/ 100 mm heel), the 75Nudisttraditional (3.15”/ 80mm), and the Nunakedstraight (3”/ 75mm). If the skinny stiletto is not your style they also have similar shoe featuring a block heel in varying heel heights. Every season there are different colors or patterns but the traditional black and nude will always be available. I bought the Nudistsong because I am not a pro with high heels. They are a bit expensive but they are really much more comfortable than the knock offs. I will definitely be getting them in tan as well as a block heel in a fun color.

Now to the bag. Cult Gaia’s M.O. is about creating objects of art; bags that make your head turn.  Cult Gaia has 10 styles but the one you see everywhere is the Gaia’s Ark. The Gaia’s Ark comes in a few sizes depending on color and two material, bamboo or acrylic. The lattice design is so fun and airy, just what you need for a hot day. It is the quintessential summer bag.  I loved the bamboo varieties but I went for the acrylic option, which is shinier and (unfortunately) a bit more expensive. I have the black small size, which fits a medium to small wallet, iPhone 8 with a thick Lumee case, lipstick and gum. I might be able to fit more if my phone case wasn’t so darn big. I wouldn’t put keys in this bag because they can peek out ruining the streamlined look. Definitely no lip liners or anything thin because it will fall right through. If the price tag is hard to sallow there are imitations I have seen on Amazon. I am a Cult Gaia convert and I am seriously eyeing the Luna acrylic in tortoise as my next buy.

These heels and bag have been a great modern, stylish and feminine touch to my summer looks. I highly recommend the investment!

Santorini Splendor

At 9 AM we were driven to the docks of Mykonos to catch our ferry to Santorini. Flights were more expensive and they took almost as long as the fast ferry option. It was a total mess trying to figure out how to get on our ferry but it was an experience to say the least. I slept most of the trip but woke up half way when they let passengers off in Naxos. When we docked in Santorini, our hotel car was waiting for us. If you don’t know Santorini’s landscape it is carved out of the cliff tops. So as you could imagine coming from sea level and going up was terrifying! I couldn’t wait to get to the top but our driver seemed oblivious to the windy roads, steep cliff side and oncoming traffic. I couldn’t wait to get to our hotels.

Our hotel, Sophia Luxury Suites, was located in Imerovigli, which is pretty much in the center of the island. I know most people said to stay in Oia but honestly I loved our location. Oia is very touristy and doesn’t feel as authentic. It is also at the top of the island. With another island housing a handful of cabs, you can imagine getting around can be a bit of a nuisance. At our hotel the service was fantastic and the room was incredible (which it better have been based on the price).

We stayed in the Efhari Exclusive Suite, which was the highest point of the hotel. From our deck we had views of the volcano, sea and spectacular sunsets. It had a plunge pool and we ate breakfast outside every morning. We never wanted to leave our room. It had the cave-like feel without feeling claustrophobic or dark. We settled in and took in the view in all day long.

At nightfall we were ready to eat at The Athenian House. The restaurant was conveniently right next to the hotel but do note, even a short distance it is conducive to wearing heels, wedges or platforms. It is so hard to walk on these paths. They are uneven, steep and cobblestone. The Athenian House was so cute. Make sure you sit outside because the view is incredible. It was a great evening with my man. Also let them convince you to get the baklava…. totally worth it and so so very good!

The next morning we had breakfast and took a shuttle to a catamaran tour through Captain Ted’s Santorini Sailing. We bought tickets for their semi-private tour, which was 100 percent worth it. I think there were about 10 guests on board and it was so easy to get a good seat on the boat. The tour was good, a bit chilly when we first took off but as the day progressed it got hot. They served a homemade lunch and it was fantastic and we were totally not expecting that. We made friends with the others on board so when they dropped us off at a cute little beach bar at the end of our tour you could imagine that the party had just begun.

When we got back to our hotel we had to take a nap, which caused us to miss the Oia sunset. I felt like I didn’t miss anything because of our hotel view but I wished I could have compared the two. I made a reservation at Laokasti, disclaimer: DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME. Though it was rated the number 2 restaurant in Santorini on TripAdvisor it was nothing special. I wish we went to Ammoudi Fish Tavern, we heard a lot of good things about it. On top of a bad dinner, walking around Oia was just crowded and shopping was expensive and unfruitful. To make matters worst we didn’t schedule any car service to take us home, we were almost stranded until finally a cab would take us back to Imerovigli.

In the morning, we had the ambitious plan of waking up early to hike from Fira to Oia and that didn’t happen. Instead by mid-afternoon we walked to Fira. It took about 20 minutes but it was hot with no shade. I couldn’t understand how people could walk these paths for 3 to 4 hours. As we walked towards Fira, following the Caldera rim, we snapped tons of pictures and took in the views. I stopped into this cute little boutique, Under The Fig Tree, which stood next to nothing. I bought a few made in Greece items that I still adore today.

When we got to Fira we walked around the flea market and bought a couple of things. Scott of course needed his gyro fix so we got some great gyros from Yogi Gyro.   We hailed a cab and went back to our hotel.

I feel like I have not emphasized this but Greece is a honeymoon spot. 80% of the people we met were celebrating their honeymoons. If you remember from my post about Mykonos, we met a couple who leant us money at Kikis Tavern (who too were on their honeymoon). When we parted ways that night at the beach club we exchanged numbers because they were going to Santorini as well.

So here we are on our last day in Santorini and we want to meet up with our new friends on their first day. The hotel booked us a table at La Maison, and we invited this couple over for pre-dinner wine and apps. We enjoyed the sunset together and walked to the restaurant. La Maison was next to the water so it got a little cold at night but the restaurant provided blankets, which was a nice touch. The food was fantastic and the presentation was stellar. We ate, drank and laughed the night away. We said our goodbyes and were sad tomorrow was our last day on this magical trip.

We had a late check out on our final morning, so soaked in the views for the last time. A driver took us to the airport. From the plane the island disappeared under the sky. Santorini was a beautiful place. The architecture and landscape were so magnificent. Like Mykonos, it was quite dry but the hillside white buildings were even better in person that the lack of foliage didn’t matter. The one thing I wish we did was go wine tasting. In Greece there is a type of wine called Assyrtiko. It is a white Greek wine grape, which is so delicious to drink under the Greek sun. We loved this wine so much we had our friends ship us a case back to our house. Overall, Santorini was a lovely place to spend with loved ones.

 

Summertime Brunching

My girlfriend is turning 30 in August. She’s hosting a brunch in the private room at Nobu D.C. It will be a fabulous time but I am torn between these 4 amazing options!

one.

Choice number one is the Cinq à Sept Jolene Gardenia Midi Dress. This printed silk crepe dress is a little bit sweet with a whole lot of sultry. The yellow flowers scream summertime brunching perfection.

two.

Then there is the Self-Portrait Printed Star Frill Dress. This flirty number is perfect for drinking rosé all day. It is modern and structured with flirty details that make it the ultimate party brunch outfit.

three.

If I am not in the mood for a dress the Jamie Jumpsuit from Tularosa is a sassy alternative. The striped fabric with fun tassel details is a killer combo for summer. A good tan (or spray tan) would also make this outfit pop.

four.

Lastly, summer is all about the prints so it’s a no brainer that a Camilla dress makes the cut. The Front Tie dress with skater skirt is fun and girly. The intricate bold print is a total showstopper.

Now which one do I get?!

one. two. three. four.

My Mykonos

The first thing to note is that the Mykonos airport is SMALL. Then there is NO Uber and only a hand full of cabs. I made the rookie mistake and didn’t book transportation to the hotel. When we finally got a cab, he drove us to Ostraco Suites that we booked through Jetsetter. It was a delightful boutique hotel; about a 10-minute walk downhill to Mykonos Town, where all the action is. A couple hours before sunset we got ready and walked down to Little Venice to see the sunset everyone raved about.

The consensus was right; it is totally worth checking out. Little Venice was packed and there was still time before the sun was going to set. We sat at one of the many little waterfront bars and snagged some prime real estate where we sipped cocktails until the sun went down. Once it became dark we twisted and turned like mice in maze to get to our dinner reservation at M-Eating. I have no idea how people get around Mykonos Town but it is beautiful to get lost in. We sat outside, eating, drinking and people watching. The night was still young; we started walking around town and landed at this cocktail bar called Queen. The last thing you know it was 4 AM.

The next morning we got up and after breakfast we headed to Nammos Beach. We got there around 11 AM and were one of the first people there (a bit embarrassing). Nammos Beach is known as a luxury hotspot so the servers were a bit pretentious, especially the female ones in their skimpy outfits but we still had an amazing time taking in the sun, drinking and people watching on the sunbeds. Two sunbeds cost us bout $100. We spent the whole day there and loved it. On a side note it ended up being the only beach that wasn’t uncomfortably rocky and easy to swim in. We had the hotel car service to pick us up and we got ready for dinner. We ate at Avli Tou Thodori. Service was great and the food was fine.

The next day was what I had been waiting for. I booked a cabana at Scorpio Beach. This is the ultimate cool guy’s paradise. Awesome décor, cool uniforms and great music. Unfortunately, my excitement didn’t allow me to eat a proper breakfast and they only had magnum bottles of rose. Add it up and I was out for the count before late afternoon. Here are my notes though:

1. Not a beach to swim at
2. Expense menu
3. Wish we made it to sunset and through the night

Let’s say we took our expensive lunch home and I got an awesome headscarf from Caravana who has a small shop on the premise. We stayed in that night eating our leftovers.

On our final day in Mykonos we rented an ATV through the hotel front desk. People are driving mopeds and ATVs all over the island so we felt like we had to join the fun. We took our ATV to Kikis Tavern, an authentic, small, hole in the wall restaurant. It was a great drive, that was a little confusing but worth the adventure. The restaurant opened at 11 AM but get there early, people are lining up at least 30 minutes before hand.

As we finished the last bites of our meal and enjoyed conversation with the couple next to us who were on their honeymoon we realized we didn’t have enough cash to pay for our meal…it was cash only! The couple next to spotted us some money. We invited them to join us on our next leg of our adventure to Alemagou, a beach bar we learned about from others on the island.   Like our own make shift biker gang we ATV’d to Alemagou. It had the same vibe as Scorpio Beach but so much more relaxed and under the radar. It was so fun! We got a table and the party started immediately. We hung out until the sun went down.

We took our ATV back to Mykonos Town and walked to a gyro place. We stuffed our faces and went home. We had a ferry to catch to Santorini the next morning so sleep was crucial. Mykonos ended up being one big party but I wouldn’t have changed it for a thing. It is definitely touristy but the landscape is stunning. It isn’t the lushest island I have been to but Mykonos Town is enchanting and all the beach bars were super exciting.

A Greek Getaway

*I’ve made this into a 4 part blog post for those who want details about certain cities*

Last summer I turned the big 3-0 and boy did I celebrate like a queen. My wonderful MCM took me on a lavish Greek getaway planned by moi and no expenses were spared. So let me begin….

Scott travels every week for work so he racks up those miles on his American Airlines credit card (did I mention, he is ALL about the points). Right before my birthday came around he was able to purchase two round trip tickets from DC to Athens only spending a couple hundred on taxes. Let me tell you, it ain’t cheap to fly to Greece out-of-pocket, even right before high season.

So here we were jet-setting away to Athens on a Tuesday afternoon. I am a good flyer, maybe I should rephrase, I am a good sleeper. Right after dinner was served I was out. Unfortunately, I cannot say the same for my better half. I woke up about two hours before we were going to land to see Scott hunched on top of me. I was glad he got some shuteye but it seemed to be at the expense of four Tito’s and soda. I guess whatever works, right?! As my prince charming awoke from his cat nap I could tell he was ‘no bueno’.

It was time to deplane and all I wanted was to get off this tin can. I always pack as efficiently as possible to avoid lost luggage and having to wait at baggage claim. Once off the plane we got out of the airport in a snap. I had read that it is easier and cheaper to take Uber than use the local cabs. The Uber took us to the King George, A Luxury Collection Hotel in downtown Athens. This is one of my top three hotels I have stayed at (this list includes the One Hotel Miami and Edition NYC). I am all about modern hotels because it is totally different from my own home decor but this hotel oozed classic vibes with pops of modernism. It was a sweet delight. It didn’t hurt that this was our only free hotel due to points and that they upgraded us very handsomely.

The room wasn’t ready so we took a coffee break, which was a must for Scott because he was D-E-A-D. We walked down some alleys into Monastiraki, Athens flea market (I will get into more detail about the flea market later). We sat at a quaint coffee shop and soaked up the morning sun. Immediately, we wanted what everyone around us was drinking. We learned iced coffee are the Greeks jam. I wish I remembered what they called it but it definitely was the cool thing to do. After our caffeine kick we took in our amazing suite. It featured a huge marble bathroom, herringbone wood floors, a sitting room, a king sized bed, wainscoted walls… it just smelled of aristocracy and we loved it.

Once settled, we walked over to the Parthenon.  We aren’t really history buffs so we gave ourselves the abridged tour. Lets start off by saying there’s a lot of stairs and it’s pretty dusty so wear comfortable closed toed shoes. It was also really crowded so people got nasty. We got to the top, read a few signs, took some photos and went right back to our hotel and NAPPED.

When we woke up a few hours later we got ready for our tasting menu at Aleria. We took a cab to a narrow street flanked by homes. I thought we went to the wrong place but then I saw the sign. They walked us into the most adorable courtyard. The weather was perfect and we were ready to eat. We opted for the pre-fixed menu . Compared to the tasting menus we have had in DC this was reasonably priced and nothing far from delicious (nostimo is how you say delicious in Greek in case you were wondering ). The one course that totally stood out was a braised ox tail and pasta dish; it was melt in your mouth goodness. I wish we didn’t just snapchat our meal away and actually took some good photos but I promise this restaurant won’t disappoint. From there we took our full bellies straight to bed.

We woke up early to get a good breakfast at the hotel before flying to Mykonos. Breakfast at the King George was like walking into a pastry shop. There was bread, rolls, muffins, turnovers and any thing else you could image on top of a fine selection of breakfast items. The best part of eating here was the killer view of the Parthenon from their sun room. It was absolutely breathtaking.

We checked-out but were excited to be coming back for the last leg of the trip. An Uber whisked us to the airport and on a small plane we took off to Mykonos.