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Blog 17/05/2020

Virtual Journeys: From Downtown to Long Island

  • Celebrate

    Celebrate

  • Culture

    Culture

  • Family

    Family

  • Short Break

    Short Break

This week we are taking you stateside, where you'll start with 5 nights in New York's coolest neighbourhood and hipster hangout, Williamsburg. Just over the bridge and you'll find yourself in the hustle and bustle of Manhattan for the classic Big Apple experience by day, but escape back to leafy Brooklyn for easy-going evenings away from the skyscrapers and city lights. Wander through the residential streets past stylish Brownstones and relish in the relaxed feel of Brooklyn's bars, boutiques, galleries and trendy eateries. Hit the road and head out to Montauk for your final 2 nights, mingling with weekending New Yorkers and glamorous Hamptons elite in this charming seaside village.

Find the full itinerary here


Eat & Drink

Your base in Brooklyn is hip hotel The William Vale, spread across 14 floors in an iconic and innovative building conceived by local architects Albo Liberis. The futuristic design continues into the chic, modern style of the rooms, each with their own balcony to admire the spectacular skyline. The place to hang out is the roof terrace where you’ll find the vast pool (the largest in NYC) and rooftop cocktail bar complete with panoramic city views. Whilst your up there, try The Brooklyn Cocktail, one of five types of cocktails named for the boroughs for New York City. Similar to a Manhattan but it differs with it’s specific type of bitters and the addition of Maraschino Liquer.

The Brooklyn Cocktail

Ingredients

  • 45ml blond rye whiskey
  • 45ml martini extra dry vermouth
  • 10ml picon amer
  • 10ml Luxardo Maraschino liquer
  • 15ml chilled water (omit if using crushed ice)
  • Garnish: Maraschino cherry

Method

  1. Stir all the ingredients with ice and strain into a chilled coupe glass
  2. Garnish with the Maraschino cherry

Your Hamptons hideaway is The Montauk Beach House. More like home-from-home than hotel, this small, laidback property offers understated elegance through vintage décor with a contemporary twist. Though only a short walk from the sea, you won’t want to miss an afternoon lounging by the hotel’s pools with the chilled DJ set playing in the background. For an authentic taste of Montauk, dine on ‘The Montauk Starve to Death’ said to originate from Montauk resident Frank Tuma Senior and his mother’s cooking, made from whatever they could find to eat at the time along with the day’s catch. 


The Montauk Starve to Death

Courtesy of Frank and Hilda Tuma

Ingredients

  • 120g salt pork
  • 2 onions, sliced
  • 470g diced potatoes, cooked
  • 950g hard clams, chopped (save the liquor!)
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp pepper

Method

  1. Fry the salt pork until the fat is rendered and the cubes are crispy
  2. Fry onions in the salt pork until light brown
  3. Add the clams, their liquor and potatoes. Thicken with butter and flour.
  4. Season well.
  5. Serve on toast, garnished with chopped parsley.


Watch

The Affair- Amazon Prime

This compelling TV drama stars Dominic West and Ruth Wilson as protagonists Noah and Alison. Playing out over 5 series the show details an affair between Montauk based waitress Alison and NY based writer, Noah and the subsequent fallout. The gorgeous setting of Montauk is almost as spellbinding as the story itself.

Mr Robot – Amazon Prime

Starring Oscar winning actor Rami Malek this gripping psychological thriller showcases various Brooklyn settings to great effect. Malek stars as Elliot Anderson, a cybersecurity engineer and hacker battling clinical depression and anxiety.

Girls – Amazon Prime

Premiering in 2012 Girls is set in and around Brooklyn. Starring and written by Lena Dunham it focuses on Hannah Horvath and her friends Marnie, Jessa and Shoshanna and details their life as young 20 somethings focusing on their jobs, lives and relationships. Lauded at the time for reinventing the female ensemble piece it was also often held up as a prime example of a millennial drama.


Read

Brooklyn, Colm Toibin

This 2009 novel by Irish novelist Colm Toibin is his 6th book and is set both in Brooklyn and Ireland in the 1950s. It tells the story of young woman Eilis Lacey who crosses the ocean to make a new life for herself in Brooklyn. Far from home and homesick, Eilish tentatively begins a new life and finds friendship and love. However, she then receives news which sends her back to Ireland and thus a choice between love and duty.

Montauk, Nicola Harrison

This debut novel by Nicola Harrison tells the story of Beatrice Bordeaux who spends the summer in Montauk sequestered by high society wives on the behest of her husband’s investment. She finds herself increasingly drawn to the natural beauty of the Montauk coastline and inhabitants. She soon meets a man that forces her to face incidents from her past and thus question her future with her husband.

Last Exit to Brooklyn, Hubert Selby Jr

This 1964 cult novel has become somewhat of a modern classic. It takes a harsh and uncompromising look at the lower class Brooklyn of the 1950s. Causing a stir upon it’s release in the 60s the idiosyncratic prose can be challenging as it tells the tale of New Yorkers and their worst excesses; yet it is clear that there are moments of tenderness and reflection in these difficult portrayals.


Listen

Transformer, Lou Reed (album)

Brooklyn born Lou Reed is responsible for classics both from his time in the Velvet Underground and then as a solo artist. His 1972 album is seen by some as his definitive piece of work featuring classic songs ‘Perfect Day’ and ‘walk on the wild side’, the latter gaining widespread acceptance and acclamation despite it’s gritty subject matter.

Brooklyn Baby, Lana Del Ray (single)

This atmospheric Lana Del Ray tune comes from her album ‘Ultraviolence’ and samples from Lou Reed, jazz and beat poetry – all mixed in together this creates a glorious paen to Brooklyn which is both evocative and mysterious.

Playlist inspired by Surf Lodge, Montauk

Have a listen to this playlist compiled by boutique Hotel Surf Lodge, Montauk. If you can’t physically be there this is surely the next best thing and wonderful for sunny daydreaming.

Learn

You might be stuck indoors but it doesn’t mean you can’t experience some of New York’s finest cultural instructions from home. Enjoy virtual access to their buildings and collections with Google Arts and Culture to keep you entertained and inspired until you can experience the real thing in person.

The Brooklyn Museum 

The Guggenheim 

The Met

The Frick 

The Museum of Modern Art 

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