8 Days Exploring NYC

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We were led to a small (that's NY!) room on the 12th floor. I was suprised, though, to find all the corridors within the hotel steaming hot. We were on a family vacation, so anything goes, but if I was on my way to a business meeting or dressed up for any occasion, I would be none-too-pleased at arriving sweaty and disheveled from a 100 degree hallway. Fortunately, our room was air- conditioned.

If you are a design buff, you will really appreciate Schrager's genius for getting the most from a small space. The room had two twin beds, low to the ground, with dark, spatter-painted walls and built-in storage. There was a charming window seat, about 5x1 1/2 feet, which my 6 year old daughter immediately fell in love with and claimed as her bed. We were saved, since there was not a bit of floor space available for a rollwaway or cot or anything else. Did I mention the room was small? But the hotel staff made up the window seat nicely. All the staff here are smiling and gracious, and patient with families and small children. There is a gorgeous room called "The Living Room" on the fourth floor, open to all hotel guests, and filled with sofas, a rustic table, great art books, and complimentary coffee, tea, and apples. Cookies, too, in the afternoon!

Here, though, is the rub: as much as we enjoyed the cool setting, we can NEVER stay here again, due to the most uncomfortably hard beds my husband and I have ever experienced, in any country, anywhere. We woke to two screaming backaches. I am not exaggerating. If we were booked for more than the one night, I would have definitely had to cancel. Had I paid the $250-$325 advertised, I would have really been upset. Oh well.

This building was new to the Hospitality Company, and they furnished it in their typical stylish, comfortable way. There was a 15% discount on the property because it was new, and I felt, after reasearching hotels, that it was a steal at $1000 for the week. Bear in mind, if you're planning a NYC stay, the tax and hotel charges are 13-17% on top of what you are quoted. Adds up fast!There is no tax if you book for a 7 day stay in an apartment.

The Hospitality company has a great website with photos and was very thorough and professional. Many of the apartment share companies play a lot of games with pricing, so I appreciated the upfront style of this one. The cancellation policy is also very liberal and when I had to shift my reservation ahead a few days, they responded nicely with a quick faxed reconfirmation.

The apartment was in a pre-war building, with a nice old (unairconditioned) lobby, with a doorman. Not the kind in a uniform or anything, but a nice guy who is there 24 hrs a day for security. The elevator took us to a 6th floor unit with beautiful hardwood floors and (suprise!) a REALLY BIG living room and bedroom, furnished with a newer couch, loveseat, and chair, and a fully stocked entertainment center. The kitchen is small and older but functional. The bedroom had a nice sleigh bed (Queen), and lots of drawer space. Plenty of closets, too. I was ready to move in for good and start renovating!

A word about that: the only negative was the bathroom. It really needed remodeling: tile grout, ceiling moisture, bad caulk, etc. Since I am in the midst of remodleing an older house, I was ok, seeing that it had been well cleaned before we arrived. I was also traveling with husband and our 6 year old, both of whom can trash a bathroom in seconds anyway.

I will certainly call this company again for a Manhattan stay.

The lobby is spacious, and nicely decorated with marble and flowers. The bellstaff (and actually all the staff) is very nice and helpful, and went out of their way at the pool, front desk and restaurants to accomodate us.

Our room was fairly large, with 2 double beds, large dressor, table and two chairs, and TV. Beds are comfortable and everything is spic and span. Room service prices, for NY, were very reasonable. I have not seen a Hilton in Florida (I've seen many), that was as impressive as this one.

The best part of our stay was the indoor heated pool with a lovely waterfall and whirl pool. There is a nice locker room with a sauna and shower, and extra large, fluffy towels. Just what we needed after pounding the city pavement for a week. There is also a well-stocked weight room/gym for the ambitious.

A quick dining note; the hotel restaurant, Whitmans, was a far, far cut above the usual "businessfeed" outlets - a nice suprise. Good winelist,too.

This was the meal we will compare everyone else's Chinese food to from now on. We started with roast duck ($4.50), which came, a whole breast and wing, with crispy carmelized skin, all the fat having melted underneath during the long roasting, leaving the meat so tender and moist. The soy broth had a hint of star anise. Fantastic.

Next, two entrees. I ordered the chef's special of Lam Lau wonton thinking my little girl would enjoy the "sweet and pungent" dish the most. Wrong. Crispy, thin, fried wontons arrived on a bed of batter fried chicken, sauteed duck, steamed shrimp and barbequed roast pork in a carmelized, tart sauce with chunks of pineapple, tomatos and green pepper. (Well, yeah i know it sounds like sweet and sour chicken chicken but it's just not the same, you see, not the same!) Oh, and it was $8.75. Hee, Hee. Makes me feel pretty foolish for all those chic, upscale "euro-asian" eateries I've been frequenting lately.

The other chef's special "Chow Sam Shee" was a perfect counterpart ($7.75). Shredded chicken, pork and vegetables, held together by a gossamer thin white sauce, obviously made with really good broth. It was light and airy and just barely stirfried before hitting the plate. The menu here is large, with all the traditional expected dishes americans have come to know. Also, there is a good selection of more exotic chef's specials and a case for Chinese "hanging barbeque". After being blanched or rinsed in boiling water, then rubbed with a sweet marinade, the various meant or seafoods (octopus shows up a lot) are hung to air dry before being vertically roasted. All that air flow helps make the BBQ crispy on the outside, moist and juicy inside.

Lunch (and lots of it) totaled just $23 for the three of us. The service was friendly, the tea was hot, the water glasses were refilled quickly, we were the only non-asians in the place, and if I ever get layed over in JFK for more than an hour THIS IS WHERE I'LL BE.

Credit cards accepted/open 7 days.

We were seated after a short wait. You can order at the counter for a reduced price, and take some with you, too. We selected Pistachio gelati ($4.25), made in the traditional style with a frozen vanilla milk sauce base, thickened with eggs. Many gelati fans feel this lack of heavy cream is what allows the true flavors to come through more than regular ice cream. Pistachio is the one I choose everywhere, and this had the best, true (not almond) nut flavor and chopped toasted nuts. Gelati is served here with a traditional butter "cats toungue" cookie. Vanilla came in a kids' size, anything but plain. The "napolean" pastry ($4.25) is the Italian kind, with sponge cake instead of puff pastry layers. It was light and delicious with a not-too-sweet fondant on top, one layer of crispy pastry, and soaked with a light almond flavor syrup. Baby cream puffs are tender with a sweet real whipped cream filling and dipped in a semi-sweet chocolate. At least 100 different items are in the case.

My husband and I were served the two best espressos (Lavazza) we have ever encountered ($2.15), strong yet smooth with perfect crema.

After 120 years in business, Ferrara is still putting out great products. Thick as it is with tourists, they've managed to go national without selling out. The cafe next door has food. Whatever. It's not for nothing the desserts tour the country and the spagetti stays in the kitchen.