Travel Tuesday

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Travel Tuesday: Cross Sound Ferry to the North Fork

April 29, 2014 in Travel, wine by traveleatlove | 4 comments

A wine country weekend adventure awaits you, just an hour-and-a-half drive from Boston, followed by a quick and relaxing ferry ride on Cross Sound Ferry. Our weekend trip to the North Fork of Long Island was our second time visiting this bucolic area of New York, and being able to spend more time on the North Fork made us fall even more in love with this special place.

We started our journey with a drive in the rain to New London. Even with a little traffic, we were at the ferry terminal and being warmly welcomed within about 90 minutes.

Once at the terminal, cars line up to board the ferry, and the process is simple and seamless. It’s also very quick; cars drive on one side and off the other at the final destination.

Vacation begins as soon as you board the Cross Sound Ferry. The views are beautiful, and the ferry is spacious and relaxing. The water was nice and calm on both of our crossings.

Because I was on a trip for the blog, we had the exciting opportunity to check out the wheelhouse. Again, the ferry staff was warm and welcoming; really they could not have been nicer or gone more out of their way to make us feel comfortable. It was great.

The views as you cross Long Island Sound are really lovely and include several lighthouses. None of them are inhabited anymore; instead their function is automated. Still, they are pretty to look at, and it is interesting to imagine them in days of yore. The maritime history and culture of both the New London area and the North Fork are interesting.

The ferry’s Cross Sound Deli offers a lot more than you would expect for a ferry, including some great sandwiches, burgers, paninis, and clam chowder, along with beer, wine, and cocktails. Beer and clam chowder just taste better at sea, and the Cross Sound Deli lunch experience just adds to the relaxation of the trip.

The ferry dock’s location in Orient Point means you arrive right at the threshold of Long Island’s North Fork wine region. The first winery is about a 10 minute drive from the dock, and they dot the landscape from there on. There are many Long Island wine posts to come; I hope you will enjoy learning about the wineries and wine as much as we enjoyed experiencing them.

The ferry from New London to North Fork is a really great option for a getaway that’s close to home and doesn’t involve flying. Whether you decide to stay in North Fork for it’s beautiful wineries, farms, gourmet food, and seacoast or hop on another ferry to the Hamptons, Long Island is a destination often overlooked but one that will become a quick favorite of anyone who visits.

Thank you to Cross Sound Ferry for hosting our weekend trip to North Fork. Our ferry crossing, winery visits, accommodations, and meals were provided on a complimentary basis. All opinions are my own.

Tags: Cross Sound Ferry, ferry travel, Long Island, Long Island wine, New York, North Fork, transportation, Travel, Travel Tuesday, wine country

Travel Tuesday – Amber Restaurant Edinburgh

April 8, 2014 in Tasting Room Series, Travel by traveleatlove | 2 comments

When you combine a whisky tasting room, whisky shop, and Scottish-ingredient inspired restaurant in one space at the base of Edinburgh Castle, you end up with a really good thing. Our recent trip to Ireland included a few days in Edinburgh, where we worked up quite the hunger and thirst and found ourselves at some fantastic restaurants, like Amber Restaurant, where we dined our first evening.

Our afternoon started out with a fantastic pub lunch followed by lots of walking, so when we hit the whisky tasting bar at the Scotch Whisky Experience, we were excited to take a seat and enjoy a wee dram or two. Kenny at the tasting bar was hospitable and super knowledgeable about each and every whisky behind him, and we enjoyed spending time reading through the menu’s tasting notes. Whisky, like wine, can exhibit so many different characteristics based on how it’s made, and each one we tasted offered a little something special.

This Isle of Skye 8 year blend was only one of what turned out to be several tasting choices. I didn’t take too many notes, but I did decide that my favorite whisky of the day was the Jura Superstition. It was definitely the little bit of spice that I loved in this Jura; though we tried many more whiskys along the way, this one definitely stood out to me. I also loved the Ben Nevis 10 year, which had nice notes of cocoa and smoke, like a bit of chipotle chocolate on the palate. Lovely.

After spending a good bit of time with Kenny at the tasting bar, we headed across the room to the restaurant for our dinner reservation. Our table overlooked Edinburgh, which was just enchanting as the sun set. Rosy cheeked from the whisky and getting sleepy from our travels, we tucked into a deliciously memorable meal made with local ingredients.

We decided to share a few items and started with Scottish smoked salmon. While in Ireland and Scotland, I ate smoked or regular salmon at least once a day, but usually twice, and one day three times. Salmon in that part of the world is so beautiful. It’s actually what originally started to sway me from vegetarianism. When I studied abroad in Galway, I was a vegetarian, tried Irish salmon, and started eating fish again!

Continuing with the local seafood theme, we went for a big, steaming bowl of mussels with Isla whisky cream sauce and a prawn cocktail with Marie Rose sauce, another favorite when I am in Ireland or Scotland. Marie Rose sauce is similar to Russian dressing in flavor and color, and it makes for an incredible meal with some prawns, brown bread, and salad.

The second part of our meal was a bit heartier and consisted of perfectly roasted root vegetables and a lamb stovie, a traditional Scottish dish made with lamb, onion, and potatoes.

The stovie was so yummy and comforting, but since I don’t eat much lamb, I felt bad the next day when I saw all of the baby lambs bopping through the fields! I think they might be too cute for me to eat, as delicious as they are!

Eating out when traveling can be hit or miss, and we got lucky with Amber Restaurant. The food, ambiance, and service all contributed to the end of a great day in Edinburgh.

Speaking of lamb, if you are a fan, check out Lamb Jam, happening at the Royal Sonesta Hotel Boston this weekend!

Tags: Amber Restaurant, Edinburgh, Scotland, Travel, travel blog, travel post, Travel Tuesday, whisky, whisky tasting

Travel Tuesday: Coconut Grove Miami

January 21, 2014 in Travel by traveleatlove | 4 comments

My wanderlust is always present, but little getaways do wonders to quell its nagging voice that tells me to keep adventuring. This past weekend we got to experience a long-awaited getaway to Miami, with a stay at the Sonesta Coconut Grove in Miami. In the interest of full disclosure, I work for Sonesta Hotels, so I am able to travel and get great rates at hotels in the collection. It’s definitely a huge perk of working in hotels!

Our winter-weary souls were thrilled to board a plane from Boston to Miami, but the flight definitely reminded me of one of my least favorite parts of travel, getting there. After only flying JetBlue and Virgin America on domestic trips for years, we flew American to Miami, and it felt like it was around 1995, as far as service and amenities went. The flight had no wine (what?!) and no TVs on the backs of chairs. To top it off, we had a snorer and a kicker behind us. And man, those seats are tiny. We literally ran off of the plane to our rental car, and once at the Sonesta, our holiday officially began.

For months I had been dreaming of sitting by the hotel’s 8th floor pool, overlooking the harbor, drenched in sun. We booked the trip back in September, knowing we would want to leave snowy Massachusetts for a little tropical r & r. The Sonesta did not disappoint. The atmosphere at the pool is beautiful and incredibly relaxing. Food and drink service is available poolside, as are towels and refreshing cups of ice water. It is pretty much the perfect spot, and we spent a good deal of our time at the pool.

Views from the pool deck are stunning, with blue water and boats for as far as the eye can see.

Our room was just as relaxing, with minimal decorations and lots of light, along with a most amazing balcony.

Our room was a cityview room, but all we had to do was look right for ocean views. We spent a lot of time on our balcony, sipping wine we picked up at the nearby Fresh Market, a store I am obsessed with. When we travel, I always like to visit local grocery stores for snacks and drinks; it is an easy way to save money and to have a better selection.

The Sonesta’s Coconut Grove location was ideal for our purpose, which was relaxing and soaking up sunshine. Coconut Grove is full of cute restaurants and shops, with lots of quaint streets to wander and a gorgeous waterfront. It is not the party atmosphere of South Beach and other parts of Miami, but for us that was perfect. Good food, good drinks, and a slower pace in a new-to-us place made for the perfect long weekend. We might just make this an annual trip.