Inspiring Travel and Wellness. Join me for adventures above and below the ocean, exploring nature, luxury travel experiences, spa and wellness activities.
Cork restaurant in Chandler is one of my favorites!
I have attended many wine dinners, special Brunches, New Year’s Eve dinners, and as many new season menus as possible. When my friends and I have reason to celebrate, we go to Cork.
This week my beloved Cork is closing for good. The final meals will be served Tuesday, June 24 through Saturday, June 28.
They have announced a new name, new decor, and new dining concept.
I am going to savor my last meal at Cork this week, and when it is reborn as Earnest I plan to give it try.
L’Auberge resort is the premier luxury resort in Sedona, Arizona, providing a relaxing, dog-friendly vacation.
Sedona, Arizona is a little town that has made a big splash. The unique red rocks and perfect weather ensure that Sedona would not be a secret for very long, and sure enough by the 1980’s Sedona hit the big time for tourist destinations.
A welcome retreat this year (and any year, really) for me is the Park Hyatt Aviara Resort in Carlsbad, California. Right on the edge of the drive versus fly decision from Phoenix, San Diego, California is a quick trip. When it is just too darn hot, California is close by. The November trip is our third visit to Carlsbad this year, each was a long-weekend out of town.
Aviara Family pool
The Park Hyatt Aviara is a luxury resort with an amazing spa, great restaurants, good family pool, and a 21 and over adult tranquility pool where we spend most of our time.
When visiting any of the cool spots in New York state, like Lyndhurst Castle, there are many great dining options. Half Moon located in Dobbs Ferry is my favorite mid-range ($20-30 plate dinner) restaurant with spectacular views of the Hudson river. Half Moon is much better than nearby Sunset Cove (great view, lousy parking, and last time a couple people in our group did not feel well after eating the “special”).
There is plenty of parking right out front, and it is walking distance from the train station.
Half Moon Prime Rib
In the low tourist season of autumn, Half Moon is offering daily Blue Plate specials. Fortunately for me, Monday night’s special was Prime Rib with mashed potatoes, asparagus and choice of soup or salad all for $19.95! Delicious, and prepared a perfect medium rare.
They even served dinner on actual blue plates.
The wine list starts at $10 glass or $35 for a bottle. Overall, they have a decent selection of wines from all over the world at pretty reasonable prices. This visit we enjoyed a $52 bottle from Spain, and it perfectly complemented the Prime Rib!
On previous visits, I have enjoyed eating seared tuna, lobster mac & cheese, delicious soups, and various salads. Half Moon serves consistently good food. Service is certainly better during low season, and on crowded nights it can take quite awhile for service.
Inside Dining
Reservations are recommended, especially during high season in summer. The outside patio is stunning and fills up fast! The patio was too cold for me during my mid-October visit, but we were able to get a table for four with a spectacular view, and without reservations.
I like Wine. Normally, when wine tasting, if I really like a wine I will buy a bottle or six. This is fine, if you drive, but for those occasions that I fly to wine tasting the only option to get it home is to ship it. Many of the vineyards now offer Wine Club shipping. You sign up to purchase a set minimum bottles of wine throughout the year and they will ship them to you (at a pretty hefty shipping & handling fee).
Wine Delivery
Wine delivered directly to your door! What could possibly go wrong?
I live in a hot climate, so wine sitting at the door for too long will be damaged. My front door is shaded and expect in the hottest of summer days, wine would be fine for a couple hours.
Ahh, but the law requires a 21 & over signature to release the wine (a tiny bit of information the vineyard forgot to mention). So, if you are not home (or in the shower) in that 2 minute window the delivery driver is at your house, the wine cannot be delivered that day. This is a problem for people that cannot stay at home all day of the scheduled delivery. This also assumes that the delivery is actually made on the scheduled date. Planning is useless, it may not actually be delivered on the scheduled day, much less advance warning of morning or afternoon attempts.
After the extra shipping expense (wine has specific shipping requirements further driving up the shipping price) and the “at the mercy of the delivery driver” pain is considered, the Wine Club shipping is just not a good idea for me.
I could have driven to California and picked up the wine myself (it is only a 5 hour drive) for as long as I have waited for delivery, both today and the day last week that the vineyard told me it would be delivered.
Update July 15, 2015 – Finally getting the hang of this wine delivery. Better communication from the winery results in actually being home for the delivery. Voila! Wine delivered to my front door is pretty darn fancy.
Cork restaurant in Chandler is one of my favorites!
This week my beloved Cork is closing for good. The final meals will be served Tuesday, June 24 through Saturday, June 28.
