Thom Meintel 
A door in a discrete wooden fence leads you into the parking lot adjacent to Commonwealth. It’s an unusual entry, but then again nothing at Commonwealth follows the norm. A disco ball’s reflection circles the room within a skylight high above the sleek, minimalistic dining room. Anchored with warm hickory … Read more
In the hospitality business there’s always room for a new idea. After all, that’s what draws the crowds. And if the idea is one that ups the fun quotient then bring it on. Batch Gastro Pub is on to something. Their ingenious table taps (7 in total throughout the place) … Read more
You could easily blink and miss Tongue & Cheek, sandwiched between 3 other restaurants, 1 Greek and 2 Italian, in a kind’ve South Beach “restaurant row” strip mall. Talk about competition. But don’t miss this place if you’re headed to hedonistic SoBe soon; it’s like nothing else in Miami. Situated … Read more
A bright pink neon sign displaying the word “BAR” leads you into Jeffrey’s. It’s a telling marker for Austin’s most lauded restaurant, buzzing with every table full on a Friday night at 10 p.m. Having pounded the streets of Texas’ culturally rich capital for much of the day, we were … Read more
The Squire has had a lifelong fling with SushiSamba, so much so that people were beginning to talk. How much further would things go? For the uninitiated, Sushi Samba is a distinctive collection of restaurants that celebrate the culture and cuisine of Japan, Brazil and Peru. In a word or … Read more
Oak Tavern Miami’s Design District is full of surprises. Oak Tavern is just one of them. A large open space with masonry walls and custom floor lamps fashioned from tree trunks feels like something out of London’s East End with a natty mahogany bar and snazzy leather banquettes. It’s got … Read more
An elegant yet edgy sense of decorum presides over the lobby of the InterContinental Stephen F. Austin, in Austin, Texas, easy to find at night thanks to the glowing red stripe around the building’s exterior. This is in stark contrast to the rowdy street party in full swing just a … Read more
It’s hard to miss Wynwood Kitchen & Bar as you drive around the nondescript streets of Miami’s Wynwood in search of the place. You’re in the off the beaten path warehouse district, full of galleries and pop-up shops, and all that seems to be missing (at least from a New … Read more
Las Brisas Acapulco screams “notice me” from the moment you drive through the hotel’s porte cochere and spot the hot pink hibiscus flower logo, till you’re ensconced in your “casita” high above the city 15 minutes later. And you should! The hotel is right out of a dream and it … Read more
The idea to visit a storied resort on Mexico’s Pacific coast, one struggling with negative press, was pretty simple. For as long as I can remember Acapulco had been on my bucket list if only due to its sexy name and glamorous past. “Aka-poole-ko” … it sounds sensual, right? And … Read more
A Memorial Weekend spent in Oslo, Norway, couldn’t have taken me further away from the shores of the U. S. of A. where backyard barbecues and baseball games are typically the norm. The unpredictable May weather was an ongoing topic of conversation with everyone, even at immigration, and as the … Read more
A black messenger bike parked outside THE THIEF emblazoned with the hotel’s name is a subtle hint. “Toto, I have a feeling we’re not in Kansas anymore.” On a dark, dreary and very wet spring morning in Oslo’s Tjuvholmen neighborhood, which is surrounded by water, the wind is gusting outside … Read more
“The Norwegians sure take their sun seriously, don’t they?” said Pop after he saw that we were fellow Americans touring Norway. We’d just zoomed past a few townspeople sunbathing in their backyards and a guy mowing his lawn shirtless. It was a hot, sunny day in Alesund, a popular fjord … Read more
The approach to Jade Mountain says it all … exclusive and private. A steep, winding road meanders along the cliffs of St. Lucia’s Morne Chastenet for what seems like forever then suddenly you enter a kind of natural paradise hugging the side of the mountain. Out of the car, you … Read more
Hailed as a tourists’ mecca and damned for those killer hills, San Francisco’s reputation definitively precedes it. Famed for its glory days as a beat generation outpost then later the epicenter of flower power and acid rock, today the glorious city by the bay has lost none of its “alternative” … Read more