Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, Bronx and Staten Island. That is five boroughs. Lydia Ruth, the Marketing Manager for the Westchester County Office of Tourism, was my chauffeur, guide, mentor, guru through a quick three day trip through the sixth borough: Westchester, population about one million.
DAY ONE: let's start in Yonkers, the 4th largest city in New York State (NYC, Buffalo & Rochester), and the most populous city in Westchester County (200,000). It borders the Bronx and is two miles north of Manhattan. Home to Yonkers Raceway and it’s Empire City “Racino” (video slot gambling) and the venerable Cross County Shopping Center (opened in 1954) with 100 stores and restaurants. Both of these are close by the NYS Thruway. After exiting the shopping center, cut across the Cross County Parkway to the western side of Yonkers and the Saw Mill River Parkway. NOTE- Westchester’s northern boundary is Putnam County; the Hudson River is on the west and Fairfield County, Connecticut and the Long Island Sound is on the east side. Off the Saw Mill is Philipse Manor Hall in Yonkers; this Georgian mansion is a National Historic Landmark. You can walk from here down to the newly developed waterfront, past Ella Fitzgerald’s statue at the Metro North train station and the sculpture gardens. Further north on the same street is the Hudson River Museum with a planetarium and the Glenview mansion featuring exhibitions of American art, history and science.
Try to find a better bargain than the $16 prix-fixed lunch at Harvest on Hudson in Hastings on the Hudson. The portions are huge and if the weather cooperates you can sit outside along the Hudson River. Moving north drop your bag at your first night's hotel, Castle on the Hudson in Tarrytown. Built from 1887 to 1910 it was a private home until 1940. In 1981 it was designated a historic landmark. A member of the Historic Hotels of America and the Small Luxury Hotels of the World, the castle is a 4 Diamond AAA property and one of the top 20 US small hotels according to Conde Nast Traveler. Using wind power for electricity it is the only green castle in America. With 31 rooms added to the original structure its main tower is the highest point in Westchester County. Opened in 1997 as a luxury hotel and spa the Equus restaurant is worth a detour. The medieval structure sits on 10 acres and contains carved stairways, sconces, oak beams and leaded-glass windows. The Great Hall has 40 foot vaulted ceilings.
After dropping off my bags we preceded to nearby Lyndhurst, also in Tarrytown. This 1838 Gothic Revival Mansion contains 19th and 20th Century decorative arts and was originally the home of railroad magnate Jay Gould. In the same town is Washington Irving’s home- Sunnyside. The Tarrytown House Estate & Conference Center’s wine cellar dining room sits within Cellar 49. Unfortunately, only overnight guests or people attending a conference can eat or drink there. The seat of the county’s government is located in White Plains where we had a tour of the new Ritz Carlton Restaurant 42 (on the top floor of the residence tower). Their wine list contains 350 selections but the view is a killer. I spotted the lights on the Empire State Building. We ate in the Lobby Lounge, which features a Chocolate & Champagne night, a martini evening and Sake, Sushi & Jazz. The sushi chef prepared all of food right in front of us and we kept eating and drinking. Luckily it was the last event of day one.
DAY TWO- Leaving the Castle we headed to nearby Elmsford and MYOWine (Make Your Own Wine) the Westchester School of Winemaking. Owner and winemaker Rich Mattina told me that students learn about wine through interactive seminars and hands-on winemaking. For $915 you and 4 guests can make a 1/4-barrel that yields 5 cases. For $1,650 you can bring 9 guests and your 1/2-barrel yields 10 cases. A full barrel costs $2,600 and you and 14 guests get 20 cases. Included in the fee are seminars and actual work on crushing, fermentation, pressing, barrel aging, racking, tasting, filtering, corking and bottling, using personalized labels. The 5,100 square facility is climate-controlled and contains all the equipment one needs to make their own wine.
If wine isn’t your thing drive a few miles north on the Saw Mill Parkway to Captain Lawrence Brewing Company, an award winning craft brewery in Pleasantville. In the same town the Jacob Burns Film Center presents independent and foreign films. A short distance north and we came to Crabtree Kittle House in the town of Chappaqua, a favorite of local residents Bill & Hillary Clinton. It was built in 1790 as a barn and home to the Kittle family and since 1981 it has been owned and operated by the Crabtree family. The garden atrium dining room was being set up for a wedding that night, but it is the main dining room that is home to the Wine Spectator Grand Award (since 1994) winning wine list, with 7,000 selections and 75,000 bottles. Partner and wine director Glen Vogt took us through the cavernous wine cellars that had formerly served as the stables and is kept at a brisk 50 degrees. Sitting majestically staring at me was a Methuselah (8 bottles) of Domaine de la Romanee Conti. It is the most expensive wine on the list but Glen had not set a price as of yet. The oldest wines were the Chateau Margaux 1900 at $11,000 and Chateau Ausone, which is $8,500. We had a quick lunch at the bar while I perused wine history on the list.
If one continues to the end of the Saw Mill River Parkway we end up in Katonah home to New York State’s largest outdoor summer music festival- Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts. Also in town is the Katonah Museum of Art, a small museum dedicated to the visual arts. There is an acclaimed Children’s Learning Center and outdoor sculpture garden. Reversing directions we head south on Interstate 684, past the Westchester County Airport to SUNY (State University of New York) Purchase, home to the Performing Arts Center and the Neuberger Museum of Art. Now in its 30th season the arts center offers more than 70 performances yearly of dance, classical music, jazz and theater. The Neuberger Museum features exhibitions of modern, contemporary and emerging artists, as well as the country’s only permanent exhibition of African art. My choice for lodging for the second night was the Doral Arrowwood in Rye Brook. I had celebrated a birthday there a few years ago and remembered their many recreation facilities set on 114 wooded acres. For that reason I had a leisurely dinner at the Pub while playing darts.
DAY THREE- If I had been visiting during the summer I would have stopped at Rye Playland, which is open May-October. This 50-acre Art Deco National Historic Landmark boasts over 50 rides, a boardwalk, lake and beach. Since my visit was in November we drove west along Interstate 287 to White Plains where we had dinner the first night. I had noticed the Westchester Mall with Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom and Gucci among its 150 stores and asked to stop for a visit. After that we found a new wine shop- Westchester Wine Warehouse a few minutes away. My only problem was no floor assistance and most of the wine bottles were standing up. I guess the name warehouse fits its image. A few blocks away on Central Avenue we stopped for lunch at Gervasi’s, which had just reopened after a change in ownership. Their wine list had 150 selections; almost all were Italian and Californian. The martini list had an even dozen choices. Their basement dining room overlooked the wine cellar. Good luck getting up and down the winding staircase after a few drinks. My last stop was at Zachy’s, one of New York’s largest and finest wine shops. Founded in 1944 in the heart of Scarsdale village and across the street from the Metro North railroad station it has expanded many times. The two Enomatic Machines that dispense Argon gas especially impressed me and each has 8 wines available to taste. Customers get a card (free) that allows them to sample wines at their leisure any time the store is open. The fine wine room is an oenophile’s dream.
It was time to return home to the Upper West Side which I reached in less than 45 minutes. The next time someone asks you to name NYC’s 5 Boroughs don’t forget to correct him or her and add Westchester as the 6th.
For More Information-
www.westchestertourism.com
www.philipsemanorfriends.com
www.hrm.org
www.harvest2000.com
www.castleonthehudson.com
www.lyndhurst.org
www.hudsonvalley.org
www.ritzcarlton.com/westchester
www.42therestaurant.com
www.tarrytownhouseestate.com
www.myowine.com
www.captainlawrencebrewing.com.
www.burnsfilmcenter.org
www.kittlehouse.com
www.katonahmuseum.org
www.caramoor.org
www.doralarrowood.com
www.artscenter.org
www.neuberger.org
www.ryeplayland.org
www.the-westchester-ny.com
www.gervasis.com
www.westchesterwine.com
www.zachys.com