|
Showing posts with label LEISURE PULSE. Show all posts
Showing posts with label LEISURE PULSE. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
O2 LUX PULSE | LONDON > Lobster + Steak £25 at Floridita
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
O2 LUX PULSE | > The Experimental Cocktail Club - London
by Dr. Damigo; PhD
The Experimental Cocktail Club, a speakeasy-style bar owned by the same trio of Frenchmen behind ECC's Parisian sister, is the kind of place you whisper to friends about.
The three-floored old Georgian townhouse is set behind a small rusty door in Chinatown - just the place to hide a covert cocktail haunt. Inside, we stumble past a workman to climb a dimly lit stairwell, guided by a sultry French waitress.
Once in, it's all exposed brickwork, low lighting, a heavy hum of late-night chatter and the chink of crystal glasses. Nina Simone's Sinner Man plays gently in the background.
First up, though some time after we order, an Opium Express and a Negroni de Provence arrive.
The former, like a more daring Cosmopolitan made with purple shiso-infused vodka, goji liqueur, goji syrup, lemon and dragon fruit, slips down easily and has a refreshing, bittersweet aftertaste, the poppy seeds adding a delicate crunch. Sadly the Negroni, though embellished with pretty swirls of orange and lemon rind, tastes like soap: the blend of lavender-infused gin and herbes de Provence-infused Lillet Blanc and Suze is overpowering and over-herbed.
Next up: the Renaissance, a nuanced, faintly fizzy mixture of Aperol, Hendrick's gin, home-made rhubarb syrup and champagne. But it is the Havana that really stirs us. A super-smooth blend of Cuban cigar-infused bourbon, bitters and whisky, it tastes like a cigar but has a long-lasting caramel and then whisky flavour that lingers for minutes.
Upstairs is less classy, more cool. A couple get intimate in one corner while gaggles of girls sit about gossiping. The loos are adorned with flamingo wallpaper, and illuminated by lights inside teapots on strings.
It is worth peeking through the small door to the kitchen to see rows of gin bottles and stacks of goji syrup containers lining the shelves. This is a place for serious mixology - there is no flare bartending here. The cocktails are made by French baristas who you can watch at work in overhead mirrors. It is a kind of hush-hush hideaway you might take someone on a second date.
At 11pm, the well-heeled crowd make way for a younger pack in short skirts and stilettos looking for somewhere to continue the party. So at half past midnight we share a Madras Flip - a well-balanced, creamy mix of cognac, five-year-old rum, cream, chai syrup, egg and a light sprinkling of nutmeg - and pad down the stairwell into an almost luminous Chinatown.
Rating: 4 out of 5Victoria Stewart's rating
13A Gerrard Street, W1
Phone: 020 7434 3559
Opening hours: Open 6pm-3am, closed Sunday
Nearest tube: Leicester Square Transport for London
Cuisine: Other
Average price: About £10 per cocktail
A cosmopolitan mix to savour
The Experimental Cocktail Club
Taste the atmosphere — and some intriguing drinks — at a new Soho speakeasy
O2 GBN > A WEALTH OF ACTIONABLE INSIGHTS > LIFE-CHANGING OPPORTUNITIES
Sunday, June 12, 2011
O2 LUX PULSE | Fred Astaire’s 1955 Ferrari 750 Monza Spider > $3.25 Million
by Hannah Elliott
A 1955 Ferrari 750 Monza has a 260 hp, 2,999 cc DOHC four-cylinder engine, a five-speed manual transmission, an independent front suspension with unequal-length A-arms and coil springs, and a wheelbase of 88.6".
Lucky for us the 750 Monza survived. It’ll go on sale Aug. 19 and 20 at RM Auctions’ Monterrey sale in conjunction with the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. Expected price, according to Driven: $3.25 million.
The car is one of only 35 750 Monza spiders built and was raced by Fred Astaire in his first non-singing, non-dancing movie role.
It debuted–snakeskin interior and all–at the Brussels Motor Show in January 1955, then was sold to Luigi Chinetti in New York, who promptly delivered it to Porsche importer John von Neumann in Los Angeles. Von Neumann raced the 4-cylinder, 260-horsepower Monza a lot around Southern California, where it quickly became notorious enough to be featured in Road & Track and earn a spot in the Gregory Peck-Ava Gardner-Fred Astaire apocalypse flick On the Beach.
The car has its original stampings and numbers, with the rare Scaglietti script badge and chrome spears in tact.
The film was shot in and around L.A., with some frames taken at the Phillip Island race course and on Riverside Raceway. (In the plot, Fred Astaire’s character had always wanted to be a racing driver, and when Australia holds the world’s last Grand Prix, he buys the Monza to enter.) It didn’t exactly go smoothly: Eight cars were totaled in 12 days of filming the racing scenes, including a Jowett Jupiter, MG Special, Nash Healey, Austin-Healey, Jaguar XK120 and a Corvette.
source > Forbes
Saturday, June 11, 2011
O2 TRAVEL TIPS | > ENGLAND - Stratford-upon-Avon - Warwick Castle - York - CastleHoward in North Yorkshire (videos)
Image via Wikipedia-
Take a tour of Castle Howard in North Yorkshire England
Explore and discover the city of York England: Day One
Explore and discover the city of York England: Day Two
York England is a walled city, located in the area of the Rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. The city has a rich heritage and has provided the backdrop to major political events throughout much of its of existence.
-
Discover Shakespeare's birthplace in Stratford-upon-Avon
Shakespeare's Birthplace is a restored 16th century half-timbered house located on Henley Street, Stratford-upon-Avon in Warwickshire, England. where it is believed that William Shakespeare was born in 1564 and spent his childhood years. It is now a small museum open to the public and is a popular visitor attraction, owned and managed by the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.
-
Take a tour and explore Warwick Castle in England
A medieval castle situated in the town of Warwick, England. The castle sits on a sandstone bluff at a bend of the River Avon. The castle was erected in 1068 by William the Conqueror. Predominately used as a fortification until the 17th century, it was converted into a country house by the Greville family, who were earls of Warwick from 1759 until 1978.
O2 LUX PULSE | WEDDING DESTINATION > Couples Tower Isle in Ocho Rios - Jamaica (video)
Join Mark Murphy and explore Couples Tower Isle in Ocho Rios, Jamaica
-
Mark Murphy speaks with Couples Tower Isle’s wedding coordinator and talks about how to have a destination wedding and what’s included
With six available wedding packages, including tree house and private island ceremonies, Couples Resorts make destination weddings easy. In this interview Marks learn how to prepare for a grand destination wedding or put together a spontaneous ceremony.
-
-
Randy Russell of Couples Resorts talks about selling within the destination wedding and honeymoon market
-
O2 TRAVEL TIPS | > TOURISM IRELAND (videos)
Image by Robert Marin via Flickr
-
Tourism Ireland Literary Tour
-
Tourism Ireland Getting Closer To Ireland
O2 TRAVEL TIPS | > AVALON WATERWAYS (videos)
See how Avalon Waterways makes river cruising appealing for both land travelers and cruisers
A local travel agent speaks about what sets Avalon Waterways apart from other river cruise ships
Avalon Waterways introduces a new ship that will sail on the Mekong River
Learn about what the words “new”, “room”, “view” and “do” mean to Avalon Waterway’s Vice President of Marketing
Learn about ship design, world-wide destinations, and more from Avalon Waterways
O2 TRAVEL TIPS | > THE HARMONY OF NATURE > NEW ENGLAND - NEW HAMPSHIRE - MAINE SUNRISE(video)
Image by D.o.M.e.N.i.C.o via Flickr
O2 LUX PULSE | MGM Grand Las Vegas
MGM Grand Las Vegas
At 446 square feet, these deluxe rooms at MGM Grand are more spacious than the average room in Las Vegas. The amenities also speak to a grander lifestyle, offering our discerning guests the ultimate in elegance and comfort. Relax and unwind on our ultra comfortable double pillow top mattresses. Decorated in a classic motif, all Grand Tower Rooms boast custom black and white marble bathrooms, thick cotton towels, roomy closets, safes, and wireless high-speed Internet access.
O2 LUX PULSE | Palazzo Resort-Hotel-Casino Las Vegas Tour (video)
A look into The Palazzo Resort-Hotel-Casino Las Vegas
Join Murphy and tour the Palazzo Resort-Hotel-Casino in Las Vegas. The Palazzo is a luxury hotel and casino resort which is an all-suite hotel that offers the largest standard accommodations on the Las Vegas Strip at 720-square-feet per guest room. In its first year of eligibility, The Palazzo was awarded the AAA Five Diamond Award for 2010.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
MONEY MAKING KNOW-HOW to CHANGE your LIFE | O2 | >
LinkWithin
