the four seasons

Four Seasons: A New York Icon

Filed under: Dining

Most restaurants offer a menu that changes with the seasons; few boast an ambiance that physically changes as summer turns to fall, fall to winter, and so on. The Four Seasons in New York does just that, thanks to a canopy of trees located inside the restaurant-just part of the reason the vaunted eatery is a Luxist nominee in the best fine domestic dining category.

When Four Seasons opened in midtown Manhattan in 1959, it delighted patrons with sprawling dining rooms, opulent décor and a delicious menu. Little has changed, from the furnishings-a grand chandelier, works by Picasso and Pollack, a bubbling pool in the middle of one room-to the seasonally-influenced menu. The affluent clientele remains as well.

Gallery: Four Seasons restaurant

Tags: awards-main, Best Domestic Restaurant, Best New York Restaurant, Four Seasons Restaurant, luxist-awards, The Four Seasons

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Le Bar: Start Your Day on Avenue George V

by Annie Scott (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels, Spirits, Wine

Le Bar at the Four Seasons George V Paris is nominated for a best hotel bar award from Luxist

Le Bar is a simple name for a truly decadent bar in the George V (a Four Seasons Hotel in Paris), and a nominee for a Readers' Choice Award for Best Hotel Bars.

The bar is elegant and decidedly dressy, with a distinct Parisian air of entitlement. The decor is very French with classic continental details like the rich mahogany wood, the plush and substantial chairs and the obligatory enormous, heavy draperies and chandeliers. If King Louis XIV were here today, this is where he would take his mistresses when away from Versailles.

Gallery: Le Bar at the Four Seasons Hotel George V Paris

Located on the ground floor of the George V with a large window facing the hotel's namesake Avenue (near the Champs-Elysées), the bar is popular with both hotel guests and Parisians -- a combination which is a must-have for weary travelers doing their best to be social while running on jet lag and espresso.

Tags: awards-main, bars, best hotel bar, Four Seasons, George V, Le Bar, luxist-awards, nightlife, Paris, The Four Seasons

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Lux Tip: Commute with Classical Music

by Annie Scott (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Lux Tips

Oh, the drudgery of the morning commute. You shuffle into the subway or bus station, or are methodically siphoned onto the gridlocked highway by a stoplight you've stared at for more hours of your life than any work of art. You find yourself surrounded by the half asleep, the angry, and the irritable uncaffeinated. You all glare at each other. Your mind fades in and out of your anxieties about the day, your dreams from the night before, and the state of the stock market.

One way to make the commute seem a little nicer? Try classical music. I recommend Vivaldi. Suddenly, listening to "The Four Seasons," your entrance onto the subway platform is grand and significant. The people all look more dignified, everyone moves in a subtle dance, and even the cars on street seem to be engaged in some kind of delightful comedy of manners.

You are in a movie, and this is your soundtrack. You feel more like you are exactly where you should be, and your mood brightens accordingly. Music also wakes up your synapses and makes you more alert. Even if you just zone out and let yourself get lost in the emotion of the music, when you get to wherever you're going, you'll feel refreshed.

It's just another easy way to make life more lux for cheap or free.

Tags: commute, lux tips, the four seasons, vivaldi

Win-Win Vacations: Luxe Travel Meets Big Donations

by Tracy Chait (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels, Auctions, Charity

We've seen the rise of "voluntourism" and eco-tourism of the luxe variety (think private bugalow in Figi, not hippie yurt). But giving back and luxury travel have rarely been an oft-cited pair. Until, that is, CharityFolks.com came on the scene, crafting unique travel plans including exclusive meet-and-greets like an evening with the cast of The Sopranos, then sending along the proceeds to charity. Each trip functions as an auction, so you'll need to get your virtual paddle up if you want to claim jaunts like a weekend at the Newport Jazz Festival, or luxe accommodations at Vail. The site hosts more traditional charity auctions as well, which have been written about here in the past, but if you planned to stay at the Four Seasons whilst touring Provence anyway, why not do it through an organization that will then donate on your behalf to UCLA's Jonsson Cancer Center?

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Tags: charitable giving, CharitableGiving, charity, charity auction, CharityAuction, charityfolks, charityfolks.com, four seasons, FourSeasons, luxury travel, LuxuryTravel, newport jazz festival, NewportJazzFestival, provence, the four seasons, TheFourSeasons, vail