Spring rolls from Out the Door

Farm-fresh ingredients. Seasonal California cuisine. Celebrity chefs with serious star power. San Francisco is known for its fabulous foodbut it often comes with a price.

Luckily for visitors, many of the city’s well-known chefs have opened less expensive outposts of their original blockbuster restaurants, so you can enjoy gourmet food at a fraction of the price.

The latest of the bunch comes from chef Dennis Leary, known for his incredible California cuisine at the shoe box-sized Canteen. People are buzzing about his latest venture called The Sentinel, a no-frills spot serving soup and sandwiches at lunchtime that he recently opened. Simple favorites, such as a brisket sandwich and roast pork loin with figs and sweet onions, star on the Leary’s homey menu. (37 New Montgomery St., 415-284-9960)

Leary isn’t the only chef who’s experimented with less-expensive (but just as delicious) fare. Here are some other options for visitors who want to experience the city’s finest food for less:

Charles Phan/The Slanted DoorEver since it moved into the Ferry Building, Phan’s Slanted Door has become one of the most sought-after reservations in town. Check out one of two outposts of Out the Door, which serve some of Phan’s classics in a more casual setting. Fresh spring rolls, noodles and a refreshing grapefruit and jicama salad are just some of the options. (Ferry Building & Westfield Shopping Centre food court; 415-861-8032 and 415-541-9933)

Elizabeth Falkner/Citizen CakeFalkner is known for her decadent desserts at Citizen Cake. If you’re sightseeing in the Union Square area, you can head to the top of the Virgin Megastore to sample some of her addictive cookies and cupcakes at Citizen Cupcake. (2 Stockton St., 415-399-1565)

Traci des Jardins/JardiniereJardiniere, which serves elegant California fare, is a favorite for pre- and post-opera and symphony outings. James Beard award-winning chef des Jardins opened an authentic taqueria in the Ferry Building called Mijita, so if you’re checking out the organic produce and artisanal food stores, swing in for a taco or two. (1 Ferry Building, 415-399-0814)

If you’re visiting San Francisco and looking for dining deals, it’s also helpful to check the San Francisco Convention & Visitors Bureau for special offers and coupons, which you can do by clicking here.

Technorati Tags: Travel, San Francisco, budget travel, celebrity chef, Dennis Leary, Sentinel, Slanted Door, Out the Door, Traci des Jardins, Jardiniere, Mijita, Charles Phan, Elizabeth Falkner, Citizen Cake, San Francisco restaurants, cheap eats

Mandarin Oriental Miami

A typical concierge might be able to score you good dinner reservations or tickets to a sold-out show, route your sightseeing destinations on a map and offer good general advice.

There are certain cities where nightlife is just as much an attraction as the typical sightseeing fare. New York, London, Las Vegas and Paris come to mindas does the chic, see-and-be-seen hotel scene in Miami. More often than not, though, it’s tough to get past the red velvet rope into South Beach’s coveted hotel bars, like the impossibly hip (and sometimes impossible to get into) Delano.

Not one, but two local hotels have launched a new concept that sounds pretty cool, if you’d like to live and party like a rock star while you’re in town: the nightlife concierge.

The Mandarin Oriental, Miami has launched two new packages, Miami Nights and Ultimate Miami Nights, that, along with accommodations, spa services and the like, feature the services of a personal nightlife guide who can help guests tailor their nights out at VIP venues.

The Four Seasons Miami has a dedicated nightlife concierge who will help you get into your club of choice, as well as help you with selecting the right clothes for the evening with the help of the personal styling section at Neiman Marcus.

So go on, indulge. That’s what visiting cities like Miami is for, isn’t it?

Technorati Tags: Travel, South Beach, Miami, nightlife, concierge, nightlife concierge, Delano, Mandarin Oriental, Four Seasons, clubbing, VIP, party like a celeb, celeb treatment, trael packages

Calistoga Bike Shop’s Cool Wine Tour, Calistoga, CA

With the rising costs of travel and gas, we’ve already written about gas rebates, new airline charges, and the current trend of “staycations.”

If you’re dying to get away for the weekend, but don’t want to shell out a wad of cash for a flight, you may want to check out the New York Times‘ new interactive feature on “One Tank Trips.” They profile more than 50 round-trip adventures you can take on just one tank of gas (yes, you heard us correctly) from New York City, Boston, San Francisco and Los Angeles. Each destination is only about 150 miles away from the origin city.

What’s so great about the story? No matter what you have in minda weekend with the kids, a girls’ weekend, a romantic getawaythere’s a little bit of something for everyone. And since you’ll only be using one tank of gas, you can rest assured that you’ll have plenty of money left over to spend on the rest of your trip.

Here are just some ideas for those lucky to dwell in the featured cities:

New York City: a 19th century lighthouse bed-and-breakfast in Saugerties, gallery-hopping in New Haven, the boardwalk in Point Pleasant, and the chic Lodge at Woodloch in the Poconos (pictured below)

Lodge at Woodloch, Poconos

Boston: strolling the trails in the Berkshires, hitting the clam shacks in Wellfleet, and book tours in Amherst

Los Angeles: doing Santa Barbara on the cheap at the Montecito Inn (pictured below), an art tour of Costa Mesa, seeing Mojave National Preserve

Montecito Inn, Santa Barbara

San Francisco: touring farms in Sonoma, hiking in Sutter Buttes, biking and more in Napa (from Calistoga Bike Shop, pictured at top of story)

To read the entire story, visit http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2008/07/31/travel/20080803_GAS_FEATURE.html

Technorati Tags: Travel, weekend trips, budget travel, New York Times, One Tank Trips, road trip, cheap vacations, cheap trips, saving money on travel, weekend getaway, Poconos, New Haven, Sonoma, Napa, Santa Barbara

I don’t know about you, but I always have good intentions of journaling when I travel, or of creating a scrapbook when I get home with all of my ticket stubs, pamphlets, a few leftover bills, etc. More often than not, I get completely disorganized about it, then end up just tossing everything away when I get home.

This eco-friendly travel journal from UK designers Sukie, made on one hundred percent recycled paper, isn’t just inspiring (I love the retro cover), but what’s great about it is that it’s got pockets to save all of your scraps of paper and odds and ends.

Plus, it’s just a whole lot more fun than most boring old leather-bound travel journals (not that those aren’t pretty, but this really stands out).

Available for $15.89 at Delight.com.

Technorati Tags: Travel, travel journal, travel notebook, retro travel journal, Delight.com, Sukie

I just discovered an incredibly helpful site for all your girlfriend getaway needs, whether you’re planning a relaxing spa weekend with a few friends, a destination bachelorette party, or just a weekend close to home for you and your BFF.

Girlfriend Getaways, a magazine published by Budget Travel, has all that and more (how to choose a cruise, spa giveaways, etc.) on its website, so you can plan any vacation with the ladies with ease.

They have a great article on their site right now, especially if you’d like to plan a late summer or early fall getaway for you and a few friends. In “Five U.S. Girlfriend Getaways,” you can indulge in some of your favorite activitiesshopping, dining and morewhile spending quality time with your friends.

Some of the packages they detail include baseball and shopping at the Boston Marriott, a spa getaway in Fort Lauderdale, and dining and spa-ing in Waikiki. The packages start at $230 per person, which isn’t too shabby if you’re close to any of the destinations.

To check out the entire article, visit www.girlgetaways.com.

Technorati Tags: Travel, Girlfriend Getaways, Budget Travel, girl weekends, bachelorette party ideas, destination bachelorette party, weekend getaways, summer travel, summer getaways, travel packages, travel deals, spa weekend