Fig and Olive Restaurant in NYC's Meatpacking District!

Fig & Olive is a trendy Mediterranean Restaurant in the Meatpacking district in New York City. The Meatpacking district used to be just that, where meat was processed and distributed. I remember when the meat warehouses were operating in the area in full force and it was a shady, grungy, funky neighborhood with few but interesting places to go. Today the meat packers are almost all gone and in their place we have new art galleries, museums, restaurants and the famous, High Line.

The space is large and airy, with the signature high ceilings of the old meat packing plants and the open spaces.

The restaurant specializes in olive oil and the first thing they bring to the table when you are seated is a trio of olive oils. I was disappointed none of the three was from Greece but I was told that they have had Greek olive oils in the past.

A fabulous pasta with fungi(mushrooms) and shrimp.

Halibut over risotto

Tuna dish above and a tasty bouillabaisse

As the night went on the restaurant became full and the low lighting created a nice atmosphere.

They have a great bar!

I would definitely recommend the Fig & Olive. They have three locations in New York City but I don't know how the other ones are. This one has great food and great atmosphere. It's a bit pricey but worth it!

Enjoy!

Maria

The New Whitney Museum in downtown New York

The Whitney Museum of  American Art is dedicated to art in the United States.

Recently moved from the Upper East side to downtown New York in the hip Meatpacking district, the Museum now resides in a contemporary new building on Gansevoort Street. The High Line is just a block away.

We began our visit on the 8th floor and made our way down. Most of the art is on 8th through 5 so it's a manageable space to visit for a few hours.

Who knew E.E. Cummings was also a painter? Not I!

Joseph Stella is one of my favorites!

Views from the outdoor spaces. You can see the Empire State Building in the distance.

The highest building seen is the newly built Freedom Tower.

Jackson Pollock

Edward Hopper

Georgia O'Keefe

Roy Lichtenstein

Andy Warhol

Mrs Whitney in a portrait considered scandalous for her time because she wore pants. Her husband refused to hang it in their home for friends to see.

Art feeds my soul and contemporary American art is one of my favorites. There are a lot of iconic pieces in this museum that remind me of certain times in our recent history. I was glad to spend an afternoon absorbing the creative force of those artists whose work resides in this spectacular new building. I hope to make my way back there again sometime in the near future.
Enjoy!

Maria

Dumbarton Oaks Byzantine Museum, Washington DC.

Juliana Petrescu, my protagonist in my novel Archangel, visits the Dumbarton Oaks Museum in Washington DC to conduct research on Byzantine mosaics.

And coming in August 2015, the gift shop of the Museum will be featuring Archangel as one of their offerings! I am ecstatic!

Since the Museum was closed when I was writing the book, I had not been able to visit it. But that's the beauty of fiction! I just made it up!

This past week, however, during my trip to DC to present Archangel at the PSEKA Conference I had the opportunity to visit the now open Museum.

It's a gem of a place, originally started by the Blisses who amassed a great Byzantine art collection as well as PreColumbian art.

El Greco

It's the perfect art venue for me because it's not too large so the visitor can take everything in without feeling overwhelmed.

If the path takes you to Washington DC take a walk over to the Dumbarton Oaks Museum. Peruse the tasteful exhibits and stop by the gift shop. They are interested in selling Archangel! It's such a treat to me!

Enjoy!

Maria