The Casbah

No, not that Casbah in Algiers, Algeria. No, this post is about the Casbah restaurant in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Located at the confluence of the Shadyside and East Liberty neighborhoods in Pittsburgh's East End, it has one of the best lunch menus in the City and maybe in the country.  My wife and I had lunch there recently and came away with the feeling that we had just had lunch at some New York or Los Angeles bistro; it was that good..

The Casbah offers a new menu daily. The day we were there, the offerings included tomato and basil bisque topped with a crostini, which my wife ate as part of the restaurant's "gusto" special, which I highly recommend. The "gusto" special, for $15, offers you the opportunity to taste three of the Casbah's lunch offerings. In addition to the creamy tomato bisque (which was excellent), my wife also enjoyed a mini crab cake (all lump crab meat) and a small pasta dish. I ordered the "gusto" special as well. My trio included a mini swordfish sandwich with a delicious aioli, a small salad with pieces of grilled corn, heirloom tomatoes and radishes. The third item was a small pasta dish with cavatelli pasta noodles  and  velvety ricotta cheese in a rich tomato sauce. The servers were prompt (filling glasses of ice tea immediately as soon as the glasses ran low ) and knowledgeable about the menu..

It was a terrific meal and if you find yourself in Pittsburgh at lunch time, I would recommend you stop in the Casbah.We have not eaten dinner there, but I am sure it is equally good.

The Casbah is located at 229 S Highland Avenue. The restaurant offers indoor and outdoor seating all year long on a covered patio. Parking, which can be problematic on the street, is available in a lot  next to the restaurant.

Cooperstown Dreams Park

For 13 weeks every summer, Cooperstown, New York is the host to a national invitational youth baseball tournament for youth 12 and under for all sanctioned, independent, travel, and select baseball teams. :Located just a few miles from the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, it is based in a sprawling facility.

For kids it is a dream come true. The coaches, players and umpires all stay in the baseball village for six nights and days. Other family members can stay in the variety of hotels and morels that are nearby.

Unlike some tournaments where teams are usually only guaranteed two games, each team is guaranteed to play at least seven games. As an added bonus, each team is seeded into the Championship Playoffs.

All players and coaches are inducted into the American Youth Baseball Hall of Fame and given the opportunity to visit the Baseball Hall of Fame itself.

For more information about Dreams Park, see www.cooperstowndreamspark.com.

The Baseball Hall of Fame

The Baseball Hall of Fame (HOF) is located in the sleepy little town of Cooperstown, New York. Located right on Main street, the red brick building looks a little bit like a library. But inside it is the mecca for all those fans who love baseball and baseball history.  But even those people who don't know the difference between the Red Sox and the White Sox will find something of interest in the HOF.

My wife and I visited the HOF a few weeks ago. The admission charge for seniors is a very reasonable $12.  Because I am a veteran, there was no charge. The first stop inside is actually a movie, basically going through the history of the game in about 15 minutes. The theater is like a baseball field with stands and a make believe field. You can almost smell the hot dogs and taste the cold beer.

The exhibits begin with the birth of baseball.  Although generally the invention of the game is credited to Abner Doubleday in Cooperstown, the exhibits themselves debunk that myth.  There are artifacts showing the idea of striking a ball of some sort with a stick went back in history for many centuries. 

As might be expected, there are whole rooms devoted to the heroes of the game. Babe Ruth is prominently featured, beginning with his days in an  orphanage in Baltimore to his death from cancer. Jackie Robinson is also given the star treatment.  In addition, there are separate rooms demonstrating  the accomplishments of both African-American and Latino players.

There are lockers filled with memorabilia for each of the major league teams. Our favorite team, the Pittsburgh Pirates was well-represented, including a particularly touching exhibit on the great Robert Clemente, who was voted into the HOF shortly after his untimely death while on a mission of mercy to Nicaraugra in 1972.  Ironically, he had joined the 3000 hit club on his last at bat during the prior season.

Surprisingly, although banned from baseball and presumably ineligible for the HOF, there is actually a display for Pete Rose, trumpeting his position as the all time hits leader.  Similarly, there is a display for the dishonored Barry Bonds, who does hold the major league record for home runs. Hank Aaron, the acknowledged unassisted  home run champ is given a large display detailing his long career.

Most impressive at the end of your tour is the actual hall of bronze plaques honoring all of the HOF members.  It is a little like being in church.

 

For more information, see www.baseballhalloffame.org.

After leaving the HOF, we stopped for lunch at the Doubleday Café, just a few steps away from the HOF at 93 Main Street. We sat at the bar and had tremendous hamburgers and a local draft beer. I highly recommend it

New York, New York

Shop Amazon - Fall Outlet Event

"New York, New York, it's a wonderful town. The Bronx is up but the Battery's down."

These lyrics from the musical play, "On the Town," convey only a small part of the excitement that is New York City.  Recently, we had the opportunity to visit New York and with our son took a ferry to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island.

The tour begins in Battery Park at the southern tip of Manhattan.  Battery Park refers to the gun batteries that had once been located there to protect the island. Tickets for the ferry to the Statute of Liberty and Ellis Island are sold at a kiosk in the park. Although the two attractions are run by the National Parks Service, the National Parks Senior Pass, unfortunately, is not honored for the tour. When asked, the ticket seller said it was because the ferries are operated by a concessionaire. In any event, a small discount ($3) is offered to seniors from the full price adult ticket price of $17.

There was a rather long line to get on the ferry but because it was a weekday, it went by rather quickly. The ferry was appropriately named "Miss Liberty" and had two decks, one inside and one outside. We opted for the upper deck which was just perfect for the beautiful, sunny day we were on board.

The price of a ticket offers you the opportunity to visit the Statue of Liberty, then Ellis Island and finally a return trip to Battery Park .Unfortunately, the Statue of Liberty is currently closed for removations. Nonetheless, the ferry ride is well worth the visit as shown by these photos.

What most people (including some New Yorkers) do not know is that there are fabulous views of Manhattan from New York harbor.  These are just a few of those views.

 

 

In our next post, we will review two fabulous New York restaurants, Gramercy Tavern and Del Posto.

The Boomer's Guide to Travel Sites in Hyde Park

Evver since I was young I have been fascinated by two places that I wanted to see. First, was the home of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the longest serving President of the United States, in Hyde Park, New York.  Second, waas The United States Military Academy or as it is more commonly refered to, West Point.  This summer, we were privileged to have the opportunity to tour both places.

Hyde Park, New York, is located about  an hour and a half from New York City. and three hours from Philadelphia  Train service is available on Amtrak and the Metro-North Railroad with stops in nearby Poughkeepsie. That is where our touring began.

We arrived at our hotel in the middle of a Sunday afternoon. Not  knowing what to expect in Poughkeepsie, my wife grabbed a stack of brochures from the hotel's front desk. We studied them in our room and saw that there were at least two places in Poughkeepsie we should see, Vassar College and Locust Grove, the former home of Samuel F.B. Morse, the inventor of the telegraph and a well-known portrait and landscape painter of the Hudson River Valley School.

Locust Grove is located at 2683 South Road on Route 9 or the Albany-Post Road as it has been called for hundreds of years. It is a 40 room Italianate mansion which is available for guided tours only. Because the Morse family had sold it near the turn of the last century, most of the furniture and paintings in the house are from the subsequent owners, the Youngs. It is an interesting mix of Victorian and older antiques and paintings. The views from the estate's gardens are of the Hudson River Valley and are fantastic..

There is a small museum on the grounds which houses some of the artwork of Samuel Morse as well as some of his telegraphic inventions.  It is well worth a visit.  There is also a small gift shop. One of the staff members recommended we try the Shadows on the Hudson for dinner that night.

Just a few short blocks away, Shadows on the Hudson has magnificent views of the Hudson River Valley. The food matches the view.  I had the Lobster bake and it was excellent, with a one and a quarter pound lobster, andoiuille sausage, redskin potatoes and corn on the cob. You felt like you were right on the beach. www.shdadowsonthehudson.com, 176 Rinaldi Blvd., Poughkeepsie, NY.

The next day we visited Vassar College in Poughkeepsie.  More about that in our next post.

The Baby Boomer's Guide to the Best Places to Visit and Things to Do in America

I have not written in a while because---what else---we were traveling. This time we were visiting Hyde Park, New York and Spring Lake, New Jersey.  Before I discuss those trips in later posts, I just wanted to acknowledge my gratitude to Patricia Schultz, the author of 1,000 Places to See Before You Die.. The book is a rich source of information concerning places to visit not only in the United States but also throughout the world.  In reading the book, it occurred to me that my wife and I had already visited a number of the places she has written about.  As an example, my most recent post dealt with Shipshewana, the Amish community in Northern Indiana. Although we had been there many times over the last decade, it was interesting to see it listed in the 1,000 Places book.

This got me thinking:  why not see how many of the 1000 places can we visit and also write about. So, that we are going to try to do.  We may not cover them all and we will write about some places not on her list, but we will try to give you baby boomers a guide to what we think are the best and most fun places to visit and things to do.  While the book is a starting point in some instances, the opinions expressed are our own and the observations are ours also.

I hope you will enjoy our Baby Boomer's Guide to the Best Places to Visit and Things to Do!