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West Randolph Street in Chicago’s West Loop has become a new home to the city’s culinary talents. Stephanie Izard first drew crowds cooking dishes like roasted pig face at Girl & the Goat (the restaurant pictured above). She then opened Little Goat, a retro diner, across the street. Graham Elliot Bowles keeps it simple at his casual g.e.b, where each dish has no more than three ingredients. On a more elegant note, the prix-fixe menu at Grace, from chef Curtis Duffy, features dishes such as kampachi with coconut, lime, basil, golden trout roe, and pomelo presented in a cylinder of frozen ginger water.

Check out the rocking, hip and popular Cowgirl, a melding of Texas BBQ and New Mexico flavors and Old West style. Early evening, there’s happy hour including cheap, tasty margaritas. At night, patrons kick up their heels to live music. There’s a big patio outside for plenty of sipping.

Set on a steep hillside overlooking vineyards and the Silverado Trail, Stuppa Estate Napa Valley manages to be both secluded and well positioned for exploring Napa Valley’s wineries and towns. The suite-only property has five poet-themed rooms—refreshed in 2021 by Erin Martin Design and embellished with hand-painted murals by artist Michael Duté.

Each suite is themed after a literary icon, such as Emily Dickenson, and includes a private patio, a soaking tub, and an outdoor shower—including a few oriented toward the valley. Sunset is a highlight: All rooms face west, giving guests unobstructed evening views of the valley and vineyards below.

Breakfast is a lavish spread with dishes like seasonal pancakes or shakshuka—served either in-room or on the open-air patio. A small outdoor pool and on-site spa treatments add to the quiet atmosphere, and staff can arrange private tastings at Sullivan Rutherford Estate, a boutique winery under the same ownership. Service is a defining feature; the team handles everything from sunset cocktails to dinner reservations with a level of care that consistently elevates the stay.

Located on Buffalo’s West Side, this farm-to-table favorite comes courtesy of award-winning chefs Steve and Ellen Gedra. Here, the menu changes daily to highlight locally sourced produce and sustainably raised meat, so diners are guaranteed something new every time they visit. Dishes are simple and straightforward to let their ingredients shine, while cocktails incorporate unique spirits like lavender gin and bacon-washed bourbon. Go for dinner and pair the vegetable lasagna with a classic manhattan, or swing by at brunch for the BS Griddle sandwich, featuring eggs, cheese, hash browns, and your choice of bacon or sausage sandwiched between two pancakes.

Just a few blocks from the bustle of Old Town and Duval Street, this Caribbean-style resort is a serene retreat with a swath of white-sand beach, a pool concierge, and a private pier for fishing or gazing out over clear turquoise waters. All of the contemporary rooms and suites are generously sized and have private balconies with views of the pool, courtyard, or ocean, but the real draw remains right outside your door. Guests can snorkel off the shore, face off on the giant chess board, or simply sway between two palms in one of the beachside hammocks. They also have privileges at sister resort Casa Marina, just up the beach, including at the oceanfront Spa al Mare. Have kids in tow? The hotel offers a full roster of activities, plus babysitting services for parents who want to hit the town.

It is so easy to stroll into France, many visitor cross the border without ever realizing they’ve been abroad. Instead of a coastal hike, the French Riviera offers a paved path that takes travelers from the Principality to Mala Beach on the Cap d’Ail. Catch the Sentier Littoral (coastal trail) at Marquet Beach and head west through a landscaped paradise dotted with mysterious mansions and eccentric estates. It is an easy walk for young children, with plenty of picnic stops and, during the summer, even restaurants on the beach. Hike, or catch the bus back from the downtown of lilliputian Cap d’Ail. Photo : Sylvia Sabes

Located about five miles west of Falls Church, America’s only national park to the performing arts continues to host world-class performances of every genre since its creation in 1971. With an average of over 90 concerts from May to September, area residents and visitors are blessed to see the biggest names in music grace the stage of the 6,800-seat indoor/outdoor Filene Center. In addition, Wolf Trap holds indoor concerts at the nearby Barns, as well as educational programs and special events such as the International Children’s Festival and the yearly Holiday Sing-A-Long.

Like Five Guys in DC, Whataburger in Texas, and Shake Shack in NYC, In-N-Out is the West Coast burger joint for those in the know. It’s been a SoCal staple since it first opened in 1948 and has since developed a cult-like following throughout the Southwest. Order like a local off the not-so-secret-menu and either indulge with an “Animal Style” burger (extra pickles, extra spread, grilled onions and a mustard-fried patty) or pretend to be healthy with a “Protein Style” burger (gluten free with lettuce instead of a bun).

Tucked away in the Belgian province of West Flanders is the small town (about 20,000 residents) of Poperinge, almost touching the French border. I went there to visit the Hop Museum and the area produces around 80% of Belgium’s hop crop. If you’re a beer lover, then you know this is a fact: no hops = no beer. Every September the town holds the annual Hop Festival to celebrate the harvest, just has they have done (celebrating hops, that is) for centuries. An interesting fact: Poperinge also the home to Belgium’s very first astronaut - Dirk Frimout.

Summer afternoons in New Mexico come with thunderstorms--curtains of rain across the vast semi-arid landscape, bringing out the wildflowers ... About an hour west of Albuquerque, (take State Route 23 south from I-40), you’ll see “Enchanted Mesa,” presiding 430ft/130m over the surrounding valley. According to Acoma legend, this was the site of their original pueblo, which had to be abandoned when a thunderstorm washed away the only way up-and-down the cliffs...The ‘new’ pueblo is a few miles to the south, on a slightly lower sandstone mesa; it’s been continuously inhabited since the 1100’s...

Statues of Communist ideologues once dotted every city behind the Iron Curtain, but in the world’s rush to forget the Cold War, such monuments are hard to find these days. Not in Budapest—once East and West came together in the early 1990s, the city decided not to destroy the evidence. It rather collected about 40 monuments of figures like Vladimir Lenin, valiant soldiers, and even a huge sets of boots from a statue of Stalin, and in 1993 put them all in a park about 25 minutes by bus from Budapest’s city center. History buffs, especially, will find it worth the trek.

After decades of rule by innocuous lagers, a small revolution is brewing in Beijing’s beer scene, with a handful of small-scale brew operations popping up over the past few years. Great Leap is among them and brings together foreign beer makers with local ingredients in a way that doesn’t make “East meets West” sound cliché.

Take the popular Honey Ma Gold Ale. It has peppercorns from Sichuan, in central China, and Shandong date honey from the coast. Meanwhile, Little General IPA uses Chinese hops, while Danshan Wheat Beer includes black tea from Fujian. All fun to try. Beers at Great Leap start at ¥25 for a pour of Pale Ale No. 6. Great Leap’s flagship brewery and pub, on Xinzhong Street, can handle everything from large parties to single imbibers, offers views of the brewing equipment behind a glass wall, and has a good range of bar food, including a tasty burger and fries at ¥40. Order it and you are almost sure to get one last pint.

The world’s seventh-largest public square is best known in the West for the 1989 student protests, but this is also where, on October 1, 1949, Mao Zedong founded the People’s Republic of China. The square was named for Tiananmen (which translates as “Gate of Heavenly Peace”), one of the gates of the former imperial city. It was built in 1651, then expanded in 1958 to four times its original size, and enlarged even further in 1976 with the construction of Mao’s mausoleum. Arrive at sunrise to watch the solemn flag-raising ceremony, performed with pride, precision, and a touch of flair.

Among the neighborhood’s art-minded hotels, the Gladstone is the most interactive, with shows, classes, and ongoing events. The 37 rooms, all designed by local artists, have breathed new life into the 128-year-old icon, which filmmaker Christina Zeidler took over in 2003 and revitalized in 2005. The Victorian landmark, named for its avenue (in turn named after four-time Canadian Prime Minister William Gladstone), has been a gathering spot for over a century. And it was home to legendary Toronto characters like cowboy Hank Young, who became a fixture at the hotel as a country singer in 1961 and manned the hand-operated elevator from 2005 to 2009, and Peter Styles, former host of Karaoke Night, with applause sign in hand. The legend of Hank lives on in a framed photo in the stairwell en route to the second floor.

The Gladstone continues to push the boundaries of community and culture with creative events like its educational workshop series, Get School’d, and its annual alternative design event, Come Up to My Room (CUTMR), which runs alongside the city’s Interior Design Show. Begin your stay in this architectural gem with a drink at the Café or Melody Bar (that is, if you’re not first thrust into Fameless Karaoke Night).

Okay, let me start by saying that I am not trying to ignite a war with fans of In-N-Out Burger or Shake Shack. But, if you come to D.C., Five Guys is your place for burgers—we don’t go in/out or shake a shack for our bite! Yes, the burger patties at the Five Guys chain are hand-formed and cooked atop a flat top griddle. Yes, they come sandwiched between the halves of a sesame seed topped bun. Yes, you can get them in two different sizes and topped with your choice of condiments. Yes, there are some awesome fries to go with it but only fries; there are no onion rings here. You should know that Five Guys prides itself on its fries. If you want to know the type of spud that gave birth to that day’s fries, check the chalkboard for the name of the farm and location. Unless you are really, really hungry and really, really love fries, go with the small order. It’s more than what most people can devour in one sitting! For the full Five Guys experience, order your meal at the counter and while you wait, munch on the free roasted, in-shell peanuts, but don’t eat too many! You need to leave room for that awesome burger that will soon make its way to you! There are various locations around D.C. (The first Five Guys restaurant opened in 1986 here in Arlington County, Virginia.) Check the website for the one nearest you and order online to beat the line.