“This is my first time spending the Fourth of July in the Hamptons,” said Berkshires habitué Maggie Betts. “I came to support my sister and celebrate MJ with a dance party on the beach.” That’s Michael Jackson, by the way, and the party in question was the Saturday-night celebration hosted by the lovely Christina Lewis and Jessie Betts at Lewis’s East Hampton house. MJ played as revelers trickled between multiple attractions (backyard, bonfire, beach). Rumor had it that word got out about the fete, causing party crashers to summon their best game.
—Stephanie LaCava

With the Fourth of July nearly upon us, many people are celebrating the holiday with backyard BBQs, sparkler-lit dinner parties, and fireworks-watching beach picnics. We surveyed a few of the chicest entertainers we know to see how they are planning to spend their holiday weekends and asked if they had any hostessing tips that they might want to enlighten us with. 

Vogue’s Assistant to the Editor in Chief Indre Rockefeller is going to the capital for a big joint family birthday (her husband’s thirtieth, his brother’s fortieth, and his grandfather’s ninetieth!) in conjunction with the holiday festivities. One party trick that she finds helpful is “setting out place cards with numbers instead of names at a big, long table. As people come over to the table, they pick a number out of a bowl, which serves as their seating assignment. The process is amusing and interactive for everyone and immediately sparks conversations as people settle into their seats. It also ensures that no one can blame the hostess if they end up with a bad dinner partner! ”  

Olivia Chantecaille is planning a terrace luncheon for her weekend. “It’s very casual with the whole family and a few friends like Jason Wu, BJ Blum, and the gallery owner John McWinnie. Typically we sit down post swim, so the dress code is bathing suits under a light summer dress like Tracy Feith or Philip Lim. We decorate the table with a mix of roses, hydrangeas, and irises picked from the garden. The table is dressed with a large hand-embroidered tablecloth inherited from my grandmother, a mix of white French linen napkins, and vintage plates found at a local antiques fair. We pull up a wood bench with big cushions to squeeze in more people and protect ourselves from the sun with large parasols and straw hats from Anne Moore. The meal is a colorful, flavorful mix from local farms and purveyors such as Round Swamp Farm for delicious salads and homemade raspberry pie, Lucy’s Whey for cheese, Iacono farm for organic, free-range chicken, and pick-yourself strawberries from the farm down the road.”

Gallerina turned PR superstar Bettina Prentice is headed for the Hamptons, where she will be cohosting a Gatsby-themed benefit for Oceania with Lydia Hearst, Kristian Laliberte, and Hayley Bloomingdale in Water Mill, after which she and her husband, Jamie, “are throwing on jeans to head to Field Kallop’s [Chuck Close’s right hand] beach BBQ and bonfire party.” The next night the dynamic duo will host an intimate dinner at home in Southampton. Her tips? “Always reserve Lilybug scooters for guests so there will be no drinking and driving! And choose a subtle theme and stick with it. We’ll serve a Latin-themed menu, with cilantro-and-lime-marinated chicken with a tomato-and-avocado salad and tequila cocktails to keep things lively. Flowers will be bold and brightly colored, and our sound track for dinner will heavy on the Gipsy Kings. Jamie tried to hire an amazingly talented local mariachi trio for after dinner, but the group was booked several weeks in advance.”

Lauren Remington Platt is bound for Nantucket, where she will celebrate her Fourth with a big family lunch at the Summerhouse, followed by fireworks at Jetties beach. As for her summer dinner parties, she “likes to keep it simple. Friends come over expecting to catch up with me in a relaxed atmosphere, and I don’t want to spend all night in the kitchen! BBQ-ing also allows men to play a role in food preparation. Cold gazpacho is my favorite course to start with, and no one can resist Bananas Foster for dessert. Homemade sangria is another favorite. Also, both can be prepared earlier in the day and before guests arrive—though the best ingredients are always the friends you invite!” 

—Genevieve Bahrenburg 

Let’s embark on that storied journey out East, the one many New Yorkers make each weekend to the Hamptons. We’ll begin furthest away from Manhattan, in Montauk, and from there find our way back (old-school convertible included).

This year is the eightieth anniversary of the Montauk Yacht Club Resort and Marina, and in celebration, the regal old space has unveiled the fruits of a massive restoration of its 107 guest rooms, private estate villas, three swimming pools, tennis courts, and spa. Of course, you can’t depart Montauk without stopping by the brand-new-this-summer outpost of vintage heaven Melet Mercantile (631-668-9080). 

If you’d rather not venture so far out, you may still be able to land one of the seven suites or three cottages at the just-opened Reform Club on Windmill Lane in Amagansett. Or, if you aren’t so lucky, try to get a reservation at Mezzaluna AMG (631-267-6399), the Hamptons outpost of Jack Luber’s Upper East Side staple Mezzaluna. 

On we go to East Hampton, where you can stay at c/o The Maidstone—that’s care of—the green hotel that’s taken the place of The Maidstone Arms and that boasts a “slow food” restaurant called The Living Room (631-324-5440), which will have outside dining before the end of summer. The Baker House 1650 opened the Baker Carriage House a few weeks ago (it had been a private home) complete with its own swimming pool; it can be rented by room or in its entirety. 

Visit Guild Hall’s refurbished John Drew Theater to see Tennessee Williams’s The Glass Menagerie (starring Amy Irving) up through July (631-324-4050). Post-theater dinner? We love the recently reopened Mexican restaurant Blue Parrot. 

Stay a little while . . . and on July 12 the Fireplace Project, or Pollock-Krasner House (631-324-4929), will present the lecture “Pollock and the Poetic Image.” On July 18 Guild Hall Woodhouse Gallery’s film presentation of Louise Bourgeois: The Spider, the Mistress, and the Tangerine will take place, accompanied by a talk with Amei Wallach. 

Another must-see at Guild Hall? Photographer Taryn Simon’s show, “An American Index of the Hidden and Unfamiliar.”

For summertime shopping there’s pop-up shops dotting Newton Lane, like the Steven Alan Bazaar and La Perla, as well as a year-round Madewell. On Main Street, check out the new Michael Kors, Hermès, or Temperley London shops. Pack the car with your new tropical-colored towels and embellished dresses and stop in Southampton for a snack at Annie’s Organic Café and Market. Of course, we also love the DVF boutiqueon Job’s Lane. Then onward to the beach before it’s back to New York.

—Stephanie LaCava

Don’t let the clambakes, white sails, and weathered hammocks fool you into thinking this is your standard city-by-the-sea; the resort town of Newport, Rhode Island, perches on a storied cliff of its own. Inimitably charming (think The Great Gatsby meets medieval Europe), Newport has offered respite to many a cultural luminary, including the Astors, the Vanderbilts, even Andy Warhol. Below, we asked our favorite girls about town to divulge in the best of Newport this summer.

Tips from Lila Warburton for the perfect July 4th weekend:

Have a cocktail and watch the sunset on the patio of the New York Yacht Club. Grab a hotdog and a cup of chowder from the Black Pearl Hot Dog Stand and walk down to the end of Bannister’s Wharf, where you can sink into one of the Adirondack chairs and watch the boats dock as the sun goes down. Charter one of Earl McMillan’s classic yachts, like “Enticer,” and take a cruise under the Newport Bridge and around the cove. The Clarke Cooke House (also called the Candy Store), is the best restaurant in town! For a quick bite, order one of the specialty rolls off the sushi menu—the chef spends his winters making sushi at St. Barths’ BAZ Bar. On Saturday night, the place to be is the third floor of the Clarke Cooke House, known as the Sky Bar. The heirloom-tomato salad, or the lobster ravioli, followed by the Hawaiian Hapu’apu’u fish, is the perfect meal. (But save room for their signature Snowball in Hell—chocolate roulade covered in Callebault chocolate.) The ultimate Newport drink is from Bailey’s Beach—a mix of lemon, mint, and rum, otherwise known as the Beachcomber. Walk up to Spouting Rock and jump off into the cool bay. If you’re feeling extra courageous, swim under the cave—but don’t tell anyone; only the true Newport insider knows about this spot. Mandarine Boutique is the ultimate shopping destination (the owner also owns Terra and Mandarine Bijoux in St. Barths).

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When the first leg of the High Line celebrated its long-awaited opening earlier this month, New Yorkers put on their comfortable walking shoes and reveled in the most chatter-worthy addition to the local topography since Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s The Gates back in 2005. After years of daydreaming, planning, and headache-inducing jackhammering, a weed-choked, abandoned elevated railway on Manhattan’s West Side had been magically transformed—into a high-toned version of a weed-choked, abandoned elevated railway. It remains unclear whether the High Line will ultimately be viewed—or used—as a park, as a promenade, or as a crosswalk-free pedestrian superhighway, but, all skepticism aside, the mere effect of it is stunning: bird’s-eye views of the Hudson and the abandoned Cunard steamship pier; brawny loungers pointed toward the New Jersey sunset; cantilevered benches made of ipe wood; and all those meticulously chosen native plants that have replaced all the old accidental native plants—the grasses, the birches, and, as of last week, the hummelo hedge nettles with their gorgeous sprays of purple flowers.

If nothing else, the High Line at last provides a place for New Yorkers to do something they are not known to do very well: saunter. It also provides the backbone to an impressive culinary corridor. The Meatpacking District and its environs have long been a foodie pleasure garden, with Spice Market, Pastis, Craftsteak, John Dory, and Del Posto clustered in a five-block radius. There’s also the Chelsea Market, which the High Line now skirts on its way up toward Twentieth Street, not to mention a sprinkling of curiosities, including Los Dados, Sueños chef Sue Torres’s high-end taqueria; Hogs & Heifers, where the jukebox still belts out Merle Haggard and the bartenders still have an aversion to shirts; and the indestructible Hector’s Café & Diner, hunched under the tracks since 1962 and the alleged favorite of the High Line’s civilian cofounders, Robert Hammond and Joshua David. (There’s also the boarded-up R & L Restaurant on Gansevoort Street, the former home of Florent, which is rumored to open as a new bistro just in time for the High Line Festival on July 12.) But the centerpiece of it all is Andre Balazs’s Standard Hotel—that hulkingly Stalinesque diptych in poured concrete and glass by Polshek Partnership—and its brand-new restaurant, the Standard Grill.   Continue reading ›

You won’t find a swank, one-name nightclub in the Berkshires. The sleepy towns that run up Massachusetts’ Route 7 don’t have their Main Street real estate taken up by designer stores or fancy restaurants. You won’t see a sea of blacked-out Range Rovers parading around the town square or run into P Diddy at the local market, and frankly, that’s just how this week’s Berkshires It girl, Maggie Betts, likes it. A weekend native of the Berkshires, Betts has spent most summers (from the age of six) with her family in the mountainous countryside of Clayton Corners. And, while the handful of towns that make up the ’shires are as low-key as they were in her youth, recent years have brought some cool customers (designers Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez of Proenza Schouler are recent converts), smart enough to relish in its simple offerings. So what is it that keeps Ms. Betts, a bona fide, city-fide, cosmonite and social soigné, from making the switch southeast to Long Island’s more lavish coast? “I suppose I like it because it’s so relaxed and unpretentious. . . . Most people who go there for the weekend seem to do so out of a shared desire to get away from all that stuff!” For those interested in making the (short!) trip to the land of peace and anonymity, we’ve outlined Maggie’s must-stop spots:

This summer make sure to get your vintage shopping fix at Petria in Great Barrington; take a hike to Campbell Falls; book the School House room for a night at the quaint, mom-and-pop Stonover Farm in Lenox, and, while you’re there, walk down the block to take in a concert at Tanglewood (a James Taylor favorite); delight in an intimate dinner at the historic White Hart Inn, or for a real culinary experience and a sommelier’s dream wine list try John Andrews Restaurant in Egremont; treat yourself to some R&R with a spa day at Canyon Ranch; take an antiquing drive along Route 7 from Sheffield to Lenox, where the shops are plentiful, but be sure to stop by Bradford’s Auction House, the insiders-only, bi-monthly antiques auction; and, for the more adventuresome, air balloons and glider planes are all the local rave. Or, savor the opportunity to do absolutely nothing at all.

—Sylvana Soto-Ward 

The Brooklyn flea market is still a fun (sort of) city escape.  After trolling for vintage jewelry finds (a certain diehard likes to keep her sources secret!) shop for your Sunday night dinner party dessert menu.  Pick up Fine & Raw raw chocolate ice cream or Julie Tran’s red velvet cake balls (she works at the Met Museum Library during the week!)  Another summertime Brooklyn standout: The Prospect Park Summer Soiree at the Boathouse (above) co-chaired by Vogue’s Sally Singer, Florence Kane and Jane Herman.



Prospect Park Summer Soiree 2009: Hot Diggity Dance Hall, July 23



—Stephanie LaCava

In honor of the classic spirit of Wimbledon (it is, after all, the only Grand Slam match still played on grass courts), the Soho House in New York is toasting tennis with a equally classic cocktail: the Pimm’s Cup. What is in a beloved, and decidedly British, Pimm’s Cup, you ask? Why, gin, of course, and other sundry summer ingredients (see recipe below). So, before you head out of town for the Fourth of July, head to the New York outpost, order up a “Wimbledon Pitcher,” and settle in to watch the games—including the finals, which will be broadcast on the roof deck. If the weather, however, continues to misbehave, you can take your drink downstairs to the screening room so you don’t miss the action. The Soho House provides its guests many amenities, but a retractable roof (à la the new addition to Wimbledon) is not yet among them.

The Wimbledon Pitcher

Drop into the pitcher:
5 leaves of mint
4 slices cucumber
2 strawberries
3 wedges of lemon
3 wedges of orange
Ice
8 oz of Pimm’s
Top with Sprite
Add a Rimm of Hendrick’s Gin

—Stephanie LaCava

Flatiron’s Raines Law Room has established itself as one of New York City’s speakeasies, but there’s a secret we want to tell you: a clandestine garden.  The just-opened outdoor space fits only twenty people. Sit amidst an herb garden (red and yellow raspberries, mint, sage, basil) and have a cocktail made with these house-grown ingredients (what they don’t grow themselves they buy at the nearby Union Square Farmer’s Market). South Side Rickey with fresh mint?

—Stephanie LaCava

During the eighties and nineties, the Jane Hotel was one of the epicenters of New York’s bohemian culture; the musical Hedwig and the Angry Inch and the Million Dollar Club, among many other iconic rock-’n’-roll headliners, performed there. The hotel has continued to “house guests with more dash than cash ever since,” but its two-story lobby bar/ballroom has recently been renovated by Sean MacPherson and Eric Goode (the dynamic duo behind the Greenwich and Bowery Hotel lounges) and has quickly become the Rose Bar/Beatrice Inn/Socialista crowd’s (with cash and dash) next haunt away from home. Run by Matt Kleigman and Carlos Quiarte of the Smile on Bond Street, the massive living room–esque space has a disco ball and film projector (Monday is movie night) on the ceiling and loads of esoteric, albeit supercool, art and cocktails. 

—Genevieve Bahrenburg