Jaunted

Tags: Upscale Airport Restaurants / EWR / Steakhouses / → All Tags

Belly Up At Newark Airport's Gallagher's

Newsstand snacks are for kids! Before your next long-haul flight, enjoy a meal that will take the entire journey to digest. At least, that's what we think the impetus was for New York steakhouse Gallagher's to open up an outpost in the Continental terminal of Newark-Liberty International Airport.

Stagger to your gate after some prime rib with a side of creamed spinach or attack the "chilled medley of seafood" (serves 4-6, or one college student on his way home from a semester abroad). Opened in 2002, Gallagher's doesn't take any leaps in the decor of its Terminal C outpost -- checkered cloths and black and white photos abound. But that angle might actually be comforting after a culinarily adventurous trip.

"For airport food it was GREAT!" raves (sort of) a Yelp commenter, but a Bonaire message-board wag faults the joint for closing earlier than posted hours. But if you can get there when it's open, sounds like you'll walk away satisfied.

Related Stories:
· Aloha-Mex at EWR: Smashmouth Delish [Jaunted]
· EWR to ORY Means Business [Jaunted]
· Moishe's Steakhouse in Montreal [Jaunted]

[Photo: Conferencing News]

Tags: Airport Bars / EWR / Newark Travel / → All Tags

Heineken Taps Into Newark Intl Airport

When you think of an airport bar, what usually comes to mind is some bland space halfway down a terminal, whose sole focus is to overcharge you as much as possible while getting you as drunk as possible before your flight. Thankfully Newark International Airport is helping to change this image with the introduction of their new Heineken Lounge, boasting Amsterdam's best-known beer and an interior worthy of the jet set.

If you thought good design, comfortable furniture and a view out onto the tarmac were features strictly reserved for first class lounges, the Heineken Bar will happily prove you wrong with its white leather couches, semi-private conversation nooks and ambient lighting. We suppose that just much as the bar gives you an impression of the Heineken brand, it also serves as a kind of unofficial Netherlands outpost before you even step onto your Amsterdam flight.

Of course they'll have a fully stocked bar in addition to Heines, but we're really loving that this place gives us another option for airport workspace. Out ticket to starting a flight off right is if we can get a beer, a clean tabletop and a comfy chair; we'll be starting a tab here soon enough.

Related Stories:
· Heineken Lounge by UXUS [Dezeen]
· Airport WiFi: Fuggheddaboutit at Newark Airport [Jaunted]
· Newark Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: UXUS Design]

Tags: Runway Incursions / EWR / Airport Hell / → All Tags

More Near Misses At Newark

Months after we wrote about a near miss on the runway at Newark Liberty International Airport, they're still happening. Reader Jay Decker writes in with a spine-tingling tale the day before US Airways Flight 1549's near miss:

My wife, son, and I were on Continental flight 855 from West Palm Beach into EWR. We were running late, about an hour, and were supposed to land at about 4:10pm Jan. 14.

We were just touching down, the rear wheels were kissing the ground, when the pilot powered up and nosed up and we struggled our way back into the air. I guess this is commonly referred to as a "touch and go." The pilot apologized, even as the in cockpit alarm was still beeping, and said that Newark had a "space" issue and we would be landing shortly. I turned to my wife and translated: "There was something on our runway."

Needless to say, we were all happy when we finally landed some time later.

Senior Editor Juliana's mom experienced something similar on the same route in November, except, she noted, the pilot did not apologize. Hey Newark, it's 2009: Time to turn over a new leaf and figure out what's causing all these near misses! Controlling errant flocks of birds may be outside of ATC's reach, but adjusting traffic patterns isn't.

Got a near miss story at Newark or elsewhere? Tip us off!

Related Stories:
· Near Misses at EWR Keep on Keepin' On [Jaunted]
· Flight 1549 Coverage [Jaunted]
· Airport WiFi: Fuggheddaboudit at Newark Airport [Jaunted]

[Photo: skoobie99]

Tags: Thanksgiving Alternatives / Bowling / Water Parks / Thanksgiving-Alternatives-Map / → All Tags

Waterlogged Fun In Ohio

Why slump on the couch watching sports this Thanksgiving when you could be doing something active? There aren't any pickup football games at southern Ohio's Cherry Valley Lodge, but you can test your throwin' arm and your kicking legs with its Turkey Bowl Package, offered each weekend in November.

The resort is offering two days of passes to its CoCo Key Water Resort--indoors, of course!--along with two tickets to a special kind of bowling game: Bowling with frozen turkeys! Depending on how you feel about fowl, you may prefer hurling them far, far away from you to dishing them up. But if not, the lodge will also hand you a 15-lb. frozen turkey to take home, for a Thanksgiving redux.

Related Stories:
· Simply Your Feast At Hancock's Shaker Village [Jaunted]
· Thanksgiving coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: bwware]

Tags: Airport Spas / Massage Bar / EWR / Jaunted Tested / → All Tags

Jaunted Tested: Massage Bars at the Airport

Whenever we gots time to kill in an airport, we like to troll up and down the gates checking out the retail offerings. Part of this stems from a necessity like "We need to buy a pack of gum" or "We want a bottle of water before take-off" or "We really need a big bag of trashy tabloid magazines to keep us occupied on the flight."

More often than we like, this airport-trolling stems from sheer boredom. And because we're airport geeks and travel a lot, we're always keeping mental tabs on which airports have what and where.

One of the things that always perks us up is a mini-spa, a place that offers quickie massages or mani/pedis or even facials and haircuts. Yet hitting up the mini-spa is not always practical because who has the time?

But yesterday, we had three whole hours to kill in the American terminal at Newark Liberty International and guess what we did? We tested the Massage Bar near Gates 30-39.

more ›

Tags: Airport WiFi / EWR / → All Tags

Airport WiFi: Fuggheddaboudit at Newark Airport

Contribute your airport wireless report by leaving it in comments, uploading your airport photo to Jaunted Flickr Photo Pool, or via email, and we will add it to our U.S. Airport Wireless map.

Usually in our stories on Airport WiFi we like to dish out which airports are letting travelers surf the web for free and without hassle. But this isn't one of those happy stories.

Yesterday, we were waiting in the Continental terminal at Newark Liberty International Airport when we realized we had to go online immediately and file a story. We selected "concourse" from our WiFi network options and were taken straight to a page from Boingo Wireless. We were given two options: One was to sign up for a yearly account and the second option was 24 hours for $7.95.

Since we were on a tight schedule--the plane was boarding, our deadline inching closer--we opted for the $7.95 and spent about 10 minutes total online. Grrr.

Boingo is overcharging people to use the Internet in other places, too:

With over 100,000 hot spots worldwide, Boingo is available everywhere your travels take you, including 400 airports, top hotels like Marriott and Hilton or even around town at places like Barnes & Noble or The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf.

What's more annoying is that we actually have access to the Continental President's Club where the wireless is free. It's just that it was at the far end of the terminal, and we wouldn't have had time to haul bags over there, file the story and board on time. Double grrr.

Related Stories:
· Our Guide to Free Airport WiFi [Jaunted]
· Airport WiFi coverage [Jaunted]

Tags: Guess the Airport / Newark Airport / Continental / → All Tags

Guess the Airport Revealed :: Bada Bing!

In our first (and we admit, easy) edition of Guess the Airport, we put up this picture and gave you some hints about where this airport is located.

Maybe it was the hint about how the terminal is nicer than the city it's in but you commenters were right on track---its Newark Airport (EWR) in Newark, New Jersey. This picture was taken in the newish Continental terminal last week. And if you couldn't tell you were in Jersey when you landed at this airport, then we're sure the Sopranos memorabilia sold in the gift shops would get your attention.

A picture of Bada Bing t-shirts and the Sopranos cookbook after the jump.

more ›

Tags: Car Rentals / Travel Deals / Crime / Florida Tourism / → All Tags

For Just $24.75, You, Too, Can Get Carjacked

Payless Car Rental really knows how to run those jalopy promotions right. The "discount" car rental company (is that not an oxymoron?) has pulled out all the stops to produce this double whammy.

First, they've done Florida a huge favor with the minivan tie-in. Très sexy. Rent twice, get a free soccer lesson and coupon for a mom coif at participating Supercuts.

Then there's the Newark special, in which they clearly are suggesting that your vehicle take you not to the surrounding area, but straight into Newark proper. You'd think they'd lower the price if they really wanted to get rid of those cars and get you to explore the city. Remember: red for Bloods, blue for Crips!

Tags: Airports / Food / Restaurants / Hawaii / → All Tags

Aloha-Mex at EWR: Smashmouth Delish

(Alex Salkever is the editor of Hawaii travel blog Hawaiirama and a general travel maven on all things Hawaii. He also spends a lot of time in NYC and writes about it.)

There are two great things about Newark's Liberty International Airport with regard to Hawaii. First, Continental flies a daily non-stop to and from Honolulu from/to EWR. This flight is by far the most comfortable, hassle-free way to travel between Oahu and the Eastern US (if you are going outer island, you may do just as well changing planes on the West Coast for a non-stop to Maui, Kauai or the Big Island). The other great thing about Newark's airport is the presence of Maui Tacos in Concourse C. This is one of 18 franchises of the Maui-based Hawaii-Mex chain founded in 1993 by celeb chef Mark Ellman of Avalon and Mala Wharf fame.

The burritos at Maui Tacos are chunky, large and not greasy at all. The highlight, however, is their stupendous fixings bar with six kinds of fresh salsa, fresh cilantro, onions, lime slices, escabeche, and even pickled jalapenos. The salsas are outrageously good and somewhat unique. Our favorite is the chile arbol spiked with pineapple juice--it's a velvet glove of a condiment that sings sweetly then smashmouths you with a wicked blow to the palate. Your seatmate may not appreciate the meal, but for a long flight, and considering the generally crappy cuisine that airline food remains, a go box from Maui Tacos is a primo way to fuel up at the airport. The Newark outpost is open from 6 am to 9 pm; entrees typically run from $3-$10.

[Photo: roenke47]

Tags: Airports / Airport Hell / TSA / Airport Security / → All Tags

Newark Airport Sucks at Life, Security

Let's just say that our high school career taught us full well that a 2-out-of-22 does not an A+ make. With that in mind, it's too bad we're partially dependent on Newark Airport and Continental's service out of it. Security screeners there recently failed a test conducted by undercover TSA agents.

Screeners missed mock explosive devices, didn't use their metal detector wands at the appropriate times, and failed to properly inspect suspicious carry-on items. It all slipped by their supervisors, too. What it adds up to is a whole lot of nothing except for more suggestions that the TSA take a cue from El Al and start screening people and Ziploc baggies.

'Course, that would be far too expensive. We say, get these guys a good SparkNotes and they'll be pulling B-minuses in no time. Trust us, we know!

[Photo: McBeagle]

Related Stories:
· Newark airport screeners failed 20 of 22 tests [Cleveland.com]

Tags: Newark / New York City / Art / Museums / → All Tags

Newark Is Totally Comical!

Ah, cartoonists--they're the underdogs of the art world. Not that comic art is oh-so-underground, but it has certainly fought longer and harder than most to be considered a fine art. Of course, while the art history students were whining, illustration majors were whooping their asses in art school anyway.

Whether you've always been turned on by comics or are merely curious, Masters of American Comics, a two-part show recently transplanted from L.A. to New York, is more than worth a look. That is if you natives can suck it up enough to pull a reverse  bridge 'n' tunnel, because part A (comic strips) is on display at the Newark Museum in Newark! New Jersey! Part B (comic books) resides at the Jewish Museum in Manhattan. Whew.

The exhibit zeroes in on fifteen chosen artists (the "masters") and delves deep into their art and influence. You have until January 28, 2007 to make it happen.

[Photo: mgrhode1]