Window shopping #52
Your chance at a Rao's res, centennial drops, and where to stay for Milan Design Week
This is Window Shopping, a weekly mini-letter from Window Seat—your stylish scroll through what’s new and noteworthy in the world of travel. Each issue blends timely headlines, personal favorites, and design-forward hotels to keep your wanderlust well-fed.
On April 23, Marriott Bonvoy and Amex are recreating Rao's legendary Harlem dining room inside JW Marriott Essex House. For $300 per ticket, you’ll get a choice between two seatings, each offering a multi-course dinner featuring the restaurant's signature dishes. For context: Rao's has 10 tables and a years-long waiting list for regulars so this might be the closest you ever come. The sign-up list for tickets will reopen on Friday, April 10 at 10 am EST (text 917-540-2868). Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card Members will get priority.
United Airlines turned 100 this week and marked the occasion with some limited-edition drops: for one, an adidas Samba in United Blue, with the airline's globe logo on the left heel and a gold "100 years" stamp on the right. Just like Delta’s centennial sneaker drop last year (which I think they did better, if I’m being completely honest), it's an employee exclusive, available only through internal channels. United also released a special vinyl pressing of Rhapsody in Blue, the Gershwin composition that's been the airline's sonic identity for decades.
One thing about me? I always have a candle burning. It's the single easiest way to make my space feel intentional. My current rotation covers every room and every mood, from the daytime burn on my desk to the evening scent I light if I have friends over. A few favorites I like to keep stocked:
Smoked Cherry by P.F. Candle Co.: From their Hi-Fi collection, inspired by hotel lobbies and audio lounges. Earthy, fruity, and a little gourmand. It gives a whiskey-tinged maraschino cherry. My favorite for a sultry evening.
Prinsesstårta by Flamingo Estate: Inspired by Sant Ambroeus’ famous Principessa cake. Breezy, resinous, and just a tinge of sweet. My daytime burn.
Into the Forest by Nette x Tata Harper: Inspired by shinrin-yoku, the Japanese practice of forest bathing. This has an intoxicatingly bright and fresh scent that I love for my bedside.
Portrait Milano — Milan, Italy
Milan Design Week is coming up later this month and if you're going (or need a reason to), how about a stunning hotel? Portrait Milano is a former Archiepiscopal Seminary, one of the oldest examples of Lombard Baroque architecture in the world, renovated into a 73-suite luxury hotel at the heart of the Quadrilatero della Moda. For this year’s Design Week, Zaha Hadid Architects x Audi are installing a titanium-colored fiberglass portal set over a reflecting pool directly in the hotel's courtyard. Why wouldn’t you want to be headquartered directly inside one of the installations?!
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Tori Simokov is a Travel Writer and Graphic Designer/Strategist based in New York. To get in touch, email tori@v1projects.com. Want more? Check out Instagram, TikTok, or shop her curated favorites.