It isn't every day that you find a perfect item of clothing with which to travel -- something that can seamlessly take you from the beaches of Malibu to the sidewalks of Paris, fold up to the same size as a small square handkerchief, and won't wrinkle when packed in a suitcase stuffed to bursting.

Perhaps that's why the launch of Mayer, a new line of vintage-inspired dresses by Jenny Galluzzo (sketches pictured, left), is cause for such celebration (namely: a cocktail party this weekend at Maison 24, the impeccable home furnishing store in Bridgehampton). Mayer, which is named for Jenny's ultra-chic grandmother, Florette Mayer, offers six silhouettes (two tops and four dresses) based on a collection of caftans Florette purchased in the 1970s while traveling around the world.

"My grandmother was always seeking adventure," Jenny (pictured, right) says. "And she brought back treasures from her travels. Going through her closet is like shopping in the best vintage store you can imagine."

Now, Jenny's gain is ours, too.

Purchasing information available soon on Mayer's website.

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In the Fall 2008 Issue of Town & Country TRAVEL (on newsstands Aug. 5), the delightful Clotilde Dusoulier, creator of the beloved food blog Chocolate & Zucchini and author of two books, Chocolate & Zucchini and Clotilde's Edible Adventures in Paris (pictured, right), chronicled a recent meal at Le Jules Verne, the landmark restaurant in the Eiffel Tower.
 
A native Parisienne, Clotilde recalled her childhood fantasies of what it would be like to eat in this most famous of places. She discovers that, since the kitchen was taken over by Alain Ducasse, its acclaim is much deserved. As interested as we were by Clotilde's insights into Le Jules Verne, we were equally as eager to discover what foodie spots she would single out as her own personal "landmarks."
 
Her answers are perhaps a small taste of what one can expect from her new book, which she describes as "a window onto my Paris, this delicious stomping ground for the food enthusiast."
 
"It is the companion I wish I had for every city I visit, pointing me to the edible highlights and giving me the lowdown on the dining scene, the best food-shopping haunts, and the locals favorites," Dusoulier says.
 
Her top picks in Paris, as told to T&C, after the jump:

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Last summer, I had the pleasure of attending an Outstanding in the Field dinner when Chef Jim Denevan’s culinary roadshow landed in La Plaza Cultural Community Garden, a pastoral patch of nature in New York City’s East Village. For years, I’d been deeply impressed by Denevan’s project, which hosts enchanted al fresco meals in fields, ranches, dairies, vineyards and farms all across the country in an effort to reconnect diners with their food and the people responsible for producing it.

Alas, when I tried to purchase a seat for one of the events in my area this year, they were all sold out. So I was especially delighted when I discovered that Denevan’s long-anticipated cookbook, "Oustanding in the Field: A Farm to Table Cookbook," is now available.

Featuring more than one hundred seasonally-inspired recipes, this lovely compendium is full of appealing dishes — Corn Chowder with Marjoram, Wilted Dandelion Salad with Pancetta and Poached Egg, Grass-fed Beef Skirt Steak with Artichoke and Asparagus — that put summer’s bounty to brilliant use. While I wait for the tomatoes to ripen so that I can prepare Tomato Water, an elixir as perfectly pure as its name, and Green Tomato Marmalade, I’ve been baking up a storm, most recently Chocolate Rosemary Cake -- which came out of the oven a dense, decadent flourless disc perfumed with herbs.

Get the recipe after the jump:

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