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Hotel Peter and Paul, New Orleans
Ash Hotels Immerse Guests in Great American Cities (MICHELIN, 2024)
In New Orleans’ trendy Faubourg Marigny district, a former church, school house, rectory and convent, is now the sprawling Hotel Peter and Paul – an Ash property. The hotel’s check-in and concierge is tucked to the side of a grand staircase that takes guests to compact but thoughtfully designed guest rooms where hues like pale blue, deep green, or rich burgundy reflect the city’s standing in the American South and its French history.
Steps from the hotel, doors open to a host stand where a cheery local seats guests and visitors at The Elysian Bar’s small lunch counter or at a table in one of several dining rooms. In the back of the building is a cocktail space that feels opulent and inviting at once: a generous bar framed by wooden columns is lit by modern sconces and pendant lights which live alongside vintage candelabras.
Hotel Peter and Paul captures the quirks and charms of one of America’s most iconic cities while feeling somehow otherworldly. According to Xavier Donnelly, Ash’s creative director, this feeling is intentional. “We are designing properties that feel very tailored to a city and evoke your fantasy of being in that place.” The Ash portfolio of hotels currently includes The Dean in Providence, Rhode Island, Hotel Peter and Paul in New Orleans, Louisiana, The Siren in Detroit, Michigan, and Ulysses in Baltimore, Maryland.
Luann de Lesseps Knows What She Wants (Playgirl, 2025)
“Mirror!” Luann de Lesseps calls out to one of the members of her small entourage. “Where’s that mirror?”
She’s being shot in the studio of renowned filmmaker and photographer Timothy Greenfield-Sanders, a Grammy winner who’s lensed the likes of Alfred Hitchcock, Anjelica Houston, and Ruth Bader-Ginsburg. With nearly five decades of experience, he gets his shots quickly. He calls Luann over to look.
“His arm looks awkward here,” she points to Brandon, the male model on the screen. “Maybe he should take me like this.” She spins to Brandon, “Darling, give me your arms.” Once she’s coached him on the next set of poses, the photographer nodding, she studies the shots some more and gives herself direction. “Arm out, chin up,” she tells herself. She repeats this as she marches back into the frame.
This level of confidence was built before her career in reality TV, and it’s only deepened with her cabaret success. Over Turkish food, seconds and then thirds, Luann recounts her life and makes it clear that confidence has always propelled her forward.
Playgirl, August 2025
Scotcheroo, Daniel Tingcungco
50 States, 50 Desserts: America’s Favorite Sweet Treats (CNTraveler, 2025)
The Iowa State Fair may be the Olympics of indulgence, but its most iconic desserts—fried pies and fried Twinkies—hardly reflect the quiet excellence of Iowa’s home bakers. These over-the-top extravagances are flashy, fleeting, and impossible to transport to the picnics and potlucks where the state’s more earnest desserts are consumed (and enjoyed).
For anyone who grew up in Iowa, homemade dessert means one thing: the bar. And among the dozens of Midwestern dessert bars, none is more quintessentially Iowan than the scotcheroo, a peanut butter Rice Krispie treat bound by corn syrup and topped with a thick, glossy spread made from melted chocolate and butterscotch chips.