Headvoice

Pet and Pots

Dinner Menu

When in New York recently we walked about the Time Warner center at Columbus Circle. Neither one of us had seen it since it was completed and I was curious to see the Jazz at Lincoln Center space and also because it housed Per Ser, the new restaurant Chef Thomas Keller opened in 2004. It had received four stars when reviewed by the New York Times and it supposedly takes months to get a reservation.

Here is a scan of the dinner menu for June 13th of this year. Let’s look at a few things. First notice the generous use of quotation marks in both the name and the descriptions. There is a lot of “playing” here. You need to read this menu with your two hands making those quotation marks in the air.

For example, the poached shrimp starter course is garnished with a toasted peanut “crumble”. The surf in the “surf and turf” is Nova Scotia lobster which is served as “mitts”, however that might be. I don’t know because we didn’t have reservations and $210 per person prix fixe is a little pricey, even with gratuity included.

Continuing with the menu, note that the ravioli are served with an estate vintage 2003 olive oil and salt that is described as “Sale al Profumo del Chianti”—this salt is perfumed by Chianti. I wonder how.

On the fillet of barramundi the garnishes include violet artichokes and a Spanish caper emulsion which caused a Pavlovian outburst of saliva production in my mouth on first reading. It gets even more delectable sounding on the grilled beef course with crisp marrow, asparagus, caramelized spring onions, wild mushrooms and “mousseline béarnaise”, which implies a mousse like version of béarnaise. Drool alert at level red.

The sorbet course features “compressed” pineapple and ginger ice cream among other delights. I only know the humble, “fully expanded” version of that tropical fruit. And at the end are “mignardises” which often are chocolate truffles or other bite size sweets to savor over coffee or cognac at the end of a meal.

There were two other menus that were available to take. One was a ten course “Tasting of Vegetables” that would turn any rampant carnivore into a happy vegetarian and also a Chef’s Tasting Menu that again featured ten courses. All menus listed the same price, $210 with service included. I wonder if I could get a table for a July birthday dinner…

Today's photo theme keyword- "Horizontal"

Carnegie Hall - Rufus does Judy

Last week we took a road trip south to see Rufus Wainwright at Carnegie Hall and also to visit my parents at their new house, which they have been building over the past year. It was thus a dual-purpose trip, but not in the predictable sense.

I have been traveling a fair amount for work over the last year, but it was strictly for business, which is just like working in an office every day, only shittier. Hotels blur into one another. Airports become an endless series of hurdles to cross. Cabs and trains appear and disappear, and the receipts become your history on paper, ending their lives in expense reports. It can sound romantic, but lots of business travel can become tedious.

This trip started with a rude awakening at the border into the States. "Turn off your car, open the trunk and give me the keys," were the first words out of the officer's mouth. What a lovely welcome for us returning citizens!

I suppose with the recent arrest of terror suspects living in our very own suburb the heat has been turned up at the border crossings. For all the times I have crossed the border in the past, this is by far the most scrutiny I have ever received. With no lingering Muslim extremists or overflowing cartons of cigarettes found in the trunk, we are off after a little more questioning about our trip.

The scenery is amazing at this time of year on the route we take down to New York. Stunning rolling hills, lush with late spring greenery and going on for miles and miles. There are no ugly billboards for the most part. We avoid the thruway. The sun is shining and warm... we make our way to glamorous Scranton PA and stay the night after dinner overlooking yet another green ridge of mountains. Marvellous!

Did you know that there was a Holiday Inn on West 57th in Manhattan? Even though I lived in Manhattan for the best part of a decade, it was still news to me as I browsed the web looking for a hotel room for the night of the concert. I was little cautious to make the reservation since I feared it might not pass the skeeve factor. My mother had recommended checking under the sheets at check-in for bugs on the phone earlier in the day, raising some anxiety.

The hotel proved to be a tad rundown and filled with swarms of furtive tourists―does that mean me now?―yet the room was double the size of the last hotel I stayed at in New York, and at half the price. Newer boutique hotels prove to have laughingly expensive small rooms as a default.

At Carnegie Hall you could really feel the buzz as the audience gathered on West 57th St. Stakes were high here, and the reviews were good overall. Lorna Luft strolled on to do a duet. The roaring applause after certain numbers I will remember forever.

Sarah Jessica Parker just happened to be standing next to us afterwards. She graciously signed some autographs but was amusingly hiding her face in her hair to avoid being recognized. Sex and the City moment achieved in addition. What an evening...

Kitchen on the Bay

The parent's new kitchen looks great!

Summer Cut

I don't have the patience at all... Mark cuts his hair, and it can take hours. Lucky for him.

Do you want to go for another walk?

I take the same pictures every year

At least it seems that way sometimes.

Backyard Blues

Wiggy

Somebody needs a short summer haircut fast.

Rounding the Point

Another chapter in my life has ended, and we are headed out on uncharted waters yet again.