What a weekend! Last Saturday was J's birthday, & for once, I didn't have to work. I love what I do for a living, but this time of year tends to be busy & I often end up with gigs on J's birthday, our anniversary, or both. We decided to celebrate by making the weekend revolve around two of our favorite things: food & movies.
On Saturday afternoon, we saw "Contagion", which is brilliant & very scary because the plot line is so realistic. The characters are well-written & acted & there are several strong female roles, something one doesn't always get from mainstream Hollywood. Following the movie, we went home, changed into dressier attire, & headed to The Prime Rib, our favorite steakhouse, for dinner.
When we arrived at the restaurant, the manager came out to meet our car. How often does that happen? Okay, he's a great guy & we're Facebook friends, but really, J & I felt like movie stars! Once inside, we had delicious drinks (a rye Manhattan for J, a Champagne cocktail for me) before settling into our cozy table. There, J feasted on roasted tomato soup & the "split cut" of Prime Rib (despite its name, not a small steak!) while I tucked into a Caesar salad, followed by the most perfectly cooked piece of rockfish I have ever eaten. We shared a fabulous bottle of Chianti & two side dishes: green beans & tomatoes as well as mashed potatoes. Dessert was a slice of chocolate mousse pie, gratis because we were celebrating J's birthday, & of course I had to accompany my share of the sweet with a glass of Chartreuse. If the food sounds old-school, well, it is, & it's the sort of cuisine that's becoming increasingly hard to find on restaurant menus, especially high-end ones. Service was marvelous, as always; we left full, happy, & in my case, slightly tipsy.
J & I love all kinds of food, from fine dining to street-fair fare. We can both find dishes we love from almost any culture or region. When dining out, we just want to have a great experience, especially on a birthday, anniversary, or other "big night." Alas, many establishments fall short in at least one of the areas that matter to us on all occasions: food, wine list, atmosphere, & clientele. Gimmicky menus, bar food at crazy prices, & snobbish customers who are rude to the staff (& perhaps even to other diners!) are not for us. Fortunately, none of the above was in evidence on Saturday night.
One great meal deserves another, no? That was our line of thinking on Sunday, when we headed to Gertrude's, another favorite spot, for an amazing brunch. J had a mimosa & a garden omelet; I chose a "Dirty Gertie" (spicy Bloody Mary, garnished with a shrimp) & Eggs Gertrude (eggs Benedict, but with crab cakes instead of meat.) Naturally, we each had a cup of red crab soup to start - not doing so would have been unthinkable! Again, food, drinks, & service were superb.
We finished off our festive weekend by watching Tim Burton's "Alice in Wonderland" on satellite TV. Missed this one in theaters; & what a shame - the special effects are marvelous & actually enhance the plot rather than being an excuse for lack of one. All of the performances are terrific, as is the script. Even on the small screen, not to be missed.
And now it's Monday & we're back to reality, but our anniversary is at the end of this month, so perhaps more weekend decadence awaits!
Monday, October 3, 2011
Vintage "Carmencita" dress, Chanel bag, Sesto Meucci heels
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