Post-Election Bliss
Love or hate the election outcomes (and in our house, one of us loved them and one of us hated them), you gotta show some respect for the people that toil days and nights for months churning out incendiary attack ads, front-page worthy polling data and campaign events that end up on YouTube. Oh, sure, by the end of the campaign season, you grimace when another one of those ads comes on, and you're totally tired of seeing red-and-blue pie charts in the newspaper. But you know you appreciate the backbreaking work of the campaign staff and consultants that keeping our twisted democratic process running.
Basil loves his work, and I love seeing him happy. But the wives of campaign consultants aren't called 'election widows' in even-numbered years for nothing. For the past two months, Basil has been working two shifts at the office and spending the rest of his time with his Blackberry in hand. He did conference calls at 1 pm on Sunday afternoons and 8 pm on Friday nights. He went to bed at 3:30 am and woke up at 7:30 am for 8 am calls with clients.
And while I've definitely gotten accustomed to the grind of the 0/2/4/6/8 years, I don't like it. It's hard on all of us. This year, I really didn't lose my cool over the long, obsessed hours until the last week. I think I did well.
So to celebrate Basil's freedom from the ball and chain of democracy and my success at having been a good supportive corporate wifey, we went out and painted the town red this weekend. Well, techincally, half red and half blue, given our political leanings. So...purple. We painted the town purple.
I want to personally encourage all my readers to dine at Cityzen before they die. It was absolutely unparalleled. I have had good meals before. I have had good service before. But I have never, ever had a restaurant experience as superb as ours was on Saturday night.
Upon arrival, our waiter, whose subtleties and personality I really grew to appreciate over the course of the next two and a half hours, asked if we wanted to start our evening with a cocktail. I asked for what has become my signature drink - a Knob Creek Perfect Manhattan (Thank you to Dr. Hugnkiss for introducing me to this drink a year ago).
The Perfect Manhattan is no pansy drink. It is a drink that will put hair on your chest and numb your throat in a couple of sips. When I ordered one at 701 a couple of weekend ago, the bartender told me later that he was completely impressed and felt under the gun to churn out something fantastic. He said, 'To have a classy lady come in here and order such a classic, old-fashioned drink, well, it's really...wow.' I have to tell you that Mo at 701 makes the best Perfect Manhattan I've had - and that includes a bunch of fancy places in Vancouver and Victoria BC.
At CityZen, my drink was expertly mixed. I had a minor quibble with the fact that the glass was not chilled enough, and I asked for a small portion of ice a few sips in. But still, it was a solid beginning to a remarkable evening. And after a few minutes of relaxing with our cocktails, our waiter pal gave us menus, which offered us three choices - a three-course prix fixe, a chef's tasting menu or a chef's vegetarian tasting menu.
Basil and I opted for the whole enchilada - the chef's tasting menu with the sommelier's wine pairings. If we were going to do this and pay a fortune in the process, it might as well be the best anyone had to offer.
We got a couple of amuse bouches to start our experience - a cocoa-encrusted mushroom in a porcini sauce and a smoked salmon roe-topped beet in horseradish cream sauce. WOW. We knew after those two bites that this evening was going to be worth every penny.
We both agreed the first course - slices of foie gras in something sweet and vaguely gelatinous - was the weakest of the evening. It was delicious and interesting and it was paired with a Riesling that went down way too fast and easy, but it didn't transport us to another place.
The next course was our favorite - seared scallops in a tarragon broth, paired with a Chenin Blanc. They set a fork, a knife and a spoon for that course, and I was not embarassed to use the spoon to scoop leftover broth out of the bowl when I had finished the scallops. I would have taken two fingers and licked it like it was brownie batter, but I think that would have stretched the limits of decorum.
The third course was beef fillets with a tiny slice of brisket and some sort of apple/celery root confit. I can't remember the red wine that was served, but it was divine. And it was during that course that we had perhaps the tastiest single food item of the entire meal - itty bitty Parker House rolls that we deduced with brushed with an egg wash and butter and sprinkled with fleur de sel before baking. I mean, melt in your mouth, earthshaking good. I can't explain how a tiny little puff of bread dough could make me feel faint, but it happened. Thank goodness they were so small that we each got five of them.
The fourth course was our opportunity to choose from the cheese cart, which was roughly the size of our kitchen table. I'd say there were about thirtysomething cheeses displayed, ranging from sheeps milk to cows milk to goat milk to bleus. The cheeses were served with a selection of three microbrew beers, which was interesting. I think we would have preferred another wine, but I will definitely hunt down some Brooklyn Brown Ale based on the little taste we had.
The final course was a close second to the scallops. It was a chocolate chip dough souffle and milk ice cream. It tasted like a warm chocolate chip cookie and a glass of cold milk. But the texture was that of an airy, delicate souffle and rich, creamy ice cream. It defied reality. I don't know how they turned a classic dessert on its head like that and still maintained its playfulness and integrity, but they did. Basil contended that the ruby port they served wasn't a great match, but I loved it.
We finished up the evening with some coffee (I spiked mine with Bailey's) and smiles. We were absolutely over the moon at the flawlessness of both the privacy and attentiveness of our waiter. We were floating on probably the most incredible meal we'd ever eaten, and we deeply appreciated the fact that we had been allowed to linger for as long as our dinner took.
The good vibes followed us around all evening, as we enjoyed some champagne at Hotel Monaco and some wine at the Tabard Inn. We relaxed, we connected in ways that Basil's schedule hadn't allowed in the past couple of months. It is amazing what getting a babysitter (thanks again, J.R.!) and spending a month's grocery budget on dinner will do for your mental health after a long, hard struggle. Hopefully the cloud nine feeling will last until the next big election rolls around in 08.
Basil loves his work, and I love seeing him happy. But the wives of campaign consultants aren't called 'election widows' in even-numbered years for nothing. For the past two months, Basil has been working two shifts at the office and spending the rest of his time with his Blackberry in hand. He did conference calls at 1 pm on Sunday afternoons and 8 pm on Friday nights. He went to bed at 3:30 am and woke up at 7:30 am for 8 am calls with clients.
And while I've definitely gotten accustomed to the grind of the 0/2/4/6/8 years, I don't like it. It's hard on all of us. This year, I really didn't lose my cool over the long, obsessed hours until the last week. I think I did well.
So to celebrate Basil's freedom from the ball and chain of democracy and my success at having been a good supportive corporate wifey, we went out and painted the town red this weekend. Well, techincally, half red and half blue, given our political leanings. So...purple. We painted the town purple.
I want to personally encourage all my readers to dine at Cityzen before they die. It was absolutely unparalleled. I have had good meals before. I have had good service before. But I have never, ever had a restaurant experience as superb as ours was on Saturday night.
Upon arrival, our waiter, whose subtleties and personality I really grew to appreciate over the course of the next two and a half hours, asked if we wanted to start our evening with a cocktail. I asked for what has become my signature drink - a Knob Creek Perfect Manhattan (Thank you to Dr. Hugnkiss for introducing me to this drink a year ago).
The Perfect Manhattan is no pansy drink. It is a drink that will put hair on your chest and numb your throat in a couple of sips. When I ordered one at 701 a couple of weekend ago, the bartender told me later that he was completely impressed and felt under the gun to churn out something fantastic. He said, 'To have a classy lady come in here and order such a classic, old-fashioned drink, well, it's really...wow.' I have to tell you that Mo at 701 makes the best Perfect Manhattan I've had - and that includes a bunch of fancy places in Vancouver and Victoria BC.
At CityZen, my drink was expertly mixed. I had a minor quibble with the fact that the glass was not chilled enough, and I asked for a small portion of ice a few sips in. But still, it was a solid beginning to a remarkable evening. And after a few minutes of relaxing with our cocktails, our waiter pal gave us menus, which offered us three choices - a three-course prix fixe, a chef's tasting menu or a chef's vegetarian tasting menu.
Basil and I opted for the whole enchilada - the chef's tasting menu with the sommelier's wine pairings. If we were going to do this and pay a fortune in the process, it might as well be the best anyone had to offer.
We got a couple of amuse bouches to start our experience - a cocoa-encrusted mushroom in a porcini sauce and a smoked salmon roe-topped beet in horseradish cream sauce. WOW. We knew after those two bites that this evening was going to be worth every penny.
We both agreed the first course - slices of foie gras in something sweet and vaguely gelatinous - was the weakest of the evening. It was delicious and interesting and it was paired with a Riesling that went down way too fast and easy, but it didn't transport us to another place.
The next course was our favorite - seared scallops in a tarragon broth, paired with a Chenin Blanc. They set a fork, a knife and a spoon for that course, and I was not embarassed to use the spoon to scoop leftover broth out of the bowl when I had finished the scallops. I would have taken two fingers and licked it like it was brownie batter, but I think that would have stretched the limits of decorum.
The third course was beef fillets with a tiny slice of brisket and some sort of apple/celery root confit. I can't remember the red wine that was served, but it was divine. And it was during that course that we had perhaps the tastiest single food item of the entire meal - itty bitty Parker House rolls that we deduced with brushed with an egg wash and butter and sprinkled with fleur de sel before baking. I mean, melt in your mouth, earthshaking good. I can't explain how a tiny little puff of bread dough could make me feel faint, but it happened. Thank goodness they were so small that we each got five of them.
The fourth course was our opportunity to choose from the cheese cart, which was roughly the size of our kitchen table. I'd say there were about thirtysomething cheeses displayed, ranging from sheeps milk to cows milk to goat milk to bleus. The cheeses were served with a selection of three microbrew beers, which was interesting. I think we would have preferred another wine, but I will definitely hunt down some Brooklyn Brown Ale based on the little taste we had.
The final course was a close second to the scallops. It was a chocolate chip dough souffle and milk ice cream. It tasted like a warm chocolate chip cookie and a glass of cold milk. But the texture was that of an airy, delicate souffle and rich, creamy ice cream. It defied reality. I don't know how they turned a classic dessert on its head like that and still maintained its playfulness and integrity, but they did. Basil contended that the ruby port they served wasn't a great match, but I loved it.
We finished up the evening with some coffee (I spiked mine with Bailey's) and smiles. We were absolutely over the moon at the flawlessness of both the privacy and attentiveness of our waiter. We were floating on probably the most incredible meal we'd ever eaten, and we deeply appreciated the fact that we had been allowed to linger for as long as our dinner took.
The good vibes followed us around all evening, as we enjoyed some champagne at Hotel Monaco and some wine at the Tabard Inn. We relaxed, we connected in ways that Basil's schedule hadn't allowed in the past couple of months. It is amazing what getting a babysitter (thanks again, J.R.!) and spending a month's grocery budget on dinner will do for your mental health after a long, hard struggle. Hopefully the cloud nine feeling will last until the next big election rolls around in 08.
posted by merseydotes @ 4:47 PM
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