HUNGRY GERALD

HG/BSK are in the historic city of Reims. The renowned cathedral lives up to expectations. Glorious. And, HG/BSK haven’t been inside yet. Have only seen it at night. Nicely illuminated. The sleepless quintet (HG/BSK; daughter Lesley R. and son-in-law Massimo R.; granddaughter Arianna R.) had a happy reunion with granddaughter Sofia who is studying international relations at a Reims university (It’s part of a four-year program. Two years in Reims and then two years at Columbia University in New York. A lucky, gifted young woman.). The group lunched at a rough and ready bistro that caters to neighborhood regulars and students. The food wasn’t memorable but the atmosphere was lifted out of a late 1930’s French movie. Red leatherette banquettes. Bright lighting. Old guys playing cards. Weathered women. Dreamy youngsters. Big difference. No cigarette smoke. Patrons have to smoke on the terrace. The bistro is Sans Souci. It creates instant happiness. (Forget the food. Order a cheap bottle of wine. A bottle of Beaujolais is 12 euros). The visiting group is staying in a spacious 3-bedroom dwelling. Dining room. Big, modern kitchen. Garden. And, an oddity for France, a shower that hits the bather with high pressure hot water from three directions. Surprising. France may lead in cuisine and style but usually lags behind in plumbing. After naps and a happy encounter with the shower, the group was ready for a major league feast at Brasserie Boulingrin. This is a traditional place with the classic brasserie virtues: Lively ambience. Traditional dishes. And, an abundance of fresh oysters, fish and crustaceans. The group demolished a vast plateau de fruits de mer. Some of the best, biggest, briniest oysters. Large pink shrimp. Clams. Bulots. Tiny grey shrimp. Much sharing and lusty eating. Salmon on a bed of spinach. Sole meuniere. Skate with a shower of capers. Cod. And, one rare steak with sauce béarnaise. Side dishes were gratins of potatoes and zucchini plus boiled and buttered spuds. The fruits de mer platter was accompanied by champagne (Reims is in the heart of France’s champagne district). Then, there was very good, fruity Beaujolais Nouveau. Giant portions of creme brûlée for dessert. The euro is having a weak spell so this lavish array of food and wine for six persons cost about $220 US.

Air travel has become more of a cattle drive than anything else these days and HG/BSK suffered mightily on route to Providence (and then to Paris). Un-explainable delays, arbitrary security issues and airports, like airliners, that usually represent the lower depths of cuisine. A delightful exception is Vino Volo wine bar which has locations in many US terminals. Delayed overnight in Baltimore, HG/BSK had a lovely casual meal at Vino Volo while awaiting a plane to Providence (and then to Paris). Had a flight of reds (Argentine Malbec, Spanish Tempranillo, Washington State Barbera) with a charcuterie/cheese/nuts/ dried fruit platter and a surpassing good bowl of cavatelli with a Mascarpone sauce and prosciutto. The Barbera was so good that it merited some full glasses. A Charles Smith product, HG will seek it in wine shops.

HG/BSK finally arrived at the welcoming Riverside, R.I. home of daughter Lesley R. and her husband, Massimo. All of the travel annoyances vanished as HG/BSK (and L and M) entered O Dinis for dinner. O Dinis is a homey, family run Portuguese restaurant in East Providence. Quirky decor highlighted by animal heads, cooking utensils and antique radios. Brisk waitpersons. Happy groups dealing with big platters of food. For HG, it brought back memories of the cheap, garlic fragrant eateries of HG’s young manhood in New York. O Dinis is a throwback, or as the late Yogi Berra put it:”Deja vu all over again.” Giant portions. Pungent sauces laden with loads of garlic. Very cheap. The quartet ordered two appetizers and two main dishes. A bottle of Vinho Verde. A bottle of Portuguese red. Four dishes. More than enough. These were the dishes: Big pot of steamed littleneck clams in sauce (garlic, parsley, clam broth); grilled Seppie in another fragrant garlic sauce; plump grilled sardines with boiled potatoes and salad; traditional Portuguese dish of clams, pork and potatoes. One dessert (a flan for HG). The cost for this feast (with wine and tip) was less than 25 bucks a person. An affordable fun feast.

The culinary redemption came to an abrupt halt upon entering the Air France airplane. Food was the usual glop. Not for the first time, HG wondered why airlines can’t serve cheese, fruit and crackers instead of mushy pasta or sad chicken. European carriers, whether French, German, English or Italian, share a common tradition: Disgusting food.

Some years ago, HG/BSK toured Sicily with daughter Lesley R., her husband, Profesore Massimo and Granddaughters Arianna and Sofia (then little girls but showing signs of their future brilliance and beauty). HG/BSK had the very good fortune to have Massimo as the tour leader and guide. Professor of Italian Studies at Brown University, he is learned in almost every aspect of Italian culture. And, he grew up in the Sicilian city of Siracusa. Best of all, in HG’s point of view, Massimo combines learning with a good appetite and a knowledgeable appreciation of Italian cuisine. Thus, the group combined visits to the spectacular ruins of Greek temples and other architectural and natural sights, with extraordinary dining. In raucous colorful Palermo, HG tasted voluptuous linguine with sea urchin roe at a seaside restaurant. In a smoky hole in the wall in the center of the city, HG was introduced to the wonders of fried brains, spleen and other innards. And, in the teeming streets HG tasted mysterious treats dispensed by itinerant vendors. While driving, there were many roadside lunches under the Sicilian sun on the outdoor terraces of hillside trattorias. The pasta dishes with eggplant sauces were a revelation. Instead of customary cheese and fruit, the group ended some meals with an array of the justifiably famous Sicilian pastries. In Massimo’s hometown of Siracusa, a trip to the wonderfully preserved Roman amphitheater was followed by bowls of spaghetti with seppie (cuttlefish) plus grilled seppie with peppers and tomatoes. Siracusa is a 2,700 year old city. It was one of the most important cities of Europe during its Grecian period, rivaled only by Athens. Romans, Arabs and other occupiers left their marks on Siracusa. A wondrous city, indeed. After Siracusa, HG/BSK left the family behind and journeyed to the spectacular city of Taormina and its scenic location atop a hillside overlooking the Ionian Sea. On the east coast of Sicily, it has long been one the world’s most favored summer vacation destinations (much loved by Goethe and scores of other poets, novelists and painters). Its colorful art colony and its many gay visitors (Truman Capote, Jean Cocteau, Jean Marais, Tennessee Williams, etc.) gave it a reputation of being “Sodom by the sea.” Today, it’s know for its luxurious hotels and chic shopping promenade. The architectural gem of Taormina is Teatro Greco, a horseshoe shaped theater (built by the Greeks and Romans) that seems suspended between the sea and the sky. Woody Allen used it as the setting for a Greek chorus in his 1995 movie, Mighty Aphrodite. The sea view from HG/BSK’s hotel room terrace was unforgettable as was the pasta with sardines HG/BSK happily consumed in the hotel dining room. The pasta — which contained raisins, pignolia nuts and saffron in addition to sardines — was a living illustration of the Arab influence on Sicilian cuisine. Last night, BSK brought a touch of Sicily to New Mexico by making a stunning platter of linguine with sardines. The dish started with a sofrito of olive oil, anchovies, garlic, shallots, capers, chopped parsley and tomatoes plus a squeeze of tomato paste and a dash of wine vinegar. When the sofrito had simmered into mellowness, BSK mixed it with the al dente linguine and a bit of pasta water. The dish was then topped with chopped, raw and ripe tomatoes plus black Kalamata olives and Portuguese sardines. The tinned sardines, ordered online from Zingerman’s, the renowned Ann Arbor food merchant, are the best sardines in the world. Thick, meaty, flavorful filets. BSK’s dish topped the Taormina version.

HG misses a certain type of codified New York City hangout for journalists, writers, poets and theater people. The species was exemplified by Elaine’s on Second Avenue where Woody Allen and scores of writers and performers received special treatment from the owner, Elaine Kaufman. The food was indifferent but HG enjoyed Elaine’s rough edged charm. Like HG, Elaine was a product of The Bronx and HG often greeted her with the soubriquet: “Elaine, the shapely Evander Childs alumna.” (Evander Childs being the name of a Bronx high school) She died in 2011 and the place was refurbished under new owners. Don’t believe it has recaptured the old ambiance. HG was lucky to spend some time with Elaine (some months before her death) at Le Veau d’ Or, the old time French bistro on E. 61st Street. HG had just finished lunching with SJ when Elaine came in. The two New York oldsters had some laughs and much cognac drinking. She, like her eatery, was an original. Pre-dating Elaine’s was Costello’s, a bar on Third Avenue and 44th Street. It opened when the El rumbled overhead and became a favorite with the staff of the New Yorker and their pals. Became a tourist attraction after James Thurber paid a Depression-era bar bill, by painting a 24 foot by 24 foot mural of his “War of the Sexes.” A.J.Leibling, Ernest Hemingway and John O’Hara drank there. According to legend, Hemingway broke his walking stick over O’Hara’s head. Details are sketchy. Like many good things in New York, Costello’s was demolished to make way for an office skyscraper. The mural disappeared. An art world mystery. Cedar Bar (never called Cedar Tavern) has disappeared from Greenwich Village’s University Place. It was the hangout of Motherwell, De Kooning, Pollock, Kline, Rothko and other distinguished artists (they were just gaining renown in the 50’s and 60’s). They were a hard drinking crowd much prone to fisticuffs. Lee Krasner, Pollock’s widow and a wonderful painter in her own right, said of the habitués: “They treated women like cattle.” HG would take HG’s little daughter, Victoria ,there on Saturday afternoon outings. HG would drink martinis and Victoria, perched on the bar, would eat peanuts and smile at her adult admirers. Presumably, Victoria’s early exposure to restaurants and strong drink has spurred her and chef/husband, Marc Meyer, to own and run four highly regarded New York restaurants: Cookshop, Vic’s, Hundred Acres and Rosie’s. Another Village hangout of artists, writer and poets (namely Dylan Thomas), was the White Horse Tavern on Hudson Street. Became famous for the presence of Thomas and Delmore Schwartz. Legend has it that Thomas consumed 18 shots of whiskey before walking (or stumbling) to his death.Though strongly identified with Thomas, it was actor Charles Laughton who made it famous. He would give away White Horse beer mugs to friends and fans. White Horse is still operating. Not very literary or poetic, it’s favored by college students. Best of the Village hangouts catering to journalists and writers, was the Lion’s Head on Christopher Street. Pete Hamill, Jimmy Breslin, Joe Flaherty, Frank McCourt, Norman Mailer, Sidney Zion, Vic Ziegel, Dennis Duggan and many others hung there. (An aside: Duggan reported for the New York Times and Newsday and was a fount of New York lore. HG was disturbed by Duggan’s unhealthy lifestyle and lured him to a gym on E. 45th Street where HG was a regular. Dennis didn’t like the mandatory exercises or the spartan atmosphere. After ten minutes, he said: “Okay. I came to your lousy gym. Can I have a drink now?”) The Lion’s Head closed some years ago but there’s now a Lion’s Head on Amsterdam Avenue much frequented by Columbia students. When HG was a journalist in the early 1950’s, HG spent much time at Artists & Writers (always called Bleeck’s) on W. 41st street near the offices of the old New York Herald-Tribune. Served very good German food and the convivial Trib journalists loved playing “the match game.” Lucius Beebe, the society columnist and elegant dandy, played with three custom made golden matches nestled in a velvet case. A class act. All of this has been swept away by time. Still functioning is Sardi’s, the theater restaurant a few blocks north of Artists & Writers. The endearing Vincent Sardi is gone and the food has gone downhill. A shadow of its former self. Lindy’s, Stage Delicatessen, Carnegie Delicatessen in the West 50’s, is where you found comics, song writers, press agents, bookmakers, gamblers. Lindy’s and Stage are gone and the Carnegie flourishes, selling overstuffed pastrami sandwiches to tourists. Russian Tea Room on W. 57th Street is where the classical music and ballet communities gathered as well as famous actors, producers and directors. HG once saw Jackie Onassis and Mike Nichols enjoying the Wednesday special, Siberian Pelmenyi. (this was a type of small ravioli served in strong chicken broth reinforced with mustard and sour cream). RTR is now an overpriced, over fancy place that has lost its luster. The hip Russian Tea Room crowd shifted to the Cafe Edison, a down to earth eatery in the Hotel Edison. The cooking was down home New York Jewish and the customers called the Cafe “The Polish Tea Room.” Alas, it closed this year, another victim of the real estate steamroller. HG imagines that the new generations of writers and painters and actors have their own places to drink and revel in the New New York, but HG doesn’t know them and can only hope they have as much fun in them as HG had in his own time.

Poached eggs. Scrambled eggs. Omelets. Those are the ways HG likes eggs prepared. Never liked fried eggs. Never a fan of the ubiquitous New York fried egg sandwich. HG likes to eat eggs at home because that’s where they are prepared perfectly. BSK is a talented poacher. BSK poached eggs always have soft (but gently firm) whites and lush, runny yolks. BSK enjoys them on French bistro salads of frisee and bacon or topping a bowl of buttery and cheesy grits. (Poached eggs are splendid served with corned beef hash but HG hasn’t encountered a good restaurant version of this hash since the wonderful Longchamps restaurants of New York closed years ago [SJ here…The Corned Beef Hash topped with a fried egg at Keen’s Chop House is pretty much killer!] ). HG likes ultra soft scrambled eggs with gentle, creamy curds. Impossible to find such eggs at diners and other casual breakfast eateries. They must be made at home with plenty of butter sizzling in the pan (Adding sweet cream is an option). Long deft stirring is the secret. Takes time. The Alice Toklas (Gertrude Stein’s companion) recipe for scrambled eggs suggests 30 minutes of stirring. That’s excessive. The HG family Christmas season late breakfast treat is soft scrambled eggs topped with red salmon caviar and creme fraiche (or sour cream). A warm buttered bialy goes nicely with this holiday treat. HG likes omelets with soft creamy interiors. HG has learned the secret of ordering omelets in Paris. HG orders them baveuse. The translation is “oozing.” BSK and SJ are masterful omelet cooks. HG likes his with a filling of feta cheese. (Pete’s Diner in Denver, home of the world’s greatest giant breakfast burrito, makes a quite acceptable version of this omelet). Yes, BSK and SJ make delicious omelets. But, the Queen of Omelets was a stern, unsmiling Frenchwoman, Mme. Romaine de Lyon. She ran an eponymous omelet restaurant (served only omelets) on New York’s Midtown East Side for some 65 years. How to describe her wondrous omelets? Exquisite. Lush. Divine. Yummy. Many famous folk dined at the restaurant. Anne Bancroft and Mel Brooks were regulars. Brooks wrote the screenplay for The Producers (the movie with Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder) at his regular table at Mme. De Lyon’s restaurant. If you want to learn the secrets of omelet cooking read Mme De Lyon’s book, The Art of Cooking Omelettes. She spells the dish with two t’s and the book contains 500 savory recipes.

HG/BSK are great fans of composed salads. Essentially, composed salads are constructed of greens plus a number of cooked and raw ingredients. Years ago HG tasted a composed salad featured at Jonathan Waxman’s trailblazing restaurant in New York: Jams. This was a salad of garden lettuces dressed with walnut oil and containing warm sautéed mushrooms and walnuts. A lovely, innovative California treat. This past summer, BSK and Lesley R. built a salad of local greens, radicchio, abundant sautéed South Lake scallops, mushrooms, farmers market green peas. A splendid array of seasonal Prince Edward Island ingredients. A worthy contender to HG’s favorite salad, one HG has enjoyed at a number of traditional Paris bistros: Frisee, lardons and a poached egg. Not exactly a salad endorsed by the cardiology police but mighty good. A glass of Brouilly. A baguette. Vive la France!!.

Yes, like women’s clothing, vegetables go in and out of fashion. Today, kale is very fashionable as a menu item (raw and cooked), as a chip (blech) and as juice. A few years ago, kale never appeared on restaurant menus or in the recipes of foodie magazines. Spinach ruled. A fine restaurant in a Denver suburb, 240 Union, made a specialty of spinach. The vegetable adorned almost every plate. HG took special pleasure in the sautéed or broiled fish of the day nestled on a mound of buttery spinach that had been given a slight hit of nutmeg. Brussels sprouts go in and out of fashion (they happen to be VERY in right now). Their image was destroyed by memories of mushy specimens (emitting a bad odor) boiled to death in the English manner. BSK is helping “fairy cabbages” (which is what BSK’s beloved grandmother called the vegetable) make a comeback. BSK roasts them with chestnuts or bacon; slices and sautés them with olive oil and garlic; stir fries the shredded leaves with oil, garlic, ginger, hot sauce and serves it over Chinese cellophane noodles adding dashes of soya and sesame oil. Good stuff. Chard is a staple on Paris bistro menus but rarely makes an appearance in American restaurants. Same goes for celeriac. Peasandcarrots (it seemed like one word) would always accompany meat dishes in traditional kosher Jewish restaurants. Vile. Even a pour of chicken fat couldn’t improve these pallid canned specimens. Escarole is a great leafy vegetable. BSK stews it in olive oil and garlic with sliced onions, adds chicken broth, fried pancetta. A final dusting of Parmesan and hot pepper. Sublime. Escarole is easily found at New York grocers but in Santa Fe, HG has to do much searching before sourcing escarole (rarely carried at Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s). Baby bok choy and bean sprouts have, happily, become fashionable and enhance many dishes besides traditional Chinese. Cauliflower, an HG favorite, has had a very fashionable year. Roasted cauliflower is splendid. Blanched cauliflower florets sautéed with blue cheese and a bit of cream makes a sumptuous topping for pasta. Last night, BSK made a gratin of cauliflower with eggs, tomatoes, goat cheese and many herbs. A fine one dish meal accompanied by green salad and red wine.

Off on the long drive from Prince Edward Island to Riverside, R.I. (home of Gifted Daughter Lesley R. and family) with an overnight stop at the Senator Hotel in Augusta, Maine. BSK is the world’s best, most alert, most tireless long distance driver. Toby, The Wonder Dog, is a happy traveler, perched on the arm rest and watching the changing scenery with interest. HG is a contented, passive passenger. BSK drove for seven hours through changing weather. Sunny. Threatening clouds. Light fog. Dense fog. Comfortable, dog friendly room at the Senator. Nice area in which to walk Toby. Excellent Maine dinner at the hotel restaurant. A pair of Maine lobsters (modestly priced) for HG. (Since BSK is allergic to crustaceans, BSK’s Maine voyages have always been marked by watching, with envy, HG devour the state’s most famous product). HG/BSK had a platter of freshly shucked oysters from Maine waters. Splendid. Comparable to PEI’s Colville Bay product. HG/BSK, on the next day drive, were surprised by the heavy traffic. (Traffic is very light, almost non-existent, in PEI and New Mexico). Lunched at the Blount Clam Shack adjacent to the lovely Crescent Park carousel in Riverside. Savory Rhode Island “Clambake Chowder” and (for HG) a wonderfully generous lobster roll, sweet lobster drenched in melted butter). Warm reunion with the Riva family. The Riva gardens, home and water views are particularly beautiful in the early days of New England autumn. Lesley and Brilliant Granddaughter Arianna hosted a woman’s group of 14 for dinner while HG/BSK and Profesore Massimo R. dined at Sun and Moon, a delightful Korean restaurant in East Providence. Korean pancakes and other down home Korean cooking (some outstanding stir fried pork bellies). HG drank much Soju with beer chasers. With Toby at the foot of the bed, HG/BSK slept soundly after a long day of travel.

HG/BSK participated in a joyous, uninhibited, super abundant feast, a tribute to natural Prince Edward Island produce,meat and fish. The feast is FireWorks and it is served at the Inn at Bay Fortune, a beautiful inn overlooking a glistening bay. The meal is the brainchild of Michael Smith, a towering figure in Canadian cuisine.(Figuratively and literally. He’s six feet seven). Smith made his culinary reputation at the Inn some years ago before opening Maple, a Halifax, Nova Scotia restaurant, that had a two-year run (One of HG/BSK’s favorite dining places). His PEI restaurant and Maple were selected as among Canada’s ten best restaurants. Smith gave up his restaurant career to concentrate on writing cookbooks (He’s written eight with a ninth due this autumn) and launching a television career. His program on the Canadian Food Network and other channels soon made him Canada’s best known chef. Earlier this year, Michael and his wife, Chastity, returned to their PEI roots and purchased Inn at Bay Fortune. (the stunning building and grounds were once the summer home of actress Coleen Dewhurst). Michael expanded the Inn’s adjoining farm and herb gardens while building one of the most unusual kitchens in North America. The centerpiece is a 25-foot long brick wood burning grill. Everything at the Inn is cooked on or in “the fire monster.” It combines the functions of a smokehouse, open hearth, grill, oven, rotisserie and plancha (a metal plate). No dials. No switches. Just burning wood and a dedicated crew under the skilled leadership of chef Cobey Adams. Meals are served at two long tables facing Fortune Bay (each seating some 30 diners) and at tables in the Wine Library and “Fire Kitchen.” Here’s what HG/BSK ate at this rustic grand bouffe. The duo strolled among three outdoor stations: One offering cocktails made from locally distilled gins; another providing PEI Gahan’s beer and ale and one tempting folks with chunks of barbecued pork sausage enhanced by a savory beer mustard (HG, knowing that much awaited, ate only a few). Then inside to the “Fire Kitchen,” where glasses of Oyster Bay Sauvignon Blanc in hand, HG/BSK nibbled smoked salmon with lemon caper aioli on thin rye toasts while watching the cooks busily at work on “the fire monster.” Appetites properly honed, HG/BSK moved to an adjacent room. Delight awaited HG. All you can eat oysters. And, not any old oysters. Two expert young men busily shucked Johnny Flynn’s Colville Bay oysters. When in season (and these had just entered their glory) Colville Bays have distinctive green hued shells and are incomparable. Michael Smith thinks they are the best oysters in the world (HG/BSK agree). They combine brine with a faint sea sweetness and a firm, succulent texture. HG succumbed to mad oyster lust. HG ate some 40 oysters. (Hey, that’s not too greedy. Diamond Jim Brady would often preface his huge meals at Rector’s with four dozen oysters). The FireWorks shuckers dabbed some of the oysters with “Bloody Mary Ice”, but HG passed, not wishing to mar the pure oyster experience.With appetite barely sated by the bivalve overindulgence, HG sat down to some serious eating. (BSK was so busy taking photos that she only managed to score about six oysters). First course was “12 Grain Red Fife Sourdough Bread–Whipped Brown Butter.” This had such a tangy, grainy taste ,that HG could have knocked off an entire loaf with butter and red wine and gone home happy. But, HG behaved with restraint. Much more to come. “Taste of the Island Board” (Lonzino, Pork Rilette, Glagow Glen Fenugreek Gouda, raw carrots, tomatoes and green beans; arugula pesto, flax crackers). HG found this uneven. The pork rilette was very good. The lonzino would have been better with some of the beer mustard served outside. Some of PEI’s great mustard pickles would have enlivened the plate. HG gave the cheese only a nibble though it’s an HG/BSK favorite. (HG likes cheese at the end of a meal, not at the beginning). Next up (was “Chowder Kettle” (Island mussel broth, bar clams, Fortune Wharf she-lobster.)” The chef eliminated lobster (BSK’s allergic) from BSK’s serving. HG’s had plenty of juicy lobster and mussels in a lushly herbaceous chowder. The bowl was marred by a rubbery bar clam. (HG would have preferred quahogs in the chowder.). Next course was the high point of the meal, a dish which will long be recalled, with pleasure, by HG/BSK. This was “Hot Fish” (A duo of Blue Fin tuna–seared loin and tartare, black garlic aioli, sea rocket pesto, cabbage slaw, duck fat poached egg). This was tuna recently caught off HG/BSK’s north shore home (HG had watched a big blue fin tuna brought into Naufrage harbor and then eviscerated with expertise). The dish combined tender, meaty tuna with unusual sauces and textures. It worked beautifully. Next up was “Garden Salad” (Home grown salad containing 35 savory greens, tender leaves, herbs and flowers, apple cider and honey vinaigrette). HG, not usually a salad lover, gobbled this up joyfully. BSK, a salad fan, thought it was just so-so. The food climax was “Smoked Belly & Seawater Brined Loin” (Purple potato mash, seared zucchini, charred tomatoes, steamed beans & peas, smoked apple sauce, beet and ricotta salad.) The pork belly was a nice portion of pulled pork, some of it crisp and some moist and juicy. Some barbecue sauce would have been helpful. The loin was tender but tasteless. It needed a spicy chutney to give it life. The purple potato mash was sensational (even better than BSK’s great smashed spuds). The beans and peas were fine.The zucchini was watery and insipid. BSK liked the beet salad. Appetite running down, HG gave it a pass. Dessert was “Caramel Apple Shortcake” (Lemon basil and blueberry sorbet, Chantilly cream, plum cherries). A very refreshing climax. HG topped it off with one of the best coffees ever. HG/BSK drank Oyster Bay with the first courses and then a very good California Hahn Cabernet. Cost of the “FireWorks Feast” was $80 per person. Wine (HG/BSK drank six glasses) was $90 at $15 a glass. There was a lusty provincial tax. A 20% gratuity. All of these numbers are in Canadian dollars so with the strong US buck it cost HG/BSK about $200 US. It was well worth it. (Considering that HG/BSK ate oysters that would have cost about $150 in New York, the meal was an astounding bargain). The atmosphere, service, happy diners, pleasant conversation with Canadian table mates all contributed to a joyous evening. The food? Good. Not great (except for the tuna and the oysters). When it comes to locavore cooking , HG’s hero is chef Marc Meyer. Marc and HG’s daughter, Victoria, own and run four well regarded New York restaurants — Cookshop, Hundred Acres, Vic’s and Rosie’s. Marc has pioneered farm to table cooking. He is a master. Because of his rigorous sourcing of the best ingredients and precision cooking, even the simplest dishes become extraordinary. HG recalls watching two elegant Italian art dealers at Cookshop (at 10th Avenue and 20th Street it is in the heart of an art gallery district). They ordered chicken salad and a bottle of red wine. No, this wasn’t a mayonnaise and celery mess. It was chunks of crisp skinned free range chicken served on lightly dressed greens and dusted with herbs. In accented English, one of the men told the waiter how he wished something this simple and delicious could be found in Milan. Alec Lobrano, the premier critic of Paris restaurants (“Hungry For Paris”), dined at Cookshop and wrote that he wished Paris had a restaurant like Cookshop. HG is clear-eyed about food (if about little else). HG ‘s opinion of Marc’s cuisine is not skewed by family ties. HG calls them as he sees them.

Christ Cella was a New York steak house on E. 44th Street. It opened in the 1930s and closed in the 1980s. Its glory years were the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s. Later, it was just a shadow of its former glorious self. On June 29, 2011, HG wrote about CC in a post entitled: “Gone But Not Forgotten Restaurants.” Well, CC certainly remains in the memory of many people. Not a week goes by without someone (including friends and relatives of staff who worked at the restaurant) contacting HG and sharing thoughts and memories of the restaurant. Older folks, veterans of Madison Avenue and the communications industry, recall happy three martini and steak lunches. The younger set remember joyous meals with their dads before sporting events. Even members of the Cella family have reached out to HG to recall the joy of the restaurant. HG ate there alone, with friends and when entertaining journalists HG wanted to influence. Every meal was a pleasure. The Christ Cella proprietors demanded the very best product. They and their customers were willing to pay (for the time) comparatively steep prices in order to get it. And, the kitchen crew treated the fine ingredients with respect and precision. When HG ordered a New York strip steak rare, HG received a steak that was charred on the outside and robustly red in the interior. Rare, not raw as is the fashion for steak in Paris. HG’s spring favorite of shad with shad roe and bacon was perfect, Never overcooked. The lemon butter sauce enriched the the fish and roe but never overwhelmed the fresh flavors. And, the bacon was crisp with nary a spot of grease. The boiled potatoes with parsley were just right. The Christ Cella emphasis on quality might be the reason it is remembered with such fondness.