i lost my third child

well. do i have to change the name of the blog now?

on june 27th (my daughter’s fourth birthday) i was laid-off from the fci along with approximately 25 other people. the president stepped down. it was like there had been an attack. people were walking around sobbing looking dazed and bewildered.

so for the first time in my wine/management career, i had the opportunity to really look at what i wanted to do. my first instinct was beverage director.

one week after being laid-off, i got an offer to step in as the general manager/beverage director for a small restaurant in the west village. it was a temporary offer for about a month of work. i took it, but was already in the interview process for another position at a large restaurant on 5th avenue. i felt trapped at the west village place. felt like it wasn’t the right fit. so i took the 5th avenue restaurant offer when it was given. that offer was for a beverage director position which is what i thought i wanted. i felt trapped at the 5th avenue restaurant. felt like it wasn’t the right fit. wait…..maybe…..restaurants weren’t the right fit anymore. so after 3 weeks of training, i made the impossible decision to resign from my bev director position basically retiring from restaurants overall.

20 years of working in restaurants done. long hours. late nights. done. i missed it immediately. but it is the right decision.

i did not leave without any future. i am staying in wine. i took a position as a sales rep for a small italian/french portfolio.

i think i should keep the name as my 20 years of restaurants will live on inside me as my lost third child.

wacky winemaker at red rooster

i was invited to a winemaker’s dinner last night at red rooster. (a winemaker’s dinner means that the winemaker wants to give the people who work with their product a story to put behind the wine. i know it sounds ridiculous to say a free dinner with world class wine can be tedious, but….it can.) i really wanted to check out red rooster, though. this is marcus samuelsson’s newest endeavor in the heart of harlem, and it has gotten a shit-ton of publicity.

as i walked east on 126th street from my A-train stop, the neighborhood went from marginal to bourgeois. as i neared malcom x blvd. on which red rooster is located, the street was lined with lovely brownstones. you can’t miss the restaurant as you approach the main boulevard. red rooster is written out in vintage styled vanity mirror bulbs. simple and dramatic.

the crowd could be heard across the street. the atmosphere was vibrant and romantic. the ‘earl of harlem’ cocktail i had was tasty. i took a few minutes to sip my cocktail on my own before joining the wine peeps. all ages, stylish and attractive. that would be my general description of red rooster guests. the airiness and quality of light at that hour made it a really magical restaurant to behold.

that being said…once i joined the other guests of the wine dinner, we all marched downstairs to a basement dining area. it was like the area where you would banish badly behaved guests. it was a weird space, and unfortunately, completely devoid of character. and as it turned out, this winemaker did turn out to be somewhat ill-mannered.

ahhh….c’est la vie. the dinner was nice. the dishes hit or miss. they strangely served oysters on a bed of something constructed to look like a sandy beach but with no ice! they were lukewarm. oof. the pickles and tiny tacos were a hit. as were the meatballs and dirty yard bird. conversation was stilted and peppered with not so subtle sarcasm.

Leaving the curtain-cordoned basement, reentering the magical upstairs area, i was left tickled by the whole evening.

the fat radish

serious daniel

my husband, daniel, and i had a phenomenal dinner last night at, the fat radish. we shared three courses. we started with east coast oysters,

salty goodness

then had a dish that was the embodiment of spring, “sweet pea pie”.

a little bit of spring enclosed in puff pastry

we finished with a “green curried monkfish with wild rice and raita”. i was basically licking the dishes clean at the end of each course. oh, we did have a saxelby cheese plate as well! we paired the whole meal with a sparkling verdicchio. it was damn near perfect. the space is low key with beautiful light. the service was attentive and not pretentious. really lovely evening.

happy daniel

i will be back for the curried monkfish as i am still thinking about it today. that is the sign of a good dish.

3 children…one mother slightly losing her mind

all three of my children (2 human, 1 restaurant) seem to be in a competition for who can send me to the loony-bin most quickly.

their combined efforts have expedited my spiral into crazy-land.

only 7 hours until the babysitter gets here. i’m not sure i will make it…

pine-aperol express

we put a new summer cocktail on our list here at l’ecole. come down and cool off with a pine-aperol express!

PINE-APEROL EXPRESS

*1.5oz. cachaca

*1oz. aperol

*.75oz velvet falernum

*1oz pineapple juice

*.75oz lemon juice

*squeeze of lime

*2 dashes peychaud’s bitters

*add all ingredients into shaker

  shake with ice

*strain into highball filled with ice

*garnish with lime wedge

 

what the what?!

are you still out there? my sister is taking food blogging, and i am really missing my blog. maybe…

sunday salons at l’ecole

our inaugural sunday salon is happening today from 4-6pm! exploring the outer reaches and interconnections of culinary and fine art. whiskey and cheese?: anne saxelby, of saxelby cheesemongers, and ethan kelley, formerly of the brandy library, are pairing off to see how domestic, artisanal cheese pairs with fine american whiskey. love it.