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Archives
Author Archives: steve
Hong Kong History Museum and Yum Cha
Guest post by Dani. Hong Kong 2017 – Day 3 This morning we had a leisurely breakfast upstairs. Dad had avocado toast with a poached egg, Mom had smoked salmon (as always), but I went rogue and tried all the … Continue reading
Hong Kong Central Tour
A guest post by Dani. Hong Kong 2017 – Day 2 A rather impressive thunderstorm woke me up early. The rain drops clattered against the window and there were several long rumbles of thunder. I’ve always thought thunder sounded different … Continue reading
Hong Kong Disneyland and Kowloon
Dani is our guest blogger. Hong Kong 2017 – Day 1 Our first morning in Hong Kong dawned sunnily but with some ominous dark clouds on the horizon. After a fairly restful night’s sleep I felt pretty much on schedule. … Continue reading
Posted in Dani, Hong Kong, Linda, Theme Parks
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Flying to Hong Kong
Dani is our guest blogger. Hong Kong 2017 – Day 0 Mom and Dad had access to a deluxe lounge in the airport before our flight to Hong Kong because of their business class tickets. They indulged in such wonders … Continue reading
Total Eclipse
Everyone has seen photos of partial solar and lunar eclipses, and they look surprisingly similar. In person, the experience is somewhat different, because one happens during the day, and the other at night, but it’s not that much unlike the … Continue reading
Posted in Dani, Family, Linda, Technology, Travel
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Not Corn
We’ve had the pleasure of dining at Oriole several times this year, and each time they knock it out of the park. Last night was no exception, with several new things including a wonderful kimchi and pork belly bite. But the … Continue reading
Kittens
Sophie and Sylvester were born June 25, 2017. We went and visited them at five weeks, and will have them full-time when we return from Australia in October. They are Maine Coons, like Pretty Boy, our all-time favorite cat.
Posted in Animals
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Paul McCartney
For the first time, Linda and I both were able to spend a month in Chicago together this summer. It was fun to kick back and chill in River North. A bum left calf and foot kept me from walking all … Continue reading
Comprehensive Bordeaux Tasting: 1989/1990
Every year, in preparation for their annual Bordeaux auction, Hart Davis Hart hosts a comprehensive Bordeaux tasting that offers an opportunity to taste two different vintages of nearly all the first and second growth Bordeaux, side by side. This year’s vintages were particularly … Continue reading
Oriole With Our Wine Group
We saved the best for last! After several days packed with wine events, great dinners, museums and sightseeing, we had our farewell dinner at Oriole. And what a dinner it was! Chef Noah Sandoval and Pastry Chef Genie Kwon knocked it … Continue reading
Dominus Dominates at V&A
It had been quite a while since we’d been to the Chef’s Table at Victoria and Albert’s, because Disney changed the reservation process to favor hotel guests, so it was fun join Ron and Bev there for dinner and … Continue reading
Posted in Wine
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War Paint at the Goodman Theatre
Last night Dani and I saw War Paint at the Goodman Theatre. It’s an excellent show starring Patti LuPone and Christine Ebersole about the rivalry between Helena Rubenstein and Elizabeth Arden. It opened in Chicago a couple of months ago, … Continue reading
Summer Champagne Crush
This trip to Chicago was organized around two events, the first of which was the Hart David Hart Annual Summer Champagne Tasting. It was held at The Ivy, a popular wedding venue in River North. I guess the original intent was … Continue reading
Delicious Disney at Golden Oak
For the first time in a long time we attended a Disney dining event, and it far surpassed our expectations. Usually these events tend to be rather corporate, and it’s been a long time since we felt like they were worth … Continue reading
Posted in Dining, Linda, Theme Parks, Wine
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Another Kabooki Sushi Stunner
“I can’t believe we’re in Orlando.” That’s what Ron, Bev, Linda and I kept repeating throughout the ten-course omakase prepared last night by Chef Henry Moso. Yelp informed me it was my 30th visit. Out of perhaps 200 courses spread over … Continue reading
Alcorn Tours Guide to Chicago
Refer to this map: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1OuwGVQUX3rFKMRJi_Vx3DWp_OKE&usp=sharing Geography Chicago is on the west shore of Lake Michigan. Much of the area along the lake is various parks, from Lincoln Park on the North to Millennium and Grant Parks on the south. The … Continue reading
Burgs at Berns
Thanks to Ron for setting up a nice weekend including dinner at Berns and lunch at Restaurant BT. Ron worked with sommelier Brad Dixon to come up with some great wines at great prices. They were mostly selected from vintages … Continue reading
Alcorn McBride Paint Night
Last year’s favorite company activity was paint night at Painting With A Twist, so we decided to repeat it. This time, instead of a lighthouse, we painted a gecko, and it was fun to see how the subject matter encouraged … Continue reading
Posted in Alcorn McBride, Art & Sculpture
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Riedel Stemware Seminar
A few years ago Linda and I attended a Riedel stemware seminar while on a Celebrity cruise. The premise of the seminar was that different shaped glasses make wines taste different. We went in very skeptical but came out completely believers. … Continue reading
Tesla
At the urging of co-workers, I bought one of the first Tesla Model S cars when they first came out, and three years later traded it in for one of the first Model X cars. They are both phenomenal vehicles, … Continue reading
Posted in Alcorn McBride, Technology
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Chicago Museums
We picked the right weekends to visit Chicago. The weather was perfect. We originally scheduled this trip for our Next season tickets. The Alps-themed meal turned out to be lackluster, but we had a lot of fun anyway. We visited … Continue reading
Posted in Art & Sculpture, Chicago, Dani, Linda, Technology
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New York Dining
We’ve had a fabulous long weekend in New York, and although the purpose of the trip was to see the new musical, Waitress, we also had a chance to visit some favorite restaurants, and try a few new ones. Here’s … Continue reading
Waitress
This anniversary trip to New York City features a lot of fine dining, but it started because of Waitress, a new musical based on the movie, and with a score by Sara Bareilles. Dani asked for tickets for Christmas, and … Continue reading
Momofuku Ko
I’ve wanted to visit Momofuku Ko ever since I read about it in the excellent book, The Rosie Project, which you should definitely read. It’s very hard to get a reservation, but thanks to split-second timing last week I was surprised … Continue reading
Florida International Wine Competition 2016
This was my 25th year judging wines at the Florida State Fair International Wine Competition. It was a strange event this year. Now held before the fair begins, it’s always a bit creepy going to the abandoned fairground. Various factors, mostly … Continue reading
Posted in Wine
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Steve’s Birthday Food and Wine Festival
For my 60th birthday, everyone at Alcorn McBride got together and secretly planned a spectacular progressive lunch. Each person decorated their office to match one of my interests, and prepared one of my favorite foods. And Martin matched them all … Continue reading
Posted in Alcorn McBride, Dining, Wine
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Sommelier Recommendations
Ron has received many recommendations of “off the radar” wines from Sommeliers, mostly in the New York restaurant scene, and decided to organize an event to try them out. He had the wines shipped in and organized a wonderful tasting … Continue reading
Posted in Wine
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Chicago, New Orleans, Orlando – Linda’s Road Trip Blog
I flew up to Chicago on Friday to spend some time with Steve and Dani. The weather is very strange this time of year – we had lunch outside yesterday and it went from very sunny to threatening to rain … Continue reading
Alinea – a Return Visit
Alinea is widely regarded as the top restaurant in the United States, but when we visited five years ago we weren’t impressed. The service seemed stiff, and there were too many directions involved in how to eat each course. But it … Continue reading
Linda’s Birthday at V&A
For Linda’s birthday we invited Ron and Bev to join us at Victoria & Albert’s at Disney’s Grand Floridian. We’ve been going to this restaurant every Christmas Eve for twenty years, and we should really try to get there more often, … Continue reading