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Category Archives: Lifestyle
Livarot and Calvados
Linda’s birthday! Morning workout in the gym and then buffet lunch. Salad bar is okay, nothing spectacular. Our tour today is all about fermented apples and cheese. First stop is the Graindorge Fromagerie, which by coincidence is an Alcorn McBride … Continue reading
Etretat
We got up at 10:00 am, but I’m going to use the one hour time change between England and France as the excuse. They have a nice assortment of workout machine on the gym, although I realized that when Linda … Continue reading
Southampton
Eddie Manning’s limo service provided our transfer to Southampton, and despite the skepticism with which we viewed the mountain of luggage for the five of us, it fit easily into the back of the seven-passenger Mercedes van. We were at … Continue reading
Natural History and Pied-à-terre
After a lazy morning Linda and I took the tube to Kensington for an Indian lunch at the lovely Bombay Brasserie, then walked to the Natural History Museum to visit the dinosaurs. The Natural History Museum is BIG. It must … Continue reading
The Phantom of Westminster Abbey and Clos Maggiore
Linda and I spent today on our own while our friends were off doing other stuff. We slept in and then found a nearby teeny tiny Japanese restaurant, Ichi-Ricki, for lunch. I’m glad the reviews I’d read warned me it … Continue reading
London
We’re off to London for a few days before heading out of Southampton on a twelve night wine cruise. This was Linda’s first experience with the airline beds that recline all the way, and they certainly make a difference; we … Continue reading
Epcot’s 30th Anniversary
Jim, Martin, Jeremy and I visited Epcot to celebrate the 30th anniversary on October 1, 2012. The park was crowded, but not insanely so. There were lots of people there wearing vintage Epcot shirts, so it was rewarding to see … Continue reading
Posted in Orlando, Theme Parks
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Luma
Ron and Bev hosted a dinner at Luma for Allan Frischman, in town from Hart Davis Hart. Also in attendance were Keith and Parlo, and Andres and Paula. Linda had early construction site meetings all week and couldn’t attend. Because … Continue reading
1985 & 1985 Bordeaux
Every year Hart Davis Hart hosts a comprehensive Bordeaux retrospective, and this year’s event focused on 1985 and 1986 Bordeaux. HDH pulled out all the stops, with two bottles of almost every notable wine, including the first growths. There was … Continue reading
Tru
Five years ago Dani and I visited Tru while on her college tour, and we had one of the greatest meals of my life. But then a year later Linda and I returned, and had seven courses of glop in … Continue reading
Masala Chickpea Burger Recipe
Dani made these vegetarian hamburger patties that were actually better than regular hamburgers. Ingredients 2 cans chickpeas 2 cups cooked brown rice I carrot, grated 1/2 large zucchini, grated 1 cup grated uncooked sweet potato 1/2 white cabbage, chopped/grated 1/4 … Continue reading
Dani’s Salmon Wraps
This was a great lunch wrap sandwich Dani made. Ingredients 1 package cooked shredded salmon 3 or 4 tablespoons of olive oil 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar 1 teaspoon white sugar a pinch of brown sugar garlic powder 3 or 4 … Continue reading
Dani’s Spinach and Zucchini Lasagna
This was the best lasagna ever: Ingredients About 9 Pasta sheets (make your own or use fresh pasta from Whole Foods) 1 15oz package of part skim ricotta cheese 3/4 cup mozzarella 1/4 cup parmesan 1 egg Approximately 4 cups … Continue reading
Wynton Marsalis
We decided to check out the downtown venue used by the Chicago Symphony, but since they are playing opera at Ravinia, we went to a jazz concert by the Wynton Marsalis Quintet. Before the concert we had lunch at one … Continue reading
Posted in Dani, Dining, Evanston, Music, Photography
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Road Trip: Minneapolis
State two in our three state road trip: Minnesota. First stop: The Mall of America. Well, it’s really big. The usual mall stores, some home grown ones, and a lot of restaurants. Many restaurants. Many chain restaurants. And a theme … Continue reading
Restaurant Michael
Last night we went to Restaurant Michael in Winnetka, about four miles north of Evanston. The original plan was to take the Metra train, but it was a cool, rainy and blustery night, so we opted for a cab. The … Continue reading
Terra
A few nights ago we visited Terra, an American bisto just north of Central Avenue in Evanston. It’s about two miles from the condo, so we took the Metra train up, and then walked back. It’s a small plates sort … Continue reading
Roasted Cauliflower Pizza
Dani and I decided to try to duplicate the roasted cauliflower pizza from Anthony’s in Orlando, and we came darned close. We started with some pizza dough from Whole Foods, which I rolled out repeatedly, really thin, and then baked … Continue reading
Las Vegas Dining
We had a jam packed week of fine dining in Las Vegas. Here are some brief thoughts about the various restaurants. Verandah at The Four Seasons This is the coffee shop at the Four Season. The weekend brunch, included in … Continue reading
5-Spice Apples
I invented this simple recipe to use up ingredients before leaving town. It turned out delicious. Ingredients 2 apples 3 Tbsp brown sugar 2 tsp Chinese 5-spice Preparation Peel and chop up apples. Dump in a covered casserole dish, add … Continue reading
Pan-Seared Chicken with Balsamic Fruit Glaze
I fiddled with this recipe so much I’m calling it my own. This is a really good way to cook boneless, skinless chicken; it ends up crisp yet moist. And the glaze can be prepared in a leisurely fashion while … Continue reading
Cozy Noodles
Cozy Noodles is a funky little cafe near Ace hardware, on Davis, but on the other side of the tracks from the business district. The striking thing about the place is the collections of tin toys, Pez dispensers, license plates, … Continue reading
Grilled Zucchini with Pesto
These turned out great. I used much more garlic and twice the pine nuts the original recipe suggested. I don’t see how you could stretch it to recommended six zucchini, though. I used more than half the pesto on one … Continue reading
Garden Lasagna
Last night I made a vegetarian lasagna. I was skeptical because of the large amount of skim milk in the recipe, but it worked great. I left out the corn the recipe called for, and used ricotta cheese rather than … Continue reading
Farmers’ Market
On Saturday mornings Evanston has a farmers’ market behind the Hilton Garden Inn. Unlike many farmers’ markets I’ve been to, this one is actually a market of farmers. Nearly every booth has fresh picked (or sometimes potted) herbs and vegetables … Continue reading
Evanston
I’m spending the summer in Evanston with Dani again. She’s taking a three week physics course, and then doing an eight week psychology study that she got a grant for. In between we’re going to tour the national parks and … Continue reading
White Christmas in June at Luma
Our wine group met in the private room downstairs at Luma for our first ever white wine tasting. The wines were divided into flights of Burgundy, Bordeaux, and–after dinner–Sauternes. It was fun tho have some great white wines for a … Continue reading
Loss
Early Friday morning a pathetic person put a hose through the mailbox slot in the door and flooded a section of our office. Much of the staff was out Friday for an off-site training with fourteen enthusiastic customers, but those … Continue reading
Posted in Alcorn McBride, Animals, Orlando
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V&A Chef’s Table 60s Bordeaux
Our focus was on Bordeaux from the 1960s at the Victoria & Albert’s Chef’s Table on Saturday. Ron, Bev, Keith, Parlo, Linda and I assembled a collection of wines including some big names from 1961 and 1964. Perhaps it was … Continue reading
Victoria & Albert’s Dining Room
We usually go to the chef’s table or eat in the Victoria Room at V&A, but Ron invited us on the spur of the moment to bring some nice wines to Victoria and Albert’s for dinner, and only the dining … Continue reading