And, yes, I did just make an emoticon face because I wanted to give ya a lil wink.
I would like to say a BIG thanks to The Husband and some special friends that joined us for my birthday dinner and birthday games of Taboo. For dinner, we went to Restaurant Iris. (If you're not familiar, it was voted best restaurant and best chef in the Memphis Flyer's 2010 "Best of" poll.) For my birthday last year we went for brunch and it was DELISH. So I was really excited about going there for dinner. And what a treat to come in and see a special happy birthday to me on the menu. Name spelled right and everything! That sneaky Husband had called ahead. They tied the menu up for me in a pretty bow to keep forever in my memory box. (Note to self: Get memory box.)
For an appetizer, The Hubs and I split a "Lobster Knuckle Sandwich". It was nice and lobstery. Which was great because sometimes when you order things with lobster, you don't really get their full flavor. This was all 'Bam. I'm a lobster!'
With tarragon and tomatoes
For my main dish I ordered the hand dived scallops. I LOVE scallops so this was a real treat.
With sugar snaps, mint, & basil
It was really tasty. The Husband, being the youngest of four, is a great sharer and let me have bite of his trout. (Actually, everyone there were great sharers because I think I snagged a nibble off everyone's plate. What? I was the birthday girl!)
Gulf speckled trout with cauliflower puree
The meal as a whole was such a TREAT. Sorry the picture quality is so poor. I did have the gall to take pictures with my phone. But not so much with my camera.
Overall, a great birthday and getting older was pretty painless. Mostly delicious, really. And hopefully that's how they'll stay.
Speaking of treats... After that, we were off to Chicago! We joined The Husband's Sister, Brother-In-Law, and Nephew for an extra-long weekend of fun.
Chicago!
We stayed at the Hotel Talbott and it was fantastic. The people that worked there were absolutely lovely and the rooms were really nice.
I have dreams of being the type of person that can have white sheets. But I'm not. I blame the animals. (But as The Hubs would be quick to point out, Ima spiller.)
Fancy Apple tv with a mouse-less keyboard. Super fancy coffee maker (although ours actually didn't work). The fancy bathroom had a fancy warming floor. (Not that we needed it in August. But still. The option's nice.) Super nice and Reba would have Fancy-approved.
The first night there, The Fam-In-Laws were headed to a White Sox game so Hubs and I checked out Graham Elliot's restaurant, the cleverly named "Graham Elliot".
If you're not familiar, Graham Elliot's restaurant received a Michelin star and he's been nominated for the James Beard award 3 times. He's also one of the judges on MasterChef.
He's the nice judge (aka "The Paula")
The menu was quite out of my norm. I'm not sure how to describe it other than an "experience". For starters, they brought us an amuse-bouche of a watermelon shooter with olive and jalapeno. Nice. Different. I wouldn't have minded a little mroe jalapeno but I realize I'm not the barometer of most people's spice levels. Cuz if I ain't sweatin', I ain't eatin'. Not literally. Ok, maybe a little. This has taken a turn...
Next up, was parmesan popcorn with truffle oil. A play on the standard bread basket? It was light if somewhat messy from how finely the parm was shredded. (Remember my aforementioned reputation of being a spiller?) And then on to the "Hot".
I ordered a corn bisque that had a little lobster and a marshmallow. It was pretty.
Said marshmallow
It was good. But sweet. There were no salt & pepper shakers on the table so I didn't want to insult the chef by asking. But honestly, I think it could have used some salt. But good! Just... Sweet.
On to the main course! I got pork belly with a farm egg, thinly sliced radish, and... Some other stuff.
YUM.
I think that was the first time I ever had pork belly and I loved it. Crispy skin and egg over-easy on top added the best richness. It was really a winner.
The Hubs had the halibut with leek brandade (I had to look up brandade fo sho) and bacon (that one I knew). It was GORGEOUS and the pic does not do it justice.
Tasted good too
I must confess, I got a little spoiled by all the fine dining. The Hubs and I had quite the in-depth conversation comparing and contrasting the meal at Iris and the meal at Graham Elliot. We felt like schmancy food critic judges. But without the pretentious faces.
Haven't forgotten you, Toby
The next day it was time for breakfast and off to the Cub's game!
This might look familiar
My dad used to take me to Braves games growing up. (Not to mention his illustrious church league pitching career.) So I was raised to enjoy a live ballgame. Smell of the park, crack of the bat. The noise of the vendors hawking hot dogs and the social acceptability of throwing peanut shells on the ground. The HOUSE of baseball. All that good Bull Durham stuff. Anyhoo, it was a great day for a game and the park was really cool.
Oldest still working stadium scoreboard... Or so The Hubs said
I'm a big fan of the ivy
Batting practice
The Nephew got a ball signed by some of the players and it was fun seeing how much he REALLY enjoyed the game. A ton of fun with one disappointment... I was too full from breakfast for a Chicago hot dog. Argh, the regret! And slight shame. You'd think I'd have had some room for one. Alas, there was none.
BUT after the game, there was room for another Chicago staple...
It was GOOD too. The Hubs and I shared so we got the loaded meat. I'd love to have a veggie one. Hmm, I wonder if I have the skills to make one? (It would probably taste ok but not be round.)
The next day, the fellas went to a sports convention and my Sister-In-Law and I did the lady version of a sports convention... Shopping! We started at H&M. Which was FAB and they should have everywhere. Filene's Basement which reminded me of a nicer Marshall's. And then... I dunno. This is where it turned into a blur. We ended at Nordstrom Rack. Great deals and the most shopping I've done in a long time.
Exhausted from all of the effort, we caught a cab and headed over to... The Art Institute of Chicago!
Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh
What was that? Angels singing.
I loved it. We caught some Impressionists and early Religious art before moving on to their current exhibition "Windows on the War: Soviet TASS Posters at Home and Abroad 1941-1945".
Being a graphic designer, I thought these were REALLY cool. It's amazing the way they used stencils and type. They felt - beside subject matter - current.
Being a person that lives in the world, they were also slightly disturbing at times. And moving. And inspiring. My S-I-L and I had a conversation about how you forget that Russia wasn't always the bad Bond villians that they later became in the Cold War. Even though they weren't in English, the message was clear.
For anyone that enjoys WW2 things - which I do - this was really cool.
Next, we were off to a couple more well known and well parodied pieces.
Nighthawks by Edward Hopper
This picture is so ingrained in my mind with celebrity imagery that I was shocked James Dean wasn't actually in it.
On to Contemporary Art!
I have a love-hate relationship with Contemporary stuff. I like abstract art so I love a piece that gives me an emotion, even if I don't understand why. There's a visceral reaction to shape/color/etc. and an inference of your own story into a piece. (Blah, blah, art, blah blah, talk, blahhhh.)
But I don't love when people put dirt on a cracker and try to convince me it's gourmet.
Some folks can talk "their art" to death. But at the end of the day, it's just a receipt from Walmart you glued to canvas and spritzed with your own sweat... Or is it? Could it be a profound comment on blue-collar wages and benefits? It's easy to argue out of both sides of your mouth about it.
I also am a big Warhol fan though so sometimes I love a dirt cracker. If ya know what I mean.
Still with me? Me too. But barely...
Moving on, I love de Kooning and was so excited to see this piece.
Excavation
It was huge! Great sense of motion and people-parts. The description said that there were bird face and fish shapes in there. I didn't really catch that so much as the aforementioned people-parts.
Next, Jackson Pollock! I wanted to hug it.
The Key
It felt to me like people in a scene. Almost a day in the life. With a parrot. I swear I saw a parrot in there. Eh, could have also just been the overall parroty colors.
Close-up of Pollock's signature
And then...
Greyed Rainbow
Hello, gorgeous! This showed the splatter technique he later became famous for. Love. It.
The Art Institute of Chicago is really terrific and I'd recommend it to any and all. I definitely would like to go back someday and check out what I missed. Also, to buy more things in their gift shop. I do so love an art museum gift shop.
And that was pretty much the trip. Sunday, we killed some time walking around Michigan Avenue. (While there, we made the life decision that our next house will be us moving into their 4-story Crate & Barrel.) And then we were off to the airport! Where I enjoyed a buffalo chicken sammich and listening to the waitstaff fight with each other. Our flight was delayed and our seats were behind a child that sang. And sang and sang and sang and sang. But no matter. Made it home safe and sound. Luggage not lost. And tons of great memories.
Awwww.
A great birthday week/end, it was.
But wait, there's more! Just a little, mmmkay? I took off Monday so I had plenty of time to ease back in. The cupboard was bare so I went grocery shopping where I decided to be bold. And try making salmon for the first time. All by myself. I mean, I had all day, right?
It turned out GREAT. What was I so scared of? It was super easy and turned out beautifully.
No longer afraid, we had salmon again last Sunday (broiled with rosemary) and it was just as good and tasty. I'm a fan and, if I do say so myself, possibly ready to branch out to other fishies already. Whodda thunk? Eh. Stranger things have happened.
Straight chillin'
Have a good week, Bubbleland! I'm hoping to get some painting done over the weekend so I might have my own person fish-beak-people-parts picture for you soon.
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