Many thanks to everyone who came to my trivia/potluck birthday party last night. It was my first birthday party in 8 years and you all didn't let me forget that. Singing "Happy Birthday" twice might have been overkill but seriously, thank you.
We had an abundance of food and booze. Highlights included Golsa's vegan sesame chicken noodles, Paul and Lindsey's veggie meatballs, Jesse and Johanna's homemade pizza, all the cakes and cupcakes, and Veronica's late night sweet potato quesadillas, a 34 Robeson special. Guests to our house always comment on how well we eat here. Sometimes I think we should start a supper club, or at least a weekly potluck. This was at least our 4th potluck party and while we never give any guidelines, we always have enough food and its always delicious. I think it might be that we only make friends with other people who like to eat.
House party trivia was an experiment, Wyatt's idea. I wanted a fun way for a bunch of random people to interact without having to get shitfaced so Melanie and I made up a lot of questions, went over a game plan with Wyatt and hoped for the best. I was worried people wouldn't get into it but according to the guests it was mostly a hit.
We had three teams and four rounds:
- art, film and music
- picture round, had to identify 11 different vegetables
- artist and album, the answers to the first 9 questions were meant to be clues to guess a particular artist and album. People didn't like this one as much because the questions were really hard.
- A round of Noelle trivia, followed by a final jeopardy question about the Spanish Armada
Team "Who Threw That Shoe?" came in first, followed by team "Team" and "Grand Ole Team" a.k.a. "The 9 Stories (a tribute to Lisa Loeb)". The winners got first pick from a pile of home-stenciled "I'm a trivia badass" t shirts.
I also meant to solicit donations for Haiti Earthquake relief but it didn't really happen. Still, Haiti, my thoughts are with you. I know this was the last thing you needed.
So now, an uplifting song about Haiti's history, courtesy of Kaz:
In my lucky life, full of soul-less consumerism and devoid of life threatening earthquakes, I was able to have two amazing dinners out last week:
1. B&G Oysters in the South End with Wyatt.
This place is great for dates, provided your date is an adventurous seafood eater. It is very small and the kitchen is in the middle so you can see the chefs as they prepare your meal. Between small plates, an appetizer and an entree, we sampled a lot of different flavors. I could write forever about how good it all was but I think just listing the dishes will make your mouth water. Yes, it was all as good as it sounds.
Sea bass tartar with arugula and black pepper in blood orange juice ( a treat from a friend in the kitchen)
Monkfish foie gras
Mini blini with prosecco cured roe
Fried oysters with housemade tartar sauce
Roasted littleneck clams in spicy marinara sauce
Skate wing over a lemon risotto with calamari and mussels
Mascarpone custard over a puff pastry with fig sauce
A-mazing.
2. Prose in Arlington for Melanie's birthday dinner
Andrew, Wyatt, Melanie and I made the trip to Arlington to sample Prose Chef Debbie Shore's local seasonal fare. With just one helper in the kitchen, she took our order, cooked for and served us 10 small plates and two desserts. There was so much food I can't recount it all but highlights included smoked trout, pork belly with kimchi, red pepper bisque made with lapsong souchong tea, and a white bean salad with walnut and olive tapenade. This lady knows what's up when it comes to yummy food. She also kept us listening to her stories about restaurant history in Jamaica Plain for 35 minutes after our meal. Mostly it was endearing. I would definitely go back.
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