French Food/ Theater/Farm Dinner
The fall harvest is upon us. The days are now shorter. The air is a bit crisper. The leaves are changing from deep green to a brilliant sea of bright reds, yellows and orange. The farmers have begun to take in the last of their summer crops (peaches, corn, tomatoes, zucchini, etc.) and offer up the heights of their fall harvest (apples, pumpkins, squash).
I had quite the busy weekend planned. Saturday afternoon I ventured into Manhattan to take my mother to see a play, A Tale of Two Cities. A few months ago, I began listening to books on tape as a means of creating a more pleasant commute to work and catching up on the many classic books I have always intended to read – but never had the time. One of the books I “read” in the car was Charles Dickens “A Tale of Two Cities.”
I found myself enraptured — absorbed with the lives of Dr. Manette, Lucy, Charles Darnay and Sydney Carton, oh and of course — the essence of vengeance herself – Madame DeFarge. This book captivated me. It quickly took up residence among my favorite novels.
In talking about the book with my mother, I learned that it was one of her favorite novels too. In fact, she read it at least three or four times. So, when I heard that someone had adapted it into a play for Broadway, I immediately bought tickets for us.
After her recent serious illness, I had some concerns that going to Manhattan to see a play would be too much for my mom. I met her in front of the theater and we slowly walked a block away to a French bistro I have always wanted to try. For many years, I have passed, parked next to, and thought about eating at Pergola Des Artistes. It is not a fancy place. It’s been there for many years now and serves basic French/American fare. The owner, an old French woman sat by the door and greeted us as we entered. Light, simple “country” French cuisine was just what my mother and I were looking for – before seeing a heavy, intense French/English play.
We found a note card on top of our menus that offered Matinee theater specials for $11.95, which included an entrée. They added $2.75 for soup or salad, or $6.50 for soup/salad, dessert and coffee. Each meal came with a complementary glass of wine – Chablis or Burgundy. Now, house Chablis could be chancy – so I opted for the burgundy, which to my surprise was pretty good.
We both began with a cup of Lobster bisque.
For my main course, I ordered the Coq au Vin, which was surprisingly simple, bordering on bland and it came with carrots, green-beans and brown rice.
We skipped dessert and headed off to our play. The lead character of this play – the man that performed as Sydney Carton – James Barbour — was absolutely amazing. He completely stole this show. When I read the book, I felt love and compassion for Sydney Carton. However, this actor made me really love the character in a way that only live performance can.
Making sure that my mom was set to be brought home safely, I boogied back upstate to attend the September Farm Dinner at Blooming Hill Farm. My cousin Michele was all set to join me. I met her at my house and we rushed over there – in time to try the many wonderful flatbread pizzas and crustinis that showed off guy’s tomatoes, savory cabbage, pear, roasted corn, tomatillos and other seasonal vegetables.
Usually they set up the tables outside. However, it was lightly raining and threatening to pour, so everyone ate inside the barn. We sat next to a lovely couple from the film/entertainment industry and talked leisurely the whole evening.
The chef for the evening was supposed to be the Chef de Cuisine from Baboo. However, they canceled the day before. So Guy Jones scrambled around to find another chef at the last minute and luckily enough, the chef from Backyard Bistro, a small restaurant in Montgomery, NY was able to accommodate. Her food was wonderful.
Her first course was a butternut squash chowder with sage crackers. She told us that rather than roasting the squash, she juiced it, which gave it an interesting texture. To add a smoky flavor, she make portabella mushroom “bacon” and added it to the soup.
Our next course was an heirloom tomato salad with wild watercress and Toussiant cheese (from a local dairy). She served it with a squash that she referred to by its Italian name – Gagoutz. Now, when I was a kid, my mom would shop for produce at a local fruit stand in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn called The Top Tomato. The old Italian guy that owned it called everything by its Italian names. One day, my mother was shopping for Zucchini. She looked around for the price label and couldn’t find it. So she asked the Italian man how much the Zucchini was, while holding it up like a baseball bat.
He looked at her and said with a very phallic gesture, “Lady, dat ain’t no chuchini – dat’s a Gagutz!”
Everyone in the store burst out laughing, including my mother. Ever since, we have never been able to look at that particular squash varietal the same way again. So, when the chef at the farm dinner referred to the salad as an Heirloom Tomato and Gagutz salad – I couldn’t help but chuckle quietly to myself.rr>>
Our main course was a Thai-style pumpkin coconut curry with steamed jasmine rice.
For dessert, they served an absolutely delicious Apple and pear cobbler with fresh Bourbon cream.
All in all, my Saturday was a wonderful day.
Sunday, Michele and I went back to the farm and to a few other farmer’s markets to shop for produce. We made several batches of tomato sauce... but that is a story for another blog (stay tuned).
I had quite the busy weekend planned. Saturday afternoon I ventured into Manhattan to take my mother to see a play, A Tale of Two Cities. A few months ago, I began listening to books on tape as a means of creating a more pleasant commute to work and catching up on the many classic books I have always intended to read – but never had the time. One of the books I “read” in the car was Charles Dickens “A Tale of Two Cities.”
I found myself enraptured — absorbed with the lives of Dr. Manette, Lucy, Charles Darnay and Sydney Carton, oh and of course — the essence of vengeance herself – Madame DeFarge. This book captivated me. It quickly took up residence among my favorite novels.
In talking about the book with my mother, I learned that it was one of her favorite novels too. In fact, she read it at least three or four times. So, when I heard that someone had adapted it into a play for Broadway, I immediately bought tickets for us.
After her recent serious illness, I had some concerns that going to Manhattan to see a play would be too much for my mom. I met her in front of the theater and we slowly walked a block away to a French bistro I have always wanted to try. For many years, I have passed, parked next to, and thought about eating at Pergola Des Artistes. It is not a fancy place. It’s been there for many years now and serves basic French/American fare. The owner, an old French woman sat by the door and greeted us as we entered. Light, simple “country” French cuisine was just what my mother and I were looking for – before seeing a heavy, intense French/English play.
We found a note card on top of our menus that offered Matinee theater specials for $11.95, which included an entrée. They added $2.75 for soup or salad, or $6.50 for soup/salad, dessert and coffee. Each meal came with a complementary glass of wine – Chablis or Burgundy. Now, house Chablis could be chancy – so I opted for the burgundy, which to my surprise was pretty good.
We both began with a cup of Lobster bisque.
For my main course, I ordered the Coq au Vin, which was surprisingly simple, bordering on bland and it came with carrots, green-beans and brown rice.
We skipped dessert and headed off to our play. The lead character of this play – the man that performed as Sydney Carton – James Barbour — was absolutely amazing. He completely stole this show. When I read the book, I felt love and compassion for Sydney Carton. However, this actor made me really love the character in a way that only live performance can.
Making sure that my mom was set to be brought home safely, I boogied back upstate to attend the September Farm Dinner at Blooming Hill Farm. My cousin Michele was all set to join me. I met her at my house and we rushed over there – in time to try the many wonderful flatbread pizzas and crustinis that showed off guy’s tomatoes, savory cabbage, pear, roasted corn, tomatillos and other seasonal vegetables.
Usually they set up the tables outside. However, it was lightly raining and threatening to pour, so everyone ate inside the barn. We sat next to a lovely couple from the film/entertainment industry and talked leisurely the whole evening.
The chef for the evening was supposed to be the Chef de Cuisine from Baboo. However, they canceled the day before. So Guy Jones scrambled around to find another chef at the last minute and luckily enough, the chef from Backyard Bistro, a small restaurant in Montgomery, NY was able to accommodate. Her food was wonderful.
Her first course was a butternut squash chowder with sage crackers. She told us that rather than roasting the squash, she juiced it, which gave it an interesting texture. To add a smoky flavor, she make portabella mushroom “bacon” and added it to the soup.
Our next course was an heirloom tomato salad with wild watercress and Toussiant cheese (from a local dairy). She served it with a squash that she referred to by its Italian name – Gagoutz. Now, when I was a kid, my mom would shop for produce at a local fruit stand in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn called The Top Tomato. The old Italian guy that owned it called everything by its Italian names. One day, my mother was shopping for Zucchini. She looked around for the price label and couldn’t find it. So she asked the Italian man how much the Zucchini was, while holding it up like a baseball bat.
He looked at her and said with a very phallic gesture, “Lady, dat ain’t no chuchini – dat’s a Gagutz!”
Everyone in the store burst out laughing, including my mother. Ever since, we have never been able to look at that particular squash varietal the same way again. So, when the chef at the farm dinner referred to the salad as an Heirloom Tomato and Gagutz salad – I couldn’t help but chuckle quietly to myself.rr>>
Our main course was a Thai-style pumpkin coconut curry with steamed jasmine rice.
For dessert, they served an absolutely delicious Apple and pear cobbler with fresh Bourbon cream.
All in all, my Saturday was a wonderful day.
Sunday, Michele and I went back to the farm and to a few other farmer’s markets to shop for produce. We made several batches of tomato sauce... but that is a story for another blog (stay tuned).
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