Month: October 2009

Jill’s anniversary gift to me was a weekend in Boston, that we scheduled as soon as we could before the weather turned cold. Fail on that, methinks. We dropped the dog off at Club Pet Saturday morning, then parked at Dulles and got through security fairly quickly (although having Lady Gaga’s little sister behind us wondering why she had to take her high heels and designer belt off was interesting). The flight to Boston was easy, and we took the T over to Government Center. We were both pretty hungry, so we headed over to Neptune Oyster as I’d read they had the best lobster roll in the city. And it was pretty awesome, swimming in butter and washed down with a Harpoon Octoberfest. Jill went a little healthier with the Neptune Crab Louis salad, but she liked it, especially the almond vinaigrette.

After lunch we checked into the Millennium Bostonian Hotel, then wandered around Faneuil Hall and Quincy Market across the street for a bit, Jill got some coffee and I picked up the new Drivin’ N’ Cryin’ CD at Newbury Comics. We were happy that although the forecast had called for cold and rainy like DC, we got the cold but no rain and some sun. We relaxed in the hotel lobby for a while, then headed down to Cambridge on the T to meet up with Chis and Jess.

The earliest dinner reservations I could get were for 9, so we went to the Cambridge Brewing Company first. We shared appetizers, the Mediterranean Plate and the Local Cheese Plate, and everyone but Chris got samples of beer. He went straight for the O.P.P. (Olde Pumpkin Porter), which I tried as well and is an outstanding mix of a pumpkin ale and a porter. I am so down with it. Their regular pumpkin ale was good as well, but the other standout was the YouEnjoyMyStout, a rich Russian stout.

By the time we finished everything it was time to go, so we walked the couple blocks up to Hungry Mother. Why did we go to Boston to have Virginian cuisine? Because it was excellent. Jill, Jess and I had the “bartender’s choice” to drink – mine was a mixture of rye whiskey and cherry bitters that was smoky and complex. Jill hadn’t filled up at lunch like I had and had a ham and biscuit appetizer and some parsnip soup, then the gnocchi for an entree. I went with the roasted chicken served with grits and gravy – the chicken was perfectly cooked, juicy all the way through. The pecan pie sounded good but I was getting full. When our waitress informed us they were sold out of the pie, I asked for the accompanying bourbon ice cream and got it, a perfect capper to a lovely meal. We parted ways for the evening after we got back on the T.

Sunday morning the rain finally found us again. We braved our way through it and took the T over to Chinatown for the traditional dim sum breakfast, now at Hei La Moon. We got all four Cannons (including two very well behaved little girls), plus my sister Sharon, who’s lived there for a month and had the exciting news she’s buying a condo in JP. The dim sum was all excellent, and all too soon we said our goodbyes to the Cannons. Sharon was able to join us for the rest of the morning, and our failure at finding a nearby yarn shop was closed on Sundays was overcome by our success at the Eddie Bauer outlet store: a new travel umbrella for me, a wind resistant umbrella for Sharon, and a new winter jacket for Jill.

We headed back to the hotel, Jill and Sharon picked up some coffee at Red Barn Coffee Roasters across the street while I tried to figure out where to go next that was hampered by only getting about three minutes of internet access. But Jill wanted to hit Newbury Street for shopping, so we figured out which end to start with and headed over. Sharon and Jill both got some purchases, having the most success at Chemistry. Sharon took off as she had a plans later, and we kept going until we got tired of walking in the rain and the umbrella dance every time we went inside a shop. We returned to the hotel and I got a little more internet access before it stopped again, and not even fifteen minutes on the phone with tech support helped. Still I managed to make dinner plans in spite of that.

The easy solution for that was my first choice for dinner, Craigie On Main. I’d seen their Sunday evening Chef’s Whim Surprise Menu and was intrigued, but our plans later precluded that, and they hadn’t had reservations available earlier. However I knew from checking reviews out online that if we got there when they opened we could get seats at the bar, so that’s what we did. And I was pleasantly surprised to find out that we could get the full menu there as well. Jill started with the Potage of Long Island Cheese Pumpkin, a hearty and delicious soup. I went with the bar tasting menu, which started with “quatre foie” – a meat loaf slice made with the livers of four different animals. Different, but not bad. For our main courses, I had the Organic Chicken Two Ways and Jill had the Organic Pork Three Ways. The breast from mine and the rib from hers were just superb.

And the food wasn’t even the best part of the meal. Since we were seated at the bar, we both took advantage of the Craigie Cocktail Whim, a “tasting” of four different kinds of mini cocktails made in front of us. And it was quite a presentation, crushing ice and herbs by hand. I think I need to call out each cocktail individually:

1. Old Monk rum, pineapple syrup, lime juice and sparkling wine – the balance was tipped just slightly to the sour side by the lime, this is a flavor pairing I’ll be playing with
2. rye whiskey, house made grenadine and grapefruit juice – refreshing
3. rye whiskey, house made maraschino cherry juice and a cherry with Aperol – very nice complex but slightly sweet drink
4. Colleen Bawn: egg, Chartreuse, rye whiskey, Benedictine, nutmeg plus a squirt of mint that was flamed – we were laughing as the bartender made this, since she started with egg which Jill doesn’t like, then added Benedictine which she doesn’t like either. But it’s a delicious dessert cocktail, on par with the Crema Catalana we enjoy.

Also the chef’s choice dessert for me was some homemade pumpkin ice cream between shortbread cookies, very nice and a perfect pair with the Colleen Bawn. We were sad to leave, especially since the rain now had snow mixed into it. As we walked back to the T, I told Jill one good thing about the weather being bad was I couldn’t forget my umbrella anywhere. Guess what I forgot at the subway station not ten minutes later…

We got to Brookline and walked over to the Old Lincoln School, where the “adventure theatre” production Sleep No More was being held. We entered into a pitch dark room, and eventually candles lit the way down twisty passages and eventually a bar. A “Zero proof” night as they weren’t able to get a license that night, we were given a card (Queen of Hearts) and waited for our card to be called (I did have a pineapple and lime juice cocktail). When it was, we assembled in a hallway outside the bar and were given masks to wear (identifying us as onlookers), then set loose through the four levels of the school as Macbeth was acted out in real time in sets that were apparently based on Hitchcock’s “Rebecca”.

We didn’t see all the pivotal scenes, but it was interesting what we did see: Duncan’s corpse being discovered, Lady Macbeth washing up and some kind of confrontation between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. The trouble was the scenes drew large crowds and sometimes it was hard to see what was going on, especially as most sets were fairly dark. I liked wandering the sets and the spooky effects – I thought the ability of a row of evergreens and a fan was marvelously effective in evoking woods in winter. For a more informed review, see the Globe. We’d also dressed up in periodesque clothing, but unfortunately I never got a shot of Jill without her coat (too bad, the new dress is a real stunner).

But the show wasn’t the only reason we were there. I’d been looking for weeks to find some kind of concert that evening, but nothing I really wanted to do came up. Dar Williams was playing shows near Boston, but a) no car and b) we’ve got tix to see her in two weeks already. So when Amanda Palmer tweeted about a secret surprise show Sunday, I was ready. Apparently after the show is over, folks gather in the (normally alcoholic) bar and the “Annie Darcy Band” plays (the lead singer is also a cast member). They still played (and got in some nice standards like “All Of Me” and “Night And Day”), but soon they had Amanda join them, then she took over. She tackled standards like “My Funny Valentine” and “Makin’ Whoopee”, before breaking out the Dresden Dolls’ “My Alcoholic Friends” and accepting my request for “I Google You” (cowritten with beau Neil Gaiman). It was fun (especially from the second table back), but we’d walked a lot that day and were fading fast, left during the second time through “Summertime”.

Thankfully the rain and snow had stopped by the time we left. I’d been willing to take a taxi back, but that plan was foiled – the area was too residential and we didn’t see any. But we soon caught a train back, and not having to transfer was nice. The trip back seemed ok, got up early and got to the airport with plenty of time to tame the ginormous security line and grab breakfast (bagel for her, egg sandwich for me). But once we were on the plane, Jill realized she couldn’t remember repacking her keys. Kinda important since she drove and I’d misplaced my second set of car keys with her extra several months back. She called the hotel before we took off, and when we landed found they were indeed in the room, we had them mail the keys back. In the meantime we were carless, so we got a taxi home. We undertook a quick search for the missing keys, and Jill was able to find them, forestalling the need for some complicated car coordination. I dropped her at the airport and drove to work, it still was a really great weekend.

Saturday we were up pretty early, but not planning to go to ACL until later, and not in a mood to do much as it was raining, so we hung around the room. In the early afternoon we went to Annie’s for lunch. We both had the tomato and brie soup to start, then Jill had the chicken schnitzel and I had the Italiano (served hot from the pizza oven), both hit the spot. Then we walked down to the shuttle to ACL and rode over. The rain had stopped while we ate lunch, but started again as we entered the festival. I made a beeline to Grizzly Bear, as I’d enjoyed some of their tunes, but it didn’t translate as well live, so I went over to catch the rest of The Airborne Toxic Event, much better live experience. Jill had gone shopping and we met up to see Flogging Molly next. Of course it started raining harder, but we sat down in our little cushions and used the umbrella to cover our legs. We didn’t get too wet that way, but were ready to leave by the end. We caught a little of Bon Iver, but the rain was getting heavier and we left the fest.

We walked down Barton Springs as the rain intensified, ending up at Uncle Billy’s. I’d read they just won a gold medal for their Hell In Keller beer, so we thought we’d give it a try. Unfortunately they were out, but it was all good because that gave us an excuse to try their sampler platter of beers – the wit and smoky porter (using the BBQ smoker to smoke the grains) were really tasty. Plus we watched LSU finish beating up Georgia. When we left the rain had stopped, but that was the only good news (that, and seeing the best smart car paint job ever).

Private Lee, I presume?

We’d decided to get a really healthy dinner and walked to a place that served vegan food, but their gate was locked – they apparently decided to close for the ACL weekend. So we headed back to Barton Springs and found the Kebabalicious stand. I had the beef & lamb kebab while Jill had the chicken, both perfect. We headed back to the festival, where of course it started to rain again.

It didn’t matter, I just wanted to go see The Decemberists. And I was glad I did, I really like their new rock opera CD and I was hoping to hear a lot of it since they’ve playing the entire thing on their tour. I was shocked that they had the balls to play the whole thing – and psyched, it was quite a show, the highlight of my day (and have no doubt I was singing along to “The Wanting Comes in Waves”). After that the Dave Matthews Band started out a little too predictable (I totally called “Don’t Drink the Water” as opener), and a few too many new songs, but it was pretty good towards the end – too bad we were leaving about then, took a cab directly back to the hotel.

Sunday I wanted to try one of the brunches, and settled on Lamberts Downtown Barbecue. I ate way too much, but it was wonderful: Eggs Benedict, French Toast with strawberry butter, and some of their brisket and ribs (good, but not great). We did a bit of shopping and headed back to the hotel for a while.

In the afternoon, we headed to the festival. We were ready for a second day of rain, but it never came. Instead we were greeted by fields of mud. We squished our way over to see Brett Dennen, he was great and summoned the sun (too bad it was too late to help matters), then bought some food and went to see some of the Arctic Monkeys. They weren’t bad, but we were already growing weary of the scene, so we carried out my cunning plan of bringing food and iced tea/lemonade over to some park benches where we could eat in peace and no mud. Other than what we brought with us – it was then I noticed one of the straps on my right sandal had snapped (but enough remained to retain structural integrity).

After relaxing for over an hour, we headed back in to see Ben Harper for a bit, then headed to the other end to see the second half of The Dead Weather (featuring Jack White). We were in perfect position to finally see Michael Franti & Spearhead put on a very entertaining show, then turn around again and see Pearl Jam blow the roof off the place, even though we left about an hour in (we could hear it for a while down the road to the buses).

We weren’t ready to call it a night, as we were hungry and thirsty. Next stop was another Ginger Man (after we visited one in NYC this year). They were a little low on food, so we had the The Beer Companion (assorted cheeses, Genoa salami, fresh olives, seasonal fruit and Carr’s water crackers) along side our Octoberfest brews, then we stopped by the La Casa del Fuego taco truck for some tacos to bring back to the hotel (Jill liked her chicken one, I wasn’t too impressed with my pork).

Wednesday we took Illa to the kennel, then got a cab to Dulles. Glad I checked in online, because United offers a discount on checked bags that way. The flight to Austin was decent, and on time. I’d booked rooms at the Holiday Inn on the lake, and while it’s a bit out of town, there’s a shuttle usually available, and we got it from the airport along with two flight crews (including the one from the plane we were just on). We checked in and relaxed a bit, then had to chose where to go for dinner.

We ended up at La Condesa, a Mexican fusion place downtown, mostly because I’d read they won a cocktail competition. They weren’t serving dinner, so we sat at the bar where I had that watermelon martini and Jill had a mango margarita, both very good.

After we were seated, Jill ordered the tortilla soup, a guacamole with a layer of chipotle & toasted almonds on top, and the fish tacos, while I got the Costillas de Puerco – spicy guava-glazed pork ribs. I liked Jill’s guacamole, but my ribs were unbelievably good – I preferred that sauce to most barbecue sauces. After dinner we decided to walk back along the lake. That was ok, but it seems to have aggravated the foot injury I got a couple weeks back, so I’ve tried to limit the walking since.

Thursday we went over to the 1886 Café & Bakery for breakfast. Jill had the banana pecan bread and a breakfast burrito while I had the 3 egg omelet, both nicely filling and Jill really liked the coffee. After that we headed over to the Whole Foods flagship store where we bought breakfast and beers as well as lunch. We caught a bus back to the hotel right outside.

Jill wanted to go yarn and window shopping down South Congress Street, but I wasn’t up to walking around, so she headed out after eating her salad. I ate mine a bit later after some surfing (free Wi-Fi in the room can’t be beat), then headed down to the pool overlooking the lake and read for a while.

Jill went to REI to pick us up some camp chairs, but my plan of getting some cheap ones we could leave behind was spiked by prices starting at $50. We decided to just get some of the padded fold up chairs that could fit in our luggage – those weren’t cheap either, but at least we can reuse them.

We went out to dinner at Stubb’s where I couldn’t resist trying the smoky jalapeno wings and a pulled pork sandwich and Jill got a two meat platter with the brisket and the ribs, both scrumptious. After dinner we headed around back to the concert venue, a sloped lawn leading down to a stage. It was the first show of Them Crooked Vultures US tour, and I had a feeling that we wouldn’t be anywhere near that close the next night at ACL (I was right). Dave Grohl was a monster on the drums, just hair and hands, while John Paul Jones laid down some heavy bass. One song seemed like “Trampled Underfoot”, just slowed down and spacier. It was great, but we got tired of standing and left with about 3 songs left to go (calculating from the setlist).

Friday we had breakfast in the room, then headed to Austin City Limits – not the festival, but the soon to move TV studio. We were there for a discussion on the history and evolution of the show, which included Alejandro Escovedo as well as Emily Robison and Martie Maguire of the Dixie Chicks. We took a seat in the second row in front of the stage and marveled at how small the room actually is, then got a really entertaining conversation (I’ll post a link when it’s up).

Afterwards we went across the street to TerraBurger, home of organic burgers. We both got one (half off on Friday’s!), Jill got avocados and bacon on hers while I got bacon and jalapenos on mine, and both of us had side salad and Zevia Cola. Burgers were juicy and delicious, but we were soon on our way to Republic Square. It took a while to get our wristbands and board the buses, but soon afterwards we were walking into the Austin City Limits Music Festival.

Phoenix went on just as we arrived and we were enjoying them, but I dragged Jill off after a couple songs as I really wanted to see Coheed and Cambria at the other end. We sat down and I enjoyed their prog heavy set. I wasn’t planning on seeing any of Bassnectar, but he pulled me in with a tease of Pink Floyd’s “One of These Days” before switching songs. Jill wanted to get good seats for The Greencards, so we headed over there. I went to get a smoothie and caught some of Robyn Hitchcock and the Venus 3 (with R.E.M.’s Peter Buck on guitar) before heading back.

The Greencards were most excellent, though everyone stood down front so I left Jill there and retreated to the side so I could sit. We headed to the next stage over to see Andrew Bird and saw the end of Thievery Corporation. Andrew Bird was ok, but I decided I’d rather see the majority of Them Crooked Vultures’ set. We were far away, but it was still good. We’d planned on seeing some of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and some of the Kings of Leon before leaving, but were getting tired and just stayed for 3-4 Yeah Yeah Yeahs songs before catching the shuttle back (apparently we missed Eddie Vedder joining Kings of Leon on their closing number – oh well).

Since we didn’t have dinner at the festival, that meant we could get something hot and fresh. We’d already decided we wanted to hit up Opal Divine’s Freehouse as it was the last night of half off on 30 types of Texas beer on draft. I had a couple of “anniversary” beers (appropriate since this is our big celebration) and the Newport Chicken Breast Club while Jill had an Austin Amber and the Turkey Reuben. Everything hit the spot, I was a little reluctant to leave.