Friday food porn

We are all home.  Michael and Barb enjoyed Man of La Mancha & we had mixed reviews on King Lear.

But we went to brunch at Mercer Hall.  Not often do you see chicken and waffles on the brunch menu at a multi-$ restaurant.  Three of us ordered it.

No, not the chicken and waffles that Meg remembers served regularly in the school cafeteria.  Or that served at your local church/firehouse fund-raiser.

We will be back at an unknown time with more.  Adieu.

Just a note

Wednesday was our only full day in Stratford.  For those of you who have never been there, Stratford reminds me of home -- without the Shakespeare Festival, it'd be just another midwestern town, maybe a bit cuter, but two intersections surrounded by cornfields.  With the Festival, there are more hotels than you can imagine, and in the six years we've been coming there's been a growth of restaurants, almost all with "she-she" menus.

Example 1: we had a "light lunch" at a restaurant that is an off-shoot of the local cheese shop, which is big on organic and/or local (they seem almost synonymous here).  I cannot recreate what was on the menu, mostly on big chalkboards on the wall, but I know we had a charcuterie (no, I am not sure what the word means) and cheese plate.  The family had quiche, which had beet root in it (pukey face), and chick pea and lentil salad.  Really?  The cheeses were all local.

For dessert, get this, their main offering was "water buffalo milk ice cream" with chocolate and/or espresso sauce and "warm chocolate chip cookies."  Discussion followed, several times, about who got to milk the water buffalo.  But, to someone's credit, it was the smoothest ice cream any of us had ever eaten.

Our matinee was King John.  For those of you who think of the lion in the Disney animated version, well, the director decided to go near that route here.  As background, they think it was written in the 1590s (i.e. "early Willie Shakes"), but there are no print editions till the first folio (for those of you who have to look it up, 1623).  It was rarely, if ever, played in the 18th century, became popular in the 19th, but has returned to little-playdom in the 20th.  It is the 5th production in Stratford's 61 years.

It was actually well done.  It is not great Shakespeare, but what you learn if you see his contemporaries -- a recent viewing of Webster's Duchess of Malfi comes to mind -- you know weak WS is better than anyone else's best.  In KJ, it is the supposed bastard of Richard the Lion-heart, Falconbridge, who steals the show -- and the actor, Graham Abbey, stole it.  Lots of pro-English talk, and anti-French/foreigner stuff.

Dinner was at Pazzo.  This is now a tradition.  It sits right on the Main Street (Ontario) on the central intersection next to the small garden that brightens town.

It is Italian.  For those of you who are familiar, I need say no more.  The highlight meal was

ciopinno.

There's your food porn.  Meg and Michael had it; I had the pork ragu fettucini, Barb had the lobster ravioli & Karen the steak.  We all left happy.

Barb, Michael & I saw Beaux' Stratagem for our evening show (K & M saw Man of LaMancha -- singing! ew!).  Stratford had not staged a Restoration comedy for almost 20 years; this one was well done.  Colm Feore (famed in the rest of the world as a minor player in Amazing Spiderman 2 & Thor) was good as the lead.  The house was only half full.  It seems Restoration comedy doesn't sell big, even with a Marvel villain in the lead, in a cow town.

Today is our last day.  It was meant to be a quick, inexpensive (ROFL) midweek trip, set up so late for the first show I couldn't get seats together, and so we could get a room (see paragraph one -- its not a big place).   Brunch, King Lear & home.  Adieu.

Canada with Mystery Wheels, Eh!

So, yes, we are back "on the road" (though not moving much) this week for a short visit to Stratford, Ontario.  This is the fifth year in the last six we have made the journey to see "Shakespeare" (ironically, the S's are seeing just one Shakespeare play in their 5 -- and TWO musicals!!!!).

But let's start with this photo.

If you are wondering why it's a photo of an innocuous (grey???!!!) Chevy Malibu in the parking lot of our hotel in Stratford, well, here's the comparable shot: pic


Yes, that's MY Cadillac!!!! Insert crying face.  If you don't recognize the components, that's the front and rear drive train ON THE FLOOR with the transmission. !!!

Why, you ask?  It went in last week for an engine miss.  They decided to be thorough in their investigation. ):  I was told they started with the 5 recall notices on it.  And here we are.  They are getting a new head from Detroit.  They say it will be done by Friday, maybe.  At least by next week, when I begin commuting to Lock Haven for the next phase of life.

Now, for Stratford.  We ate last night at the Belfry, which the Toronto Star food critic says is the place to eat if you have one meal in Stratford.  I have learned the term "food porn" from reviews of last week's A Hundred Foot Journey, so here's yours.



Megan's steak tartare.  That is a quail egg on the top.  Ooooo.  As for "best bites," Michael said "the blue cheese," Megan her lemon flan, Barb and I our chocolate pot-de-creme, & Karen's shrimp.

The play of the evening of Antony & Cleopatra.  None of us were happy with it.  The leads failed to have chemistry; the production seemed tired despite trying (consciously) to move quickly; and there's the quality of the costumes, which sometimes seemed tired, too.

Ah, well, today will be better -- even if the food might not be.