Enjoyed as an all-day festival of
great food and drink,
in addition to a celebration of good
company and conversation.
Lets
begin:
*Veuve
Clicquot
QUAIL
EGG TARTLETS WITH CAVIAR:
Small, delicate tartlets filled with
a
poached quail egg, chives, Beluga
caviar, and a touch of fresh cream.
"These tasty little fellows ... were so good I could have
eaten
them for the rest of the afternoon and been
content."
CRAYFISH
CONSOMME':
Young veal and tender shrimp married
and
transformed "Chinese Style" to a
smooth perfection.
"After being driven to our seats, we were served
up
bowls of veal & shrimp consomme' Egrave;' w/the cutest li'l
ol' crawdaddy caught in
the act of escaping."
*Cupresse,
1994
TRUFFLES
"CINDERELLA" IN FLAKY PASTRY
Full, black truffles sauteed in
champagne and sherry with ham and
foie gras, wrapped and baked in puff
pastry.
"For this, my second "date" with
black
truffles, I was even more happy than on my first."
OYSTERS A LA
BROLATTI
Shallots, butter, and wine sauteed to
accompany freshly poached
oysters.
"Now I must admit up front that I am not an oyster
lover,
having had a number of disappointments ....
That being said, I was pleasantly surprised as I
tentatively
nibbled my way through a couple of these babies."
*Zamo Zamo Pinot
Grigio 1995
ESCALOPE OF
FOIE GRAS WRAPPED IN CHICKEN
Tender ballotine of chicken, stuffed
with sliced foie gras, lightly
sauteed with cream and sherry, served
with morels.
"When the escalope of foie
Gras in chicken with morels arrived, it took my poor, by now
bewildered
taste buds right over the top. I had to leave the table to
rest."
CHAMPAGNE
SORBET
To clean the palate...
"Fortunately, along came a champagne sorbet, just in the
nick of time, and I
was able to regain some of my usual composure."
*Gundlach Bunschu
Merlot, 1995
POTTED DUCK WITH
OLIVES
A cold confit of duck and chopped
assorted olives.
"And not a moment too soon, as it
happens, for next out the chute was a hefty
cold confit of duck and olives ... I'm back on my
back."
*Le Clos du Cailleon
Vieilles Vignes Cote du Rhone, 1995
VEGETABLE
PIE
A masterpiece of eggplant, carrots,
and mushrooms, and more hidden in
pastry.
"But pulling me back from the
abyss of satiation was a delicious - not
to mention awesomely presented - vegetable pie."
ROAST LEG OF
LAMB
The leg itself of injected with
Brandy, Madeira, and spices then
roasted and served with a sublime
garlic gravy.
"My new-found commitment was to be sorely tested
when, egad! appeared a roast leg of lamb, injected with brandy
Madeira and
served up with a salivatiatious garlic gravy. Well, by now I
was not the
only one feeling the effects of overindulgence. We got up -
those of us
what could still move - & stretched our legs."
*Lenteiro Port 1947
- As well as various Grappas, Cognacs, and
Brandies
"a 60-year-old Port, and grappas and brandies and cognacs, oh My!"
ASSORTED
CHEESES
Etorki Sheep's Milk, L'Edel de
Cleron, Swiss Appenzeller, Champignon
Montagnolo, Goat Gouda, Boar Piet (a
48-month Raw Milk Gouda), Currant
Voucheese, Parrano
"An assortment of delicious cheeses kept us from losing our
edge, however,
as we milled about the room drinking coffee or tea, engaging in
brief conversations,
or just trying to coax enough room in our bodies to welcome
desert."
*Coffee or
Tea
TIMBALES
"ELYSEE"
Amazing little edible Valrhona
chocolate cups filled with Kirsh-soaked
genoise, vanilla ice cream,
Kirsh-soaked fruit, and Chantilly cream,
crowned with a golden
cage.
"And welcome it was, ... delicious."
"It was deliriously delectable!
Stupendously scrumptious! Surrealistically
savory! I've never tasted anything like it
before. Carolyn Tillie is a shaman
in chef's clothing!" Ralph
"... Certainly the event of the season. The
only way she could have improved on it was to
have several
attractive, very buff half dressed young men
-oiled, of course- carrying
the platters in when a gong was struck.
(actually the cooking was so
amazing we wouldn't have cared if we were
competing with wild hyenas....)" Marguerite
"We arrived about 2:00 pm and were greeted with
Veuve Clicquot & quail egg
tartlets. ...By the time 10:30 pm rolled
around, 8 & 1/2 hours of food, food, food. I
was full filled." Leroy