Book Review: Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil

I was feeling a little homesick so recently I opened up my copy of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.  I'm not sure if it cured my homesickness or just made me yearn for my beautiful and unique hometown more than ever.  Either way, it's a great read.

John Berendt's work of non-fiction put my town of Savannah on the map.  Seriously.  Nothing has done more for the tourism industry (our main economic driver) than this book.  Before "The Book" - as Savannahians refer to it - when my family would travel and tell people where we were from, we received blank stares.  After The Book, however, it seemed everyone knew a little something about the Hostess City of The South.

It's amazing how perfectly Berendt, a Yankee, captures Savannah's spirit (aka: our resistance to change) and its crazy characters.  He introduces the world to Lady Chablis, a black drag queen with pounds of sass, Sonny Seiler, the man who graces the UGA community with our mascot, Uga, and finally to Jim Williams, the man who made headlines.  Williams lived in the Mercer House, one of the most beautiful homes in all of Savannah.  It was there that Jim Williams shot and killed his assistant, Danny Hansford.  Williams was an upstanding citizen and host of the most exclusive Christmas party in Savannah so the murder shocked the city.  Even more shocking, however, was the news of Williams' homosexuality and Hansford's role as a hustler, which came out during the trial.

It's hard to believe I had never read the book in full before.  When it came out I was considered too young for some of the more mature themes.  Besides, I've lived it.  I grew up with the granddaughter of one of the book's more prominent characters and grew up listening to Emma Kelly.  Lady Chablis used to moderate my Mom's charity auctions.  It wasn't until after the book came out that I understood these characters are out of the ordinary.  For me, this book is nostalgic.  For you, it'll just be interesting.

4 out of 5 stars.

Valentine Shmalentine 2014

While I took a break last year because I was in Curaçao, I have developed a nice little single gal tradition of celebrating Valentine's Day by preparing a nice meal. Treat. Yo. Self. This year I wasn't single, but I didn't want to let my tradition go. I told Albert my plans would proceed as usual and he could join if he wanted. He said he would love to so I decided then and there that the meal would be spaghetti and meatballs. Why? Because that's what Lady and the Tramp ate and I  think they may be the most lovey dovey animal couple in history. Do we know of any other animal couples?

While past Valentine's dinners have been all about treating myself to an elaborate meal, this year was about treating myself in a different but just as satisfying way: by letting the store do the work. Sure, I boiled the pasta, but Whole Foods made the meatballs that I cooked with jarred pasta sauce and topped with fresh parm. For the vegetable I picked up Brussels sprout salad with bacon and blue cheese. But I can't forget that the whole meal started with a shrimp cocktail. Shrimp cocktail feels very 1960s to me. I'm not sure why, but I feel like it's a very Mad Men dish. Don Draper I considered quite the sex machine in that show so I now correlate shrimp cocktail with 1960s, which I correlate to Mad Men, which I correlate to sexiness. So that's how I thought shrimp cocktail would make a romantic Valentine's Day appetizer. Instead of cocktail sauce, I used remoulade sauce, also store-bought but a little different than the expected. 

No, we did not push the meatball across the plate with our noses like Lady and the Tramp. My single girl tradition may have been hijacked, but it was nice to be able to share a good meal with someone. 

Otto's Tacos

The bright orange sign made me wonder if it was legit, but Albert really wanted to check out Otto's Tacos.  I want to say the reason I agreed was solely because he asked me to, but the real reason was twofold: I started reading a lot of good reviews about their LA style tacos on homemade masa tortillas and I heard about a secret menu.  The reviews offered validation and the secret menu made me feel special.  Like I was a gatekeeper.  Don't tell me you wouldn't want that honor.

The menu is small but it's really all you need.  My favorite of the regular menu tacos was the shrimp.  The shrimp has been marinated to be a little tangy and spicy and it comes with a serrano crema that really set the whole thing off.  Thankfully, that crema also made it's way onto the Gorgon.  The Gorgon is the secret menu item at Otto's, but I'm telling you about it now so I guess the secret's out.  It's a deep fried taco that's much larger than the regular menu tacos so you won't need to order as much as you think.  The tortilla is puffed up like a greasy peacock and filled with carne asada (good char on the meat), guac, that crema, onions, and cilantro.  It may not be on the menu, but it's the best thing on the menu. Wink wink.

Gorgon in the back

Book Review: Divergent

The Divergent series has taken the world by storm.  Well, it has taken the teen world by storm.  Once again, I gave in and read a Young Adult novel series.  I'm still proud that I resisted Twilight, but I can't make fun because I loved the Hunger Games.  Veronica Roth's series was the latest sensation that, like the Hunger Games, takes place in a dystopian society with a brave female heroine.  

The premise: in a futuristic Chicago, society is divided into 5 factions, each representing a different virtue.  The Abnegation value selflessness, Candor value truth, Erudite are scholars, Amity want peace, and Dauntless are brave to the point of recklessness.  At age 16, everyone takes a test to determine which faction they are best suited for and then decide at the choosing ceremony which faction to make their new home.  In her aptitude test, Beatrice Prior learns she is Divergent and could fit into several different factions.  She is warned that if anyone finds out about her Divergence she could be in danger so at the choosing ceremony she leaves her Abnegation family and pledges her allegiance to the Dauntless.  

The first book focuses on Tris trying to prove herself to her new daring faction and culminates with the strife between two factions coming to a head in a catastrophic way.  It's hard not to get sucked into the story as the "perfect" society begins to unravel.  I thought the romance aspect was a little too in-your-face, but at least it veered away from the love triangle formula used by other trilogies in this category.  I can't wait to see the movie version when it hits theaters next month!

3 out of 5 stars.

3 on Thursday

I kicked off my week with a huge client presentation.  There is still much work to be done, but I am looking forward to a more regulated work flow now that the craziness of presentation prep has calmed down.

Background: gorgeous flowers for a special occasion

1. We took Friday happy hour in a new direction last week: we went bowling.  It was a nice change of pace and a great way to interact with friends beyond sitting around a table with beers.
2. A shot from inside one of my neighborhood subway stops.  
3. I couldn't resist taking a picture of Albert in front of the Albert Building in Flatiron.  

Rayuela

And now for my third brunch post in a row I'll tell you all about Rayuela.  This one is another bottomless brunch spot.  For just $15 you can have sangria added to your entree (which will only set you back about $13 in itself).  You can switch off between sangria flavors, but I started with the passionfruit and liked it so much I never made it to the guava or regular red.

The nuevo latino menu was also enjoyed by all.  I did my job of checking, and all twelve plates at our long table were clean.  I thought my plate of huevos partidos looked small, but I was full for hours.  At first it looks like your basic eggs, potatoes, and sausage.  But then you realize those aren't potatoes, they're pieces of fried yuca.  And it's not regular sausage, it's chorizo, which is just chor-ific.

Bottomless brunch deals like this usually come in smaller, more...rustic restaurants.  But Rayuela is two stories of breezy space.  It really puts the oasis in Sangria Oasis, which, incidentally, is what they call their weekend brunch.

Ichabod's

Ichabod's is small, but size doesn't always matter.  Not when a bottomless brunch is offered, at least.  Just $15 gets you two hours of mimosas or bloodies, which go great with the country breakfast (two eggs, potatoes, and bacon or sausage).  The food was solid, the vibe intimate, and the location just off Union Square is convenient for anyone living in NYC.  That light streaming into the photo just makes the brunch experience so much nicer.