Monday Reads

1. The blood of horseshoe crabs is a beautiful shade of periwinkle.  Scientists are harvesting this pretty blue blood and it's miraculous property of being able to identify and trap contamination in a given solution.  Considering these solutions could come in contact with human blood (as an injection, for instance) being able to confirm that solution is clean is a breakthrough. 
2. There has been a lot in the news lately about the long term effects of football injuries on the brain.  Now, the King-Devick test can be administered on the sidelines to determine if a tackle has resulted in a concussion.  It's even available as an app!
3. Read about the New York Times v. Sullivan case that, 50 years ago, molded the First Amendment as we know it today.
4. After only a few years at the 2400 point format, the SAT is reverting back to a 1600 point scoring system.  As part of the change, they are removing all those big fancy words.  True, we no longer commonly use "punctilious" when chatting with friends, but perhaps the reason language has dumbed down in general is because we don't stress its importance.  It seems like this change is saying we're ok with people who "talk stupid."

Melt Shop

An entire restaurant devoted to grilled cheese sounds heavenly.  And now it exists.  Actually, it has existed for over a year, but now it conveniently exists near my office.  I can't go too often because my grilled cheese came to almost $10 - a crazy markup - and of course it didn't keep me full all day.  But dang was it delicious.  So much butter on the bread.  So much gooey cheese.  Because I got the Shroom sandwich, mine was filled goat cheese, havarti, portobellos, and parsley pesto.  As the restaurant name, Melt Shop, implies, this sandwich is full meltiness between two pieces of bread.  

Book Review: One Last Thing Before I Go

Silver is a washed up musician.  After making it big as part of a one-hit-wonder band, he now lives in the only apartment building in his suburban town along with other sad, middle aged, divorced men.  He has made a mess of his life with no dating prospects and no relationship with his 18-year old daughter, who has just told him she is pregnant.  Why tell him?  Because he's not valuable enough to disappoint.  Just as he's wrapping his mind around the situation, he is rushed to the hospital and told that he will die without emergency surgery.  In a shock to the family who still loves him despite everything he has put them through, he decides to forgo the surgery and focus on being a better man and repairing his relationship with his daughter.  

Considering this is the third book I've read by Jonathan Tropper, I'd say I'm a fan.  I found this one a bit existential and did not enjoy it as much as This Is Where I Leave You or The Book of Joe; however it was still an enjoyable read as Tropper always injects sadness and humor into his writing in the perfect balance.

2.75 out of 5 stars (points deducted simply because I didn't like it as much as Tropper's other novels)

3 on Thursday

My trip to Philly gave me enough to fill up almost two "3 on Thursday" posts.  You may not want to hear any more about my trip, but during a week as busy as mine, I like to be reminded of my recent relaxation.  The background of this week's post shows off what was probably the most relaxing moment of the trip.  This was the view we stared at from the Rocky steps at the art museum while we people-watched.

1. I loved the food at National Mechanics, but I also really loved that the restaurant is inside an old bank.  It just reminds me of how historical Philly is.
2. We stayed at the Renaissance Blu hotel after Albert found a deal on Living Social.  Not only did the hotel have the swanky lobby pictured (I loved the graphic walls), our deal got us any two drinks we wanted.  
3. The only non-Philly picture of the bunch, I loved spotting this car on Park Ave. over the weekend.  I don't need a car in NYC, but I wouldn't mind seeing this vintage baby parked in front of my building.

National Mechanics

For my last Philly foodie post, I want to focus on a great brunch find.  If you are one of those people who judges a brunch spot by their bloodies, you will love National Mechanics thanks to their bloody mary bar.  You pick the type of vodka (I went with bacon vodka) and the rim (I chose Old Bay) and then you take your glass up to the bar where you can add their homemade mix, any number of their hot sauces (I lost count at around 30), olives, capers, celery, horseradish, and Slim Jims.  I am pretty sure I crafted the perfect bloody.

For my meal I ordered the veggie skillet.  I was concerned that my cast iron pan would not have ample cheese, but there it was.  The perfect amount of oaxaca cheese covered the mound of potatoes, spinach, broccoli, mushrooms, and poached eggs.  It was all good and stretchy, pulling against the weight of my fork as I shoveled bite after bite into my mouth.

As the name would suggest, there are some savvy mechanics behind the decor who have designed lighting fixtures and faucets out of old pipes, wire, and exposed bulbs.  The real decor, however, is found simply in the building itself, which was constructed over 150 years ago and previously housed a bank.

 

Tria

After dinner with Brooke, Albert and I decided to stay out for just two more drinks.  When you're only in the city for 34 hours, the goal should be to pack as much in as possible.  We had passed Tria while walking around during the day and decided it was worthy of our nightcap.

We may have just eaten but, as I said, the goal was to pack in as much as possible and I needed to do my part...especially when I saw the cheese list.  I took charge of assembling the meat and cheese platter while Albert focused on the craft beers.  The server then helped me pick a wine that would work well with our selection.

It's rare that a wine and cheese bar has such a good beer selection but more should follow suit.  It means everyone gets what they want because beer swigging guys don't feel like they're compromising by going to a girly wine bar.

The Corner

I took my weekend getaway to Philly as an opportunity to catch up with an old friend.  Brooke and I haven't really seen each other in a few years, but after living in a sorority house together you kinda bond with a chick.  We decided to meet for dinner which of course really just means gossiping about our sorority sisters while people served us food.  I haven't had a real trash talking sesh in a while due to the fact that I'm trying to behave like a mature adult...but it was nice to feel like a gossipy college girl again.

The Corner was the perfect restaurant for us to re-connect.  The food was great and by sitting at the chef's bar, we had a first look at the food so we knew just what to order.  Plus, it kind of felt like we were sitting around the kitchen table, which is where all good gossip sessions take place and reminded us of when we used to sneak into the sorority house kitchen after hours to steal food.

I started with the mushroom soup and was happy to see that not only was the bowl large, it came with ricotta toast points.  The toast wasn't just topped with a light layer of ricotta, it was given the NYC bagel shmear treatment.  Going heavy on the ricotta was fine because the soup had been strained to a thinner consistency.  I also ordered the kale caesar.  I know it appears on many menus nowadays so it's not exactly special, but I thought it was prepared well.  It was too much food for me and yet the whole meal came to $14.  This is the kind of restaurant you would find in SoHo or the West Village...except all the food would be double the price.  Even the cocktails were $2-$4 less than they would have been in the city.  Those prices reeeeally make me like Philly.