Two Courses, Two Parks

Knowing that the temperature will drop by twenty degrees tomorrow was all the motivation I needed to find an excuse to be outside today.

So when a friend suggested lunch, I responded by suggesting a fun lunch. When he asked what that meant, I said it meant eating outside, so we headed to Church Hill and Alamo BBQ.

Since my last visit, here, new items had been added to the menu, including blackened tilapia tacos which sounded good to me. My friend got the brisket, which I already knew was terrific.

Part of the pleasure of Alamo dining is its al fresco ambiance, but with winter supposedly on the way, the potential for cold could present some dining problems sooner rather than later.

While we were ordering, my friend mentioned that they would soon need walls and a space heater and, lo and behold, we were told that they're expected to be installed later this week. Alamo all winter!

Once our names were called, we took our big brown bag and walked up to Jefferson Park to find a bench overlooking Church Hill's bustling streets.

We watched a mom and two boys walk towards us and all of a sudden the older boy (9 or 10 probably) drop and roll all the way down the long, steep hill. Ah, the highs of childhood.

My tacos were bursting with black beans and corn, the tilapia blackened with just enough heat. I tried some of Friend's jalapeno mac and cheese, an interesting blend of creamy and hot.

The funny part is that jalapenos make him hiccup, so he was doing his best to pick out half of them, hoping to reduce his hiccuping by half without completely giving up the little bits of hot green goodness.

My friend wanted the details on my recent dating exploits and I tried to glean male-mind information from him. I'm way out of practice on this and I'm having a hard time figuring out what means what and why.

He was no help at all. When I asked him why these guys jump to the conclusion that I'm so awesome, he says, "Because you are." Whatever. No help whatsoever.

On that useless note, we left and drove over to Mezza's for some Gelati Celesti; our thinking was, how many more days are left in 2010 where ice cream will seem like a good idea?

I had the chocolate decadence (but not in a cone, because they were out of cones. I asked about the ones sitting on the ice cream case and was told that they were old. Like months old? No, maybe a year old. Okay, no thanks then).

My friend got the chocolate peanut butter over a scoop of chocolate chip cookie dough and we took our scoops over to the little park behind Crossroads Coffee. The last time I'd been there, a guy was playing bongos for the crowd, I told him.

No bongos today, my friend observed. There was a little white dog walking precariously along the top of the rail fence. I feared for a fall, but another girl whipped out her phone and started snapping pictures of him doing it. I'd like to think she wasn't hoping for a disaster photo, but you never know.

I'd also like to hope for more 75-degree days, but that's just not realistic. Not that reality has ever been my strong suit.

Escaping the Cold at Cafe Gutenburg

Cruising 17th Street, I spotted a prime parking space opening up right in front of Lulu's.

Two guys were standing out front watching me park and one of them was coatless in tonight's 30 degree weather, so I couldn't help but tease him about it.

His response was, "I have an invisible skin shield. You know, you can't park there if you're not coming in here."

I explained that I was meeting a friend at Cafe Gutenburg and what did he care where I went?

Seems he was the bartender at Lulu's; first he complimented my pink scarf and then insisted that I stop by after dinner.

You know, personal invitations are always an effective way to lure customers.

Wednesdays are Wine Down Wednesdays at Cafe Gutenburg, with select glasses half off.

Thus it was that I ordered the 2007 L'enclos des Bories Minervois, a syrah/grenache blend, tasting of currants and black pepper (and surprisingly tannic) and a mere four bucks.

Perhaps the wine deals accounted for the steadily increasing crowd we experienced tonight.

My friend arrived with the gift of a calendar showcasing twelve of the best photographs from his 2009 travels.

He's a hobby photographer with a great eye and he'd chosen some beautiful pictures which I will happily admire for the rest of the year.

He then regaled me with stories of his recent trip to Florida to visit his brother and his wife, people who actually enjoy canned peas and instant mashed potatoes.

Few people can describe food failures with quite the verve my friend can.

After our waitress' third stop by the table for our order, we accommodated.

He got the Local Mushroom Burger and I had the Smoked Salmon Blini with petit herbed salad, capers and creme fraiche with a side of buttered baby vegetables.

It's not every day you even see blini on a menu and these were were plentiful and delicious smeared with their plate mates.

The veggies were comprised of baby carrots and green beans doused in enough butter to prevent me from feeling virtuous about eating them.

But, of course, I wasn't going for virtuous.

Dessert was an overly large serving of Gelati Celesti chocolate ice cream which I did make a point of sharing with my friend.

As I pointed out to him, though, there's nothing like going to the Bottom for West End ice cream and besides, what kind of idiot orders ice cream when it's this cold outside?

Some questions have no answers.