Category: Restaurants

Tidy Tidbits: On Screen and Plate

JWF Leave a comment

FRENCH WHODUNIT

Anatomy of a Fall ($ Amazon Prime, Apple TV)

Vincent, a lawyer & Sandra (The Daily Beast)

This is the third excellent new movie we’ve watched this season.  Sandra, her husband, and their son Daniel are at home in Switzerland.  Sandra, a writer, is being interviewed.  A thud is heard.  Investigation reveals the body of a man lying in the grass.  How did he get there? 

This French film, much of it in English with subtitles when French is spoken, is a fascinating and occasionally suspenseful examination of what or who caused the man’s death.  It’s also an excavation of a marriage, a fractured one with issues and disappointments.  One spouse has been more successful than the other, and their son had an accident which compromised his capabilities.  

French filmmakers like dialogue so perhaps some viewers might wish it were more concisely written. Nonetheless, the Chief Penguin and I were fully engaged.  The courtroom scenes with a cool and calm Sandra are especially compelling.  Highly recommended!

CRIME IN GOTLAND

Murder in Sweden, Season 2 (Prime Video)

Sebastian & Maria (PBS SoCal)

Titled, Maria Wern abroad, Murder in Sweden is an outstanding crime series.  Lead inspector Maria is a youngish widow and mother of a son and a daughter.  She’s also in a developing relationship with her colleague, junior detective Sebastian.  The rest of the team consists of two other men, Ek and Arvidsson; a tech person, and their boss Hartman.  Together they tackle challenging cases from chilling attacks on a politician, to death at a teen party, to the strange illness of a man on a plane claiming a murder has been committed.  

The cases have a dark side that can be hard to watch.  One of the most unsettling ones concerns online bullying and threats to Maria’s son’s high school class.  Over the course of the season, Maria both learns more and has more questions about her policeman husband’s death ten years before. 

Each case is solved in two episodes and there are 8 episodes total.  In my opinion, Season 2 is better than Season 1, which I also watched.  Recommended!

LUNCH OUT

Indian fare near Venice

Our good friend in Venice invited us down for lunch at Tikka Indian Cuisine.  This is a popular small restaurant located in a strip mall on the 41 Bypass with a Big Lots.  We were advised to arrive early as it quickly fills up.  And indeed, we got there about 11:15 and by noon, it was almost full.  When we finished, folks were lined up at the door awaiting tables.

Sample Tikka lunch (yoursun.com)

The lunch menu offers a selection of appetizers (samosas and the like) and combo lunches.  Combos include your choice of entrée with sides of rice, naan, and chef-selected appetizer and dessert.  We three ordered the korma, rogan josh, and vindaloo, all with chicken.  Other options were lamb, shrimp, paneer cheese, or vegetable.  The korma was appropriately mild, my rogan josh was medium spicy which was plenty of hotness for me, and the Chief Penguin bravely went for the vindaloo.  Even at medium level, it was very spicy—but then vindaloos are typically the hottest of Indian curries.  

Each combo was served on a thali (round metal tray). The day’s appetizer was a generously sized samosa and the dessert a rice pudding.  For vegetarians, there are several main dishes including yellow lentils, chickpeas, and a potato and cauliflower dish.  And if you dine in the evening, you can select from several tandoori dishes including one with salmon that our friend recommends.  Yum!

Fall Potpourri: Eating & Viewing

JWF Leave a comment

THANKSGIVING IN NORTH CAROLINA

We spent Thanksgiving week in North Carolina. I was pleased to see burnished fall colors on the trees as we landed at RDU.  That’s something I miss about living in Florida.  But it was a cold week, and this Florida wimp wore many layers to stay warm, even on the afternoon we explored a new park in Cary.

There was plenty of warmth on Turkey Day with several generations of family celebrating.  Our granddaughters and our son and daughter-in-law, my two sisters and spouses, along with nieces and spouses and one other kid.  We toasted with mimosas and sparkling cider and nibbled at an assortment of fine cheeses, jalapeno popcorn, and chips before attacking the table’s bounty.  With roast turkey and a ham, tasty sides (including mac and cheese), and a choice of pecan pie, apple cake, and yummy cookies to finish, there was no cause for complaint.  We had much for which to be thankful—not least the sheer joy of being together.

DINING HERE AND THERE

Magone Italian Grill & Pizza, Chapel Hill

As an antidote to turkey, many of us decamped to Magone Italian Grill the next day for dinner.  This unprepossessing place appeared casual in the extreme.  It looked like they focused on takeout business.  I explained that we were going to be 10 people and was it possible to have a table.  The young waitress quickly sprang into action, leading me toward the back, pushing two tables together, and offering to bring water for everyone.  

The menu is long and extensive, making one initially wonder if they would deliver on quality.  We were not disappointed.  My chicken piccata with angel hair pasta was delicious, while others enjoyed shrimp with pesto over penne, a pizza with pepperoni and fresh basil, and other classic dishes.  Throughout, our server was pleasant and helpful.  It was a relaxed dining experience, and I’d happily return!

BESO, Sarasota

(scenesarasota.com)

The Chief Penguin and I had a favorite Spanish restaurant in San Francisco, Coqueta, near the Ferry Building.  In Manhattan, we were regulars at family-owned El Porron until they closed due to the pandemic.  Consequently, we were delighted to read about the opening of BESO (kiss in Spanish), a tapas restaurant in The Mark in downtown Sarasota.  We had dinner here with friends and were wowed by the food, the space, and the service.  

Had I not been so involved in sampling what we ordered, I would have taken a photo or two.  As it was, we tried the patatas bravas (best I’ve had), mini pork & chorizo meatballs, shrimps in garlic oil, croquetas, fried artichokes, and bread with olive tapenade.  Portions are small as tapas are meant to be, and we happily shared what we ordered among the four of us.  

The menu includes a variety of Spanish wines by the glass or bottle, cocktails, and, of course, several flavors of sangria.  For those who want a more leisurely experience, it’s possible to order one of three paellas (allow 45 minutes.). I can easily envision this restaurant becoming a favorite!  It fills a hole in the local dining scene.  

VIEWING—FOR FANS OF BRIDGERTON

The Buccaneers (Apple TV+)

Nan in center with her compatriots (Hollywood Reporter)

Loosely based (very loosely) on Edith Wharton’s unfinished novel of the same name, The Buccaneers is an exuberant series of high emotion and high society.  The time is the 1870’s.  Five young women, daughters of rich American fathers, have journeyed from New York to London. They have hopes of snaring a duke or a lord as a husband.  Unlike the more reserved English girls, these Americans romp and run around outside, feet off the ground, arms high in the air.  

The central focus is on Nan (Annabel) who attracts the attention of two worthy men, one a duke, the other simply impoverished. Nan has a rich father, but she is not entirely whom she seems.  One friend, Conchita, marries quickly and just as quickly discovers marriage is not all that she expected.  Her British in-laws expect her to be demure and subdued.

Jinny, Nan’s sister, follows with a wedding to Lord Seadown, a controlling figure.  Others in the group are not sure men are what is needed in their lives.  What begins as balls and parties and gaiety soon dissolves into the messiness of life and unrealistic or unfulfilled expectations.

The gorgeous costumes, the lavish settings, and the modern musical soundtrack provide a wonderful backdrop to the dramas being played out.  

The series runs to 8 episodes with new ones released weekly.  I have watched the first four episodes, enjoying the series more as the five women are more individually defined.   Indulgent, fun, and occasionally poignant!  Recommended!  

Seen in Fearrington Village

Note: All unattributed photos ©JWFarrington (some rights reserved.)

Maine Moments: Reading & Eating

JWF Leave a comment

RECENT READING

BOOKS SET IN MAINE

Lilies and evergreens of Maine

Lily King is an award-winning novelist who happens to live in Portland, Maine.  With that credential, she has written an engaging piece “Reading Your Way Through Maine” for the New York Times series focusing on literature from specific locales. Amongst her list of twenty titles, I was pleased to see familiar ones: from Elizabeth Stout’s Olive Kittredge to Landslide by Susan Conley, and More Than You Know by Beth Gutcheon, along with several by authors new to me.  King also includes nonfiction titles and several popular children’s books, namely Blueberries for Sal and Miss Rumphius.  

Appropriately, she doesn’t include her own fiction (not set in Maine), but I have thoroughly enjoyed Euphoria (loosely based on a young Margaret Mead and contemporaries), Writers & Lovers, and recently, the novel below.

A FATHER’S GRIP

Father of the Rain by Lily King

King (goodreads.com)

Published in 2010, King’s novel Father in the Rain, portrays daughter Daley’s decades-long struggle to be noticed and loved by her father.  Charismatic and charming, Gardiner Amory is wedded to the bottle and is often hurtful and verbally abusive to his daughter and others.  When Daley’s mother separates from her father, Daley spends weekends shuttling from home with her mother to her father’s chaotic household.  Ki

Gardiner has remarried and has stepchildren. Daley must navigate, or at least survive, the ravages of this dysfunctional household each week.  This is probably one of the most harrowing and painful sections of the book.  Later, when everyone else seems to have deserted Gardiner, Daley returns to assist him, setting aside, temporarily she tells herself, her own life and love.  

What do we owe our parents and what is the pull and attraction of the daughter-father bond?  The writing is wonderfully graphic and descriptive, and the characters are believable, but I have to admit to becoming impatient with Daley—the sacrifices she makes, for what return?   (~JWFarrington)

DINING OVER BOOTHBAY HARBOR

McSeagull’s Restaurant

Harbor View at McSeagull’s

Located in downtown Boothbay Harbor overlooking the harbor and the footbridge, McSeagull’s offers a tempting menu of local seafood and fish.  We brought our friend from Sweden here for lunch, and the guys began with cups of chowder.  It looked very appetizing topped with some crispy bacon.  Later, the Chief Penguin declared it the best clam chowder of the four iterations he’s sampled this season.

The C. P. and I had fried haddock with coleslaw and fries.  Very fresh and lovely fish and a generous portion.  (Someone I know took some home!)  Our friend enjoyed some local oysters on the half shelf and sampled some of my haddock.  

The porch overlooking the harbor is a most pleasant place to dine, but the inside seating is also bright and attractive.  We’ve vowed to return at least once more this season!

Note: Photos except for author photo ©JWFarrington (some rights reserved) Header photo is Monks Cress.

Majestic Montana: Flathead County

JWF Leave a comment

Kalispell

A year or so ago, I’d never heard of Kalispell, Montana, much less known how to spell it.  It’s in the northwestern part of the state and is the town in which Glacier Park International Airport is located.  Their code is FCA (totally unintuitive!)  

Look closely to find Bigfork

The airport is small, but recently expanded, rustic in feel, and bustling on a Thursday afternoon, not so much so Monday morning when we departed.  Kalispell is about 40 miles from Glacier National Park and hence, a lively place, especially in summertime.  In the winter, folks come here to ski.  We flew to Kalispell last week to visit friends in nearby Bigfork.

Cavernous Kalispell airport

With a population of more than 100,000, Flathead County is the fourth most populated county in Montana. With a varied topography from cherry and other fruit orchards to rolling hills and mountain vistas, it boasts attractive small towns like Kalispell, Bigfork, and Lakeside to name just a few.  There’s also Kootenai National Forest and an Indian Reservation.  

Field of rapeseed destined to become canola oil

On our first day we visited the Northwest Montana History Museum  in Kalispell followed by lunch nearby at DeSoto Grill.  The museum building, brick Richardsonian architecture, was originally a school, the first public building in town opening in 1895.  It’s now an impressive museum telling the story of the town and the region, the role of Native Americans and noted citizens, and the local industry.  Several exhibits were interactive, and the gift shop was loaded with fiction and nonfiction books about the region and Montana in general.  I was pleased to see that the museum also hosts a History Book Club which meets monthly except for July and August.

Museum and hanging flowers on light post

Named for the car, DeSoto Grill was packed and popular, but we nabbed a table.  

Our helpful waitress was all business, but in the nicest way.  Several of us ordered the house specialty, smoked brisket in a sandwich or as a salad topper, along with their touted mac and cheese.  The brisket was excellent!

A hearty lunch!

Bigfork

Bigfork is named for its location at the juncture where the Swan River flows into a bay of Flathead Lake. It has a short main street with shops, arts center, and summer playhouse theater.  It’s charming without being kitschy. Just outside town are comfortable duplexes and lovely homes overlooking a golf course and small lake.  Perched high on the granite rock ledges are some seriously stunning mansions.  Despite the development, it looks and feels tranquil.  And in the distance are the Rocky Mountains, generally visible even on a cloudy day. 

Big Bend area
We walked to the north shore of Flathead Lake

The air was dry and sometimes clear, there were expanses of open space, and we knew we were out West.  Unfortunately, Mother Nature wasn’t fully cooperative, and we had some rainy days.  The weather cancelled our plans to drive the Road-to-the Sun to the Continental Divide.  Instead, we went on a jaunt from Bigfork down the east side of Flathead Lake, then around the bottom and along the west side and up to Lakeside.  

Flathead Lake

Flathead Lake is the largest freshwater lake west of the Mississippi.  It has 185 miles of shoreline, and the southern half of the lake is within the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes Flathead Reservation.  With many access points along the lake, there are opportunities for camping, swimming, picnicking, and boat launching.  We enjoyed the views and the changing topography, but rain kept us inside the car.

Bar at Tamarack Grill

We had lunch at Tamarack Alehouse and Grill situated at the base of Blacktail Mountain.  With lots of glass and a brick fireplace, this casual open space was welcoming with great views outside toward the lake and in the courtyard of the brew works.   Pub food choices ranged from chicken quesadillas and enchiladas to pizza, burgers, and fish and chips to the meatball sandwich of the day.  Of course, the guys sampled a pint of Tamarack’s Rye Sally Rye IPA.  

Just Relaxing

Despite the weather, we managed to take a brisk walk every day but one, had delicious dinners prepared by our hosts (grilled salmon, chicken marbella, romaine and shrimp salad) and enjoyed several afternoons just chatting, reading, and sometimes napping.  Evening entertainment was usually reading or a TV movie. The Chief Penguin and I rectified a serious omission in our cultural life by seeing a performance of Grease at the summer playhouse, thanks to our friends!

A Man at A Bar, Montana

On our last day, after an especially vigorous walk up and down in the neighborhood, we had lunch at A Bar, Montana, another favorite of our friends.  Sandwiches, salads, burgers, and nachos are the fare on this Bigfork menu.  One of us had chicken wings, and I had the best tuna melt ever!  Another friendly place with very good comfort food.

Friends at lunch & the real fork!

Note: All photos ©JWFarrington (some rights reserved.). Header photo taken at north shore of Flathead Lake.