Wilfrid

I'm sure I did, but it actually goes back further. I knew him before he was in a band. We used to go to the same gigs, notably Eddie and the Hot Rods. Nobody expected the skinny, gangly kid in the patterned shirts to become a star. I also knew him later when the Pogues used to play on the same bill as a band my friend managed. The link above is to "A Rainy Night in Soho" which is what I am playing this morning.

Good thing I find about otherwise evil social media: quick connections you can make with good people. I went to a panel discussion on a niche literary topic tonight, mainly because a critic I admire hugely was there. A couple of hours later we are messaging about something discussed.

Jeez, Jimmy C outlasted him. Last news I saw anyway.

My regret is that I defied Harrington on the vermouth but assumed he was right about the Cointreau. Didn’t check him.

That seems pretty classic.

Martinez muddle. Some months ago, I made the Martinez from Paul Harrington's book, assuming he'd be right on the ingredients. He suggests: gin, Cointreau, dry vermouth, Angostura bitters. It wasn't very nice. Then I realized the Martinez (plural?) I drank in bars were made with sweet vermouth. Was it an error? I have since seen recipes that call for equal dry and sweet vermouth. I continued making the Harrington Martinez using sweet instead of dry. Nice drink. But I ordered a Martinez in Barcelona from someone who knew what they were doing and I noticed him pouring Luxardo maraschino not Cointreau. I now see it has been made that way since at least the 1880s. And I have now made it that way and it is good. But I still like the drink with gin, Cointreau, sweet vermouth, Angostura bitters. I just don't know if it has a name.

Nuts. I just read the piece on the artist Betye Saar. I know I have seen her work recently. I remember Aunt Jemima, I remember the cotton dress. But where? Google is no help. I guess I can thumb back through my physical diary.

I admit I was ignorant of Viet Cajun cuisine. This overview at least knows who the Cajuns are: .

I wonder why Hannah's unsurprising and not particularly timely piece on New Haven pizza gets real estate in the print edition while we still have to read Helen online to get the full pieces.

Music Hall of Williamsburg was a perfect place to see them but they easily sold it out. Maybe they will indeed move up in size. I would worry about getting a ticket, but since I see their every move on Instagram I should be good.

Maybe Terroir was a teachable moment.

Look what Ana from Hinds just told me.

Oh, “Leaving New York” is breathtaking, especially the closing choruses. What a singer.

Prepare to be shocked again. I see someone inserted an explanatory link. I hope Luke clicked on it. https://ny.eater.com/2023/11/27/23961519/le-relais-de-venise-lines-famous-steak-frites

I will stick with my first guess which is that the person responsible actually thinks Cajun cuisine is a kind of Black cuisine, and nobody else who saw the messaging could be bothered to think about it.

It’s good of you, but why? Damn thing is entirely stupid.

That is a feast. Wow.

I agree with might be Black, but “thus”…no. Per @voyager one of the only two plausible Cajun dishes on the menu, the gumbo, lists “creole chicken” as an ingredient. There is a Nashville hot chicken sandwich, celebrating Harlem’s historic links with Tennessee (I made that up).

Yes, but don’t forget the Cajuns got ingredients like okra from their African neighbors.

Not that creole would make any more sense. (Spellchecker capitalizes Cajun but not creole). He has shrimp and grits and cornbread on the menu, so there’s a hint of actual relevance to Harlem.

Agreed. Had he been a really strong songwriter his career would have been fascinating.

The last standing Monkee sings REM. Not sure about some of these arrangements but I had to hear the voice that sang “Pleasant Valley Sunday” take a shot at “Shiny Happy People.” Anyway, here we come…

I know but it’s so central to the Harlem Renaissance isn’t it?

The rabbit legs were sucked up. The second vast corn soofle went with my guests; I was left with the rest of the pernil. I cut it off the bone and portioned it for the freezer. Three pounds. A lot of tacos and burritos in my future. I did end up with a lot of cheese too and the big hit was La Retorta, a fantastic soft goat cheese in a seriously mineral rind (from Formaggio of course. Get it.).