Dinner Menus – Second Sunday Supper Circle

A relatively short menu for our group. Most of our dinners extended, as you have perhaps seen in these pages, to 5, 6, or even 7 courses. A four course dinner, one of which was a salad with cheese, seems so unlike me. A few errors are present on the menu – corrected in the text below (spelling and a date), and I’ve added English descriptions of the dishes for those who, like me, don’t really speak French. Strangely, also, for me, I didn’t list the vintage date for the Calvados at the end of the meal, one of my favorite producers, and one which I usually had a couple of different vintages on hand from.

Michel de Nostradame, more commonly known as Nostradamus, was born on December 14, 1503, in St. Remy de Provence. He is best known for his book of prophecies ‘Centuries Astrologiques’ published in 1555. In the same year, he also published ‘Excellent er Moult Utile Opuscule a tous necessaire qui desirent avoir connaissance de plusieurs exquises recettes’ (An excellent andmost useful little work essential to all who wish to become acquainted with some exquisite recipes). These aren’t his recipes.

In honor of the birthday of arguably the most famous Signatory in history, we present our take on Signature Dishes of arguably the most famous restaurants in American history.

Apple-Celeriac Soup with “Waldorf Salad”Garnish
Waldorf Salad – Oscar Tschirky (Waldorf Hotel)
Ferrari Signature Riserva “Giulio Ferrari”, 1992

Pizza Bianca – Caramelized Vidalia Onion, Pancetta, Reblochon
Tarte Flambé – Andre Soltner (Lutece)
Sergio Zenato Lugana Signature Reserve, 1997

Oyster & Spinach Stuffed Cabbage Rolls, Pernod-Scallion Sauce
Oysters Rockefeller – Jules Alciatore (Antoine’s)
Mario Trinchero Signature Merlot, 1999

Florida Spiny Lobsters, White cheddar, Truffled Mustard, Manzanilla Sauce
Lobster Newburg – Charles Ranhofer (Delmonico’s)
Eileen Hardy Signature Shiraz, 1994

Seared Baby Lamb Chops, Strozzapretti with Pistachio Sauce
Lamb Saté with Potatoes – Vic Bergeron (Trader Vic’s)
Ca’ del Bosco Signature Maurizio Zanella, 1990

Licorice Meringue Stack with Key Lime Curd & Fresh Key Limes
Key Lime Pie – Aunt Sally (Curry Mansion Inn)
Henri Ramonteu’s “Quintessence du Petit Manseng” Jurançon, 1991

I do know that the dessert dish was influenced by my trip the previous year to participate in and cover, for Passport magazine, the Gay Games held there (I won two bronze medals in martial arts). I’d eaten at Luke Mangan’s restaurant Salt, and for dessert been served a licorice parfait with a lime syrup, and was amazed at how well the two flavors melded. A combo I’ve used many a time since.