Ah, what a difference a few weeks make. Was it just a short while ago that motorists were loving their local filling stations, as gas was a very soothing $4.55 a gallon, Osama bin Laden was living large in a mansion smack dab in the heart of one of our principal allies’ cities, and our President decided to visit our little burg to sample some fine, Westside dining, whilst relieving some democratic heavies of roughly 38K the plate. Geez, I hope they at least got dessert!
But, I digress. Hearing about the festivities, and living nearby, I decided to venture on over, hang out and observe this peculiar part of American politics, the presidential visit and fund raising dinner. I did try to attend, but for some reason, I made the check out for $38.00, and then the dems returned it to me, marked NNED (Not Nearly Enough Dummy), and I did so much want to sit next to Steve Spielberg and discuss the merits of Jurassic Park 14.
So, much to my chagrin, I took up my place in a chair sitting outside the Palmeri Ristorante, next door to The Tavern, where the big event was to take place. As the afternoon wore on, it soon became apparent that something big was happening later on, as the people hanging out became more and more beautiful, the cop cars got more and more unmarked, the SUV windows got more and more tinted, and the Secret Service guys got bigger and bigger. One thing that I quickly learned, it is not considered good form to ask a guy if he is with the Secret Service. Suffice to say that if he has a curly Q cord coming out of one ear, an ill fitting suit jacket that tends to bulge way out in the lower back, and he seems to have his wrist perpetually tethered to his mouth, well, if it looks like a duck…..you get the picture.
By now, it was nearing 5:00 and getting cold. It seemed to me that sooner or later the group that had amassed would be asked to at least cross the street, or moved down the block. The bomb sniffing dogs were employed, funny that I don’t recall seeing any signs saying “Please clean up after your bomb sniffing dog†, the guys were on the roof, and it was clear that the festivities would soon begin. It was at that point that I, without a jacket and getting cold, decided to vacate my little chair and headed back home, secure in the knowledge that all would be shown on TV, narrated by one of our trusty, local talking heads.
Still, it is quite a feeling to know that the leader of the free world decided to have dinner 100 yards from my front door. Maybe, next time, he will pay me a visit. We can sit around talking about how many more billions we can send to Pakistan, or maybe watch yet another Lakers press conference explaining what happened. But, if he does come to visit, I promise that he will be served dessert!! – Chuck Slossy
What $38,000 Got Them:
Tavern has released the menu from the dinner with President Obama:
crab “ louie †with little gems,
tomatoes, eggs and
russian dressing
***
baked torchio with radicchio,
wild mushrooms, asparagus
and taleggio
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braised beef daube with carrot
purée, tomato confit and tapenade
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three cheeses with griddled
tavern toasts
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“snickers†bar with salted peanut caramel and vanilla ice cream
