Perfect Day

Today was a great day.

I got to wake up to a man I care about deeply. I went to lunch with an amazing woman I'm proud to call a friend, and see an old coworker who is doing so well for himself. My lady friend and I got to indulge our inner children and watch a musical that meant the world to us. I treated myself to a fantastic dinner that was helmed by another former coworker who has done wonders for himself and his new family. And I got to cap my evening off with a dear old friend, his wife, and new friends. I'm walking home now, full and full of love and a tad tipsy, and all I can think about is just how lucky I am. Lucky to live in such a fashion that has introduced me to all of these wonderful people, and to work in such an industry where I can walk into two totally different establishments and feel like I've stepped into my own Cheers. The restaurant industry is hard. So very, very hard. But days like today make it beyond worth it, and I can't wait to create this kind of a day for someone else. The kind of day where you can walk around with ramen broth all over your shirt and not give any fucks. Where you can eat until you hurt, not because you're hungry, but because you know someone busted their ass on a dish and you know you'd regret missing it.
Restaurants are hard, but they are so full of love and passion. I'm so happy to find myself here!!!!

~Poof~

Fine dining is a lot like a magic show- if you know nothing about the inner working of the restaurant, it is very easy to get dazzled by the show. And a lot of classic menu items are easy to get swept away by, even if they are the simplest thing in the world.

This is a huge reason of why I like studying food trends- while some is intensely impractical for a home cook, like some of the more complex French cooking (looking at you, Paté en Croute!); some items take minimal effort. One of my favorite comfort foods is mussels steamed in wine. It oozes sex and sophistication, while being incredibly versatile and adaptable to whatever is in your refrigerator.

It's literally as simple as throwing mussels into a pot with wine, butter, broth (or other liquid), and other aromatics. You can do whatever you want with steamed mussels. They're fantastic. Just get the liquid bubbling, throw the cleaned mussels into the pot, cover it, and walk away for 15min. Badabing badaboom, pot o' delicious.

I suppose I could also use the mussels as a metaphor. Occasionally you gotta take the random shit in your life, toss it together, and walk away for a bit to see what happens.  Most of the time? It is going to be far better than expected.