Fall getaway to Providence

Bed and breakfast in Providence — The Old Court

After raking leaves for the first time this season on Friday, 21 October 2011, Janice and I went to the Midtown Smokehouse & Grill, a new restaurant in Needham, Massachusetts. The boneless Buffalo chicken had an Asian sweetness, the pulled pork and marinated turkey tips were lean but still juicy, and the pecan pie was a nice finish. The service was prompt and friendly.

Janice and I were glad to find Southern-style cuisine closer to home. Blue Ribbon Barbeque in Newton, Mass., doesn’t really have eat-in space, and while we like the buffet at Firefly’s in Framingham, Mass., it’s a bit far. Another good barbecue joint is Bison County on Waltham’s Moody Street. We still miss the Black-Eyed Pea back in Falls Church, Virginia.

On Saturday, we drove to Providence, Rhode Island, which we’ve passed through a few times but never really explored before. Janice had won a night’s stay at the Old Court through a WGBH (PBS) auction. The bed and breakfast was in a quiet neighborhood between downtown Providence and College Hill.

We enjoyed exploring the Museum of Art at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD). For a small institution, it has a wide collection of art, from Mesopotamia and classical Greece and Rome to medieval and Renaissance Europe, a bit of Asia and Africa, colonial and Victorian America, and some modern art. I’d compare RISD favorably with the Isabella Stuart Gardener Museum rather than to bigger museums such as Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts.

Janice and I had a late lunch at the Brickway on Wickenden, which had fun décor and an extensive breakfast-style menu. We found College Hill, with its bohemian student population and shops, hilly terrain, and laid-back atmosphere, to be closer to places we’ve visited in Vermont or San Francisco than typical New England reserve. We also admired the historic architecture.

We swung through Brown University‘s pleasant campus, which reminded Janice of her grad school alma mater Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. It was apparently parents’ weekend, since we saw relatively few students. At this point, we can pass for parents rather than coeds! From there, we walked downtown (unfortunately, we missed Water Fire by a few weeks).

We saw the Occupy Wall Street offshoot at Providence City Hall and the Rhode Island State House. I’m sympathetic to the movement, which is trying to become as focused as the anti-tax Tea Party wing of the Republican Party, but the tent city of underemployed college students, aging hippies, and homeless people wasn’t too impressive.

In marked contrast, we found Providence Place full of people. Like the erstwhile Natick Collection, the upscale boutiques and packs of roving teenagers held little appeal for us, especially with Borders Books & Music gone. We did like much of the art and furnishings at a craft show at the convention center next door, however.

After stopping by our B&B, Janice and I headed back to College Hill, where we visited Brown’s book store and the independent Symposium Books. We checked out a few eateries on Thayer Street before deciding on Shanghai, a good, if noisy, Chinese restaurant.

We got a nondairy dessert (for my lactose intolerance) from “Like No Udder,” a food truck representative of a recent trend in urban dining. The chocolate soft serve with peanut-butter sauce was smooth and excellent. After walking back to the Old Court, our dogs were barking, and we decided to pass on a Jack-o-lantern event at the Roger Williams Park Zoo.

We could have gone to the Italian restaurants on Federal Hill for dinner, but that would have required taking a bus or driving my beat-up Honda Civic on winding streets through unfamiliar neighborhoods (Janice baked lasagna last night, anyway). The next morning, we ate breakfast in the B&B’s common room before heading back to Massachusetts for grocery shopping, housecleaning, and putting up Halloween decorations. Even a short weekend away was a nice respite, if not quite as grand as last year’s vacation in England.

Coming soon: Game scheduling struggles, midseason genre TV, DC’s comics and videos, and reader requests!

Birthday dinner, 2011

My birthday dinner — Hangar steak at Blue Ginger

Thanks again to all the friends and family who sent birthday wishes! Being 43 isn’t so bad — so far. I didn’t go to my high school reunion in Westchester, New York, this past weekend because only a few of the people I was friends with 25+ years ago were attending (we’ll arrange an informal gathering in spring of 2012). On Saturday, 15 October 2011, Janice and I browsed among the shops in Wellesley, Massachusetts, including the Wellesley Booksmith and Wasik’s Cheese Shop.

We then met Thomas K.Y. & Kai-Yin H. for dinner at Blue Ginger, the restaurant of celebrity chef Ming Tsai. We had talked about eating there for years, and we finally managed to get a reservation a week in advance. The Asian fusion cuisine was very good, and the open kitchen was a nice touch. (I’ve posted versions of this review to Yelp and Zagat‘s Web sites.)

For appetizers, we had the tender salmon and beef carpaccio, attractive charcuterie plate, and shiitake-leek spring rolls. For entrees, we ordered tasty hangar steak, nicely spiced Vindaloo-glazed lamb, and flaky Alaskan butterfish.

For dessert, we ate a sorbet trio with a ginger kick, spiced buttermilk donuts, a sweet petit four plate, and foie gras-shiitake shumai. (Janice also baked me a chocolate cake at home.) The dishes were all an interesting blend of flavors, if a bit rich and pricey. The service was prompt and efficient. I’d definitely recommend Blue Ginger for special occasions.

Thomas asked an interesting question: How would I compare Blue Ginger with Tango and Smith & Wollensky, where we’ve dined together previously? Although the cuisines are different, we’ve ordered steak at all three. I thought that Smith & Wollensky, at which Beruk A. and I joined Thomas, Stuart C.G., and Stuart’s son in Boston a few years ago, was the best but also the most expensive.

Tango, an Argentinean steakhouse in Arlington, Mass., had a somewhat more limited menu, but I’d rate it slightly higher than Blue Ginger, whose dining room was a bit noisy. We also discussed our busy schedules, travel, and other eateries to try, such as Summer Shack in Dedham, Texas Roadhouse in Walpole, and Petit Robert Bistro and Rice Barn in Needham. Of course, if money and time were no object, I’d happily eat at any of these places.

Coming soon: More genre TV roundups, New York Comic-Con announcements, gaming updates, and more…

Autumn 2011 genre TV, Part 2

Thrillers and superspies — RPG sourcebook related to midweek genre TV

Continuing my look at the new television season, on Tuesdays, Janice and I have been watching Top Shot on the History Channel. We like the use of a range of archaic weapons, if not the cutthroat competitiveness of some participants.

In addition to catching up on genre shows recorded on Sundays and Mondays, I look forward to the eventual return of the sleuths on White Collar and Memphis Beat. Janice is taking a yoga class this fall.

I haven’t added comedies such as The New Girl or Two Broke Girls to my viewing schedule, but I liked what little I saw of them more than the Mad Men-inspired Pan Am or even the already canceled The Playboy Club.

On Wednesdays, most of the shows I’ve watched in the past few seasons are not returning: Reaper, Eastwick, and Human Target, to name a few. I still occasionally watch food TV such as Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives and Man vs. Food Nation — Bitchin’ Kitchen is my current favorite.

The goofy sleuths on Psych return tonight. If you liked David Lynch’s surrealistic Twin Peaks (whose cast had a reunion on Psych) or the psychosexual horror of some of True Blood, you’ll probably like FX’s American Horror Story. It’s a bit dark for my tastes, but it’s better than most of the schlocky “reality” programming on SyFy or the History Channel.

On Thursdays, I’ve dropped spy show Nikita, which of course then got renewed. Also last season, I watched Undercovers, which got canceled, but not Covert Affairs, which also got renewed. I wasn’t impressed by the latest version of Charlie’s Angels, whose actresses are less jiggly, glamorous, or interesting than their predecessors and who are hampered by weak scripts.

I have picked up Person of Interest, created by Jonathan Nolan, brother of The Dark Knight director Chris Nolan. Like that movie, it explores the implications of ubiquitous surveillance, and it’s a paranoid post-9/11 technothriller similar to the aforementioned Homeland. The distrustful team of a computer genius and a former commando inserting themselves into the lives of people who need help reminds me of The Prisoner, The Pretender, and Human Target.

I’ll save Friday, which is the most crowded night of the week for genre TV fans, for an upcoming post. What are you watching?

Early fall 2011 travels

As I’ve already mentioned, I’ve been busy during the past few weeks shepherding some big projects to completion at work. I’ve also been fighting a recurring sinus infection, no doubt aggravated by seasonal allergies and fatigue from travel.

In the last weekend of September, Janice and I flew down to Virginia to see my family. We were originally scheduled to attend Nathaniel L.’s bar mitzvah in Brooklyn, New York, but since an ailing uncle of mine was visiting from Belgium, my folks took priority.

We joined my parents and uncle for lunch at Café Indigo before checking into the Courtyard by Marriott at Battlefield Park in Manassas. We stopped by Game Parlor in Chantilly before a hearty dinner at Cracker Barrel.

On Saturday, 24 September 2011, my brother and his family joined us for the Rappahannock County Farm Tour. My nieces enjoyed the hay ride, got to saddle up for the first time on a horse rather than a pony, and watched in awe of a beekeeper using smoke but no protective gear. We had lunch at Belle Meade Farm, listened to some music at the Link, and had dinner back at my parents’ home.

That Sunday, we attended mass at the Church of the Nativity, where Lili had been baptized, before another big meal at Peter & Kelly’s. Janice and I returned our rental car without incident, but we were held up at Dulles Airport because of a temporary security lockdown.

Despite predictions of rain, Janice and I enjoyed the Needham Harvest Fair on Saturday, 1 October 2011. The highlight of the annual festival is the “Souper Bowl,” in which local establishments compete. The weather was even nicer this past weekend, but we decided against the long drive to the King Richard’s Faire, instead visiting local Halloween shops.

On a more serious note, I hope that my uncle and my brother-in-law Gary feel better soon. Although I won’t be attending my 25^th anniversary high school reunion this coming weekend, Janice and I will be going to a bed and breakfast in Providence, Rhode Island, in the coming weeks. After that, we’ll see what’s in store for Halloween and Thanksgiving!

Wedding in Utica, N.Y.; Labor Day

Rebecca and Tristan Zimbler — Rebecca and Tristan

Friends, I hope you had a good Labor Day weekend. On Friday, 2 September 2011, Janice and I drove to Upstate New York for the wedding of niece Rebecca A.W. to Tristan M.Z. We met Janice’s immediate family at her middle sister Shelly’s house for a barbecue (sloppy Joe) lunch before checking into the Best Western Gateway Adirondack Inn in Utica.

I gave my nephews David and Joshua more comic books (including Teen Titans, Superman, and Spider-Man) and caught up with nieces Rebecca, Laura, and Amanda. We also watched recent episodes of Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes and Top Shot via Netflix for the Wii.

While Shelly and Melvin hosted a rehearsal dinner, Janice and I went with her parents Marvin and Linda, her youngest sister Melinda, and Melinda’s children Amanda and Josh to get some supplies at Wal-Mart and to Applebee’s for dinner. Janice and I caught the latest strong episode of the revived Thundercats.

On Saturday, Sept. 3, we had breakfast at Denny’s, and Melinda’s husband Gary T.L. joined us. The diner chain was a mainstay in my undergraduate years at SUNY at Binghamton. We then went to a public park to help prepare for the wedding and reception, the same park where Shelly and Melvin were married. While the weather was hot and humid, we were lucky to avoid thundershowers.

The ceremony itself went smoothly, and the bridal party looked spiffy. Becky and Janice’s family was also represented by Janice’s grandmother (“Mammy“), her aunts Betty and Carolyn, and cousins Kristy and Tammy. It’s a pity that several invitees were absent. We enjoyed pasta, including a local dish called “chicken riggies,” and chocolate cupcakes.

After changing to more casual clothes and helping to clear up, we were glad to return to the air-conditioned hotel. The next morning, Janice’s family and the bride and groom met for breakfast at Denny’s before Becky & Tristan began their long drive back to Oklahoma, where they’re both still in school.

Janice and her sisters visited a museum exhibit on wedding dresses, and we ate pot roast and homemade mashed potatoes before driving through heavy rain back to Massachusetts. Since then, I’ve caught up on recorded episodes of the melodramatic Torchwood: Miracle Day, darkly whimsical Doctor Who, stalwart Inspector Lewis on Masterpiece Mystery, and the surprisingly Seinfeldian Looney Toons. Who says there hasn’t been anything to watch this past summer?

Coming soon: My take on the Justice League, fall SFTV, and back to gaming!