Friday, August 5, 2011.
Dining For The Animals At Annadele's.
The shop said my wobbly steering wheel was caused by a combination of a worn wheel bearing and a worn CV joint. I had the bearing on the other side replaced a couple of years ago, so that's no surprise. And they had already warned me about the other thing.
I think I know how this happened. Last week, en route to the Crescent Pie & Sausage Company, drove slowly down d'Hemecourt Street. A heavy rain that day left lots of puddles. Puddles all look the same from the top, including those a foot deep. I hit one of those doing about ten miles an hour. It rattled my sacroiliac, and I could easily believe that it did some other damage. The estimate: about $700.
Well, at least I didn't have to go into town today. Glad I didn't: the thunderstorms this afternoon were ferocious and went on for hours. But the real reason was that I was a sort of honorary host of a fund-raising dinner for the St. Tammany Humane Society. I am happy to help those people, who take care of the loose-pet problem as well as they can without government funding.
The Cool Water Ranch is on a dead-end road, the perfect place for people without principles to drop off their surplus animals. We have seen many abandoned pets over the years. We adopted some of them. Susie, our pooch for seven years, arrived one day uninvited. So have a fair number of cats. But we can't do it all, and I'm glad the STHS is there.
The dinner was at Annadele's Plantation, where we have not been in awhile. I was very surprised by the crowd. The Humane Society people thought my presence would be a draw--wishful thinking on their part. But something brought in over a hundred people. I didn't take credit, and wrote a check like everybody else.
We sat with wine marketer Nick Dischler, who we have known for over two decades. He used to be a regular guest on the radio show for our on-air wine tastings. First time I've spoken with him in more than a passing way in a long time.
Annadele's staff delivered the goods brilliantly--certainly for the $75 inclusive price, with most of that going to the Humane Society. We started with a little beggar's purse stuffed with shrimp, pork, and ginger with fried spinach. This was just okay, but it was soon forgotten in a relentless parade of good dishes from then on.
For example: shiitake mushrooms, goat cheese, and peppery vinaigrette. The mushrooms pulled the trick of making this salad go with a wine--a Pinot Noir, at that. This and all the other wines came from Hahn, a Central Coast California winery.
Course three tasted better than it looked. A half-fillet of crusty redfish and a seared slice of tomato rested atop a stratum of polenta. The latter was on the creamy side, and was as much a sauce as it was a starch--and that's what made it work. Wasn't thrilled by the Hahn Chardonnay that came with it.
The wine with the next course, however, was exceptional. Hahn's Meritage blend of Bordeaux-style reds was big and chewy, with a great finish. This retails for around $15, and I thought it was terrific at that price. And well matched with the petit filet mignon with brown butter and crabmeat. Beef and crab is not one of my favorite combos, but the brown butter allowed the crabmeat to be pushed aside and taken on its own, without being weighed down by the beef.
Dessert was a simple profiterole filled with ice cream and topped with chocolates in various forms. By this time the Humane Society people were giving their spiel, thanking everyone, announcing that over $4000 had come in, and asking for other considerations.
Annadele's used its antique property well. The dinner was on the second floor, in three dining rooms. The nicest of them was where we had out last Eat Club dinner, with its big windows overlooking the rural lawn, a big fireplace, and general spaciousness.
Annadele Plantation. Covington: 71518 Chestnut. 985-809-7669.
It has been over three years since a day was missed in the Dining Diary. To browse through all of the entries since 2008, go here.
