Saturday, August 11, 2012.
Food Banking. Walking. Bad Sushi?
The Food Bank of Covington has a fundraiser coming up. Dr. Gerry Keller--a fellow bass singer in the OLL choir until we both retired from it, and such a stout rock in the Ochsner medical organization that a life-size painting of him hangs in the lobby of its Covington clinic--asked me to meet with him about getting involved.
Unfortunately, Gerry had an accident at home and couldn't make it. So it was just me and Tom Caffery--the executive director of the Food Bank--having breakfast at N'Tini's. The business part of the meeting was quick. "You don't have to do anything," he said. "Just let us use your name as honorary chairman." He said he got the idea from the Chef Soiree, in which Mary Ann and I served that easy role this year. I was happy to learn that the Soiree thinks it got something from our association.
The least I could do was pay for breakfast, which was barely $12 for the two of us. I thought it was a mistake. But no. The combo of two scrambled eggs, bacon, toast, and potatoes was six bucks. And good, too. Tom (the other one) like his $4 sweet potato pancakes, too. They tasted like bread pudding, which from me is high praise.
No radio show, but I had enough else to do. To take a break, I did something I should have been doing for years. I took a brisk half-hour walk, in an effort to jack up my flagging health. I even have a great place to do it. Three circumnavigations of the Cool Water Ranch at its perimeter takes almost exactly thirty minutes. About a mile and a half. The dog Susie couldn't even keep up with me. I decided I will do this every day from now on. One advantage showed itself right away: I slept exceedingly well this night.
Dinner was at a North Shore sushi bar I'd tried a couple of times. Once it was great, the other time just okay. Today, I completed my collection of possible outcomes by having a terrible meal. The worst part was the squid, which, as I chewed it, revealed a slimy, gooey texture. I should have spit it out. I would regret that I didn't. I didn't touch the other piece. The rest of the plates contents were wholesome, but not as good as the same items at three or four other places within near distance of this place.
N'Tini's. Mandeville: 2891 US 190. 985-626-5566.
It's over three years since a day was missed in the Dining Diary. To browse through all of the entries since 2008, go here.
