Wednesday, July 24, 2013.
Wine And Yats At Redemption. Cafe Au Lait And Beignets In The City Park Casino.
In its continuing attempts to raise its profile, Redemption inaugurated a monthly wine tasting tonight. About thirty wines, a couple dozen appetizers and other nibbles from Chef Greg Picolo's kitchen, and live music turned the old church (the former Christian's) into a loud party.
None of the wines were exceptional, but all were worth tasting. Perhaps because I've just finished a lame book about some people who try to make a living selling rosé wines in France, I tried two pink wines and rather liked them. Most of the food spread involved oysters, shrimp, and crabmeat--as well one might hope. Good cheeses and paté, too.
The house was full of people we knew (Mary Ann actually assented to join me for this), and even more people who know me. We could have had pleasant conversations were it not for the increasingly bothersome acoustic issues in this and most other restaurants. The Yat Pack had its usual excellent, brassy big band behind singer David Cook. He was flying solo tonight, since fellow singer Tim Shirah was under the weather. This did not degrade the Pack's sound, which improves at every hearing.
But they played too loud, as all musicians do everywhere. It's uncomfortable and sucks almost as much fun from the event as their music adds. Will this ever be addressed?
We stayed until nearly the end of the party, though. I wanted some coffee, but they didn't have any made. Ah! Perfect opportunity to check out the Morning Call's new stand in City Park, which opened during the past year.
Except for one matter, this was much nicer than I expected. The Morning Call's new place is in the City Park Casino building, the place where we used to sit around eating hot dogs and popcorn when we were kids. A thorough renovation added tile floors and tall ceilings, along with the Morning Call's trademark wood-framed mirrors above marble counters along the walls, and the familiar wooden arch with the row of bare light bulbs.
I was also pleasantly surprised to see that they're giving full table service, with enough servers to make that rapid. The café au lait was as it always is, the best in town. The beignets were hot out of the fryer and less fluffy than they might be. But I ate all three, which is not something I want to do much these days.
The matter that needs to be addressed is that there isn't enough lighting along the sidewalks leading from the parking bays to the Casino. Indeed, I almost bumped into a guy as I walked through the darkness. On a related front, I didn't see anyone who looked like security. But let's not think about that. At least fifty people were having café au lait and beignets, and numbers lend safety. Usually.
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