[Pink Pig Time Machine by Wilfrid: March 22, 2010]
Da-na, na-na, na-na. I know you are all singing along, and rightly so - because this week ten years ago I stood in line in an ice cold wind to see Joan Jett herself in some cavern of a ballroom too near the Hudson River.
And what a spectacle she was - still is, as far as I can tell. Her head was shaved, her torso rippling and bathed in sweat, and... oh, yes, I'm a fan. Songs from the (then) new album Fetish, and all the hits.
Food? Oh, not much to start the week it seems. Some soup after Ms Jett. Around the bars of the Lower East Side the following night, and a bad kebab for supper. I cooked at home on Sunday, breaded lamb chops with a freshly made tomato sauce, a bottle of '98 Brouilly. A visit to Angels's Share on Tuesday - and doesn't it seem a lifetime ago that this was the acme of Manhattan cocktail destinations?
Finally a restaurant. Della Femina, the Manhattan branch of Jerry Della Femina's equally eponymous East Hampton schmooze spot. A fairly straightforward meal: salmon won ton to amuse, then potato-stuffed ravioli with black truffles, and tuna seared rare and served over a pork and cabbage garbure with a red wine reduction. Sounds novel, but salmon over pork and cabbage is something Bruno Loubet, the fine (and then London-based) French chef cooked in front of me once, claiming it as a specialty of Bordeaux. Chardonnay to Pinot Noir was the uncontroversial wine progression, with a rhubarb tart and some madeleines to conclude the evening.
We'll catch up with Laurent Gras at Peacock Alley next week.
