Dinner Social

My years working in the throes of the New York restaurant world have left me somewhat of a food nerd. (I loathe the term "foodie" and use it as a curse word.)

I was reading an interview on Gothamist with Le Bernadin chef Eric Ripert and came across his idea of the Dinner Social:

I believe that the act of preparing, eating and sharing food should be at the center of our lives... One of my favorite things about cooking is sharing this experience with good friends and family... For the next several months, as the weather gets colder and we need company more than ever, we are going to host a series of collective dinner parties that celebrate the season. I invite you to join us in Dinner Social.

I love a good dinner party and thought this might be a fun activity to tackle. It all began yesterday with my trip to the Union Square Farmer's Market, where I was able to find nearly everything on the menu (good, seeing as the point of the Market Menu is to use the Farmer's Market!).


The coolest thing I found was the stalk of brussels sprouts. They're a pain in the neck to clean, but as a whole it is a thing to behold! And I know you can see a produce section sticker on the pomegranate in the front there. I didn't actually spend that much time at the market because by the time I'd purchased 3 lbs of potatoes, 4 lbs of lamb leg and various other root vegetables, my bag got too heavy for me to lug back on the train. I did what I could and let the Red Hook Fairway help me with the rest.

Dinner is on Saturday night. Since there's a contest, I'm sure we'll take some more photos. I'll post them here once I digest the two canapés, soup, lamb and poached pears. Yum!