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Had lunch with my boy at school today. I brought in some soup and bagel sandwiches – not as cool as McDonald’s, but still better than the usual. Then I read to his class, a book that Nathan and I own and have enjoyed reading for years, Saint George and the Dragon, a good old-fashioned fairy tale with gorgeous illustrations. I’m so glad he still likes me to be at school. I know it won’t last forever, so I really try to savor and enjoy it while I can. And I love seeing him with his friends and in his element, it’s cool.

Working on a major din tonight – woo hoo! With Stuart Williams (his wife Debbie has other plans, damn!) and Rudy Maxa and Ana Scofield. Possibly Fugaise, possibly something else depending on the timing we can pull off. I don’t really care where it is because I know a good time will be had by all. And lots of good food and wine too, yeah baby, it’s gonna be awesome. I hope. I shouldn’t get so ahead of myself. Slow down, Stephanie.

So, even though I’ve already showered, I’d better hit the KBs for some sort of workout given that I probably have some serious calorie consumption ahead of me tonight, even if I employ my mindful eating/savoring/moderation type of concepts, ha. (That’s me, oops, I mean Pavel, the KBs guru, hoisting a KB I’m quite sure I couldn’t even pick up.) Folding laundry will not count as a workout today, right Pavel? Damn, or however you’d say it in Russian (Pavel is Russian; major Russian). I have to say, on a blustery, snowy day like today, the idea of a cozy night out is very appealing. Yay. And kinda Russian too. Dr. Zhivago-esque, I’ll have to hunt for caviar on the menu. (I just worked my way from a KB workout to caviar, all in the same paragraph. Again, slow down, Stephanie.)

We are on for Fugaise – yes! – and Debbie can now join us – double yes! I’m hoping duck ravioli is on the menu, we’ll see soon enough. Ah, a quick glance at their online menu reveals no duck ravioli, but an interesting rabbit chou farci (stuffed cabbage) that I’ll be happy to sample instead. Fuck the duck (oh, you know I couldn’t resist that obvious rhyme!), I’m going for the bunny. I’ll leave my main course undecided until I arrive. See what we’re drinking. See if they’ve tweaked the menu. An adventure…

Try again! No bunny, instead I (and Stu) opted for trois veal (as he named it, v3) – veal sweetbreads with lentils, apples, and whole grain mustard for a first course (below right); and veal scallopine with winter root ragout, rosemary, and lemon pan sauce garnished with a quick saute of yes, more veal sweetbreads (below left). I apologize to those of you 1 ) opposed to consuming veal, and 2) revolted by sweetbreads. I do. And then comes the (expected) BUT… because it was fucking sublime, the whole thing, it was. With our first course we sipped a 2001 Puligny-Montrachet from LeTrezin vineyard by Marc Colin, plus a Volnay Brouillard Premier Cru by Georges Glantenay et Fils. With our main course we moved on to two more amazing reds, one brought by Stu, a 1996 Sine Qua Non Against the Wall California Red by Elaine & Manfred Frankl, tag line “we made just enough to be dangerous.” Rudy brought the other in a Stump-the-Stu wrap concealing the bottle. It turned out to be from New York’s Finger Lakes region, a 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve from Chateau Lafayette Reneau. I hadn’t a prayer of figuring it out, of course, but Stu made some fun guesses. Chef Don Saunders sent out a lovely slice of sheeps milk cheese with cherries and port reduction (mmm…), with which we sampled an unusual yet delicious Chateau d’Orignac Pineau Des Charentes. What can I say? I ate too much, drank too much, it wasn’t moderate, and I’m very happy anyhow. We had a blast seeing Ana and Rudy (above), Debbie and Stu (left) and I hope we get together with them all again soon. Not a bad way to launch into the weekend… Thank you Fugaise, Chef Saunders, the terrific waitstaff, Stu and Debbie, Rudy and Ana. And John, of course. My kind of night…