James Beard Dinner (NYC) - February 2015

Keith, Shawna, Mark, Graham, Tom, Kim, Alicia, John and JoAnna

Keith's brother Graham was invited to be the guest chef at the James Beard House in New York City.  This was a not-to-be-missed event so we had to fly in for the weekend.

Jean, Graham and Keith

We were both traveling the week before, with Shawna in Nashville and Keith in Houston, so we arranged flights to arrive at LaGuardia within 45 minutes of each other.  It was this weekend that we finally used up all the Hyatt points that Keith earned in his 7 years commuting at Aimco, so it was the end of an era.  We both worked on Friday - with Shawna working out of hotel and Keith at Aimco's office right across the road.  John and JoAnna were staying with us at the Hyatt, and Kim and Tom flew Kim's mother up so they could spend the weekend in the city.  We met Tom in the Hyatt lobby and took a cab down to the Standard Hotel in the east village where we had drinks at Cafe Standard and then dinner reservations at Narcissa at 9pm.  The food was very tasty - we had short rib and risotto for an appetizer and a pork dish for our entree  We also shared a few veggies for the table including carrot fries, kale and cauliflower - Keith actually liked all of them!  After dinner we met John, JoAnna, and her brother Nick at the Perfect Pint near the hotel for drinks.  Shawna was feeling crummy so we headed to the hotel at 12:30am while the rest of the gang stayed out until 3am.

Bob, Ginny, Jean, Dick, Lynn, and Phil

When we woke up Saturday morning, Shawna was feeling really rough and had lost her voice.  So the rest of us met Kim and Tom downstairs and headed out for a walk around Central Park - JoAnna split from us and met her cousin to go shopping.  Kim, Tom, Keith, and John went to the park, around the reservoir, and then walked back to the hotel.  It was super-cold but fortunately anything can be bought on the streets of New York - Keith was able to pick up a hat and gloves which he had failed to bring with him.  We stopped by Rockefeller Center for a Starbucks and then Grand Central food court for lunch - Keith got a salad and a soup for Shawna at Hale and Hearty.

John, Tom, Kim, Keith, Krystal, Kelly and Shawna

We all got ready and then cabbed down to Pierre Loti for wine before dinner - Keith's parents were there early and were able to get a back room for all of us.  It was then only a 10 minute walk to James Beard House for the big event.  Entering the house there is a small check in area - and to get to the cocktail reception everyone passes through the kitchen so we were all able to see Graham working away.  The cocktail reception included Scotch Eggs, Chorizo, Rabbit Pate, and Porchetta.  At about 7:45pm we all headed upstairs to the main room.  Our table included us, John/JoAnna, Kim/Tom, Mark/Alica, and Kelly and her friend Krystal who had also flown in for the weekend.  Keith's parents also had a table for ten with Bob/Ginny, Lynn/Phil, MaryAnne/George, and Barbara and Meg.  The dinner was five courses:

• Windy Hill Cabrito, Texas Honeycomb, Crispy Purple Potatoes & Creme Fraich paired with Rouussane Stone Crusher, 2103 El Dorado
• New Frontier Farms Rabbit Agnolotti, Rabbit Lonzino, Fine herbs & Veldhuizen Parmezan paired with Chardonnay Improbable, 2013 El Dorado
• Roasted Baby Beets, Windy Meadows Chicken Liver & Latta Da Chevre paired with Granache Blanc, 2013 El Dorado
• Falster Farms Pork Cassoulet paired with Pinot Noir, Brokern leg, 2012 Anderson Valley
• Mum's Mince Pie, Creme Anglaise & Mum's Preserves paired with Etienne Dupont, Cidre Bouche Brut de Normandy

Cabrito with Purple Potatoes

All of the dishes were amazing; however, we all especially liked the rabbit agnolotti - so tasty!  Unfortunately, Kim could not eat any of them since they all had meat so we shared her dishes as well around the table.  After dinner wrapped up, the host introduced Graham and the team (Nick, Monica, and Audrey) who then answered questions from the crowd.  We stayed late and chatted with Graham before we headed out - capping off the night at the Hyatt Bar (aka the Lounge at New York Central). 

Keith, Krystal, Kelly, Shawna, Mark and Alicia

Sunday was a leisurely day - we slept in until 10am (the hotel blackout blinds are magical!) before heading down to Balthazar to have lunch with Keith's parents, Graham, and Audrey.  Graham ordered a dozen oysters and for a main course we shared the Lobster Bisque and the Shrimp Linguini.  Shawna and John/JoAnna all had flights at about the same time so they shared a cab to the airport at 2:30.  Keith stayed behind as he was heading to Philadelphia by train the next morning.  After doing some work at the hotel, Keith met his parents for an Indian dinner at Darbar on east 46th - where Keith and his dad had lamb vindaloo while Jean just had some appetizers. 

Graham with his team - Nick, Monica and Audrey

Altogether it was a fantastic weekend - great to see friends and family and celebrate Graham's cooking!

The Dodds Clan!