Locally sourced

Let me preface this whole blog by saying I am working in DC and when I travel alone I stay in the city preferably close enough to walk or worst case short cab ride. Oh - I am on a company budget that negates the "famous" hotels but does let me stay at nice hotels. No rent by the hour for this girl. That sets the scene.

On to food. Son PM has worked for my client before and knows that their company cafeteria is Amazing. It caters to an international cosmopolitan taste with lots of fresh food, vegetarian options, changing guest chefs featuring different nationalities with the staples of fresh made before your eyes sushi, stir fry and sandwiches. So if I have lunch it is always wonderful. Now dinner. You would think there is a plethora of places - not so. Much of downtown DC rolls up by 8pm, narrowing the choices and usually eliminating places that would have light boring bar food. This brings me to locally sourced.

I have come to think that the trend is to believe that "locally sourced" with the names of the farms on the menu = wonderful and interesting dining. Not always. Sometimes it means the chef has a light touch and wonderful flavors but too often it is the massacre of a
potentially delightful dish. Even a southerner would not put shrimp with tails on in a shrimp and grits concoction with the consistency of library paste. Little crispy crunchy surprises.

This week I am staying at a boutique hotel with a Pan-Asian/spy museum theme. Who knew. The do not disturb door hanger has a "spy" image with Do Not Spy On Me! Tonight I dragged my self home at 8:30 after a long day wanting a glass of Chardonnay and some light bar food. Luckily there was a sushi bar with a wonderful and progressive menu - that my children would love - but I wanted a California roll. Ok children roll your eyes and say "old". I was tired and did not want an experience I just didn't want to wake up at 4 starving. A grilled cheese sandwich was on my wish list. So while listening to my two bar mates wax poetic on the attributes of various wines and cocktails I asked the bartender if the sushi chef could possibly make me a California roll. He was very professional and after a brief gulp and step backward he said "of course".

My sushi was wonderfully fresh, my wine light. All told perfect. Even if I have never figured out how to gracefully eat a slice of sushi roll without looking like I bit off more than I can chew! And in the end the bartender got back in his groove and inquired on my trip and hometown and warmed slightly when I mentioned frequently dining at Founding Farmers.

The lament of this story is I wish there was a hotel close to my job that served grilled cheese sandwiches with very credible Chardonnay at 8pm to ladies of "a certain age" when they dragged their tired bodies home from work.

Without technology

There are days when I read someone's report of an idyllic week away from cell phones and the Internet and they always wax poetic praising the peace and quiet, the uninterrupted life and I wonder is that something I want. No midnight emails from an insomniac client, no "I am not selling you anything but, calls when I forget to look at caller ID before answering, no actually being able to catch up on work that got delayed because I goofed off for a few hours.

No it is not what I want. This morning my grandson who headed across the pond for a year abroad leaving behind a worried Mom called her for free over the Internet. It was a quick report, he is safe and sound, has found the subway and the grocery and procured a pillow. Classes start in a week giving him lots of time to explore and adjust his internal time clock. Ten years ago that would have been an oversees call and carefully meted out because of expense. Now she can send off an email, schedule a quick face to face Skype call, reduce the expanse of the pond to a mere rivulet.

I shop on line for lots of things certainly the mundane. Midnight order to Babies r us for a new diaper pail for poop bags. Conference call distraction to order new filters for the fridge. Check flight tracker and set an alert to know when to head to the airport to pick up hubby. I don't want to give those things up. I get to follow the lives of my youngest grandbabies on their mothers blogs and beg for a new glimpse of the quickly growing youngest. It isn't the same as in person but when I do get to visit I don't feel so disconnected.

So a week with no cell phone or Internet isn't on my wish list. A week of gentle breezes, visits with the babies, fun conversations with my family with some sun, sand and the magic chef keeping us well fed now that IS on my wish list.