I mentioned I spent some quality time with my SIL, who appears to have matured a bit since becoming a mom.

I mentioned I spent some quality time with my SIL, who appears to have matured a bit since becoming a mom. Meanwhile, we had dinner at this place: http://www.seabarsushi.com/wordpress/?page_id=10

We had no sushi. We had Bourdain's Last Meal, which he seemingly declared publicly at some point? Insane. The duck - brie stuffed french toast? omg. The beef on weck roll*, which is carpaccio with sushi rice, horseradish cream, rock salt, and caraway seeds. You must eat these. A few other things.

Anyway, we also had cocktails. Mine is in the picture (there was a lime on the rim, too). I got it because I really wanted to try something with Crème Yvette in it, because how often do you see that? It was called a Stormy Morning, but it is their riff on that and very different from the original, which is this: http://www.saveur.com/article/Recipes/Stormy-Morning.

Theirs had Smooth Ambler Greenbrier Gin, Crème Yvette, "elderberry liquor", and Zipang. The last of which it turns out is not only an old name for Japan, not only a manga, but a sparkling sake. I put the elderberry in quotes because that is exactly what is on the menu, and they must make their own, but it is not elder_flower_, which is what is in the original Stormy Morning recipe.

I am afraid I did not manage to capture the beautiful rosy pink color well. This drink has made me reconsider gin altogether. It was delicious, light, refreshing. Nothing cloying, at all. Definitely lots of subtle berry flavors all playing nicely together, a little hint of something sharp or bitter to keep it from being actively sweet, and this light, wafting aroma of violets. Nothing cloying, nothing dense, not even as intense as actually smelling violets. Basically, a sophisticated, delicious, stealthy thing that you could keep drinking until you realized with great regret that the table was not actually moving, but you were about to unceremoniously inspect its underside. 

Highly recommended, and now I want to find all the drinks that use creme yvette in them.

* This is one of the few times I can say, hey, I know that chef! Because years ago, he opened one of the first truly exceptional seafood restaurants in this town. He opened it in an old working class neighborhood in a place that looked as if you were going to walk into an old bar restaurant. It was amazing. It was Asian, especially Japanese, inspired.
One of the things he innovated for that menu was the carpaccio "sushi" rolls. I was super excited to see them on his new menu. They are a specifically Buffalo inspired item and incredibly well done. He and his wife were almost the only staff at that place so they would greet you and chat with you, etc.
That place closed because he had a terrible motorcycle accident (he's a Harley guy, I believe), and was lucky to survive. It took years for him to recover, and in the meanwhile, they had to close the original restaurant. 
I haven't eaten at any of his newer places since then, so I was really jazzed that he has such an amazing new inspiration of his very first place.

#youreturningvioletviolet   #cremeyvettemimieux