Sunday, March 22, 2015
Breakfast at home: a free sample of Chalk Hill Cookery sprouted buckwheat granola. I added soy milk and fresh blueberries. I thought it tasted terrible—the worst thing I have tasted in a long time—and washed it away in the sink after eating the blueberries. Fruit and nut granola with soy milk. Shopped online at bevmo.com. It was a miserable shopping experience. The sort picklist doesn't work—nothing happens when you select a new sort. Warning messages when forms are submitted incorrectly are presented in red text, but Bevmo's corporate colors are red and white, so the warning messages are very easy to miss. It takes a really long time—about 15 or 20 seconds—to add an item to your shopping cart. I started opening multiple tabs and performing separate shopping cart adds to work around this problem. The search autocomplete results appear too slowly to be useful. The top hit of a search for italian beer resulted in O'Douls non-alcoholic beer. A link in my shopping cart went to a page missing error page. Selecting the Live Chat feature did nothing; it didn't open a chat window, and it didn't take me to another page. The coupon code I entered and which was still valid gave an error: "The coupon code entered does not meet the requirement(s) for usage. Please check the condition(s) of the offer and try again." (I later used this same coupon successfully in person at the store.) Also, the system knows who I am and it knows that I have earned a discount on my next purchase, so it should automatically ask me if I want to use it at checkout but it doesn't. I printed my shopping list and abandoned my shopping cart. Before this experience I liked Bevmo! but now I'm inclined to never shop there again after this purchase. Met Danny at Dim Sum Club but was disappointed to find they were closed. I had gone by the hours in Yelp, and the restaurant did not seem to have their own website. We ate instead at Cafe GoLo. Danny had french toast with blueberries but took half to go. I had a spinach scramble roll. Complimentary amuse bouche of sweet potato tart and raspberry tart were a welcome touch. Water for both. I didn't want a large meal, and my sandwich was just the right size. Service was friendly and efficient—very good. Afterwards we returned to Dim Sum Club and had another meal: chinese donut noodle roll, bean curd roll with oyster sauce, rice porridge with donut, fried shrimp dumplings with mayo, curry samosa, bbq pork noodle roll, broccoli with oyster sauce, rice, fun guo, chicken feet with black bean sauce, salt and pepper deep-fried chicken wings, pork spare rib, durian dessert. All the food we ordered was delicious. We were pleasantly surprised by the presentation of the chicken wings which were split and spread at the end of the bone, something we hadn't seen before. I ordered baked bbq pork buns to go for Patrick. I especially liked the chinese donut noodle roll for its differences in textures: soft rice noodle on the outside and crispy donut on the inside. The service is awkward. Sometimes we were not understood properly, and it's hard to say whether this was a language issue or a noise issue. As one waiter attempted to rearrange tables for an incoming party the condiments tray sitting atop the cleavage formed from both tables fell to the floor and the glass hot sauce jar broke, throwing hot sauce everywhere on the floor. The mess was cleaned within minutes. Frequently deliverators did not know to which tables items were to be delivered. I feel it is worth going back, just don't expect much in terms of service. Also if $1 per person for tea that doesn't taste any different than the complimentary tea you get at any other Chinese restaurant bothers you, bring your own tea bags and ask for a pot of hot water. Danny refused tea when offered, but he was still charged for it. It was such a pittance that we didn't bother to complain. Afterwards I dropped the bbq pork buns in the car, and we visited The Octagon House. I knew it wasn't open today; we saw it from the outside. We briefly visited Alleyne Park then walked to Polk Street to window shop. We discovered a great furniture and antiques store called Flipp (stylized as Fl!pp) and chatted with the friendly salesperson who showed us how succulents grow in their garden. We admired the unusual (middle eastern?) architecture of Crunch Fitness (formerly the Alhambra Theater). Danny bought candy at The Candy Store. Afterwards we visited the frame shop, and I picked up a piece of artwork I left for service a few days ago. Danny rode the bus home; I took my artwork to work then bought beverages at Bevmo then went home. Helped Patrick cook and set up for a dinner party. Dinner at home with Patrick, Pat, Danny, Drew, Phil, Romy, Richard, Markus, Markus' mom: antipasti platter with three italian cheeses, salamis, pepperoncinis, toasts, crisps, barbecue-flavored pistachios, and artichoke tapenade; Patricia Wells's garlic family soup (aka creamy garlic and leek soup); Williams-Sonoma's snow pea and radish salad; Martha Rose Shulman's (The New York Times) chicken cacciatore; saffron rice; Acme olive bread and ciabatta; limoncello spritzers; fruit salad with mint glaze; dark chocolate gelato; and blood orange sorbetto. A fine day and evening.