Leaving Gracie's

piping Baked Rhode Islands

This past Wednesday Steve and I went in to Gracie’s for a glass of wine at the bar as a sort of final farewell.  Interestingly, being St. Patrick’s Day AND the first round of the “March Madness” NCAA basketball tournament in Providence, traffic was a sight to behold!  It took us 6 light changes to even get through the intersection just before Gracie’s, where fortunately we then took advantage of the valet parking.

Whew!  We ordered two glasses of Westport Rivers sparkling wine and decided we would each have a bowl of Gracie’s signature rigatoni for our supper. 

Following the amuse bouche of marinated yuzu fruit we were treated to seared scallops with a cauliflower couscous with pine nuts and currants. Our palates were refreshed by a cool and creamy yuzu sorbet, after which we proceeded to dive into our large bowls of rich, piccante rigatoni.  We could only eat a small portion of the generous servings, giving us plenty of leftovers for lunch. 

Dessert came next, the tart du jour for Susan, a light coconut cream served with cinnamon ice cream, and crème brulee for Steve.  We enjoyed every bite.

We chatted with Ellen, Gracie’s owner, for a bit before our meal, and she encouraged me to “write on the wall” before I left for Paris.  This has become a Gracie’s tradition over the years.  When an employee moves on from their work at Gracie’s they often write some pearl or sentiment on the kitchen wall to leave their mark, as it were.  I had some thoughts already written down, so I went in on Friday morning, as Danielle and Melissa were starting their workday.  I had decided that the wall downstairs over the pastry table was a fitting spot for me, as opposed to the general kitchen wall upstairs, since I had done so much of my work over the last 2+ years in that space.

Here is what I wrote: 

“Ah, how I love the feel of cool, smooth dough, the aromas of baking wafting from the kitchen, the flavors and textures of an oh so delicious dessert.  It’s been a true adventure and a learning experience unlike any thus far.  I’ve given it my all, and now it’s time for me to go.  May your days be luscious and your nights even more so.  And . . . always save room for dessert!  Your pastry chef, Sweet Nell.”

I added to my note higher up on the wall: “For J.H. wherever you are, I’ll see you Wednesday at  1pm  S.V.” 

Chef Joe Hafner and I met regularly in the early months of my employment, although the regularity of our meetings varied after I got to know the routines a little better.  We used to have a running joke about “meeting on Wednesday at 1pm” since for any number of reasons our meetings often got postponed.

And there you have it. 

To Chef Joe and Ellen: Thanks for everything.

Free at last, free at last, Susie has been set free at last

Melissa Denmark, Susie, and Danielle Lowe

Last Friday, March 5, was Susie's last day at Gracie's. She spent several of her remaining few days explaining the nuances of Gracie's approach to desserts to Melissa, her erstwhile replacement, who will be stepping into her shoes this coming week.

Melissa (that's her on the left), is an incredibly talented and creative Johnson & Wales student who will be graduating this spring. She's bright, motivated, reliable, and asked all the right questions. Susan's assistant Danielle (on the right), who has herself make serious strides toward her own professional development in the world of pastry, rounds out the pastry "department" at the restaurant.



Susan misses the work but it's vital that she move on. It's terribly hard for little compensation, difficult enough for someone in their 20s let alone their 50s, but truth be told she never wanted to work in a restaurant in the first place. Nevertheless, the growth in both her professional development and self-confidence as a chef during the past two years has been tremendous.

So now she's looking to the future: Paris first, spending time studying French and developing her croissant techniques, visiting friends and strolling the city, clearing her head, lightening her heart and thinking next of Valerie's wedding, Melissa's wedding and then. . . ?

Sweet Nell's Baking company has a certain ring to it, don't you think?

Stay tuned - this is one story that's only going to get better.

A New Year and that means plenty of news

The weather has been very cold here but that’s to be expected – it is January in New England after all. No snow this month yet and that’s key.

The year seems to be flying by and, while it seems very little has been accomplished, in reality, of course, much has happened in our lives – and in the lives of those whose paths have crossed ours over the course of our years.

Much of what we have heard of late is good: family and friends in good health and enjoying the fruits of a life well-sown.

Two wonderful pieces of news came our way: our niece Rachel (above) is marrying her boyfriend Steve in Grand Rapids on May 23, the day after our friend Valerie is marrying her boyfriend Hubert in Paris.

We will sadly miss Valerie’s wedding – having just returned from Paris the week before – but will most certainly be in Michigan for the Bergman wedding (we haven’t missed one yet).

Some of what we’ve heard is not so easy to bear, but that, too, is often the way of the world, and so be it. We just hope that the pain and anguish, the uncertainty, hurt and ambiguity will seep away, and the sooner the better. Life is full of funny twists and turns and we're never sure of where it’s taking us.

And the other big news for 2010 (so far) is that Susie is leaving Gracie’s.

She has always wanted to work in a pastry shop and, frankly, never thought she would end up in a restaurant in the first place, let alone an upscale place like Gracie's. But she has learned so much, about the culinary industry to be sure but also about what she really wants. And, equally important, she has learned so much about baking and about the importance of creativity, especially from Chef Joe Hafner.

And Gracie's has certainly benefited from having one of hardest-working, most reliable, dependable, honest and driven pastry chefs ever to come out of Le Cordon Bleu. The things Susie has created, and shared . . . But she’ll be posting a note here soon with more details.

So, Susie will work through the middle of March before she heads off for Paris on March 23. I join her the third week of April and we both return together in mid-May. We will be staying at Drea’s apartment on rue General Renault in the 11th arrondissment. We love it there and couldn’t imagine staying anywhere else. Further details have yet to be worked out but that’s just fine. The important thing is to slip back into that world, however briefly, and renew our minds and spirits.

Working on her French and possibly taking a short course at Lenotre (outside of Paris) are top on Susie’s list of things to do. She also plans on spending quality time in the kitchen perfectly Pascal's croissants and breads. I envy the neighbors on rue General Renault, that's for sure.

After I arrive my hope is to spend some quality time with Susie in one hand and Clotilde’s Edible Adventures in Paris in the other as we search out new culinary adventures. Trips to Pere Lachaise and the Orsay are next on my hit lists. After that we’re thinking of renting a car and perhaps driving out to Brittany (thanks Marie for those wonderful photos you took this winter – inspiring). And then down to the Gers and Mouchan to visit Richard and Pauline – maybe even a short trip into the Pyrenees. And maybe another quick trip to Siena.

And what's next?

As our friend Aimone would say,

Chi lo sa?

New Year's Eve at Gracie's 2009

The joint was, as they say, hoppin' --

Susie comes full circle and I live life in the fast lane

The weather here in the nation's smallest (and most foolish) state has been, in a word, atrocious. Heat, humidity, sun, heat and, did I say humidity? And all this after what seemed like the wettest summer in years. So for the pat couple of weekends we've been heading out to Colt State Park on Narragansett Bay to get away from the heat and humidity of the city and enjoy the zephyrs off the water.

But Thursday, dawned cool, sunny and low humidity -- a genuine summer day to be savored. The rest of the week promises to be as accommodating.

The past few days has been a week of challenge for me, but an ending and a beginning for Susie. Naturally it got off to a bang.

On Monday evening we drove north to the wilds of Douglas, MA for dinner at Dick and Dorothy's. Now we've eaten dinner there many times, often for special occasions, family reunions and the like. But this time was different. It turns out that several new graduates from the high school where Dick teaches (and Dorothy taught) have been serious foodies for some time. In fact, three of them have been to Gracie's twice -- and it was there they got to meet Dick's sister, Susie the Pastry Queen. So Dick and Dorothy set up a dinner meeting -- they provided the main course, the kids provided the apps and Susie the after dinner portion; a bevy of three tasty desserts that included: summer berry pudding, spiced plum streusel cake, chocolate cake with fudgesicle cube

A grand time was had by all and brought home to us the simple truth that these very good kids will make even better adults. In some ways they already are.

My work has taken a new dimension this week as I've been scrambling to put together a presentation on how to use Adobe Bridge in accessing and searching the new image library. It seems I've been moving way too fast for my normal pace but believe that I've got a pretty good handle on those key concepts that need to be grasped and how to best create a visual map of those ideas.

Summertime is slow in the restaurant trade, at least here in Providence. But for Susie this week has produced a watershed of sorts, a closing and opening, an ending and a beginning. (OK enough of the New Age stuff.)

As you may recall, a few weeks ago Susie got the opportunity to meet her pastry inspiration Emily Luchetti. She was spending some time in our part of New England and doing a book signing at the shop of a friend in South Dartmouth, MA. Susie and Emily are two stalwarts in the philosophical school that holds pastry should be simple, made with the best ingredients and taste really, really good. Anyway that’s my take on it.

At the time Emily said she planned to come to Gracie’s – she had to return to California (she’s the executive pastry chef at Farallon’s) but would be back within the month.

Well needless to say (so why am I saying it?), needless to say she did return to New England and showed up at Gracie’s with two friends the other evening. Actually she emailed Susie a day or so before so that the two of them might spend a bit of time together chatting.

And so it happened. Of course Susie put together a tasting plate of Gracie’s desserts: mango cream tart, brownie chunk chocolate milkshake tart, fudgesicle cubes, ricotta custard, chocolate ganache cake and plum almond streusel tartlet (a young tart)

Now some perspective.

It’s 1988, Ronald Reagan is still President, “Bull Durham” with Kevin Costner, Susan Sarandon and Tim Robbins is showing in the theaters, Paul Simon’s “Graceland” is awarded the best record of the year and we have the great good fortune to be dining at Jeremiah Tower’s renowned Stars restaurant in San Francisco. The food is wonderful and the desserts knock Susie’s socks off.

Four years later we return to the Bay City and head right back to Stars. This time the pastry chef has a brand-new book out, “Stars Desserts” and after dinner Susie buys a signed copy. In the years to come that book, and Emily's three subsequent cookbooks gradually become Susie’s pastry and baking bibles. Susie would always turn to Emily Luchetti for inspiration, for ideas when looking for that special dessert.

How many others have bought Emily’s books, signed or otherwise and used them as guides to making just the right ending to a special dinner? How many others have turned to those books to discover new and fresh ways to turn a dish of ice cream or basket of fruit into a scrumptious dessert? A great many I would say.

But how many have used that same inspiration to turn their world around, to say “this is what I want to do with my life now.”

Susie did. Yes, Emily’s food is wonderful – her recipes are impeccably well-crafted, thoroughly tested and produce wonderful desserts again and again. It is all those things but to Susie that signed copy of “Four Stars Desserts” meant so much more.

As Susie sat in the booth next to Emily the other evening at Gracie’s, chatting with Richard and Anne about the wonders of food in general and pastries in particular, I couldn’t help but think to myself the significance of the moment. The door on her past life as a physician quietly, and perhaps irrevocably closed, while at the very same time Emily stood there holding another door open.

You really should have been there.

Happy New Year from Providence

Well, as some of you probably already know, the weather in this part of the planet has been incredibly cold: -23 Celsius (or nearly 10 below Fahrenheit) this very first morning of 2009.

We had our second major storm of the season on New Year's Eve -- probably about a half foot of very light fluffy snow and after Mother Nature went to all the trouble to get rid of the snow from two weeks back. Goofy.

Fortunately the storm tapered off by late in the afternoon and the roads were clear for revelers. And we were intent on reveling.

Susie and I decided to brave the elements so last evening, after splitting some sparkling wine at home and relaxing during the late afternoon, we warmed the car up, got dressed and headed over to Gracie's for their New Year's Eve celebration.

We were there last year and had a really grand time and since Susie had made a ton of desserts this year we thought we really should go back.

The joint, as they say, "was hoppin'" -- lots of folks decided they weren't going to stay home either and were well on their way to wishing adieu to 2008 and bonjour to 2009.

We got to the restaurant about half past 8, dashed through the arctic blast inside where it was warm and cozy. There was a live jazz group in fine form and lots of food to be had. And the champagne was flowing pretty much non-stop. Lots of slinky black dresses and high heels -- and those were the servers!

Anyway, here are a few images for you to look through. Take your pick, the slick animated version with music or the traditional slide show presentation:

Susie and I wish the very best for you and your family this brand-new year and we hope you make the most of it. We certainly plan to.
Wish you were here,

Steve

Faces at Gracie's

Actually I wanted to call this "Faces at Grace's" but for obvious reasons I didn't and neither should you. Anyway, these images were taken this past summer during a going away party for Brendan, the former wine guru at Gracie's in Providence. Brendan moved on to Napa Valley and the greater wine world.

Gracie's, Waterfire and living in Providence

It's been absolutely and I mean AAAAAAAAAAbsoooooooooloooooootely gorgeous here in Providence the past few days. Indian summer has arrived to be sure -- and the wonderful weather takes our mind off the fact that it's been barely two months since our anniversary celebration in Colorado and barely a month since we were cruisin' the backstreets of Paris looking for great food and even greater pastries -- two goals that met with resounding success I must say.

Work has been good for both of us -- and in this market that's been a stroke of incredibly good fortune. Nothing is forever of course, but right now we've got health, a little money in the bank (dwindling but still something is there, I think), and, to paraphrase a wise mountain man, "we're just happy to be here."

While most of the country goes about its daily routine this particular weekend is a major holiday in New England. Over on Federal Hill, along Atwell's Avenue, what has been euphemistically styles as "Little Italy in Providence," saw a major festival kick-off yesterday and running through today. Lots of tacky things for sale and tons of vendors hawking sausage and pepper sandwiches -- country music blaring up and down the avenue.

Susie had a long day Saturday so I caught up with her late in the day and as we were sipping wine at the bar we thought, "Hey let's just eat here." Sitting right at the bar and enjoying the moment and the ambiance.

So we did. Susie had the Maytag salad and gnocchi and I had the rigatoni -- hands down my favorite. Incredible meat sauce and just the right amount of heat to make you understand why god made peppers in the first place -- for the taste. And when mixed with mouth-watering sausage -- stand back!

And last night was a major Waterfire event in Providence, a huge fund raiser for breast cancer research and prevention. Now for those of you out of the loop, Waterfire is a BIG DEAL in this part of the country -- a major tourist attraction for Providence believe me and a blast to boot. Which is fascinating since it is basically thousands of people staring at huge braziers of roaring fires strewn in the middle of a river running through downtown Providence.

Enjoy the show:

\

Wish you were here and maybe you will be one day.

Rain, wine and a Baked Rhode Island

It has rained pretty much all week -- or so it seems. Good for the plants and flowers soon to bloom, I know, but bad for the roads here in Providence. The water hides the potholes making for dangerous driving conditions. Why just the other day a VW beetle that had been reported missing with two occupants was found in the bottom of a pothole on Washington street right near the police station. Funny thing is it was on top of a school bus.

OK, it's not that bad; but it's close.

Otherwise it's been quiet here in Providence, center of the New England Culinary Universe -- Boston being one of our many satellite food communities.

Gracie's has been hoppin' and Susie is right in step -- she's been working her pretty tail off prepping new sets of trio desserts for a variety of parties this last week and working on one or two new things to be added to the menu, like the Baked Rhode Island (see below).

This past Wednesday Susie and I made our (now regular) trip to Gracie's for the "wine flight of the week." The deal is you get to taste three wines (the theme changes each week) and a tasting of three edible tidbits prepared by Chef Joe's just for those wines. The tasting runs from about 5:30 until about 7:30 -- hey these folks are flexible.

Anyway, by the time we arrived the bar was packed and so we grabbed a small table in the lounge. With a great view of the Trinity Rep theater we could easily keep an eye on the ebb and flow of humanity both outside and in.

We've been pleasantly surprised with the wines at these affairs, and have enjoyed learning about new wines and how they match up with food. (We now have a new appreciation for South African wines, for example.)

The food as always was delicious -- this is the second time we've had Chef Joe's incredible porkbelly. Frankly he is a master at creating a dish that literally melts in your mouth like butter and yet tastes like pork.

There was also hanger steak on a small quarter of Brussel sprout, ummmmm good!

And normally I don't care much for foie gras but that evening the preparation was truly mouth-watering; it was almost as if it had been lightly fluffed with a hint of citrus to it, spread over a wonderful homemade cracker. Man oh man!

The wines that evening were OK but generally no match for the outstanding food. The tasting consisted of three vintages of zinfandels from Jonathan Edwards, 2004, 2005 and 2006. Edwards, a producer in Connecticut arranges with growers in Napa valley to have grapes sent to Connecticut where they are bottled and then marketed as Connecticut wines. Don't ask me why. Anyway we thought the wines lacked balance between fruit and acid --a balance that we easily detected in the glass of Latour Pinot Noir that we enjoyed as a follow-on that evening. The zins did bear up a tad better with the food, it is true, but the body was never there.

We did get a chance to try one of Susie's new Baked Rhode Islands: a cornmeal cake base, coffee brownie chunk walnut ice cream and meringue, of course.


Oh, and before we left I sneaked a quick peek in the kitchen and caught this incredible piece of meat heading out front -- which I thought should have gone with me but someone else had apparently had the audacity to have ordered it first.

So next week is Pacific Northwest wines -- Gracie's pours a superb pinot gris from Adelsheim so we've eager to see what they have for us next Wednesday. And we can't wait to see what Chef Joe concocts for the wines. My fingers are crossed for a threesome of fish but we'll just have to wait.

Wish you were here,

Steve

Springtime in Rhode Island

Well, maybe not just yet -- temps have been rather chilly of late and the wind has been a bit brutal. (Is that like a "bit pregnant" I wonder?) But the sun has been shining more often than not and it just looks like spring is hovering somewhere in the shadows waiting to leap out and surprise us with something cool like trees blossoming. 

Naturally rain is predicted for the next two days. Well like they say, "April showers. . . " But the good news is the Spring 2008 dessert menu is out at Gracie's:

Anyway, it's been another grand week here in the Ocean State. Susie continues to develop her pastry skills and I continue to marvel at the wonders of the Internet.

Susan is now working up yet another series of trio desserts for later in the week: (1) chocolate mousse meringue baskets, (2) pecan praline ice cream sandwiches and (3) vanilla bavarois (Bavarian creme) lemon bites. 

In addition, she continues working on perfecting things like Baked Alaska (the photo above shows some of her first versions), and of course testing new things. This week I think she's working on something involving macaroon ice cream sandwiches, and heaven knows what other delectable things she has got planned for the folks lucky enough to stop by Gracie's for dinner this week. 

Matt and Cara working the line at Gracie's

As for me I spend an unhealthy amount of my time in front of the computer screen. Between blogging and trying to empty our house of various trinkets and baubles, pushing them onto unsuspecting folks on Amazon and eBay, I'm pretty busy.

Otherwise the past week has been fairly routine: we enjoyed the wine flight at Gracie's last Wednesday. This time it was a staff member from the Savory Grape wine shop in East Greenwich who came by to show three of their favorites: a delicious Sauvignon blanc from northern California, a Bordeaux and a scrumptious Nero d'Avola from Sicily my favorite).

On Friday afternoon Dick and Dorothy came down, bringing their circular saw. No, they don't normally drive around with a major power tool in their car. Susie needed some cutting done, part of the ongoing work on organizing her studio at the back of the apartment. They stayed for dinner and the four of us ran a totally unscientific but tasty side-by-side taste test of pizzas from two different pizza shops in town. I picked up a pie from Fellini's on Wickenden and Dick drove over to Bob and Timmy's just off of Atwell's avenue on Federal Hill, and picked up one of their famous grilled pizzas.

The toppings on both were delicious but the crust on B & T's grilled pie was almost underdone; anyway it was very soggy. You can read more about that on my other blog, Dining in Providence.

So the time continues to fly by: we occasionally slip in and out of a moderate melancholia, longing for the feelings of ease and comfort of living in Siena or Paris (or even Florence for that matter). I don't know, maybe it just feels like home there. Strange, but there you have it.

The upside of living here is that Providence is really a great town. A small, but wonderful big city. We couldn't have made a better choice. The focus on food here is actually palpable and you can almost feel the energy that comes out of so many culinary imaginations firing at once.

And Gracie's. . . . Susie has found a home there to be sure. Everyone treats her so well and they give her incredible support -- and the opportunities for experimentation are endless.

Anyway, the wine flight this week is Rhode Island wines -- should be illuminating, don't you think? On Saturday we hope to see Martin Yan (of "Yan Can Cook") at Johnson & Wales University for a demo session of Chinese cooking. Afterwards we head off to Dick and Dorothy's for dinner.

Sunday I hope to slide over to the Saltwater Fishing show at the Rhode Island Convention Center downtown -- maybe pick up a couple of rods and reels or a boat or two -- at least shoot some photos for an upcoming article in Prime Time magazine (one of my ongoing gigs now).

It's nice living in the big city. Now if they would just fix the roads. . .

Wish you were here,

Steve

Leap Year, Chocolate and Dead Pets

Happy Leap Year!

I trust you all did something special on the extra day we give ourselves each year? (Frankly, I've always wondered how the folks who were born on February 29 celebrate their birthday the other three years.)

As for us, well we've been enjoying moderately weird times amidst an unusually good feeling about this place.

Take the weather. Today, the first day of March, began with a driving snowstorm early in the pre-dawn hours, changing to rain soon after the sun rose, then rising temps to melt the snow, with more rain, then back to snow briefly and finally sunny skies by late in the afternoon. As the sun slides eastward we are the recipients of simply gorgeous colors.

This week has been interesting to say the least, culminating in a bit of spooky coincidence, the good kind I might add.

Susie has been working long hours lately but loving every minute of it -- her desserts are continuing to evolve and I promise to get some of them online soon. The simple fact is I have to wait until they're plated to get truly decent photos and that means going into the restaurant late in the evening. Patience. All comes to he who waits.

Anyway, Wednesday we had a pleasant evening -- after a long day for Susie we went back into town, to Gracie's for the weekly wine flight -- this week it was three "Supertuscans" matched with three small tasting portions of some of Chef Joe's spectacular food. We weren't disappointed on either score. The wines were very nice: Argiano from Montalcino, Piocaia and Fattoria Di San Fabbiano both from near Arezzo. The food also matched well: raw tuna, duck confit and a delicious smoked polenta.

We had originally planed to do the wine flight and then go to a nearby Cuban restaurant for dinner (in honor of Fidel's retirement I suppose). Anyway, we soon found ourselves in a groove sitting at the bar at Gracie's, warm and comfortable, with smooth music playing around our ears and so decided to, well, just eat at the bar. And so we did.

We each had the Maytag salad (chock full of wonderful Maytag blue) topped with several of Gracie's homemade potato chips. We followed that with Chef Joe's homemade gnocchi (way to go Cara) topped with wonderful, earthy mushrooms. Our wine was a well-matched pinot noir from Louis Latour.

Thursday was quiet but Friday became the highpoint of the week -- at least for me.

I'm working on an article for the April issue of Primetime magazine, the feature stories will focus on desserts and I'm interviewing several Rhode Island chefs. Well Chef Joe kindly hooked me up with Michele De Luca-Verley who is an incredibly talented chocolatier. Working out of her home in Portsmouth, RI, Michelle's company, La Maison du Coco, She produces delicious tea-infused chocolate truffles.

After I left Michele's I drove to the nearby pet cemetery. You have got to see this to appreciate why it's worth the trip: the first pet was interred in, I believe, 1936 and, hold on to your hat, the celebrity burial here is "Pookie," longtime companion of "Edward and Wallis, Duke and Duchess of Windsor." See, you can hobnob with royalty right there out in the quiet Rhode Island countryside.

Anyway, that evening after dinner we watched our latest movie from NetFlix, which was -- that's right folks: Chocolat. How cool is that?

The one big disappointment for me was not being able to see Barack Obama -- he was scheduled to speak at Rhode Island College today and I headed over there about noon to check it out.

The college is located in a largely residential area with narrow two-ways streets and the traffic jam was enormous. I turned my car around and headed home.

Hey, he's got my vote and I'll be working for him this Tuesday.

Stay well, keep warm and be cool.

Wish you were here,

Steve

Gracie's in Providence

Susan has, she tells me, undergone a sea change of late. She feels right at home working in the basement of Gracie's -- her desserts seem to be a smash, the people there have been supportive of her every step of the way. In the end it all came down to a matter of finding her own workflow, her own sense of place, her own "rhythm". (Rhythm: noun, a strong, repeated pattern of movement or sound.)

And so she has.

This coming Monday, when the restaurant is closed, Susie and Chef Joe Hafner will be doing a cooking demo of how to make savory and sweet tarts, followed by a dinner afterwards. I hope to get some photos to post online soon afterwards so stay tuned.

In the meantime the dessert menu continues to evolve as Susie tempts everyone around with her delicious creations. She is, as they say, in seventh heaven.

New Year's Eve at Gracie's in Providence

Here's a bit of video footage I shot on New Year's Eve 2008 at Gracie's in Providence. They kindly let me come and take some photos and shoot a little video. I just hope you enjoy watching it half as much as I enjoyed shooting it! 

Notes from Providence

My brother Don continues to find happiness among the warm almond groves of Fresno, while Susie and I tackle the challenges of resettling in Providence, amidst a mild and pleasing winter along the ocean (sort of).

Susie continues to plunge ahead with making desserts for Gracie's. In fact, her name was in the paper Wednesday, 23 January, along with Chef Joe Hafner. They will be teaching a tart workshop in February and there was a small blurb about it in the Providence Journal -- Susie listed as "Pastry Chef" of Gracie's. That woman continues to amaze and astound me.

Yesterday, Wednesday, after she left Gracie's Susie and I met up at Pastiche, a pastry cafe located on Spruce street, just behind Atwell's avenue on Federal Hill. If you ever get to this small corner of Rhode Island, Pastiche is a place to come for a delicious cup of coffee and a heavenly bit of dessert. (In fact they are open until 11 pm virtually every night for that express purpose.) Service is smart, the food is wonderful, made fresh right on the premises and handsomely prepared.

As for me I'm still waiting to hear back about the web communication editor position. In the meantime I've been asked to do some freelance food photography, so I had to take the plunge and buy a new camera setup -- as you may recall my Nikon DSLR system was lifted from me somewhere along the line in our move from Paris last spring.

And of course we continue to downsize our space through the wonders of cyberspace as defined by eBay and Amazon -- and occasionally Craigslist. That Craig, what a guy!

Wish you were here!

Steve