Roast

I posted photos previously from the Tori Amos concert my sweet husband gave me for my birthday. Well the concert was just the cherry on top of an absolutely delicious day! We started our evening out with dinner at Roast, (Iron) Chef Michael Symon's new restaurant located in downtown Detroit, Michigan. It was AMAZING! It is definitely on our top 5 Best Meals EVER list. We dropped a pretty penny on the meal and it was well worth it.
I'd do it again in a heartbeat!

The restaurant is located in the Westin Book Cadillac Hotel at the intersection of Washington Blvd and Michigan Avenue.

These bar stools were upholstered in the softest leather. I wanted to rub my cheek across them, but I refrained. They were luxurious!

This wine vault was HUGE! I tried to get shots of the whole thing, but it was surrounded by glass and the reflection from the street was too distinct to get the full effect of the vault. It was a cool decorative element in the bar.

Roast is all about meat! Even though Vegetarians probably could find something to eat here, this restaurant is certainly NOT for them. The photo above shows the two spits that frame the window to the open kitchen. The empty spit to the left was HUGE and the smaller one to the left was roasting a whole pig throughout that evening.

The grill is located just below the huge spit. It was fun to watch the chefs, sous chefs & line cooks at work through the open kitchen.
It's not a large kitchen, which made it that much more impressive.

Oysters
half dozen with mignonette

We went all out and had a different beer or wine with each course and we had five courses. It was fabulous and our server, Craig was amazing! He had plenty of suggestions without being overbearing and along with the kitchen, our entire meal was timed perfectly!

Beef Cheek Pierogies
horseradish and mushrooms

The Pierogies are a house specialty and it's no wonder why. They were sooooo good!

Roasted Marrow
sea salt, oregano, capers and chilies

This appetizer was the star of the evening. It was the dish we were most curious to try and it did not disappoint! I was so impressed that I took the most photos of it. Ha! Who knew bone marrow would be soooo delicious?!
It really was one of the most amazing flavors to ever grace my palette.

My sweet & wonderful husband dishing out the marrow. Yummm!
It just melted in your mouth!

The aftermath. We practically licked it clean!

I didn't take photos of the rest of the meal, because I was there to eat. And by the time our entrees came out, my husband was saying things like, "Hey Ansel Adams, let's eat!" When he starts calling me Ansel, it usually means I've taken enough photos for the moment. But for the foodies out there... here's what we ate.

First Course:

Oysters
half dozen with mignonette

Second Course:
Beef Cheek Pierogies
horseradish and mushrooms

Third Course:
Roasted Marrow
sea salt, oregano, capers and chilies

Fourth Course:
Bacon Lardon Salad
poached egg, frisee, dijon & crispy pigs ear

Fifth Course:
Me: Filet Mignon with sea salt & olive oil
It was simple, delicious and the best filet I've ever had... and I've had my fair share.

Husband: Veal Chop Milanese with roasted tomato, onion and arugula.

Entrees Side Dish:
Fried Brussels Sprouts...
which were amazing and a huge portion.
I wished I could take home what we couldn't finish.

In case you couldn't tell, this meal was a true experience.
One that we won't soon forget.
If you ever have the chance to dine at Roast, DO IT! You won't regret it.

Angels Knocked

The angels knocked at the tavern-door last night,
With man's clay, they kneaded the cup outright.

The dwellers of God's heavenly abode,
Drank wine with me-a beggar of the road.

Heaven could not bear this wonderful trust,
That to a madman this honor was thrust.

Disputes of religions is but a false pretense,
Having not seen the Truth, they speak nonsense.

Thank God! There is peace between Him and me.
So dancing mystics took their cups with glee.

What makes the candle laughing isn't a flame.
The fire that burned the butterfly is my aim.

No one can display thoughts as Hafiz can,
No such words are written by the pen of man.

-Poem by Hafiz

Butterfly

The butterfly bushes in our yard have certainly been living up to their name. There were about 10 of these butterflies on the bushes as I was shooting. AMAZING!!!

With the exception of the following two, most of these have had very little editing. Just a bit of cropping here and there and a smidge of blurring around the edges. Colors are pretty much untouched. (I did mess with the color a bit on photo #4)

It's Much Too Late

I'm up way past my bedtime, but I just had to post one more of my little Bean.

I Really Like Them

And so does Extranjera's mom,
so I will continue to post my sweet little birds.

And speaking of sweet little birds... here's another.

Birds on a Wire

We've Moved

I took this recently in downtown Detroit, Michigan.
Downtown was really hoppin' that weekend and it gave me some insight into how I'd imagine Detroit once was.
A thriving, happenin' city that gave us Motown music,
gritty rock and roll
and the Ford Mustang.
Not the dirty and abandoned city it is today.

It's as if the American Dream packed up
and moved out of Detroit.

Tori Amos in Detroit

I was fortunate enough to see Tori Amos play at the Detroit Opera House on August 8th. She was AMAZING! I've been a fan for many years. I've collected 27 of her cds, most being singles I've picked up here and there. She is such an amazing musician. So theatrical and talented. I actually cried during some of her songs that have sentimental memories attached.




It was a Tori themed birthday for me this year. My kids presented me with her latest cd and a poster, which will hang with my other Tori posters in the art/craft studio, and then my husband surprised me with tickets to her show. We had such great seats if you couldn't tell from the photos. I took a ton of photos and might post more later on. If you were one of the nice people sitting next to us that I told my blog address to, please be sure to comment and say "hi". It was nice chatting with you.

Boardwalkin'

It seemed like it was a slow day for the charter boats. Most were docked and waiting to take out out customers for a day of fishing on Lake Michigan. I wish we could have been the $$$ they were waiting for. All of those fishing poles looked rather tempting.


A couple of trumpeters were practicing along the boardwalk. I love how this photo turned out.

Arrrrrr!

This is supposed to be one of a series of photos taken on a recent walk along our town's boardwalk, but alas... the internet is being sooo slow and uncooperative that the rest will have to wait.

Someone should be walking the plank for this mutiny!

"Damn you, Internet!!!"

It's a Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

We have so many wonderful new neighbors, but I believe that this fellow and his wife are our favorites. We call him Cardinal, for obvious reasons, and his wife is Carla. I hope I can capture her in a photo someday soon. She's a bit more shy than Cardinal. They often sit on our fence near the bird feeder and share seeds. It's quite sweet to watch them "kiss". They live in the wooded area behind our next door neighbor of the human variety, but they visit our yard often, probably because we provide lunch.