Leyla's Birthday Extravaganza

Leyla's birthday was on Friday and we had an entire weekend of celebrating. Yes. An entire weekend. So, to start with we went to dinner at Michael Mina. And, all I can say is that it was quite possibly the single best food I have ever eaten in my entire life.

We got the Fifth Anniversary Tasting menu with the wine pairing. The first course was quite tame: Lobster Corndog, Tuna Tartare, and Caviar Parfait.. Yes, a lobster corndog. It was good but not phenomenal. The second course, however, was something incredible. It was this Butter Poached South African Lobster Tail with Sweet Corn Crêpe, Gaili Melon, and Red Curry. I lack words to adequately describe how incredible it was.

The third course was Seared Day Boat Scallop with Hudson Valley Foie Gras, Mission Fig, and Sausalito Springs Cress; in my opinion, hands down, the best course of the entire meal. The taste combination with the scallop and the Foie Gras was almost too powerful -- not in a bad way, mind you. But it was so rich that it could only be eaten in small bites, which, frankly, was for the best since it allowed for proper savoring of the dish.

The fourth course was Four Story Hills Poularde with Truffled Mac & Cheese, Broccoli Rabe, and Fried Leg Roulade and the fifth was Brand Farm Beef Cap with Asparagus, Twice-Baked Potato, and Béarnaise. Each of the courses were good in their own right but not as sensational as the Lobster Tail over corn crepe or the scallops and foie gras. And the meal was rounded with a final sixth sweet course: Root Beer Float, Strawberry Mascarpone, and White Peach Financier. The root beer float came with two chocolate chip and nut cookies which were awesome as well as the white peach financier.

Each of these courses was paired with a very well chosen wine which complemented the course perfectly.

Oh, and we started off with some drinks at the Clock Bar. I had a Hangar 1 dirty martini and Leyla tried an Aviation which I was super excited about due to an article I read in The Atlantic Monthly. I quite enjoyed it. It's a hard drink to describe and I think I have to go back to the Clock Bar and give it a proper try.

On day two of Leyla's birthday we met up for dinner at Maverick and then proceeded to the Lone Palm. That went pretty much as you would expect. On the way there, however, we ran into a crazy old man with a guitar who threatened something or another. he was not entirely intelligible. I maintain that he was having a difficult time with some of the finer points of our reality.

And then today we went to Sky High Sports for some quality trampoline jumping. On Sundays, for only $6 and a drive to Santa Clara, you can jump up and down on a great big giant trampoline room. I was skeptical at first, but it really is more fun than I expected it to be. Also, it turns out, that I am not as spry as I was as a kid, which was the last time I jumped on a trampoline. Alas. Such are things.