King of New York

Due to my work schedule I found myself having to spend a week in New York, including a weekend.  It was definitely hard to be away from Lynne and the kids that long, but I tried to maximize my time in the city.  Given all I was able to do, including full days of meetings at work, I think that may be an understatement.  Here’s a brief* rundown of my days, including some photos (some with the DSLR, but unfortunately some with just my phone).

*Yeh, this isn’t brief at all, sorry!

Thursday morning I took the train to New Jersey for a small staff retreat, my first time in the state in many years.  That night I headed to Coney Island in Brooklyn with some coworkers.  I had never been, and they had tickets to see the Class A Brooklyn Cyclones (Mets) minor league team play.  We enjoyed the game, where I also got see Purdue Boilermaker Kevin Plawecki play.  He was drafted in the first round by the Mets (quite a big deal for Purdue), but I didn’t remember until I saw his name and picture on the scoreboard.  After the game I ate a ton of food at the original Nathan’s Famous, rode the Cyclone rollercoaster, walked the boardwalk, and kicked some sand on the beach.  We then walked down a ways to Brighton Beach, the old Russian-populated area of Brooklyn, for some herring, oysters, caviar, potatoes, and vodka on waterfront.  It was a lot of fun and well worth the hour-plus on the subway

Nathan’s Famous

Brooklyn Cyclones park

Purdue’s Kevin Plawecki

The Cyclone.  We were the last ride of the night at 10:30pm, which made it even more fun.

The Wonder Wheel

On Friday we had a special team lunch at Eataly’s beer garden Birreria. I’ve written about my great trips to Eataly before, but I had never been to the rooftop beer garden due to the long waits in the evening.  Fortunately there was no wait for an early lunch, and we had lots of time to enjoy some amazing small plates and beer.  Through a partnership with Dogfish Head and two Italian breweries, they brew three beers on site and serve them on cask.  Per the waiter’s recommendation, I had a pint of the Gina, a thyme pale ale that was perfectly balanced and delicious.  For our food, we enjoyed the following, all incredibly excellent:

• A cheese plate featuring parmigiano, asiago, taleggio, gorgonzola, and robiola, served with their warm bread and honey to dip
• Probusto pork and beef sausage served with potatoes and mustard greens
• Maitake mushrooms in a cream sauce
• An heirloom tomato salad with some of the best tomatoes I’ve had (outside my own garden of course!)
• A chicken dish I can’t find on their menu right now (must have been a special), but it was juicy, slightly crispy, and perfect

That evening I had a mojito with some coworkers and then walked to the theater district to see a show.  When Lynne came with me to NYC in June, we had a list of shows we were interested in seeing.  One I really wanted to see, One Man Two Guvnors, she wasn’t as keen on, so I figured it would be good to see solo.  It also only had one week left in its Broadway run, so I was thrilled to have the chance to see it before it disappears, likely forever since it centers around one star British actor.  The play is hilarious and won numerous awards when it premiered in London before heading across the pond.  The lead actor, James Corden, even won the Tony this year for best actor in a play. The play is so unique, incorporating music, breaking the fourth wall, and planting humorous things in the audience. (Yes, I realize I quote a song from Newsies in my title, so some of you are wondering why I didn’t see that musical on Broadway. Honestly, I didn’t want to potentially taint my memories of that great film and all the childhood memories it generates, and it’s always more fun to see something you haven’t already watched 50 times before).

On Saturday, I knew it would be a little lonely, so I made sure to have plenty of new activities to do around the city.  I decided to spend some time in Brooklyn, since I usually only get there a couple times a year on weekday evenings.  Also, I decided it would be fun to walk across the Williamsburg Bridge from the East Village.  That was a lot of fun, but it took about 90 minutes, and after an entire day of walking, by Saturday night my feet were in bad shape.

Once I got into Brooklyn, I headed to Williamsburg for Smorgasburg, a fun mini-food fest gathering that happens every Saturday.  It’s right on the waterfront, and the eclectic food selection from many Brooklyn restaurants and food truck staples was a little overwhelming, especially at 11am.  I was met by one of m Brooklyn-ite coworkers who showed me around, and I enjoyed the best doughnut I’ve ever eaten from Dough, fried anchovies from Bon Chovie, and ramp vinaigrette from Right Tasty.

After that, I headed to a special saison tasting at a local bar, a tour of Brooklyn Brewery, and then I hopped the subway to Prospect Park.  This large park in Brooklyn had a completely different feel than Central Park, with more families of all ethnicities grilling out and playing.  I was able to find a quiet spot on the lake to read, and then another local coworker met me for a walk around the park (yep, lots of walking).  We then met up with another colleague for dinner at Brooklyn Fish Camp, where I enjoyed some fried green tomatoes, mussels, and hush puppies.

Even with a fun day in Brooklyn, I had more plans and took a very long subway ride up to south Harlem (Morningside Heights) where a coworker was having an apartment warming party.  I had fun there, but maybe most importantly learned about a fun event I needed to check out the following day.

The view of Manhattan from Smorgasburg

Brooklyn Brewery was packed, but they had some great beer you can’t get in Indiana

Beautiful Prospect Park

A quiet spot near the ducks

On Sunday I wanted to start the day by heading downtown to Battery Park and taking the ferry to Governors Island, basically a large park set up where the army used to be stationed to protect the waterways of New York.  There are still old buildings and barracks there, along with a fort and battery.  Part of the fun in visiting is getting out on the water and getting a good spot to see the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island.  After walking around the island (and taking lots of photos), I headed up to Central Park to see my friends Erik and Amanda, who were in town for a wedding.  Yes, Erik and I had just spent some quality time together at a tennis tournament in Cincinnati, but I swear we don’t always plan our travel together.  Erik and Amanda were also celebrating their one-year anniversary, which was apropos because he originally proposed in NYC.  We chatted while they had a caricature drawn, and then we had a late lunch before they headed back to Cleveland.  It was nice to add a trip to Central Park to my itinerary, since I hadn’t planned for that.  Thank goodness for the speedy subway.

Originally I didn’t have any plans for Sunday night, although I knew of a few options for free plays and such.  On Saturday night, thanks to a coworker, I learned about a free music festival in downtown Brooklyn I should attend.  I had never been to that part of Brooklyn, so to make my “all over Brooklyn” weekend complete, I decided to go.  The music festival was called Afro Punk Fest, and it was a blast.  It featured a BMX/skateboarding park where guys were doing stunts, lots of food trucks, and two stages with popular urban artists. I got to see Janelle Monae, who I’m now a big an of, and a band I already liked a lot, TV on the Radio, perform.  Both put on fantastic live shows, and I was glad I made the trip.

A view from the ferry

Downtown Manhattan

Ellis Island

Statue of Liberty

I ran into a couple goats on Governors Island.  Not expecting to see that in NYC.

People enjoying a picnic on the island

The battery

Fort Jay

The Brooklyn Bridge in front and Manhattan Bridge behind

The skate park at Afro Punk

The Empire State Building, as seen from downtown Brooklyn (DUMBO – Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass)

On Monday night, I was lucky enough to win an online lottery for tickets to Shakespeare in the Park, a summer ritual of putting on world-class plays in an outdoor theater in Central Park.  The only way to get tickets is to wait in line for seven hours or enter the daily online lottery.  I tried every day I was in the city, and it was so exciting to win on Monday.  It was even better, because it was the final week of the show, Stephen Sondheim’s Into the Woods, which featured Amy Adams.  I went with a work colleague who was also a musical theater buff, so I learned a lot including some unique things they did in this production.  The cast was phenomenal, and the show was superb.  The Broadway veteran playing the witch sounded quite familiar, and I realized afterwards that she voiced Mother Gothel in the Disney Rapunzel film Tangled.  These are the things you notice when you have a three-year-old.  We enjoyed an evening on the Upper West Side with a fantastic dinner at Vai (some of the best ravioli of my life, and fried artichokes are always a good thing) and drinks at a few local pubs.

Tuesday was my day at the US Open, but I’ll post about that separately.  It was amazing, and I spent the entire day and evening there watching tennis and crossing Grand Slam number two off the list.  If I had to be away from the family for so long, at least I was able to do a lot of fun things to maximize my time away, but I couldn’t wait to get home. The work meetings also went really well, for what it’s worth.

New York City 2012

Earlier this month Lynne joined me for a week in New York City.  Once per year, I bring Lynne along on one of my work trips thanks to the frequent flyer miles I collect, and we always have a lot of fun in the city.  The last time Lynne was there was for Mother’s Day, right before Matilda was born, so it had been a while.  This was also Lynne’s first trip away from Matilda.  Big thanks to the grandparents for taking Matilda (my folks) and Eliza/Otis (Sara/Jerry).  We had to split them up because two little kids and a dog are a little too much to handle.

In NYC, Lynne had free days while I worked.  She shopped in Soho, ate some great food, saw the Guggenheim Museum, and hit up lots of thrift stores.  She even got to meet up with our friend Mallory who was in town visiting her sister (just like last time!).

Flat iron (sorry all the photos are via phone)

Guggenheim

For our date nights, we ate some great food at Gravy, featuring the best fried chicken I’ve ever hard, honey grits, and fried pickled okra.  I’ve pickled okra from my garden, and I’ve fried it, but never both.  Now I must, because it was delicious.  We also had delicious Thai soup at Zoob Zib – I highly recommend the duck braised noodle soup – sweet potato tempura fries with spicy mayo at Kobeyaki, and a tour of Eataly.  Lynne had the chance to dine at Odeon and get some tasty dumplings from the Rickshaw Dumpling Truck, which were all wonderful.

We also attended a Broadway show, of course.  Since the Tony award-winning musical Once was sold out, we opted for a play and saw Gore Vidal’s The Best Man, a political comedy that featured an all-star cast: James Earl Jones, Angela Lansbury, John Larroquette, Eric McCormack (Will from Will and Grace), and Candice Bergen.  The show was fantastic, and the ensemble all did a phenomenal job, especially James Earl Jones.  And how is it that the first words out of Angela Lansbury’s mouth always remind me of her role as Mrs. Potts in Disney’s Beauty and the Beast?

The Best Man

I had lots of meetings for work, including an all-day team retreat to lead.  It went well, and as a treat for my team, we went to a taping of The Colbert Report on Wednesday afternoon.  Thanks to a colleague who used to work there, we got to see our DonorsChoose.org board member in his element, and it was hilarious.  Lynne was able to join us, too, since I thought it would be horrible not to invite her to crash our team outing.  I was able to ask Stephen a question, catch a “Wrist Strong” wristband, and laugh so loud that Lynne and I could hear me on the show when we got home and watched it on the DVR.  It was really interesting to see how the show works a little behind the scenes, including watching Stephen mess up the intro twice, which clearly frustrated him, but turned into one of the funniest jokes of the night – an inside joke that only the audience got.  My team followed that side-splitting experience up with a great dinner at Nook (great mushroom cigars, steak, lamb, and frites) and drinks at Pony Bar, a great craft beer spot.

It’s always fun to have Lynne with me in New York, and the girls did great without us (getting spoiled by their grandparents, I’m sure).

Having Fun at Work

My most recent trip to New York turned out to be a bit disappointing. Sure, I had a fantastic time with my colleagues, ate great food, and (most importantly) got some important work done to provide support for high poverty schools across the nation. But the let down was all weather-related. I had planned to attend the US Open with friends from work one night, but for both full days I was in NYC, rain caused all matches to be completely cancelled. No Federer, Nadal, or Djokovic for me (heck, I would have been happy just for a Roddick or Fish!), so hopefully I’ll get another chance next year to see my second of the four major tournaments (remember my post about the French Open last summer?).

The previous week I was in Dallas for a satellite media tour kicking off our Limeades for Learning partnership with SONIC Drive-In. The tour included filming 25 (mostly live) TV and radio interviews in a 6 hour span for news stations across the country. I wasn't a big fan of the 4:30am call time, but it was a great experience (no, I'm not linking to any video footage, but if you Google hard enough you can find it). The extra perks of being in Dallas meant seeing one of my former colleagues and hanging out, an amazing dinner at Tom Colicchio's Craft (sorry, their main site is down), and delicious lunch at the Meddlesome Moth.

To top it all off, two of my colleagues were in town last week for a conference and invited me out on the town for their festivities. It’s nice to see an Indianapolis company put on a great show to impress its attendees and clients (mostly coming from the coasts). The first night was a fantastic gala at the Eiteljorg Museum, complete with delicious food and drink. The second night featured special VIP passes to the Katy Perry concert and a post-concert private midnight concert by Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears.

Not being a big fan of pop music, I honestly didn’t know too much about Katy Perry other than she’s married to hilarious comedian/actor. I definitely recognized a handful of her songs and expected a show with high production value and lots of young screaming girls. Both were definitely in full effect, and fortunately the conference had prepared a great pre-concert setup on the Pacer’s practice court (complete with twenty-foot elevated DJ) so that we could hang out somewhere a little more “our age” before the show started (no idea who the opening act was, but I doubt we missed much). For a 30-year-old, the concert was hilarious – I seriously had so much fun being ridiculous and sporting the light-up sunglasses they gave us to wear. What bothered me was how inappropriate Perry’s songs were for such a young audience. There were lots of pre-teens/tweens there (accompanied by a begrudging parent, of course), and the song lyrics, gesturing, and even spoken audience banter were far too mature. Just chalk up another reason to lock Eliza and Matilda in the house once they turn 14 (or sooner? :).

The after-concert concert (confusing, yes) was at the Indiana Roof Ballroom (my first time there), and was an even better show. If you’ve never heard of Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears, go check them out right now. I’ll wait. … Awesome, right? A great rock/blues/jam band complete with a baritone and tenor saxophone and trumpet. It was a lot more fun to be right in front of the band, too, and later that night between sets I snuck backstage to meet them all, and they were happy to chat.

Thanks to my awesome colleagues for setting me up with passes to these events. We had a lot of fun, and it was great to see them enjoy Indianapolis!

Welcome Home

After a fantastic two week paternity leave, it was time to head to New York for the first time since Matilda was born.  Lynne handled both kids like a champ, and I was so excited to get home to see my girls.  I was only gone 3 1/2 days, but the garden also welcomed me back with lots of surprises.

Not pictured – more and more raspberries (yum!) as well as a few cantaloupes growing from seeds that were in our compost!)

In New York, I was able to spend some great time with my team, have productive meetings, and enjoy good eats:

• Momofuku Noodle Bar – decent ramen, but amazing pork and shrimp buns
• Red Hook Lobster Truck – not cheap, but the most delicious thing I ate on the trip were their lobster rolls (both the Maine and Connecticut style)
• Asiadog – hot dogs with a variety of tasty Asian toppings, the Sidney was the best (I hit up a lot of food trucks this trip)
• Bon Chon Chicken – still the best wings and fried chicken I’ve ever had (as well as scallion pancakes, zucchini fries, and fried tofu
• Kickball in Central Park! – we lost (DC.org went winless this summer), but it was so much fun and made me feel like a local
• Great New York beers, including
  • Brooklyn Brewery’s Highline Elevated Wheat (made exclusively for The Lot)
  • Captain Lawrence Liquid Gold
  • Ommegang Rare Vos
  • Southern Tier Crème Brûlée Imperial Stout

MSG and Eataly

My last two work trips to New York have been fun and productive, so I thought I’d blog about a few highlights.

First, last week during my visit I decided to attend a Knicks game.  I had never been to Madison Square Garden despite staying in a hotel right across the street on most of my visits, but I wasn’t too thrilled about the cost of admission.  Since acquiring Carmelo Anthony last month (and signing Amar’e Stoudemire earlier this year), the Knicks are finally becoming a team of interest again (after stinking for the last few years), so ticket prices are rising, and I figured now would be a good time to cross the Garden off the list of places to see.

My mission was to buy a “cheap” ticket from the scalpers outside the arena, and I knew I had some leverage since I was willing to wait until the game had started (and a single ticket is sometimes hard to unload).  It was a cold night with a heavy mix of sleet and small hail, but fortunately I had an umbrella (unlike most of the scalpers).  I spent a good 40 minutes talking with at least 25 different scalpers who were trying to sell tickets for $150-200.  They’d laugh at me when I told them I wasn’t willing to pay more than $40 for a ticket, and I’d tell them where they could find me when they were stuck with a ticket they couldn’t sell after the game started.  Most got the message that I was a stubborn customer, but eventually, about 10 minutes after the game’s scheduled start time, I was able to get a ticket for $25!  That was actual face value, and while it was in the upper deck, I didn’t care.  I had won this round, New York!

Inside MSG, it was amazing!  The atmosphere was electric, and walking around the concourse, it seemed like every seat (even in the upper deck) was a great view.  I only ended up missing 6 minutes of the first quarter by waiting for a cheaper ticket (and Bernie Williams playing the national anthem on the guitar – unexpected!), and I still got to watch an exciting game featuring the all-stars mentioned above.  The Knicks were playing the Orlando Magic, so I also got to see an outstanding performance by Dwight Howard and his teammates Jameer Nelson, Gilbert Arenas, and Jason Richardson.

Being a single at an event has its advantages, and I used it to find a much better seat in the second half.  I snuck my way down to the lower level and had a fantastic seat to enjoy the game.  The Knicks ended up blowing a lead in the fourth quarter and losing, and the New York fans booed mercilessly.  It was kind of funny.

Second, during my February visit I had an amazing pizza dinner at Eataly, Mario Batali’s restaurant/food emporium.  It was great, and due to a team retreat last week, I got to have even more of their pizza for lunch.  Eataly is a bit overwhelming with so many amazing food products and small areas to eat.  You literally dine among the shoppers, and everything you eat is made from products sold in the store.  The cheese counter alone made me wish I had a free shopping spree there, like you used to be able to win at Toys R Us when you were a kid.  The meat counter was a thing of beauty, and I was most surprised by the availability of a whole butchered rabbit for sale.  The fresh pasta, gelato, produce, bread, I could go on and on…it’s all so amazing.

Sorry for the photo quality - camera phones can't do anything justice, so I've stolen a couple from other sites.

In all, I’ve had the privilege of tasting six different pizzas they serve!

1. San Marzano – their margherita pizza (on left of photo) – nice, but usually I need toppings for oomph

2. Casandrinella – ricotta, mozzarella, ham, and parmigiano reggiano (on right of photo) – nice, but not a huge ricotta fan

3. Ventura – mozzarella, parma ham, shaved parm, and arugula (middle of photo) – would definitely eat again

4. La Verace TSG – buffalo mozzarella, parm, sorrento evoo, and basil – similar to the San Marzano, but far superior

5. Scisciana – gorgonzola, parm, mozzarella, and parma ham – the gorgonzola makes it, so very good

6. Massese – Mozzarella, basil, and neapolitan spicy salami – the salami was some of the best I’ve ever eaten!

I highly recommend everyone visit Eataly for the full experience.  Other highlights included a fun meal at a Korean place that a coworker showed me.  The only signs were in Korean, and it was located on the second floor behind an unmarked door.  I felt like quite the insider.  We had some great fried chicken, pork kimchi, pickled radish cubes, and soju.

Another fun thing I did back in February was meet up with the Purdue Alumni Club of NYC to watch the Purdue/IU game.  I hope to hang out with that group more often, and definitely during basketball season next year when I’m in town!

Store Closing

Around the start of 2011 Williams Sonoma Home closed at the Keystone mall.  I have been blessed to be able to have worked there for the last three years, and I will miss it greatly.  They closed all but two locations nationwide as they focus more on website sales.  I am staying in the corporate family and have transferred to the Cuisine store.  I’ll miss having my hands in the design field, and the people that were on our small team will be irreplaceable, but I have enjoyed sharpening my cooking skills and getting inspired in the kitchen so far!

I Think I Won the Heisman!

The title is a lie.  I’m not often mistaken for Cam Newton, this year’s winner of the Heisman Trophy, awarded to the best college football player in the nation.  However, I sure felt like someone special since I had the amazing opportunity to attend the 2010 Heisman Memorial Trophy Dinner in New York this week.

First, some background is necessary.  No, I didn’t shell out $500 for a ticket or win one on a sports radio call-in show.  I just work for the coolest non-profit around.  Thanks to some sweet connections, for the last few years everyone who attends the event has received a $100 DonorsChoose.org gift card in their gift bag.  This year, along with my teammate Dan, I represented our organization.  It’s a rough job, I know!

The event was held at the Marriott Marquis and the Heisman staff did an impeccable job running it.  The evening started with a cocktail reception with some amazing food and an open bar.  There was a silent auction (a bit out of my price range) and the opportunity to get your picture taken with the trophy.

During the reception I had the opportunity to meet some of the former Heisman winners that graced us with their appearance (not all attendees were at the reception).  I was able to meet football legends Tim Brown (‘87), Archie Griffin (‘74 and ‘75), Ty Detmer (‘90), Ron Dayne (‘99), Mike Rozier (‘83), Pete Dawkins (‘58), and Jim Plunkett (‘70).  I wish I had our DSLR camera to take better pictures, but its size would have been too cumbersome for this trip.

Tim Brown, despite being a Notre Dame alum, is still awesome.

I joked with Archie Griffin that I was a Purdue fan and enjoyed rooting against Ohio State during Big Ten play, and he laughed really hard at my honesty.  He was probably the most friendly and gracious former winner making the rounds.

I think Ty Detmer (BYU) would have blended into the crowd without his nametag.

I also chatted with Ron Dayne (Wisconsin) and told him how much he drove me crazy my freshman year when he ran for 222 yards against us, leading Wisconsin to a 7 point victory on his way to setting the collegiate record for most career rushing yards.  He laughed and said, “At least you got to cheer for Drew Brees!” to which I responded, “You bet, but I wish he had won the Heisman.”  Dayne’s retort: “Oh, he’s won a much better prize now!” referring to his Super Bowl MVP with the Saints last season (or maybe he meant the Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year?)

After the cocktail reception, everyone headed into a large ballroom for the dinner.  Unfortunately, the former winners were seated up on stage and were roped off so that we couldn’t interact with them.  Once they were all introduced, I was surprised to see so many in attendance who hadn’t been at the reception earlier, including Doug Flutie, Steve Spurrier, Charlie Ward, Eric Crouch, Howard Cassady, Pat Sullivan, and Tony Dorsett.  Also in attendance (who we knew in advance would be there) were the Heisman winners celebrating a 10/25/50 year anniversary: Chris Weinke (‘00), Bo Jackson (‘85), and Joe Bellino (‘60).  Dan and I were most excited to meet Bo, but there was sadly never an opportunity, but we definitely can’t complain. 

ESPN’s Rece Davis emceed the dinner, and I had the opportunity to meet him later (read on).  Rece did a fantastic job and provided some good humor as well as giving DonorsChoose.org a tremendous shout out from the stage.  They showed a video honoring the charitable partners of the Heisman Trust, and Rece made sure to inform everyone about their gift card so they would be sure to redeem it after the event.

These  three pictures are courtesy of the event photographer

Flutie and Bo.  Bo’s speech was really humorous, and this was the first time he had been back to the event since he won the award 25 years ago.

Also in attendance was Warrick Dunn, who was being honored as the 2010 Heisman Humanitarian for all of his charitable work.  After the dinner I tried to get him to come down from the stage to say “hi” but all I got was a wave.  He gave a lot of credit to Tony Dungy, who coached him in Tampa, for inspiring him to give back to the community.

After everyone had spoken, including the Auburn athletic director and head coach (it was an Auburn love-fest with all of them there, as well as Newton and Bo), the head of the Heisman Trust, Bill Dockery, began to introduce the final speaker of the night, Cam Newton.  Before doing so he gave another great spiel about DonorsChoose.org and again reminded everyone to redeem their gift card.  I was blushing at all the love we were getting.  Cam spoke (we never had a chance to meet him either, since the only photo session with him was for VIP sponsors only (Nissan, Wendy’s, etc.)  earlier in the evening), and then the dinner was over.  We approached the stage to thank Bill for his kind words, and afterwards we tried to get the attention of the stars on the stage, but to little avail.  We did, however, see Bo point upwards as though he was going to some sort of after party.  We didn’t know what was really going on, and our tickets didn’t have additional information, but we thought it was worth a shot to wander around the hotel and see if there was a way to meet more of these guys.

Dan and I kept taking the escalator up until we came to the ninth floor where some over-caffeinated event staff were asking for tickets.  Apparently there was an after party, but it was only for guests of honor and VIP sponsors, and you had to have a separate ticket.  Dejected, we walked to the other side of the escalators to go back down, but then I saw an opening and told Dan to walk slowly and follow me.  While the bouncers were busy checking tickets, I realized we could walk around the hotel’s interior concourse and go the long way to reach the after party.  Employing my “bring out the smart phone, act like your conducting business, don’t look up and just keep walking like you know what you’re doing” method from my experience sneaking backstage at the Final Four, we made it into the party.

There was tons more food (but we were stuffed by this point), a great jazz band, open bar, about 30 people mingling, but no sign of Bo, Cam, or Warrick.  Eventually the room began to get more crowded and we realized we were sitting a few seats down from Tony Dorsett (‘76)!  We chatted a bit and I had him sign the Heisman mini-helmet from our gift bag.  We also were able to say hello to Rece Davis later on and thank him for the kind words he said earlier (while slipping him my card, of course!).  By the end of the night I found myself lingering in hopes that Bo would arrive, and I got pulled into a discussion with some tipsy gentlemen, including Mr. Dorsett,  Let’s just say my evening at the Marquis ended with a slap on the butt and a “good game” from a former Heisman Trophy winner. 

The rest of my trip to NYC was fantastic, since I love spending time with my colleagues at our headquarters.  I spent my free time checking out the Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center (I’d never seen it in person), walking the windy snow-swept streets, shopping at the Union Square Holiday Market, and having a fantastic dinner at Ippudo (thanks to the recommendation of my wonderful new manager).

Ippudo has received some good reviews as one of the best Japanese ramen restaurants in the city.  And when you think “ramen,” don’t think 25 cent bags of stale thin noodles you ate in your college dorm room, but think flavorful fresh noodles with amazing broth and toppings.  The worst thing about the restaurant is the wait.  They don’t take reservations, and when I arrived, the small bar and waiting area were packed with people.  The couple before me were told their wait would be 90 minutes, and for a party of four, the wait was over two hours.  As a solo diner, however, I only had to wait ten minutes, so I highly recommend it as a place to check out when travelling alone.

I sat at the interior bar and was able to watch the cooks prepare the food as they hollered back and forth in the loud but playful environment.  I started with a Hirata bun, steamed and filled with pork belly and spicy sauce.  I’m not normally a huge fan of steamed buns, but this was delicious, and even more fun watching them cook it and assemble it right in front of me.  For my ramen dish, I had Kogashi miso ramen, which had a delicious charred miso broth, pork belly, salt boiled egg, bamboo shoots, cabbage, spinach, and naruto.  I loved it, and I took advantage of the Kae-dama option, which gives you a generous second-serving of noodles halfway through the meal for only two dollars.