Squid ink and airplanes

A productive and pleasant west coast trip ended last night as the Delta 767 touched down at Detroit / Wayne County Metropolitan Airport just after 8:30 pm. Most of the four hours aloft were spent reviewing applications for the 2013-2014 Leadership Scholars Program. This is a scholarship/mentorship opportunity for students at the University of Michigan College of Pharmacy that I help administrate and I serve as one of the mentors.

Hearty if not heart-healthy fare at the Pantry

Twenty-two students are vying for limited spots in the program and have yet to endure a fairly rigorous interview process. Each of the applications shows promise and I expect that the committee will have a very difficult set of decisions.

While in Los Angeles, I met with alumni, hosted and helped host gatherings, and enjoyed walking to meetings actually breaking a bit of a sweat due to the sun and temperatures in the 70s. Much of my work is done while sharing meals and there was a happy coven of eateries casting delicious spells in walking distance from my hotel. A couple of notables: The Pantry – a diner opened in 1924 and in continuous service to the community (by continuous, I mean literally open 24/7 for nigh 90 years!). The second, Drago Centro – from the website: “Chef Celestino Drago introduces his latest concept rediscovering local Italian dishes, which are revisited with the aid of modern cooking techniques and inserted into a modern context. The menu is representative of the cultural diversity of Italy. It emphasizes fresh, high quality ingredients reflecting old flavors that have defined Italian cuisine for centuries.”

Despite a touch of jet lag, I did manage most of a full day at the office where I got (somewhat) current with emails, reviewed some pending mailings, dealt with recertifying credit accounts, penned some needed verbiage for a coming publication, filed my trip expenses, and had a delightful conversation with two alumni from New Jersey.

Drago tasting menu

What I eagerly anticipated was detailing the weekend’s meals to Howard while plotting which day we’d take our field trip to “our” tavern..

Around 5:30 pm, I stumble my SUV down the heavily pock-marked gravel byway looking forward to telling my friend about the tasting menu at Drago (I ate squid ink!). From the road, I didn’t see any lights nor did I see his familiar presence in the window. I pulled in the driveway and confirmed that no one was home.

I sat in the driveway and decided to call and leave a message for Howard. I hope he was out for groceries.



More about the restaurants:
http://www.pantrycafe.com/
http://www.dragocentro.com/index.php

I wish I knew more about Howard