One of the many benefits of reading, especially for a blogger, is the treasure trove of potential subject matter you come across.
Most of my reading comes in the form of magazines, of which I’m somewhat addicted (I’m talking to you Vanity Fair and New York) but most of my “material” has come from the daily enjoyment of the New York Times, still the best, informative, in the tank for Obama paper of record there is.
And I’ve found things to blog about in all its sections.
So today’s lucky winning article was a cinch, about an irascible twelve-year old food critic (on the Upper West Side, natch) who became a local chef’s favorite BFF, while giving the cuisine a 24 out of 25, and 23 of 25 on decor. The wait staff did not fare as well though, 21 of 25 (“I asked you to refill my fruit punch five minutes ago!”).
But after reading the article, there was no nugget of wisdom I could impart, no parallel to be drawn to my own kids – though I have little doubt that if we lived in NYC and let my seven year old son, Bennett, out of the house on his own, he’d be mayor in a year’s time. The inspiration actually came a page before in a piece regarding Breakfast in the Classroom.
In a (Honey Nut Cheerios) nutshell – that seemed like a better idea in theory than execution – some NYC public schools are now providing a free, healthy, breakfast for their students just before class begins.
Not only is this a great story, giving kids a chance to start their day right, be excited to get to school on time and then tackle the day to succeed, but it also gave me something to blog about, a dream really, though an admittedly far fetched and unlikely one. And it’s this. Could restaurants sell more wine if they gave out a little sample of something, say the way they might bring out, “something the chef made special for the table, etc?”
Now we all know that beverages are the big money makers at restaurants, and most I gather would not be keen on cutting into those profits with free wine, but I do believe that more people would purchase it if they were given some without the pressures of ordering it themselves. I mean, isn’t that sort of what by the glass programs are all about? Buy a glass and someone might be enticed to buy a bottle (or at least another glass).
This reminded me of a place for which this policy lived back in the day I was going there (but alas have not in years because it’s not that close to my house). The place is 12 Washington in Marina Del Rey (no website at press time). It holds a significant place in my life because I took my wife there on our first date and we had our first kiss sometime soon after.
But what I’ll also remember about it, and the two great guys who ran/run it (though their names escape me) is that they never wanted a table without wine on it. At the end of your meal, if you had finished your bottle, they always made sure to fill your glass with something to wash down your dessert or finish your conversation with.
Like a free school breakfast at the start of the day, no one should be without wine at the end of it (well, no adults anyway)…
