Steph 101

7.  Do something extra special for Alex’s 30th birthday.

Birthdays are awesome.  It’s the day you come into being; it’s the day you changed two ordinary people from spouses into parents.  It’s a day just about you.  I love birthdays – mine, yours, everyone’s.  Alex, on the other hand, is not so big on his birthday.  Probably because it’s September 4th and has always coincided with the end of summer/beginning of school.  As a result, everyone is very preoccupied and it’s tough to have a party around that time.   I will have none of this.  His birthday is even more important to me than my own.  It will be celebrated, dammit!  In the past, I’ve had some success with Alex’s birthday, despite his grumbling and resistance.

Our first married birthday, his 26th:  I surprised him with aquatic  decorations (mostly sharks) around the house and my sister and niece Juliette baked an awesome beach cake:

For his 27th, I pulled off an ultimate surprise party.  I set it for the first Friday of school and our friends Joe and Caitlyn lured Alex out to Redheads in Tinton Falls.  He didn’t want to go and moaned and groaned about it.  When he walked into the room,there were 25 of his friends waiting for him.  He had no clue.  PLUS…. his mom made an awesome two-tiered cake with white chocolate lollipops that we absolutely devoured.

A Bonnie's Best cake

Surprise! We got you!

Alex, Steve, AWo, & Kluck

For his 28th, I pulled a last-minute night out with about 15 friends at Old Man Rafferty’s in Asbury Park.  With very little notice, about 15 friends got together on a very rainy, cold, windy night.  Despite his protests, he had a good time:

Make a wish!

That's a happy birthday boy.

Last year, he didn’t let me do anything.  :(

But this year is different.  This year is his 30th.  Thirty gets a bad rap because people think their youth is over.  Not to me.  And not to Alex.  Thirty is still youthful, but now accompanied with acquired wisdom.  Neither of us has worried about turning 30 (which I did very well three years ago), but rather, we’re embracing it with open arms.

I wanted to do something special for this milestone.  It came to me out of nowhere:  a surprise trip to Chicago in order to eat at Alinea, one of the best-reviewed and cutting-edge restaurants in the country.  It was serendipitous timing as well:  we could fly out on Friday, September 3rd (first day of school for all students) and eat at Alinea on his actual birthday – Saturday, September 4th.  Since Monday was Labor Day, and hence a no-school-day, we didn’t have to rush home in a frenzied tizzy.

Perfect, except for one thing:  as soon as I booked a hotel or purchased airline tickets, Alex would see it on our credit card statement.  Dammit!  So I had to break down and let him in on the secret early (March).  Needless to say, he was a bit excited.  However, when I called to make the reservation, they informed me that reservations for September wouldn’t be taken until July 1st.  Doh.

Fast forward to July 1.  I began calling at 11am on the nose.  Busy busy busy.  All circuits are busy now.  FOR 40 MINUTES.  It took 40 minutes working THREE phone lines to get through.  This is how hot Alinea is.  And how important Alex is to me.

Obviously, this restaurant is not your-run-of-the-mill eatery. Chef Grant Achatz, besides being a cutie, is considered on the cutting edge of American cuisine.  His style is referred to as molecular gastronomy or progressive cuisine.  For those of you who have no idea what that is (which was me not too long ago), molecular gastronomy (BTW, practicioners of this style hate this term), blends science, art, and love.  Chefs should:

1. Investigate the social phenomena linked to culinary activity
2. Investigate the chemical and physical aspects of the artistic component
3. Investigate the technical component by a) modeling definitions and b) collecting and testing culinary precisions, as well as the reasons for their appearance. (From khymos. org.)

Dinners range anywhere from 15 to 25 courses.  Yes, you read that right.  Mind you, each course is 2-3 bites.  Each is painstakingly prepared and is a true work of art:

After a minor surgical procedure, I gave Alex the Alinea Cookbook.  He has recreated some of the dishes quite well.  This one was cookbook-quality in terms of presentation AND taste:

Cucumber with mango leather, clove salt, candied lemon zest, and ginger triangles

And on a final note, to give you a peek into the artistry, technical skill, and passion that goes into the food at Alinea, here is the kitchen over the course of 24 hours (in under 3 minutes running time):

The dinner reservations are set: September 4th at 6pm.  The hotel is booked:  the Doubletree Chicago on the Magnificent Mile.  Just waiting a good deal on airfare.  It is a certainty that Alex will write quite a lengthy blog post about our dinner there.  Until then, bon appetit!