year and a half

i woke up this morning thinking about favorite-nights-out in recent memory, without-the-kids division.

there's been a lot.

i've had amazingly, insanely delicious tasting-menu feasts at megu (in tribeca) and wd-50 (on the les) for a couple of special occasions. i went to paris last year for the time in my life (first time in europe, too), and that was pretty much perfect all around, night and day. harvest out in montauk, au pied de cochon in montreal's plateau mont-royal (by far the most--only?--interesting neighborhood in that town), dancing at opaline in the east village, seeing the pixies at jones beach: these were all special and memorable for different reasons.

but my absolute BEST night on the town in, say, the last year and a half came--what a coincidence!--18 months ago today. it was all pretty simple, actually. resto leon (on 12th and third) for excellent steak frites and too-oniony steak tartar and a nice, comfortable, cozy vibe and the host greets you like he's known you for years; australian homemade on st. marks for ice cream (not nearly as good as cones on bleeker, or any ben and jerry's for that matter, but nice and creamy all the same), eaten in thompkins square park across the street (which is an excellent make-out spot, by the way... but not on this night); then down to i-forget on houston street to see alt-country legends american ambulance.

the night was long, it was late, it was beautiful. and it changed my life.

the best.