"We're Making It Better", Top 11 Dishes From A Week In London

About 20 years ago, there was a billboard perched off the the 91 Freeway near the Wilmington Avenue off-ramp that read, in big, bold letters, "COMPTON...WE'RE MAKING IT BETTER".

You know a place has to be bad for that to be said.  You'd never see a sign in Holmby Hills proclaiming that.   

London, England is a place you hear a version of that when it comes to the food and restaurants.  Lines like "London's dining scene is so much better now" and the like are common.   For a recent week, Nancy Silverton commandeered a restaurant in the Shoreditch neighborhood called Passo and we had the opportunity to taste and test this theory that the food in London is better than ever.  I don't know how it used to be, but the food, while maybe not on a Los Angeles level, had many outstanding moments. Here is a list of the top 10 dishes of the trip

11. Lamb shawarma at Berber & Q Shawarma Bar on Oxmouth Market.   Everything we had at this small Lebanese restaurant was very tasty, but it was this lamb sandwich - the tender chunks of meat sliced from a  vertical spit, the harissa, the pita fresh and soft -  that keep me coming back. Twice I brought the Mozza crew shawarmas - lamb chicken, beef and cauliflower- from here for their after-shift, midnight meal. 

.http://shawarmabar.co.uk/

10. Meat Pies from Fortnum and Mason on PIccadilly - One night after-shift meal was about !50 pound of chicken, beef, rabbit, game and vegetables pies from this multi-floored place that could be described as pretty, especially the candy and jam ground floor. Do not go their hungry. The pastry crust on these hearty pies were thick, but flaky. Their  regular chicken pot pie makes a Swanson's chicken pot pie taste like something that should be doing community service along the Harbor Freeway.

This place has been in business since 1707..  (Not a typo)

 https://www.fortnumandmason.com/

9. Original Lehore - This Pakistani kebab house in St John's Wood that bills itself as serving authentic Punjabi cuisine since 1970 was awarded - at least for the first 40 minutes of out visit - as having a level of service that was less attentive and caring than the prison guards at Folsom.

It wasn't even that is was bad service, it was that it didn't exist. Twice I had to get up and ask for a wine opener, and don't get me started on how many times I asked for ice. I stared to wonder if there was ice in Pakistan

But, once the lamb and chicken tikas and the lamb biryani showed up, the service was forgotten and the feast began.  

 http://www.originallahore.com/

8. Chicken Cottage , City Road branch - One particular long continuous lunch and dinner shift that last nearly 12 hours left the crew tired, cranky and middle-class starving. I walked to the Old Road underground "Tube", station, dipped in and emerged on the other side of a roundabout where the fast food restaurant Chicken Cottage was dishing it out. I asked "What's the best thing here?"   Fried chicken and grilled chicken, I was told and ordered both.

Back at Passo, the staff greeted my arrival like I was Admiral Lord Nelson returning from the magnificent victory over the Spanish and French fleets at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805. (That is a exaggeration, but it was a lot fun to write) 

They loved the chicken, especially the spicy grilled version. What i spend on meat pies, i made up her as the shabang cost less than 10 pounds. 

There are several Chicken Cottages, but this one is at 125 City Rd, Hoxton, London EC1V 1JB, UK

7. Turbot at Brat on Redchurch Street - Brat is kinda like slang for turbot, so it makes sense it was the star of our lunch here last Saturday. Chef Tomos Parry slow-cooks the turbot on the charcoal grill and it comes out succulent with a delicate flavor and a sprinkle of Maldon sea salt.  April Bloomfield recommended this place so we knew it was gonna be good.

6. Sweet Potato with Miso Butter at Foley's  - Nancy had built this side dish up to just about mythical levels as she had it on a December trip here. It lived up. We had a memorable times at this Fitzrovia favorite where chef Budgie Montoya blends Asian flavors with European technique. The charred broccoli, the banana leaf roasted sea bass with chili brown butter, the char su lamb, and many other dishes of chef were all very good, but it is that sweet potato that i crave right now.  Special thanks to Budgie who feed us like we had just returned from that Battle of Trafalgar mentioned above.

https://foleysrestaurant.co.uk/

5. Cheese Plate at St. John  Restaurant, Smithfield  - St. John is one of London's most acclaimed restaurants, Owned by chef Fergus Hendersona and Trevor Gulliver, it is known for offal, those less than glamorous part of animals.  But, St John's variety of the English blue cheese Stilton, here called Stichelton, is, well, just get it if you go here.  It's intense and dense.   It could single-handedly propel the United Kingdom to qualify for the World Cup of Cheese. They wouldn't win, but just getting to compete says a lot.  This Stichelton is also available at Neal's Yard Diary cheese store at Borough Market. That's even where the restaurant gets theirs.        

https://stjohnrestaurant.com/a/restaurants/smithfield                                                                                                                        Here;s the link to Neal's Yard Dairy.          https://www.nealsyarddairy.co.uk/shop-finder/neals-yard-dairy-borough-market-shop/

4. Toastie at Kappacasein next to  Borough Market - Just outside the entrance to that charming collection of food stalls known at Borough Market, is this stand that has a mound of freshly grated Montgomery cheddar cheese on view that people stop and stare at.  It's time for a "toastie", known in America as a grilled cheese sandwich. But, what made me have to have one was the bread, It is from Poilane Bakery in Paris. You could put anything legally classified as food between two slices of Poilane, and I'm in. Here's to Kappacasein and its owner Bill Oglethorpe

http://boroughmarket.org.uk/traders/kappacasein

3. Cheese Stick at Ottolenghi in Islington - The best cheese stick I have ever had.  Worth taking the Tube to the Heart station and walking nearly a mile just to get it.   I brought one, along with several desserts and some side dishes, paid and left.  A half block away, I took one bite of the cheese stick and stopped cold. I spun around and went back. The cashier lady said "Is something wrong?". I said "Yeah, I need more cheese sticks." There was four left, I took three. I didn't want to be that guy that denied everybody else.

https://ottolenghi.co.uk/islington

2. Bread Pudding with Butterscotch Sauce, St John - The color alone of the butterscotch sauce at St, John would get this dish in the top 25.  The best bread pudding.  I mean, look at that thing. Should I eat it or put it up at the Tate Modern?

https://stjohnrestaurant.com/a/restaurants/smithfield     

1. Shoulder and Leg of Lamb at Nuala, - For our last meal, a Sunday Roast, our charming host, John Michael Sookias, the man in charge of and responsible for bringing Nancy to London and to Passo, took us to Nuala, a restaurant we walked by everyday and never considered going.  Too  bad.  We walked in and knew right off something good was going on at this place named after a female of Irish mythology. . Above  large open fired hung two glistening legs and shoulders of lamb.. When the leg came to the table, accompanied by a mound of lamb shoulder meat, that might have even been better than the leg, well, it was the best way to end our dining experience in London.

http://www.nualalondon.com/

I could have made this list up of solely dishes I ate at Passo, but they were all Nancy Silverton dishes from Mozza served at the pop up at Passo.  I didn't get a chance to have any of the food normally served at Passo, but if they have the good taste to bring Mozza to London, then I'm betting it's, as Det. McNulty says,  spot on.

https://passorestaurant.com/

Yes, they are making it better in London. And, I guess, compared to the old days, they making Compton better, too.   

"They Don't And They Won't!" Ariana Flores Named Mozza International Employee Of The Month

For several minutes, Mozza's James Beard Award winning pastry chef Dahlia Narvaez calmly explained the problems she was having with the serving staff at Passo, the highly praised London eatery Nancy Silverton and her crew had commandeered for the week before Easter.

In firm and controlled voice, Narvaez told the man in charge of the event. John Michael Sookias, that servers were not properly picking up desserts. They picked up plates at an angle, they would often leave one dessert behind, they would not help out unless it was one of their assigned tables.  

Sookias assured her they would do better.

Ariana Flores, Mozza's pastry chef in Singapore, had been listening patiently in the wings, but could no longer be silent. She stormed up to Sookias, pointed a finger in his face and just about yelled like a Marine Corps drill sergeant, "They don't and they won't!"

A day later, they did and they would.

For that, and for dozens of other things - most notably saving the pizza dough - Ariana Flores has been name Mozza's first International Employee of the Month (IEM) for her exemplary performance in London.

Flores, who flew in from Singapore on her on own dime, charmed the staff, did her job, and - outside the restaurant - was a delightful companion, happy to be a tourist, eager to go along and just as willing to lead. On the sardined underground known as "The Tube, in the pouring rain and bitter cold, in the maze of Harrod's, in the hectic first days of service at Passo, she never complained.  Even on a dysfunctional "Hop On, Hop Off" red double-decker bus that she, Narvaez and a reporter were the only passengers on  - and wasted 96 pounds - she was a pleasure. 

For the record, that "they don't and they won't!" line above wasn't a complaint. It was more like an order issued from the United Kingdom's legendary Field Marshall Bernard Montgomery to his Desert Rats in the 1942 2nd Battle of El Alamein in North Africa. Fight better! And they did The team at Passo rallied and performed brilliantly from that moment on.

When informed of the award, Ariana was speechless for several seconds. Then; "I would like to thank my parents Jose and Eloisa, and God. Also my agent and all the people that made this happen."       

The photo below was described by Nancy Silverton as "looking like you two are on your Honeymoon."

London Stunned By Murder Spree, 11 Homicides In 13 Days

It was a quiet night at the mini market in the Kentish Town neighborhood of Northwest London last Tuesday when suddenly the clerk heard a loud clang against the metal shutters on the side of the building. He went outside to investigate and saw a ghastly sight; a teenager slumped against the shutters, moaning in agony, hands tight against his stomach, blood dripping from his wet, shiny fingers.

By chance, a doctor was strolling by just then, a little after 8 p.m.. She dropped to her knees and quickly assessed the gravity of the boy's wounds. The English version of 911 was called. Other people appeared, some of them screamed. Residents of the 6-story apartment complex across the street heard the commotion and looked out their windows

The kid writhed as the doctor called out for towels to hold against the grave injury. Within seconds, the corner of Bartholomew Road and Islip Street was raining towels.  "I threw down four," a neighbor lady said.

The police arrived. They frantically urged on an ambulance as they took over from the doctor, pumping his chest. "They were pumping, pumping, pumping", said a man who works nearby. But, it was too late. The kid was gone. 

A lady arrived. The dead kid was partially covered now with those fallen towels, but what she could see of his jacket looked frighteningly familiar. She told the police to let her through. It could be my son. But, they didn't let her close. 

She called her son's phone. Three, four seconds later, from the dead kid's jacket, a cell phone rang.

About 90 minutes later, as the heartbroken mother of 17-year old Abdikarim Hassan was failing to be consoled by loved ones, there was another stabbing death. This time Sadiq Adan Mohamed was killed, on Malden Road near Queen's Crescent Market. 

The two killings brought to 11 the number of homicides in London in just a 13-day period, most of them stabbings.  There were about 105 homicides reported in London for all of 2017.

The latest two victims, were David Potter, 50, who was fatally stabbed in his flat in Tooting, south London, and Abraham Badru, 26, shot dead as he exited a car in Dalston, east London.  The two killings made for a two-inch brief on page eight in The Times.   

When I arrived in London on Friday, March 23, the thought I would be out on the streets reporting on a murder didn't remotely enter my mind. Since I had never been to London  - other than 17-hour layover -  I had planned the usual tourist stuff; Museums, a lot of walking, riding "the Tube", Harrod's, and hanging out at the restaurant Nancy Silverton had commandeered for a week near our hotel in a neighborhood called Shoreditch.

But, as I read the locals papers and viewed their websites, I was surprised, even alarmed by the frequent reports of stabbing deaths. The first one that grabbed me was of Benjamin Pieknyi, a 21-year old from Romania who came to the aid of a friend being attacked and was stabbed to death. A 22-year-old from the Ukraine was arrested for that. I wanted to get to his family, to the guy he came to aid, but they lived in Milton Keynes, a 90 minute drive from London.  

Then, the next day, when I heard about these two murders above, I almost felt an obligation, so I hit the streets.

The next day, an 18-year-old male, Isaiah Popoola, was charged with both killings. He will be tried at London's Old Bailey court.  

As for the victims, the few people I talked to all spoke very kindly of them.  Neither were gang members, they worshiped their families, were lightning quick to help others, were constantly smiling and loved to play football. They were both from the capital city of Somalia, brought to London at a young age to be safe from the dangers of Mogadishu.

abdikarim hassan, 17, 

SAdiq Adan Mohammad

benjamin Pieknyi

Silverton Orders Chi Spacca "Shake Up" After Famed Restaurant Fails To Make Top 300 List, AGM Greer Ousted, DeNicola Demoted

Just one day after Rex Tillerson was fired as Secretary of State in a major White House administration shake up, the restaurant world was shocked to learn that Chi Spacca, the third eatery on the beloved Los Angeles corner of Nancy Silverton, was getting a shake up of it own. 

On Wednesday, Silverton ordered assistant general manager Greer "Shucker" Rosenzweig to "get out and say out" and then, in what is being called the culinary equal of Tillerson's firing, demoted chef Ryan DeNicola to Mozza2Go cashier and sous Joseph Tagorda  to "Garnish Cook",, a position usually held by interns.

Monday, a Washington Post investigation revealed that Chi Spaaca had been ranked the 313th best restaurant in Los Angeles. When told the news, both DeNicola and Tagorda seemed overwhelmed with joy. DeNicola even went so far as to publicly  "thank the Academy". The two, along with three line cooks, posed for a photo to celebrate. 

But, Nancy Silverton was found no cause for celebration. Outrage was more her mood The only person to win the James Beard Award for Outstanding Chef in America and Outstanding Pastry Chef in America ordered an immediate internal investigation and, in the words of a close friend, "was not playing."

"Nancy may seem all mellow and sweet to the public, " said the friend who spoke on the condition of anonymity, "But, when the fast balls come, she can swing as hard as Roberto Clemente."   

Spacca is best known for large cuts of meats grilled before patrons as well as a lineup of vegetarian dishes that would please a extremist vegan.  The Trip Advisor rating was largely puzzling to those who know good restaurants.  Even Joel Robuchon, the most honored chef in the world, was baffled.

"Chi Spacca is my fourth  favorite restaurant in all of America  after Pizzeria Mozza, Osteria Mozza and Atelier Crenn, " said Robuchon, who restaurants have 32 Michelin stars.  ( Not a typo.)  "If there were 312 restaurants better than Spacca in Los Angeles, I would have to be cooking at 309 of them."

As for the sacking of assistant general manager Greer "Shucker" Rosenzweig, Mozza spokesperson Kate Elizabeth Green said she had left voluntarily to purse a career as an oyster shucker in New England. However, insiders said Shucker was "let go for undisclosed reasons."

To further make the connection with Tillerson, who learned of his fate via Twitter, DeNicola was informed of his demotion by a reporter from the Post. Uncharacteristically, the normal pleasant DeNicola unloaded on the reporter.  Security footage obtained by the Los Angeles Times shows an angry DeNicola screaming at the reporter to "Get the hell out of here. Go eat at the Pizzeria. At least they're ranked 41."

Mozza's Chi Spacca Named 313th Best Restaurant In Los Angeles By Trip Advisor, Thrilled Chef Ryan DeNicola Plans Celebration Dinner

When a humble, one-time cooking school adjacent to Nancy Silverton's fabled Osteria and Pizzeria Mozza corner re-invented itself as a restaurant in  ? years ago, few gave it much chance of entering that rarefied club of L.A.'s finest dining establishments.

But, Monday, long time supporters of Spacca, as it is affectionately known, were tooting their trombones when it was revealed that "The Little Meat Palace That Could" had been named the 313th best restaurant in all of  Los Angeles city and county. 

"I don't even know what to say." said Spacca's stunned executive chef Ryan DeNicola upon hearing the news "I'm speechless. I would like to thank the Academy, though."

Dahlia Narvaez, the James Beard Award winning pastry chef who provides Chi Spacca with desserts was "thrilled" with the 313 rating. "This doesn't suck," Narvaez said. 

However, Sous chef Joseph Tagorda, aka "The Hurtful Chef", typically, wasn't happy with the ranking.  "Geez," he spewed sarcastically, "What was number 1? The Pantry, Otium or Trejos Tacos?"

The only sad news about Chi Spacca being rated 313 is, unfortunately, it's not accurate, despite what Trip Advisor's budding Michelin inspectors say. Just think if Los Angeles was such a good eating town that there really were 312 restaurants better than Chi Spacca.  Hell, there's not even 312 restaurants on Planet Earth better than Spacca.

EDITOR'S NOTE- At press time, rumors were afloat that Chi Spacca had actually moved up to 311.

Chi Spacca chefs and cooks celebrate the 313. 

Denmark's Prime Minister Considering Travel Ban On Chef Nancy Silverton For Noma Snubs

Calling her recent behavior a "slap upside the face" of Danish culture, cuisine and icons, Denmark's Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen said Tuesday he was considering a travel ban on revered American chef Nancy Silverton and her boyfriend after their weekend visit to Copenhagen during which they twice cancelled reservations at the country's most famous restaurant. 

In a tersely worded statement, Rasmussen said Silverton and journalist Michael Krikorian "insulted Danish culture by disrespecting one of our most revered citizens. chef Rene Redzepi. of Noma restaurant.  They blew off a nearly-impossible-to get reservation not once, but twice! On consecutive nights, no less! Do you believe that lort?"

Carla Sands, the United States ambassador to Denmark was quick to reply.  "Excuse me, Prime Minister Rasmussen, but Nancy was in Rigshospitalet after suffering a serious head injury due to a cobblestone-instigated sidewalk fall. She graciously got word to Rene who,  in his kindness,  sent dessert - a plankton cake to her hospital room   There was absolutely no disrespect."

However, in a rare moment of Danish unity, the opposition party to Rasmussen's conservative liberals, the Social Democrats, sided with the prime minister.

"I understand why Silverton cancelled her Friday reservation at Noma as she was in the hospital," said former Prime Minister Halle Thoring-Schmidt. "But, why did she cancel the next day when Rene went out of his way to make room? She choose to stay in her Strand Hotel room and get take out Mexican from Rosio Sanchez.  I mean, come on. Carnitas tacos over the mystical abundance of the Nordic seas? And I  have it on good authority she has never ever cancelled at Bottura's place in Modena."'

In addition, security footage obtained from Rigshopitalet showed Silverton and Krikorian briefly enjoying a plankton mousse cake that Redzepi had graciously sent to the hospital room, but then scarfing up Lays sour cream & onion potato chips with a '47 Dr..Pepper they had brought at the hospital's lobby 7/Eleven which, by the way, is widely considered one of the best in all of Europe. 

Also, many Danes wondered if she was so ill, why was she seen throughout town following her fall dining at other restaurants?  Silverton and Krikorian were spotted at  Christian Puglisi's Baest and Manfords, and at Kristian Baumann's 108 after being released from the hospital. 

A Noma front-of-the-house employee,  Daniel. Craig Martin, confirmed the Baest sighting on Sunday evening.  "Nancy seemed just fine to me and certainly looked great," said Martin, formerly of Blue Hill at Stone Barn in New York.  "I told her we were all looking forward to her coming into Noma. One of these years."

Silverton, reached via E-mail, said she in absolutely in no way disrespected Denmark. "I simply wanted to be 100% when I went to Noma. I can't wait to come back and see Rene  As for politicians like their prime minister saying strange things. well, being from America, I am very familiar with all that bull lort."

Krikorian, reached via text, issued the following statement. "We didn't go to Noma, one of the world's greatest restaurants, I understand. But, we did go to Rigshospitalet, one of the world's best hospitals. And I'd  bet 100,000 krones, even Rene Redzepi would agree a great hospital is more important than a great restaurant. Thanks Rene, for the plankton mousse cake - one of the best we've had - and thanks to Rigshospitalet for taking care of Nancy.."

For free, So thanks to the Danish people who - with their rather high taxes - treated her hospital bill.   

Here's to Copenhagen, Denmark.

And here is the breaking news story of Nancy's frightening fall in Copenhagen last Friday

http://www.krikorianwrites.com/blog/2018/2/23/7iegjqbaimvldegyd2l87ryvopc22i

Former Denmark prime minister halle Thoring-schmidt making a point with current prime minister lars lakke rasmussen

Nancy Released From Hospital As Doctors In Copenhagen Discover An Unlikely Cure For Wrinkles

BREAKING NEWS UPDATE - Reuters News Agency is reporting Nancy Silverton was released from a hospital in Copenhagen, Denmark late Saturday afternoon following a serious fall on Friday  In a kind gesture, renowned chef Rene Redzepi offered her a table tonight at Noma 2,0 to make up for the reservation she missed due to the fall. Silverton initially gleefully accepted the offer, but just minutes ago both her and Michael Krikorian decided it was prudent to cancel and recover in their room at the Strand Hotel. That decision was described by Reuters as "the only known time these to have been prudent.". 

Doctors at Rigshospitalet in Copenhagen made a shocking discover Friday when an American woman was rushed into the Emergency Room after suffering a concussion and brain hemorrhaging following a brutal fall on a cobblestone street of this capital city.  Her wrinkles had almost all vanished. (She photo below)

When Silverton, 63, saw a photograph of herself she was perplexed. "Where did my wrinkles go?"

Dr. Skit Naetraoonegaard, head of emergency services at Rigs said the zultra-violent shaking of miss Silverton's head during the impact was the chief factor in the unexpected, though welcome result.

"Her head shook so violently, think a mini atomic bomb, that the wrinkles literally ran for their lives and vanished," said Naetraoonegaard. "Is it worth the risk to the brain? No. Certainly not, However, some vain Danes will probably disagree."

Apparently many have already decided the "Silverton Spill", as it has quickly become to be known, is worth it.. . 

Saturday morning, after local television first reported this story,  a rash of trip and falls were reported throughout Copenhagen. The Emergency room at Rigshospitalet was overflowing with patients, mostly female and mostly wrinkle-free.

"It hurts to do a Silverton Spill," said one patient who spoke on the condition of anonymity. "But, damn, I sure look good." 

Plastic surgeons all over the world - from Beverly Hills to St. Tropez  - are concerned this new discovery may negatively impact their lucrative business.  

Nancy suffered a hea injury Friday after she tripped on a cobblestone street in Copenhagen.   This is that story    http://www.krikorianwrites.com/blog/2018/2/23/7iegjqbaimvldegyd2l87ryvopc22i

(Editor's note - Both this and yesterday's articles and photograph were assigned and edited and approved by Nancy Silverton)

Nancy And The Frightening Fall Of Copenhagen

What a difference an “I” makes.   

Tonight, right now, Nancy and I should be at "Noma", the revered, nearly-mythical restaurant of Rene Redzepi in Copenhagen that reopened last week after being closed for a year to "reinvent" itself as Noma 2.0.

Instead, we are at "Nima", a ward in the RigsHospitalet, Denmark’s premiere trauma center where Nancy is under “observation” after a brutal fall on a main street of this capital city.

To ease the concerns of the multitudes who love her, Nancy is fine and resting comfortably, and will be out of the hospital tomorrow. And if anyone has a problem with me writing about our tumultuous day, well, I applaud you. I do, because I didn't want to,  but Nancy Silverton told me to write the story. And she even approved the photo. 

Nancy and I had finished lunch at a place called Relae, had strolled through a cemetery whose rooster includes Hans Christian Andersen, writer of fairy tales including "The Little Mermaid" and "The Ugly Duckling", ( Not that either of us knew this) and someone named Kierkegaard, apparently an "existentialists", something I have no idea , none, what that entails. Nancy - just now - described it as "a movement" revolving around 'What's the point?" thinking.  She asked me why I am asking about existentialist and I said because that Kierkegaard guy in the cemetery was one. She replied "Oh, he was?"

I read that above graph back to her just now and she laughed. How sweet that laughter.. 

Seven hours ago there was no laughter. As her and I walked along a boulevard, she tripped on a cobblestone and fell. Fell hard .

In a life often frequented with frightening sights, seeing Nancy fall so shockingly fast and not being able to stop it, hearing her head “thud” onto the concrete, not hearing any response to my voice as I held her head, well, that was the single most terrifying moment of my life. 

Three kind bystanders knelt with me, One at my urging called the paramedics Moments later, in the distance, I hear the wail of an emergency siren, among the most comforting of all sounds.

As paramedics rushed her to this hospital there was just "Yes worries.". The look of concern on the paramedic's face riding in the back with us as he read her high blood pressure in the back sends my Worry to Worry 2.0   After initially being comforted at the arrival of the ambulance, I return to scared, .closing-in-on-petrified,  as Nancy keeps asking me over and over and over again "Where are we?" and then - after I say "Copenhagen" - she asks over and over and over again "Why are we here?" She doesn't understand what "Noma" means.

At this hospital's Emergency Room, blessedly nothing like the frenetic scene at County USC where I was recently to see a wounded female LAPD officer, a team of doctors and nurses ready her for a CT (Cat) scan to determine their biggest concern; is her brain bleeding?.  A Dr. Matilda, with the bluest eyes, explains to me if her brain is bleeding badly, extreme measures might be required. Then she comfortingly says based on everything she observes, she doesn't think that is the case. 

Still.   Being from a nationality of underrated worriers. it is hard to hear that . I strain to stay positive. I think of my go-to quote during times of stress, a bastardized line I use from Mark Twain, "Some of my biggest worries never happened."  This day in Denmark, Mark doesn't soothe me. 

Twenty minutes later, Dr. Matilda tells me "There is some hemorrhaging ( one of the planet's worst words). She is bleeding from the brain, but, it is very minor. Very slight.  She senses my emotions and Dr. Matilda holds my shoulder and says "The best place for her is right here. Your wife is going to be just fine."   That's music   

The doc says they will keep her overnight - maybe two nights -for observation.

Nancy gets pushed on a gurney up to the 9th floor. Already her memory is getting better. She recalls the cemetery and lunch.  As we enter an area for observation a sign on the wall proclaims it "Nima".  She points to it and says - now fully aware of Noma - and says "Nima , not Noma."

She settles in the room. Both of our cell phones are nearly powerless, but we try to get a hold of Jonathan Gold and Laurie Ochoa, our dining companions tonight at Noma.  I can't get through. Fortunately, Ruth has called on another matter and I tell her the situation and she gets to them. 

Two hours later, some food arrives from Noma with this note. "So sorry to hear about your fall, and to miss you tonight. Come back ANYTIME. Rene."

Breaking news  As I type that above quote Nancy , laying in the bed, wires stemming from her body. just said "Michael, when you get a chance, I need my lipstick" 

That's the point.

Estanislao "Tano" Soto Named Mozza Employee of the Month

In the seven years that Mozza has been giving out the coveted Employee of the Month Award there has never been a unanimous selection. Usually a manager of one of the Corner’s restaurants will nominate a worker and another manager will say something like “You have got to be kidding?”

But, this month’s selection, the first of 2018, was, believe it or not, the first unanimous choice.  And that worker who no one could complain about??  Let’s hear it for Estanislao Soto. Who?  Oh, yeah. He’s much better known as Tano.

The reason for the long delay since the last Employee of the Month – Eva won  way back in June, 2017 - was that a team of investigative reporters from the Washington Post and Los Angeles Times had been busy for the last seven months trying to dig up something negative to say about Tano. The worst they could come up with was that two weeks ago Tano threw a paper towel in the wrong trash can.

Born and raised in Puebla City, Puebla, Tano began his career at Mozza on June 25, 2007. He left briefly to work at a downtown restaurant before realizing that no restaurant compares to Mozza and he returned,  with Nancy’s full blessings.

When chef Liz heard that Tano had been named Employee of the Month she said “I don’t have anything bad to say about Tano.” Now, that may not seem like a rave review, but since Liz has bad things to say about just about everyone, well ,it’s quite the endorsement.

Working for years side by side. A.D said “Tano has a good rapport with everybody. From the dishwashing team to the front of the house. He is a good team player.”

But, the highest praise for Tano came from a past Employee of the Month winner. Jason Emmanuel who compared Tano to one of the 20th Century’s most revered figures.

“Tano has this serene quality about him. He is never angry. He gets along with everyone.  He wants everyone to get along   Ya know, he kinda reminds me of Gandhi,” said Jason, referring to the peace activist who led India to independence over Great Britain. “Yes, Tano is the Gandhi of Mozza.”