Life has been a crazy mix of work and debates over wedding matters. These are the times I start to wish I was more of a guy’s guy. You know, the kind who does’t care that much about plates and drapes and reception halls. But I just can’t keep all my metrosexuals opinions bottled up inside, dammit!
The big issue right now is the hall itself. We’re (and by we I mean Lisa) hoping to book the place ASAP, but still keep wavering between two places. Of course, each of us prefer the other. Lisa is still very much in love with The Manor, which I can testify somewhat to be an excellent place (oh my, just how long ago was Jeff and Sara Jane’s wedding?). I, on the other hand, am leaning towards Il Tulipano ever since we visited there a week ago. Friday her parents came over to see The Manor and have dinner at Il Tulipano, with the idea of writing a check that night. Unfortunately the offices were already closed, and the entirety of Il Tulipano was taken over by an event.
One failure down, we decided to try dinner again last night. Oh crap, was that good. You gotta love a place that actually brings the salad out on two plates when you mentions it’s to be split (especially when it includes a wonderful selection of arugula, endive, and radicchio). And while the shrimp were somewhat larger than Lisa and I prefer (we’re weird that way), the saffron risotto was delectable. And then there was my dish – a selection of grilled meats.
We’re talking quail, filet mignon, freshly made sausage, lamb, and even some liver. The last one was the only bit I wasn’t crazy about, but that’s just personal preference. Although I will add that, for my first real experience with liver, it wasn’t that bad – just has an unusual taste and aftertaste. The rest, however, got better and better as the meal went on. I’ve had better lamb, but the filet mignon was delightful. Grilling is a rarity with that cut, and the mixture flavors was better than I would have imagined. The sausage was just plain ridiculous. I never knew meat stuffed in a casing could be this good (okay, aside from fresh kielbasa). It was probably the fattiest I’ve ever had, which made it even better. But feeling a bit weighted down from all the meats, I decided not to finish that part. As for the quail – can’t we genetically engineer these birds a tad bigger?! I couldn’t get enough of this one (although the vague resemblance to our own parakeet turned Lisa off), and now desire to eat quail as frequently as possible. (CLAP! CLAP! Bring forth my daily quail!)
Even after that evening (we also snuck upstairs to see what a wedding in progress would look like), I am willing to concede to Lisa’s choice. I know I’ll be happy at either place. Unfortunately, she posed the question on The Knot, and was met with overwhelming support for Il Tulipano. In the ensuing confusion I have switched my vote to Vegas! Now we’re going to head over to The Manor again for another look (I need a refresher on the two rooms), which will probably solve nothing. I opted out of sampling their brunch because… well… I’m not made of money (it would cost more than our dinner last night).
Oh yeah, and this evening our parents are meet for the first time… Does the fun ever stop?
Oh yeah, and this evening our parents are meet for the first time… Does the fun ever stop?
Ah, looks like Eva and I hit that particular milestone before you guys… hard-core Roman Catholics and Lutherans sitting mere feet from each other at IHOP had me a bit nervous, but it went fairly well. 😛
Yesterday went very well – as good as I could have expected. By the end of the night we could barely get them to stop talking! It’s funny that this took so long, but it was really just a matter of her parents being in either Staten Island or Florida and mine being in PA, so a meeting was never convenient.
Thom – After having looked at both places – I throw my vote to Il Tulipano. It reminds me of the place in Doylestown where I considered having the wedding. It looks beautiful and sounds delicious!!