Outstanding in the Rain

For months I had been looking forward to our Outstanding in the Field Dinner - it was a long schlep from New Jersey all the way downtown from work in both traffic and rain that barely let up once I got to 9th St. and Avenue C. There was Ben in his new dress shoes, so soaked they went from caramel to coffee, a glass of wine in one hand, an umbrella in the other. The dining tent hadn't yet been set up in anticipation of the arriving guests, so we were forced stand around and to cover ourselves. I would stand just like Ben, slowly sinking in wet mulch for about an hour as the only woman serving hors d'oeuvres teased us by passing us by repeatedly. We started to think Outstanding in the Field would end up being something more like Mediocre in the Swamp!

However, great food, a steady stream of pours (all wines from Wolffer Estate Vineyard in the Hamptons), and interesting company resurrected this evening's doomed status. Once the canopy was set, we chose our seats carefully (no puddles at our feet) and ended up sitting across from Mike and Jen, purveyors of Flying Pigs Farm in Washington County, NY and suppliers of the evening's sausage. The dish included a trio of their sausages (skewered on rosemary sprigs) served with cippolini onions, spinach, and mushrooms. The dish (and all dishes) were prepared by Chef Alejandro Brown of Brown Cafe. I enjoyed each and every bite and also loved the bread from Sullivan St Bakery, topped with buttery di bruno bros burratta cheese (sublime) and the roasted peach dessert with brooklyn salvatore ricotta and a side of pistachio Van Leeuwen ice cream (I've had peaches twice today already because of it!).

Mike and Jen were lovely to invite us to Back Forty after this massive dinner for yet more munchies (pork jowl nuggets with jalapeno jelly and arancine with beets and goat cheese) and a nightcap (Ben- The Back Forty, me- The Red and the Black- a sophisticated strawberry margarita with a salt-and-pepper rim). At the end of the night, Ben and I were extremely grateful, full, and a little tipsy.

(Outstanding in the Field organizes farm dinners all across the U.S. Mike and Jen sell their sausages and other pork products at the Union Square Greenmarket- look for the Flying Pigs Farm tent near the southwest corner of Union Square. Back Forty is located on Avenue B and 12th St. and the pork jowl nuggets are a MUST!)