Fourth Quarter Dining and Such

Everyone agrees that 2016 was a tough year on the grand scale, but on a personal level, for me, it had a lot of high points.

We ate and drank some fantastic things. I tried new places and hung out with food friends as often as possible. We drank tons of Hazanas Rioja. Cooper and I spent an interestingly large chunk of the year inside distilleries, both in the U.S. and in Ireland (one day I'll write about the rest of that trip). Dixon and I started collaborating (those articles are so fun to write). It was a good time.

But now, here it is in 2017 and I haven't written about some of the meals I ate in October. That's embarrassing.

So let's take care of that. Here's a look at some of our end of year highlights:

Towson Tavern

Towson Tavern got a new chef this fall - Josh Vecchiolla, the former sous from Parts & Labor. I've always liked it there, but under Vecchiolla's guidance, the menu has gotten a meaty upgrade that's really strong.

We had dinner there in late October with our friends Will and Karen. The drinks were excellent, as always, but the best parts were the stinging nettle dip and this chicken, which was seasoned perfectly, cooked in a cast iron pan, and just great all around.

Visionary Arts Museum Food Exhibit
The new exhibit at the AVAM is all about food, so we, obviously, had to go. It's pretty cool.

I mean, how could I not love this? A note about celebratory meals, posted right over a book called Muskrat Cookin'. That museum, it is the best.

Henninger's

The last weekend in October, we celebrated Bill's birthday with dinner at Henninger's (always the best - I could go there every night) and after dinner drinks at Cat's Eye Pub.

It was Halloween weekend and the weather was gorgeous, so Fells was wild. We made some friends - including an older guy who was dressed as "half naked" (literally, he was half naked). And I remembered why Cat's Eye is one of the best bars anyplace.

We barely took any pictures, but for whatever reason, I did snap this pre-dinner shot of Cooper and his duck lips. Why? Who knows.

Bar Vasquez
Foreman Wolf's new Argentine spot, Bar Vasquez, opened in the old Pazo space this fall and in early November, I had the chance to try it out with a fun group of food friends. It was so good. So good.

I've been recommending it right and left - it's an absolutely perfect place for a special occasion dinner, or even just to meet up with friends if you're looking for something a little more sophisticated than your average Baltimore evening. It's expensive, but between the food, the space, the drinks and the service, it's well worth it.

These potatoes were spectacular, but then, everything was. The duck I had for dinner might be the best duck I've ever eaten.

Figs
I made fig-rosemary jam! I had to. Our fig crop this year was hilariously large and it hung on until...well, it's January and there are still figs on the tree. I doubt they're good, but they're hanging on.

No Kid Hungry at Food Market
Also in early November, Cooper and I went to a dinner at Food Market, benefiting No Kid Hungry. Charm City Cook Amy organized the event, which involved a bunch of local chefs and raised a boatload of money for the organization.

We were thrilled to be a part of that, but we were also thrilled to be on the receiving end of some incredible food. One thing this city does well is a chef-driven charity dinner. I have heard stories of boring "rubber chicken" fundraiser food. Seems to me, Baltimore has risen above that.

Our table was an absolute blast; whoever did the table assignments was a rock star. And every course was terrific. This, venison lasagna by Bryan Voltaggio, was more like a napolean than like lasagna. Incredible.

Wicked Sisters

Wicked Sisters, the new spot in the old McCabe's space in Hampden, opened earlier this fall. It's the latest effort from Charlie and Lori Gjerde and Carrie Podles, who own several other local spots, including Papi's Tacos.

Cooper and I found ourselves with an unexpected Dixon-free Friday night in mid-November, so we stopped in to see what it was all about. It's casual and fun and we liked the food a lot. We started with Brussels sprouts (solid) and I had an excellent burger.

After dinner, Charlie handed us this glass full of Winecream, and we couldn't say no. I mean, they're a local company. Who doesn't want to support that?

Mock Thanksgiving 

Our annual pre-Thanksgiving party was a small affair this year, with just a few friends and their kids coming over for dinner on the Sunday before the big holiday. I made a mess of the turkey and I might not be ready to talk about that yet (or ever), but the night was an overall success, thanks largely to Piper and Hadley, who came over early and set a mean kids table.

Those two design stars have started their own YouTube channel and Facebook page. If you're a fan of short videos of hilarious girls, I strongly suggest you follow them.

Clavel and WC Harlan
After Thanksgiving, we jumped straight into the busy holiday social season.

The first weekend in December, our friend Stacey came down to visit us from New York. Alicia and Mary and I took her to Clavel and WC Harlan. We knew she'd love them both - who doesn't?

Stacey took this picture!

Carol and Crawl
For the ninth year in a row, we spent the first Saturday of December with our friends, celebrating the holiday season with way, way, way too much booze and a lot of off-key singing. Not caroling - despite the name of the party, there is no caroling. If there's any crawling, it's done after the party has officially ended, when people are trying to make it to their beds. It is a fun party. With lots of mozzarella sticks.

Also, this year, lots of ridiculous outfits:

Buck Buck Moose at Volt
Cooper and I spent one day after the Christmas party licking our wounds, then we got back into it, heading to Frederick for a book signing dinner at Volt. Hank Shaw, the blogger behind Hunter Angler Gardener Cook and the author of several cookbooks that we love, was at the restaurant, and Bryan Voltaggio was in the kitchen, cooking recipes adapted from the book.

It was our first time at Volt and we took Cooper's cousin Sarah, who lives in Frederick, with us. Dinner was great - fun and interesting and delicious - and we were especially happy to have another go at the venison lasagna from the No Kid Hungry dinner was just a warm-up. That stuff is so good.

R. House
This fall also marked the opening of R. House, the food hall in Remington.

I've been twice now - once on opening night with Nikki Marks (of Madame BBQ/Mindgrub fame) and again before seeing the Hampden lights with Mike, Alicia, Maggie and Dixon (Cooper was sick, so he stayed home).

They've done a great job over there. It's casual and easy and the food is good. Technically, it's a food court, but it's such a cool one!

I've tried a bunch of different things so far and have liked all of them. The only thing I've photographed, though, is the shawarma from ARBA. It's great.

Clavel at The Charmery
After R. House but before the lights, Dixon, Mike, Alicia, Maggie and I dropped by The Charmery, where they were in the middle of a busy Clavel pop-up. Mexican cinnamon ice cream, wedding cookies, Mexican hot chocolate, lots of other things that were great - unsurprisingly, this was a collab that worked.

McGarvey's
I turned 41 this year, which means I've been celebrating my birthday at McGarvey's for 20 years straight. TWENTY YEARS.

This year was a fun one, even though bad weather and illness meant a lot of people couldn't make it. But still, a bunch of high school friends joined Cooper and me for oysters, crab dip and Aviators at McGarvey's, oyster shooters at Middleton's (pictured), quite a bit of Irishness at Galway Bay and a mildly sloppy close to the evening, featuring good red wine and French whiskey at Harry Browne's.

We always close out the night at Harry Browne's, which is by far the nicest place we go, and we're always a little unruly when we get there (not too unruly, but still). The bartenders there, though, they are fabulous. The one working during my birthday celebration was a total pro - keeping us engaged and put together and having fun. He was the best.

Matisse/Diebenkorn and Parts & Labor
Earlier this year, when word got out about the Matisse/Diebenkorn exhibit at the BMA, my brother and sister and I hatched a plan to meet there while they were in Maryland for Christmas. And we actually made that happen!

The Friday before Christmas, Dixon and I met Tom and Cail and Erin and Clark at the museum. The first thing we did was head to the exhibit itself; I was completely blown away.

I love both Matisse and Diebenkorn; I wrote college papers about both painters (though not about them together). They're two of my favorites, so purely from an aesthetic sense, I enjoyed the exhibit. It's pretty.

But even if I wasn't a particular fan of either of the artists, I would've been impressed. It is so smart and hangs together so well. It reminded me why art history fascinates me. I'm planning to go back again - this time without a 10 year old boy (who was not quite as enamored as I was). I could spend days just soaking it in.

After the exhibit, we wandered through the Cone Collection and the Contemporary Wing; Tom and Erin hadn't been to the museum since they were kids and Cail and Clark had never been. Dixon had a blast in the contemporary collection, taking pictures of the pieces with his iPod and getting really into it. I'm not sure I realized how interactive it is. It's great for kids and I loved watching him have fun with the art.

After all of that, we headed over to a very busy Parts & Labor, where I got their version of a pit beef sandwich and it was killer. Highly recommended!

New Year's Eve
Christmas Eve, Christmas day and the few days after passed in a bit of a blur. Cooper and I both end up working a lot during the week between Christmas and New Year's, but we also always have friends in town, so we're out a lot. This year, that meant seeing people from Denver and Seattle - and also doing a lot of work.

New Year's Eve, we had friends (with kids) over here for a dinner showcasing various cuts of meat from the Jack Straw Farm cow we split with friends. (Oh yeah, we have a freezer that is jam-packed with beef right now.)

The meat was very good, as was the Barefoot Contessa sauce I made with it and the Barefoot Contessa cake Alicia made for dessert. Ina is everywhere these days.

But the highlight of the night wasn't on our plates - it was the kids. Piper, Hadley and Maggie went live on Facebook a couple times and made tons of videos, including one at midnight, when Cooper sabered a magnum of Champagne.

In retrospect, we probably should've opened that big boy earlier. Everybody went home at like 12:15. Because...kids.

Overall, it was a big quarter. On New Year's Day, all we could pull ourselves together to do was order some Chinese food. We're exhausted.

But we're not slowing down. This weekend, we'll be celebrating Kyle's birthday at Bar Vasquez. And after that...who knows. I'm sure it'll be something good.

Festive All Around

Today is Cooper's birthday. And this is his cake:

It was a gift from our friends Audrey and George, who spotted it at Sam's Club last month. (Not this specific cake. This one is much fresher than that.)

It's pretty much the most Cooper cake I can imagine.

When we celebrated here last night, with Cooper's family, it was just the latest event during what has, so far, been quite a festive month.

Among other things, DRP and I went shopping in Hampden, including a stop at Charm City Chocolate, and then we came home, all three of us decorated the tree and we tried to ration the chocolate-covered Oreos so they'd last.

Last weekend was a busy one, too. On Saturday, I took Mimi (our niece) to Maria Springer's gingerbread house workshop. A few years ago, I wrote an article about Maria and what she does - she is the nicest lady and she makes the best gingerbread houses.

She used to host gingerbread house teas at her home in Phoenix, but just after I wrote the article, she and her husband moved to a condo and she shifted the gingerbread festivities to a church on Hampton Lane. The tea part of the day is no longer - which is a shame - but the house-decorating is still just as fun.

Mimi was an incredible house decorator - so patient and creative, with an amazing dedication to symmetry. Her focus was super impressive - especially considering that she was about 48 hours shy of her seventh birthday.

 After the gingerbread decorating, Cooper and I got ourselves dolled up to go over to Kyle and Mary's for the 9th annual carol and crawl party. We retired the house-to-house nature of the party years ago, so there hasn't been any "crawling" for about six years, and the only "caroling" comes late night (and hopefully doesn't disturb any neighbors). But the party is still a great time.

This year, both Cooper and Kyle really brought it with the outfits (George was similarly dressed, but I didn't get a picture of all three of them):

On the Pollard front, possibly the most exciting part of the weekend the completion of the cheese knife Dixon hand made for Kyle and Mary:

Knife-making is a new hobby for DRP; he's pretty taken with it. A while back, Cooper bought a bunch of antique saws at an auction. For these knives, he (Cooper) cuts a knife blank from one of the saws, then Dixon files and sands it down until it has a sharp edge. Then, the two of them work together to hook it into an antler handle. (The antlers, apparently, we just have laying around.)

It's a lot of work for Dixon, but he loves it, and the end result is pretty cool. I'm not sure who was most excited to see this end product - Cooper and me, Kyle and Mary (who had placed an order for the knife), or Dixon, who is extremely, and understandably proud of himself.

Knives, cakes, candy, festive holiday apparel. So far, December is going pretty well.

3 Things I Have Enjoyed This Morning

1. Eames + Shag
This Curbed article about a Charles and Ray Eames-themed exhibit at the Nucleus gallery in LA. How could I not love it, when it includes this Shag drawing? I love Shag - and hadn't seen any of his work in a while. This is just a perfect match of subject and artist.

Image source.

Also, this is how I like to think Cooper and I look when we're just hanging out around our house. (Note: this is not actually how we look at all.)

2. Party Girls
This video and this article about the greatest "It Party Girls" of all time. Zelda! To be fair, the list doesn't really cover all of time. More like the past hundred years. And even then, it leaves some room for debate. Lots of room.

But still, I love a party girl.

3. Light City's Success 
This article about Light City's massive success. We went last night and it was even better than I expected.

The installations were cool and even though we only saw a little of the entertainment, it was engaging and fun. The crowd was friendly and spirits were super high, all around. It just felt good.

The pictures I took completely didn't do the installations justice - especially not this photo. But what I love about this picture is that Dixon is totally smiling OF HIS OWN ACCORD. That never happens and it especially doesn't happen after I've made him pose a bunch of times, like I had last night.

Mandated photos are not his favorite, to put it mildly, but Light City was cool enough that he was more than willing to let me snap away.

We didn't even get a chance to see the whole thing - I know we missed some good stuff. I'm already looking forward to next year, when I will definitely plan better, so we get there more than once.

Fake St. Patrick's Day Is Tomorrow!

Scenes from last year's Fake St. Pat's

It's that time of year again - St. Patrick's Day season - when people drag out their best funny green t-shirts and green beads and drink more beer in a month than they do for the rest of the year combined.

I love it.

My friends' contribution to this messy month starts tomorrow, with Fake St. Patrick's Day - an afternoon of drinking and oysters, with a side dish of charitable giving, at Ryleigh's Oyster on Padonia Road.

This year, the party starts at 1 p.m. and is a fundraiser for the Dance Head and Neck Center at GBMC. Any and all comers are welcome - we'll be in the bar in the middle of the restaurant. It's always a good time.

Ryleigh's is donating 10% of what's spent during the party to the Dance Center and we'll be raising money a couple other ways, too, including a raffle for gift baskets including items donated from a bunch of very generous local businesses.

Those businesses include some of the best spots in and around Baltimore:
AntiGravity Fitness
Azumi
Baltimore's Waterfront Partnership
Ceriello
Charm City Chocolate
Fox's Den
La Cuchara
Ladew Topiary Gardens
Loyola University Athletics
Nia Baltimore
Ouzo Bay
Plantbar
Prigel Family Creamery
Residence Inn in Hunt Valley
REV Cycle
Wells Discount Liquors
Wit + Wisdom

The baskets will include donations from these organizations, as well as other goodies, including a purse handmade by Alicia and her mom...and lots of wine and beer and liquor. Booze sells raffle tickets!

If you're in the area tomorrow, please stop in and say hi. It's a great cause and an absolute blast. Happy Fake St. Pat's!

The Best Rioja in All the Land

Hazana Vinas Viejas 2013 Rioja. Get some - sooner rather than later.

While the best in all the land might be an exaggeration, this Rioja is pretty damn good. And here's what's even better: it's only $11.99 at Wells.

For Valentine's Day this year, Mike and Alicia threw a wine tasting party. Every couple brought a bottle; we tasted about a dozen bottles of Rioja, all under $25. The tasting was blind and at the end everyone got one vote for the best wine.

When all the tasting was done, and we'd dispensed with the very classy wine conversation (just like Sideways, but with much, much fouler language), Mike and I tallied the votes, discovering that nearly all the votes went to two bottles of wine.

Then we realized that the two winners were actually the same wine - the Hazana Vinas Viejas. It's not a complicated wine, but it is interesting, with lots of flavor and a very smooth, food-friendly texture. Total crowd pleaser.

I was thrilled, then, when I stopped by Wells last week and found it on the shelf for $11.99. Next thing I knew, I was telling Mr. Lee, who has worked at Wells forever, all about the party, and he was giving me a quick lesson on the geography of Rioja and how grape sourcing effects wine flavor.

Mr. Lee is (very) familiar with the current Pollard Rioja habit - we buy a boatload of the super-cheap-but-good Montebuena - and also with what we like to drink when we're willing to spend more than $10 on a bottle. So when he recommended I grab a bottle of Vina Alberdi and another bottle of Es Lo Que Hay, I did.

And I know they're going to be good. But will we fall instantly in love with them, like we did with the Hazana? It's hard to say. But it certainly won't be a hardship to try.

All of this is a very long way of saying: try this wine. And if you're in the vicinity of Wells and need advice or just want a little knowledge about how a wine is made or why it tastes the way it does, ask Mr. Lee. He will definitely know the answer.

Cheers to Health and Happiness

No bar will ever own my heart like McGarvey's does

In news that I like because it confirms my core beliefs, Oxford anthropologist and evolutionary psychologist Robin Dunbar has just released findings from a UK study indicating that people who booze it up (in moderation) at a local pub are happier, have higher life satisfaction and have more close friends than those who do not.

I can't find the original paper, but according to the Campaign for Real Ale, the lobbying group that funded the study, "People who have a 'local' and those patronising community-type pubs have more close friends on whom they can call for support, and are happier and more trusting of others than those who do not have a local. They also feel more engaged with their wider community."

The study also found that drinking a small amount had a positive effect on well-being and some social skills (shocking, I know).

The question is, of course, is whether there's any actual causation here - and if there is, which way does it go? Are people happier because they're at their local? Or are they more likely to go to their local when they're happier? Probably a combination of both.

My guess is that the power of the "local" isn't quite as heady here the US - but I think you'd find other entities/places taking its place.

Take my friends. They're mostly parents in our 30s and 40s, which means it's not likely that most can spend enough time at a bar to consider it a "local." But that doesn't mean we're unhappy or anti-social. Replace "local" with "pool" or "my kitchen" and you're in business.

The ultimate lesson here, I think, is that the more time we spend carousing together, the happier we are - and that carousing is easier when we have a reliable place to do it . And carousing is something that I fully support - whether it's in the pub down the street or my very own living room.

Old vs. New in the Cocktail Game

As much as I love cocktails, it's possible that I actually love books about cocktails even more. I can't stop buying them.

Two of my most recent acquisitions are a vintage copy of Playboy's Host and Bar Book by Thomas Mario and a brand new copy of The Architecture of the Shot by Paul Knorr, with illustrations by Melissa Wood.

The Playboy book was first published in 1955; my copy was printed in 1971. The architecture book, on the other hand, was hot off the presses in 2015. Both books about booze...but they couldn't be more different. I love them both.

Though at first glance the shot book seems like it could be gimmicky, really, it's not. The recipes are precise and descriptions are genuinely interesting. The book includes about 70 different shots, both classics and drinks that are new to me. It's a good mix. Plus, the graphics...I love them.

Seventy sounds like a lot of shots, until you open a book like the Playboy tome, which is truly encyclopedic, with some pretty fab pictures of '70s parties and all manner of cocktail information and advice, from glassware to etiquette.

"But while a host should be active and should generously offer his punches, his pitchers or trays of cocktails, he should remember at the height of his wassailing that he's a host and not a hustler," Mario writes in the first chapter, titled "The Code of Conviviality." In addition to Mario's extremely strong, non-holiday season use of the verb "to wassail," he offers some good advice here. And there's a lot more where that came from.

But also...there are drinks. Dozens and dozens and dozens of drinks, from straightforward martinis to so many that require egg whites, I couldn't even count them all. If this book is any indication, mid-century entertainers really got their arm workouts in, what with all the cocktail shaking.

Despite their different angles - one uber-precise and succinct, one lengthy, comprehensive and swinging - both books are pretty incredible. And both promise hours and hours of good times...followed by a hangover or two.

Closing Out 2015: Stuff I Loved at the End of the Year

As is often the case, I've got a list of posts-to-write that's a mile long. Over the past two months, especially, I've done a million fun things and eaten some great food and while some of it has made its way to Instagram or Facebook, I'm way behind on actual blogging. I managed to write about a couple fun nights...but I'm still way behind.

And that means a roundup post. Here's what else I've been up to - the good stuff - since November:

Wine Tasting at Tarara

 In mid-November, to celebrate my friend Mandy's 40th birthday, a small crew headed to north-central Virginia for a day of wine tasting. Her husband, Oliver, organized it and chauffered, and he did a bang-up job of both.

The best part of the day was the serious tasting at Tarara in Leesburg. Not only were the wines we tasted really nice, the setting is beautiful and the overall experience there is super thorough. The selection, which started with sparkling then made its way through whites and reds, ending with dessert wine, was paired with four diverse cheeses - and a lot of education. I've done a decent amount of wine tasting, but I still learned some things.

Thanksgiving Weekend

Cooper and I alternate families for Thanksgiving; this year, we were at my parents' house, and so were my brother and sister (and Cail and Clark).

Thanksgiving always - always - involves a round of mid-afternoon oysters. Mostly, we stick with Oysters Waskom, our fine-tuned family specialty. As a family, we are pretty locked into tradition. My mom made a new sweet potato recipe this year and there was very nearly a revolt. But as long as we have a couple dozen Waskoms available, we're also open to trying a new approach or two.

This year, my parents worked hard to replicate a dish they'd had in September, when they celebrated my mom's birthday with Erin and Clark at L'Auberge Chez Francois in Great Falls. The oysters - topped with bearnaise and grilled a little (but not too much) impressed them so much.

At home, they needed some tinkering. My mom made the bearnaise the day before Thanksgiving, so it would have time to solidify in the refrigerator, but even the next day, she worried that it was a little too thin. Plus, we grilled the first batch of oysters a little too long - they weren't overcooked, but the bearnaise melted and disappeared.

With adjusted cooking times for the second batch, though, we had it. (And by "we" I mean my dad. All I did was plate and eat.) They were awesome. And pretty:

The day after Thanksgiving, as is our tradition, the family, including both baby Virginia Catherine to 97 year old Nan, went to Petit Louis for lunch. It was, as always, excellent. I love the whole menu, but there is nothing like PL's pureed soups. I had a cream of cauliflower that was unreal. Just perfect.

40th Birthday by Clementine at Church and Company

A couple weeks after Thanksgiving, party season got serious Chez Pollard. Cooper turned 40 on December 12th and I followed ten days later, on the 22nd.

After much, much discussion, we decided to throw ourselves a party. (I'm not sure why it required so much discussion. That was obviously what we were always going to do.)

Instead of doing something at home, we rented out Church and Company, an insanely cool event space in an old church in Hampden. Alex, the guy who owns the space (and who rehabbed it himself) might be the nicest person in the world - and he has such a solid eye for design.

Since our party was just before Christmas, the space was all kinds of decked out with garlands and trees and candles. It was just gorgeous.

There was never any question about what we'd do for food - the whole reason we decided not to cook ourselves was that we wanted Clementine to cater. Unsurprisingly, everything from the pickled oysters to the charcuterie (heyyyy chicken liver pate) to the basil lime elixir was incredible. Plus, Alicia made us mint chocolate chip cupcakes and our friends got us a cake from Graul's - both of which were awesome.

It wasn't just Clementine's food that was great - it was the people, too. Especially Cristin, who realized we were wrong when we told her we didn't want to hire a bartender. She gracefully let us make that choice...then stepped in and tended bar at the last minute (with Alex's help). She was right, I was wrong, and she didn't even say, "I told you so."

Overall, the night was kind of ridiculous. On one hand, I felt silly throwing such an intense party just for our birthdays. Between the space, the catering and the guest list, which covered family and friends from all parts of our lives, it was like a small(ish) wedding. On the other...it was so great I didn't really care. It was a blast.

40th Birthday at McGarvey's...and More

But here's where things get really ridiculous. The Friday night party in Baltimore was just round one.

The party continued on Saturday, when I made my annual birthday trip to McGarvey's. I've been celebrating there since I turned 21...and party in Baltimore or no, I was not about to break that tradition. Instead, I upped the ante.

Most years, we just have lunch or brunch or drinks in the bar, wherever we happen to fall. This year, since it was a big one, I reserved the upstairs space from 4 to 6 p.m.

I'd never been up there before - it's only open for private parties - so even just walking up the steps was a total thrill. It's not a terribly big space - it holds about 30 people, standing - but it is comfortable and has a great view of Dock Street and of the back room in the bar itself.

Saturday's crowd was more Annapolis-oriented - my high school friends and family (including the ones who live in Virginia), plus Mike and Alicia from Baltimore and Stacy, who came down from New York just for the parties. Unfortunately, we were missing not only Bill and Kyle and Mary but also Cooper, who got sick at the end of the week. He powered through Friday night like a champ...but just couldn't do it on Saturday. Sad, but understandable.

Ultimately, that meant more oysters, crab balls and crab cakes for us. That's what we ate at McGarvey's (along with many, many Aviators, their house beer). Those are McG's strengths - and they did them well.

We were all also super impressed with the service. We had one young waitress, who hustled up and down the steps and kept drinks in everybody's hands for two straight hours. She was such a pro.


Once the upstairs party ended, we migrated downstairs for a couple more drinks and to figure out a plan of action. Our goal was to drink our way up Main Street, following the path of a long ago bar crawl that Bert and Rob and I did, and to still be standing strong, ending at Harry Browne's, at midnight, when Bert turned 41.

Spoiler alert: we made it.

But we knew, if that was going to happen, we needed sustenance. Bert scoped out the options for a group our size and we ended up upstairs at Middleton's, where everyone scarfed down burgers, crab cakes...and oyster shooters.

As my sister said, if it was good enough for Ben Franklin, it's good enough for me.

Next, we classed it up with Natty Bohs and a Bud Light tower at Acme, which was so, so, so crowded, even at 8:30. It was kind of weird, being there without anyone using a fake ID.

Note: that is Alicia.

After Acme, we made two more quick stops - Treaty of Paris, which was a bit of a snoozer, and Galway Bay, which was packed and super festive - before finally stumbling into Harry Browne's.

As a general rule, when I go out in Annapolis with my high school friends, that's where we end the night. It's such a nice bar, so it's always kind of funny to roll in there after watching people spill beer all over each other at Acme or wherever.

As soon as we walk in, we always start upgrading our drinks - and making a mess. I switched to wine and Alison ordered a martini, which she promptly spilled everywhere. Rasim ordered a pile of food and I ate an entire plate of calamari by myself. Hot.

Then, we went home (or back to the O'Callaghan Hotel, in my case) and slept it off. What a night.

Even More 40th Celebrating

What's funny (maybe?) is that wasn't even the end of it. The next morning, Mike, Alicia, Stacy and I had an awesome breakfast at Iron Rooster in Annapolis. Their homemade pop tarts really are no joke.

And then, on my actual birthday - which was a Tuesday - Dixon and Cooper and I had dinner at Grano Emporio in Hampden.

I had veal marsala and it was lovely. Cooper and I also split a carafe of Montepulciano and I remembered that I so love restaurants that still sell wine in carafes. They remind me of when I was a kid, going out to dinner with my parents.

And then, finally, the birthday celebrating came to an end.

Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year's Eve

But just a few days after my birthday, we were back on the party train with Christmas Eve dinner at our house (first time ever! Meat...obviously.) followed by Christmas brunch with Cooper's family and dinner at his parent's house (more meat...obviously).

On New Year's Eve, we had dinner at our house with Mike, Alicia, Kyle, Mary, George, Audrey and all the kids. Piper, George and Audrey's second oldest, came over early to help me set the kids' table, which made the whole day even better for me. She is only in second grade, but was so thoughtful about all of it.

We had Oysters Waskom, crab cakes from Conrad's, this ridiculously easy and delicious John Besh cauliflower puree thing that I make every year and a bunch of wine.

It was crazy and hectic and fun and such a good way to kick off 2016.

Speaking of 2016, I've already had a bunch of good meals. We loved brunch at Silver Queen and dinner at Smoke (more on those later) and we have a bunch of good dinners and parties scheduled for the next few weeks.

Ending strong and starting strong.

Parties + Happiness + Research

These days, it's more fashionable to talk about sparking joy than about straight up happiness (that's so 2009). But I still find the subject pretty riveting, especially as it applies to one of my other favorite subjects: throwing parties.

In 2005, Sonja Lyubormirsky, a noted happiness scholar and psychology professor at the University of California Riverside, published a study indicating that happiness is driven by three things. Genetics are responsible for about half of our happiness; circumstances account for another 10%. We don’t have much, if any, control over either. But the remaining 40% is determined by "intentional activities and practices." Stuff we do to make ourselves happier – or not.

Having parties is what makes me happy – and I'm not unusual. Even people who don't think of themselves as natural hosts or hostesses can benefit from the act of throwing a party. But don't trust me on this - trust science. I've done some research (proving that I can make anything nerdier) and here's what I found:

Throwing a Party Makes Us Socialize – and Socializing Makes Us Happy

Parties bring people together – obviously – and that's a good thing. Two psychological studies of university students both found that socialization is associated with more happiness.

In a 2007 study, students who rated their social skills higher also rated their stress lower and life satisfaction higher. Good stuff all around. An earlier study, published in 2002, found that while exercise, religion and the incidence of "good events" did not differ between very happy and average or unhappy people, those in the very happy group were more likely to be highly social, with stronger relationships.

If this sounds like a raw deal for people who aren't natural extroverts, don’t think of it that way. No, you can't (and shouldn't) force yourself to convert to extroversion. But even if you're an introvert, you can enhance social relationships by throwing a party that fits your needs. A small one, with just your close friends, is still a party. 

Throwing a Party Keeps You Busy – and Happiness Is Action-Oriented

Throwing a party can be a lot of work. There are guest lists to make, invitations to send, menus to plan, drinks to dream up and booze to buy. The good news, though, is that your mile-long party to-do list has a hidden secret. It'll help keep you happy.

A 2010 study at the University of Chicago demonstrated that people who are busy are happier than people who are idle. A separate study,from 2005, found that performing five acts of kindness all in a single day increased short-term happiness levels.

Think of each item on that list - from buying ice to baking cookies - as an act of kindness for your guests. It's true.

Throwing a Party Helps Us Visualize Our Best Possible Selves

When I was a little girl, one of my absolute favorite things to do was to play dress-up in my grandmother's closet. After layering on as much costume jewelry as possible, I'd stick my little feet into a pair of her high heels – my favorites were a glittery pair of silver pumps that were more over the top than your average drag show – grab a matching handbag and shuffle around her bedroom, feeling as glamorous as Grace Kelly. In those moments, I dreamed of my adult life. And wow, did it sparkle.

Every time I throw a party, I go through the same exercise – minus the silver shoes and borrowed beads. From invitations through menu planning to the day of the party, as I chop and sweep and organize glassware, I imagine how the party will turn out, what will happen, how I'll feel. In my mind, it's always a success.

I know I'm not alone in those pre-party daydreams – it's something that happens naturally. And the good news is, those types of thought processes can have a positive impact on our overall happiness.

In a 2006 study, researchers found that exercises helping people visualize their "best possible selves" both boosted the way people experienced positive emotions and hampered negative emotions. That is more than enough reason, for me, to keep on dreaming about the fabulous parties ahead. 

Throwing a Party Helps Us Spread the Love Around

When we surround ourselves with happy people, we'll be happier, too. It's so logical – and it's true.

A long-term study of happiness and social networks (the real life kind, not the Facebook kind), publishedin 2008, found that individuals studied were 15% more likely to be happy if another study participant to whom they were connected (like a friend or family member) was also happy. The study also found that individuals were 25% more likely to be happy if a friend who lived within a mile became happy during the course of the study. Basically, happiness is contagious.

Contagious and, unlike those lice getting passed around your kid's seventh birthday party (true story chez Pollard), something that's actually worth spreading. People meet people at parties. They share stories, laughter, fun. 

Happiness blossoms.

Kindergarten Crafts, All Grown Up

I can't stop thinking about Trohv's holiday window.

A couple years ago, I found myself semi-obsessed with the big paper pom flowers made by Etsy-ist Pom Love. I bought tons of them - they made perfect decorations for baby showers and wedding showers and also my basement.

This year, everywhere I look, I see a different sort of paper decoration: the kind that's created from something I probably  have laying around my house.

Like the paper plate snow in the window at Trohv in Hampden. They're amazing.

Or these coffee filter garlands from Food 52. So fluffy and pretty.

Or this unbelievable flower/snowflake thing made from cut up toilet paper rolls, of all things.

Paper plates, coffee filters, toilet paper rolls - these are the tools of preschool teachers, right? But in the right hands, they're so sophisticated.

That fits, really, with overall trends toward simplification and "handmade" everything and the homespun aesthetic. But none of these examples are overly twee or hipstery. They're just interesting and look cool and they're kind of sweet.

They'd all make solid additions to a New Year's brunch table, too.

“The first requisite for such a party is good liquor. The second is plenty of it."

That's Dorothy Draper, in Entertaining Is Fun!, which was published in the '40s but is still a blast of a book. She's also quoted in this roundup of quotes about parties on The Cut, where they're continuing their Mostess week of entertaining advice with a few more fun articles.

Because I am a collector of party quotes, I'd read most of the ones included in that list. But no matter - reading them again made me smile hard.

I also loved this article about throwing breakfast parties. I love a brunch at home...though I laughed when I got to the part about having your whole afternoon free. Because...if the brunch is great, what it really means is that you and your friends spend 12 hours together at someone's house. I'd add a tip to that article: make sure you have enough food for round two. And three. Maybe even four. The best brunches are the ones that end with everybody wishing they could just buy a big compound and all live together, with each family in its own wing.

Party Season PSA

The Cut is running a weeklong series of entertaining articles - Mostess - and so far, I'm in love. It covers a lot of ground and if you like the tone of the website in general (and I do) and you like parties...you will like this.

Trendy Monday and More: Turketta at Mock Thanksgiving

Is any other holiday as beige as Thanksgiving? So unphotogenic...but so, so delicious.

Every Thanksgiving season, there seems to be a new turkey trend...because apparently regular old roast turkey isn't enough. We fry, we brine with crazy stuff, we smoke, we stuff with chickens and ducks.

Fortunately, with the rise of "Friendsgiving" as a legit holiday, we have an opportunity to be trendy the week before Thanksgiving, reserving the actual day to enjoy the exact menu our moms have been cooking for us since we were little. (Side note: at my house, Friendsgiving is called Mock Thanksgiving and we have been doing it since 2002. Because Cooper and I are thought leaders in the realm of fake holiday celebrations.)

This year, as far as I can tell, the big turkey trend is turketta - porchetta-spiced turkey. I've seen a bunch of recipes for versions of the dish. Since we love porchetta - and since I was desperate for a turkey idea earlier this week - we made a couple turkettas for dinner with our friends last night.

We used this Bon Appetit recipe...and it was awesome. Moist, tons of flavor, not that difficult to make. It was just complicated enough that I felt like a culinary rockstar when I finished prepping it...but not so hard that I couldn't actually do it. That is a sweet spot.

With the turketta, we had these gorgeous mashed potatoes, roast sweet potatoes, fennel and carrots, sauerkraut from Hex Ferments, and cranberries I bought pre-made from Eddie's. Alicia made pumpkin cupcakes with cinnamon buttercream, the kids ate a bunch of mac and cheese and we drank a silly amount of wine for a Sunday night.

Mock Thanksgiving started as a small dinner, with just a couple friends, back when I was first learning how to cook. Over the past few years, it's evolved into a much bigger party.

This year, we felt the need to quiet it down a little. So, no big party, just a small dinner with a few friends + kids. The big parties are consistently fun and crazy and hilarious...but there's just nothing like a special dinner with a handful of close friends.

At our house, we are always, always so busy that it's very easy to focus more on what's worrying and stressing us vs. what makes us happy.  After dinner last night, we sat around the table, with all the dirty dishes still piled on it, listening to music and drinking wine and talking and laughing. So much laughing - from the adults and the kids. I can't think of a better way to kick off a season dedicated to gratitude.

Miscellaneous Inspiration

A few things:

Fashion inspo: I started doing the J. Crew sleeve roll last week. And I am never going back to regular rolls.

Music inspo: I am always a fan of songs about food.

Party inspo: Lauren Santo Domingo was the chair and Rebecca Gardner was the event planner behind this Carnegie Hall party that took place earlier this week. The decor is...intense. I suddenly want tassels on everything.

Insta inspo: The Sun's dining guide will be in the paper this weekend - this roundup of local food Instagrammers to follow is part of it. They are all awesome. More on the rest of the guide later, after it pops up online. I am crazy excited to see it in real life. It takes a village to put that thing together; I've been feeling lucky to have been  part of the team.

This (Past) Week: DRP Turns Nine

It's been a big week at our house. A big, long, exhausting week full of celebrating Dixon turning nine. Nine! Those years have flown by.

His actual birthday was on Tuesday. At his request, we headed down to Fells to have dinner at Papi's Tacos. It's his favorite queso in the city. It was raining, but Papi's little back patio is covered, so we could sit out there anyway. It was kind of a steamy hotbox, but none of us really minded. The queso and tacos and - for me - boozy jalapeno limeade made it easy to forget about the humidity.

Wednesday and Thursday were standard-busy with work and work dinners - and birthday party prep. Dixon's party was on Friday afternoon and the theme this year was Sharks and Zombies. He didn't want to have any set games, so instead we (I) created two photo booth type areas - one shark-related and one zombie, related. 

I found a lot of pretty sweet zombie and shark attack accessories - and I was especially pleased with the blood spattered shower curtain I got from Amazon. Seven dollars seriously well spent.

For the sixth year in a row, Dixon and Alicia collaborated on his birthday cake. This year, unfortunately, I made the wrong size cake, so the decorations were a little oversized. But they were still pretty pleased with their work.

What the picture can't show: how insanely good Alicia's buttercream is.

We have had Dixon's parties at our house every year since he was born. There is, frequently, a chance of rain during the party. But the weather always comes through for us, so the kids can run around the yard. 

Always, that is, until this year. Instead, we had a couple dozen nearly-tween boys wreaking havoc on our basement while they beat each other with Nerf weapons. It was...loud. Fortunately, in the end, no one required stitches or a trip to the hospital or anything. 

Still, I have learned my lesson. That was the last year for that kind of party. Dixon agrees. Cooper really agrees.

When they had cake to focus on, though, they almost look angelic.

And then the night ended.

Just kidding. I really didn't close it out with wine coolers. I closed it out with red wine. But Bill brought me this awesome four-pack of Black Cherry Fizz as a "good luck with the party" gift. He's a good friend like that. I will be saving these for a rainy day.

So now Dixon is nine - and my basement is still a wreck. But he's happy. (Until tomorrow, when I make him start writing his thank you notes.)

August So Far

Today is the first day of school for Dixon. Shortest summer ever (literally - it was barely two months, from start to finish). 

We did make the most of that time, though. I have some writing to do about June and July...but I haven't organized those photos yet (I will...one day). So, instead, here's August - so far:

Top from left: BBQ at Willie's; beef tallow at Sugarvale, post-concert McDonald's, Kit + Erin at Willie's
Middle: Pretty carrots; me with friends Zim and Gene at George's bday; pre-ZBB Bill; Left Foot Braking band
Bottom: Cherry Slammer by Alicia; Curious Traveler shandies; Snacks at Bluejacket; end of summer dinner at our house

Week One: We kicked off August with a 40th birthday party for Bill L., at his house in Annapolis. My friend Rob's band, Left Foot Braking, plays, and a good time is had by all. Later in that week, our friends Sam and Stacey, and their kids, come to visit and I fail to take any photos at all. But we did have a fun lunch at CVP and a lot of very, very big laughs about the old days, when Sam and Cooper were post-college roommates.

Week Two: This was a big one. Tuesday night, we celebrated George's 40th with a surprise party at Greene Turtle in Towson, which was a very good time. Thursday, we had drinks with local friends and Friday, Cooper and Bill and I took a half day to head to DC for the Zac Brown Band/Avett Brothers concert at Nationals Stadium. We met my sister and Clark for the show and also got to hang out with a bunch of other friends, including Alicia's cousin Kelly. 

We had pre-concert snacks at at Bluejacket, including fried chickpeas, soft pretzels and a charcuterie plate, then we walked over to Willie's Brew and Que, where we were pleasantly surprised, especially with the pulled pork and pimiento cheese - we'd headed there mostly for the beer, to be honest. While there, we also got lucky: I won a raffle, including tickets to the show and a hat for Bill. Since we already had tickets, I gave the prize to a nice girl repping Sam Adams - in exchange, she hooked us up with a bunch of Curious Traveler shandies. Funnily enough, the company actually sent me a couple of the shandies earlier in the summer - and I loved them. So that all worked out!

Post-concert, we discovered that the area around the stadium is severely lacking in late-night food. So...Bill bought all of the food at McDonald's. And it was good. There's nothing quite like a 1 a.m. cheeseburger to make you feel good about yourself in the morning.

The next morning, we returned to Baltimore and wrapped the whole experience with a killer breakfast at Miss Shirley's in Roland Park. Just good stuff all around.

Week Three: Things calmed down a tiny bit last week, but we still managed to end the summer with a bang. Friday night, we had a fin d'ete dinner at our house, starting end ending with cherries, courtesy of Alicia. She made gorgeous cherry, vodka and lime cocktails to start and, for dessert, a cakey cherry cobbler. In between, we ate roasted carrots and fennel, a tomato, plum and mozzarella salad, crab cakes and, thanks to my general skittishness with poultry, slightly undercooked chicken (yum).

Saturday, Cooper and I went to another 40th party and, while we had a sitter, also squeezed in a couple great drinks and snacks at Grand Cru and Sugarvale in Mount Vernon, where we ate the beef tallow candle (sounds gross, tastes good, looks awesome).

And what I haven't mentioned is that on the in between nights, we went to about 8 restaurants - my reviewing schedule has been intense lately - and also put in some dinner-at-the-pool time. 

This month has been so much fun. I'm exhausted, even after just writing this, but it's been a blast. And now, with Dixon back at school all day, I'm ready to buckle down. To prepare for...more fun things.