soUP, STEW, AND A GLASS OF MERLOT

Why Soup, Stew, and a Glass of Merlot?

To make a long story short… when I was 17, I visited New York City with my parents and two aunts. I was offered wine at the first restaurant we hit the night we landed, which very quickly instilled in me some type of confidence that I would not be ID’d at any restaurant in the city. I spent that entire trip proudly drinking prosecco at brunch and glasses of wine at dinner. At the final restaurant of the weekend, however, I suddenly lost my newfound confidence. The waiter approached me for my order to which I very nervously responded, “I’ll take the soup (an intriguing kelp and squash soup), stew (bouillabaisse), and ——— a glass of merlot?” I think the waiter was too confused by my order to question my age, and before I knew it, I was sipping on 3 different liquids. That little phrase not only earned me a delicious meal but also an inside joke my mom, aunts, and I now share.

Alas, this is Soup, Stew, and a Glass of Merlot: where I talk a lot about cooking and a little about the side dishes of my life—and I usually have a (now completely legal) glass of wine in hand while writing it in my New York City apartment.