Sweet Magnolia

We are sad to report the imminent closing of a favorite, special restaurant in Cambridge, in which we have celebrated many birthdays and other special occasions. The proprietor is retiring to spend more time with his remaining wooden spoons. Or something. Louise, Cici and Jaime went to give a last hurrah! to Magnolia's (as did quite a few other people! the restaurant and sidewalk outside were packed!) We happily indulged in grilled shrimp with figs over arugula, avocado, hearts of palm and crabmeat over bloody mary salsa, softshelled crab, steak, more grilled shrimp, catfish, grits and greens... celebrating the end of an era in Cambridge.

Star Gazing

Exciting (and satisfying) events on our trips to la Belle France are weekly trips to an excellent restaurant. In St. Max, it was a local restaurant, le Chateau.

While in Burgundy, we travelled down into Beaujolais country to Le Cep in Fleurie, which has a Michelin star, for a very special luncheon. Dad (Richard) and Barbara had visited this same restaurant years ago and had a signed menu from the proprietress.

We were welcomed to a beautiful table setting in the heart of wine-growing country. The proprietress enthusiastically described all the menu items on her beautifully handwritten menu (after Louise grossly mistranslated homemade sausage as brains! although in my defense I DID translate the eel correctly) and regaled us with the history of her restaurant. Jim was horrified at the thought of brains and eels!

The soup course was a lovely spring asparagus cream soup.

For an appetizer, both Dad and Louise indulged in our friends, l'escargots, while other less adventurous sorts had lovely fresh salads. Then came the main courses, in all their glory. Dad courageously chose the eel, while Alex had the brains (oops I mean sausage.) Most entertaining however was Barbara's choice, frogs' legs! When the very proper young man waiting on us served the entree, Dad was heard to utter a loud "ribbit". After serving, the young man fled and was seen howling with laughter in the kitchen. Some things are NOT lost in translation!!!

A warm and wonderful, leisurely meal was had by all, completed with delectable desserts, cheese plates, and expresso (with the proper amount of crema, to Dad's delight.)

Michael, Jim and Louise took the "long way" back to Tramayes. The road curved through a stunning visual array of grapevines stretched over hills as far as the eye could see. Louise was finally chided for hanging out the window in awe snapping pictures - it was too distracting for the driver!

Home Cooking: Maison Simsion

The fabulously flexible Haddens, already well known for their flexibility and directional sense, also enjoy cooking in. Dad (Richard) is particularly famous for his gastronomical masterpieces, several of which we've attempted in our periodic voyages together or during visits to Cincinnati. His recipe books (copies given to all of us Hadden children over the years and a copy brought to Burgundy) are well-thumbed and stained by various culinary adventures, as a good recipe book should be. Well supplied with tasty vegetables and cheeses from the Burgundian markets and local grocery stores, we undertook to create dinners with the distinctive Hadden flair. Sharing the production and consumption of good meals is "family" in the richest sense. It is something I hope we never lose sight of in "Fast Food Nation."

Dad and Alex with Dad's famous Tarte Tatin - in St. Max


Several special items come to mind: Using Dad's stellar "stock" (vegetable in honor of Michael but chicken was available as well) we made Dad's famous Mushroom Risotto recipe one night. It was a cherished learning experience for me. There are some cook's secrets that simply cannot be transmitted in a recipe, such as how to tell when the risotto is ready for more liquid. My Celery Root Anna was also a big hit (although I must credit Epicurious.com for the recipe!) More important than the food, though, was the sense of community. Here's to the dinner table!

Meandering in Mercury

A side trip that we made (twice) north of Tramayes was to the town of Mercury, location of many famous wineries. We highly recommend the Mercury Burgundies, both red and white. It was here that we indulged in some wine-tasting (pity poor Alex the designated driver) and purchased that most wonderful of French inventions, a Qubit (pronounced qb).

For those of you who don't know what a Qubit is, the French countryside is filled with Coops (vineyard cooperatives.) Wines from many small vineyards are combined by variety and sold from huge vats at a great discount, in recyclable containers called Qubits. The wine is better than most affordable wines in the United States, and incredibly inexpensive. And, there's something very entertaining about seeing vast quantities of excellent wine going into something that looks like a gas can! Even more entertaining is enjoying said wine.

When we stayed in Provence our local coop was Les Collines du Bourdic in St. Max. For our time in Burgundy, we went to A Ma Cave in Mercury.

Tramayes Part Deux, or How Now Brown Cow

Although our time in Burgundy was packed with activity, there were quiet times around the edges that could be spent walking in Tramayes. If nothing else, a brisk walk in the early morning mist, market basket in hand, yielded scrumptious, fresh baked croissants, the fabled and greatly desired local honey, and pain au chocolat for all at the village bakery.







On the road from the village center to Maison Simsion, many cows were encountered. Interestingly, there were no fences, simply thick hedges of holly and other prickly vegetation which served to keep the livestock in, or out, or apart from each other. After a while, it got a little spooky. Some of the cows seemed downright alien!



Click on the second cow picture to see what I mean.

Further afield, we found La Combe au Ciel (and some friendly fowl leisurely quacking along) near a walled graveyard high in the hills, beautiful mossy trees, a watering structure and a mysterious hobbit hole door along the roadside.

Let's all Go Go to the L'Escargotierre

It's my belief that when in France, one must take full advantage of the culinary landscape. In Burgundy, this means wine, Poire William, snails, wine, Boeuf, wine, mustard, wine, bread, wine, etc. I have a particular affinity for l'escargots (snails), ever since a memorable meal in Montreal in the early seventies which convinced me that I really, really wanted to attend McGill University (I went to my admissions interview exuding garlic from every pore!)

While perusing one of Michael's guide books on Burgundy, I was thrilled to discover that one of the recommended places to visit was a l'escargotierre, or snail farm. The only problem was noone else in the group wanted to go, OR even eat l'escargots. Okay, we'll give Michael a pass since he is a vegetarian. And Dad joined me once in my garlic-laden hedonism. Alex was heard to refer to l'escargots as a garlic butter delivery system which might as well have been sponge rubber. And on a recent trip to Ohio she referred to a slow driver as an "escargot", which was a serious insult to the lovely little mollusks.

Suffice it to say that I had no scruples about indulging in l'escargots not once but twice during the trip, along with all the other features of the Burgundian culinary landscape! And I STILL want to go go to L'Escargotierre.

Totem Spirits

There's been some discussion among family and friends about Louise's strange predeliction for totem poles. This all came about as a result of Louise ordering a Triptik from AAA for a trip to the island of Maui for Alex and Michael's reaffirmation ceremony in 2006 (25 years of marriage!!!!) The Triptik CLAIMED that a "must-see" on the island was a Totem Pole, donated by a Canadian explorer, Captain Vancouver. Despite many detours and much exploration of the beautiful beaches (and volcanoes!) of Maui this fabled totem pole eluded us and turned Louise into a laughing stock (after all, who would look for a totem pole on MAUI?) Noone really believed that such a thing existed, although Jim loyally (and prudently) did not say so, at least in front of Louise.

One day while others relaxed hither and yon or indulged in more typical island pursuits such as attending a luau Louise dragged Jim out once again, determined to find the elusive totem pole. We'd all but given up (even Louise, who was VERY determined) when we finally found it. Actually it was them - there were two replicas plus the base of the original. We'd driven by it many times, but due to the lack of signage and the fact that it was fairly tiny it remained undiscovered. Pictures were taken as proof and much gloating was enjoyed!