Karl Says "Hello"

That would be Karl Lagerfeld who with white ponytail and replete with arm hardware and looking svelte and chic and fabulous (natch) with entourage of 12 nonchalent camera (?) guys hopped out of a silver minivan and made their way into the hotel lobby here~now, this is not exactly a five star hotel so why he was staying here is not apparent~it is close to the Via Veneto (home of Fendi and Chanel, his babies)...a late night google uncovered his possible appearance in Rome~80th year anniversary of Fendi.
Celebration must be afoot~
An iconic sighting in Rome~Lagerfeld~ahhhh, now we can rest easy.
Dinner last night at MOMA (same name as museum but different country and not a museum)...very hip and happening. Called an "American Bar" on the canopy which was not promising~what does "American Bar" mean??? Maybe so named because when
walking in there's a liquor bar...here's the new rage~tapas like little goodies at the bar characteristic of Milan bars~note to self, use that idea for EC...
New discoveries/eating sensations~Fregula (cous cous like pasta, super al dente, with Spring Pea Sauce and seafood)...
Vino Primitivo~BIG and from Puglia~delicious with the right kind of full bodied dinner. Bronzino in Brodo served in a soup plate~very Shawn. Light and Good. The molten chocolate cake is BIG (little size) here...every which way...last night made from Giandiua. Desserts not generally too amazing here~interesting use of castagne (chestnuts) and espresso in all kind of preparations...
We leave for Firenze in an hour~Baci a Tutti!

Not so sunny Italy

Gennarino and his crew took the Metro to the Vatican, where we dodged hail as we stood on line to visit St. Peter's. Surprisingly, thousand of others had the same idea. After some souvenir shopping, we had a great lunch at Matriciano's, near the Vatican. Home made pasta, fried zucchini blosssoms, fried artichokes--yummy all around. Vile weather, good food! Tomorrow, the train a Firenze! Ciao, for now.

Getting Smart

Yes, we did walk for about an hour in the pouring rain but hey, it was the BEST pizza we'd ever have...zucchini blossoms and anchovies, you've got to love it. Not to mention the Carciofi and Suppli~Shawn, we have to make these~yum! Later we visited Cantina Cantarini where we loved the typical trattoria vibe of pasta amatriciana, rabbit, boiled chicory and tiramisu... Not sure exactly what neighborhood the Cantina is in but worth a trip~easy from the Spanish Steps. Wallpaper Mag has been a reliable resource for getting to the good spots... Today is the Vatican~Anna is praying for a return of her luggage that's lost somewhere between here and Boston, Michael (AKA Gennarino di Calabria) prays for a sunny day, Amanda prays for un huomo "caldo" and Rem, a discoteque...posso andare a discoteca..
The Sun God does not favor us in that its now hailing~Porca Miseria.

Roman Holiday

Unlike Gregory Peck, we could not tool around in our Vespa because the weather has turned cool and rainy. Nonetheless, we were not deterred from walking in a downpour for an hour as Wendy led us to Testasccio so that she could sample a pizza made with zucchini blossoms and anchovies. Me, I preferred a doppoio caffe to calm my nerves. Since Wendy is recovering from strep throat, she is looking positively gamine, like Audrey Hepburn. Tomorrow, across the river to the Vatican and Trastevere. Ciao, for now.
Gennarino di Calabria

Early Morning

Thinking of the coming up day and wondering how to keep my head on straight? Wonder if the "Letters to a Buddhist Jew" is going to help me here. Meeting about wedding this afternoon, followed by design of Entertaining Company table for tomorrow's event open house (2000 people at Union Station in Chicago), lunch and tasting with our Indian bride and Scots groom and all parents and planner(hope they like the Limca Fruit Soup Intermezzo we're showing them) wonder if I should wear something vaguely Indian or will that put it over the top? Would like to ask the kids about the Bhangra CD I got over at Virgin~repetitive, probably just a bad example..need recommendations on another CD. Anyway, need to stay focused for the afternoon planning meeting with the hostess for the private Symphony event planned for April and then should stop in for the China Care charity reception at Charlie Trotter's (hate to miss some delicious nibbles but then, sent a check to the charity anyway so let's see how the energy level holds out). Will probably end up at home with little Rem to think about our weekend trip to LA and how we can make the Mother Daughter Hotel Room like a little opulent world of senses using candles, music and other girlie items. Nice thought. Now that I've envisioned the day, seems less daunting. Ahhhh.

Back Again

Thanks to my friend (and designer of all good things)Curtis, Wendy's Whirl is officially "dis-connected" from the Entertaining Company mothership....so food, catering, travelling,having fun,relating friend/family stories, playing around in the Clubhouse, taking pictures of grafitti and anything interesting~ all part of the possible Wendy Whirl "stew" (or tagine, as we like to say in the catering biz when describing what once was formerly known as "stew")...

52 on Monday. How did that happen? Need to immediately crawl into the Clubhouse for some art project doodling and ruminating. The Clubhouse is where I/we hang out with the Glue Club and anyone else who wants to come over for chat, knitting, picture projects etc...also lots of wine and champagne drinking and snacks. Usually Sunday but could be some other day too...Even though the Clubhouse is
a real place (an old grocery store which is now a loft in front of our home) it also is a state of mind. No TV, NO Computer, No Business, only positive flowy vibes.

The neighborhood (in Chicago)was quite different years ago before gentrification....liked it because it was a funky street with a diverse mix of longtime residents and hippies. A guy named Henry lived one door south and didn't have any central heat~when my father and mother came, they said, 'Why would you buy here?'

Well, we did and even though our house would be a "teardown" in this overly gentrified neighborhood, we wouldn't (or can't think of right now) leaving the place where our kids grew up (okay, my husband, Michael, is Italian and can't conceptualize moving from the place where his kids grew up)and then, there's the Clubhouse. More on that later...

Mex Quaids

Had the pleasure of introducing the Quaid kids to the fabulous inventive food of Rich Bayless at Topolobampo recently. Questioned and inquired as to how children are received at the restaurant at which point I was assured that children are welcome. And it really is true! I had often seen children at Frontera~the more casual restaurant of the two but children at Topolobampo~not so sure. It helped that Elizabeth, Kate and Molly are well behaved and that Molly (8 years old) is a budding chef herself (she recently left the other kids in the dust at cooking class and was promoted to the adult section). All in all, Elizabeth, Molly and Kate sat attentively and tried everything from Gazpacho Poblano (the adults sipped on Rederer Estate Brut Rose while Coca Cola accompanied the children's dinner) to Halibut to Ribeye and Lamb. Although a bit hesitant, Molly and Kate experienced their first Jicama, Elizabeth had a sip of champagne and Patrizia, our waiter, could not have been more attentive and informative with the children. It was absolutely refreshing to see these young people "cutting their teeth" on the best food Chicago has to offer. We're looking forward to our next eating adventure~Molly, please fire up the oven.