| rev:text
| - twas a few nights before christmas, and all through my hood
not a creature was stirring, and i was feeling good
with my cats comfy cozy, and my phone energy zapped
i had just settled down for a long winter's nap
...that is until a friend from the neighborhood called me soon after and said he'd be at my house in five minutes to come take me out for "F#&% It Night".
layer upon layer, i bundled myself up to face the arctic chill accosting the land of cleve, and headed out, brave-faced and sober with a bubbling pre-christmas excitement buzz only experienced that few magical days before christmas.
we headed here to meet friends, amidst the jolly holiday shoppers and land of giving souls. with general empathy for all men, we shared the holiday cheer all the while merging into an unforeseen lane at crocker park in search of 87 west. the jolly shopper in the car to the right and a bit back of us shared her holiday cheer through loving hand gestures and what i can only assume were christmas carols sung by a choir of one. with such energy and exaggeration exemplified through her facial expressions and movements behind the wheel, i can only assume she, above all, was filled with the christmas spirit.
as we fended off more holiday cheer for only a few brief moments, we finally arrived at 87 west. cracka park sure knows how to create moments filled with holiday zest. in case you're wondering, don't park on the south side of the cracka if you're headed to this wine bar. and don't ask random holiday passers by if they know where we can find a good drink in front of dick's.
but fyi, 87 west is in front of dick's. sporting goods.
once inside, i have to say 87 west does the holiday right. white christmas lights abounding, and an all glass wall to observe the holiday hustle and bustle while sitting by the fire and drinking a glass of wine with friends is the way to relax. even when more patrons added to the holiday relaxation retreat, the place never seemed crowded.
they offer a decent menu of affordable wines, appetizers (vietnamese calamari? hmmm....), flat bread pizzas, fondues, and desserts. i'll get back to that in a moment.
but back to my premise: each holiday season, the other friends we had met for the evening were experiencing their holiday tradition: F&#% It Night. one night each holiday season they interrupt the insanity of holiday shopping, gatherings, penny pinching, and spreading the holiday cheer like the plague to treat themselves to a dinner and night out. when normal behavior would illicit a "no, i can't, can't afford it"- instead it is "yes, i will indulge, thank you." they had previously been down the way to blake's seafood for lobster tails, and night capped with a few glasses of wine here.
we met up with them a few glasses in. a bottle of wine later, the perfect end to an imperfect day seemed to be the pumpkin cheesecake. it's description on the menu tantalizing, graham cracker crust and creamy pumpkin goodness seemed to call to me like what i can only assume were from the woman from the cut off car's angelic voice could have done.
our server, who seemed very kind, and apologetic, returned to the table to let me know the pumpkin cheesecake was no more. so much for F#$% It Night. but then, the holiday reared it's beautiful face in the time of giving. the chef prepared an order of chocolate fondue for us instead.
WHAT??? CHOCOLATE?
sir, allow me to hug you and spread my holiday cheer to you as well. don't worry, there's an ointment for that.
the chocolate fondue, more than double the value and amount of food than the original order, was DELICIOUS. blackberries, apples, graham crackers with melted marshmallow, nilla wafers, and pretzels accompany the gooey heaven of chocolate warming the plate. we devoured it like vultures on a newly killed piece of flesh.
too graphic? sorry. it was effin good.
87 West may not have won over many yelpers hearts yet, but the chef gets a hug from me for his holiday gift of love in the form of chocolate.
yes, it's that easy.
it was as if the chef could have been the man in red, himself.
He wasn't chubby or plump, but a tattooed jolly elf,
And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself;
A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,
Soon gave us food to devour and pounds to shed;
He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,
And filled up out bellies; then turned with a jerk,
And laying his finger aside of his nose, (health code decision pending)
And giving a nod, to the back of the kitchen he vanished;
He must have sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,
And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.
But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight,
"Happy Christmas to all, and to all a goodnight."
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