The Barrister Fall 2017 - 38

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Parents at Risk for the
Freshmen Fifteen
By Susan N. Denaro, Esquire

W

hile the high school football
and soccer seasons got into
full swing this fall, we found
ourselves participating in the competitive
sport of weekend college-hopping with
our son. What we didn't realize as he
selected the schools to visit was that we
would become accidental tourists in those
college towns. Our visits often started with
lengthy guided tours of the campuses with
parents of other candidates. In between our
mandatory appearances, we embarked on
what I've come to call the Great Food Tour
of 2017.
Our first and favorite trip was to New
Haven, CT, where the culinary delights
exceeded our expectations. Our food
comas began in a cafeteria on campus.
The café had several food stations, all with
unexpected offerings, running the gamut
from fried calamari and white clam pizza
to Brussels sprout salad and cranberry
chicken salad.
The days of gray mystery meat that
was a mainstay in my college dorm seem
to be a thing of the past. Back then, we ate
hard-boiled eggs as it was the only way
to guarantee they weren't made from a
powder. I was one of the rare exceptions in
my gang freshman year who actually lost
weight because the food was so sad.
As good as the food was on campus, the
food in the establishments within walking
distance made for the most delightful and
unexpected weekend get-away we've had
in years. Thanks to Rick, Marcia and Kiki
Binder giving us choice recommendations,
we managed to eat our way though New
Haven, CT. Dinner Friday night was at
Zinc, 964 Chapel Street. Although it
was billed as an American restaurant, it
featured a three-course dinner option
I've come to really enjoy when dining in
Europe.
We started with a cream of poblano
and corn chowder that was better than
any I've ever made. It had all the right
38 | Berks Barrister

Cocktail at Barcelona

spice notes that dazzled the palate long
after the dish was cleared from the
table. The soup was served with a plate
of warm house-made focaccia bites
and red pepper jelly that were a perfect
accompaniment. It was so satisfying, I
could have ended my meal right then
and there and happily gone back the next
night to order it again.
7
The second course was a veal
Milanese with cooked kale, properly
roasted potatoes and a light lemony
sauce. I fell into a pattern of loading my
fork with all the elements over and over
again as all the flavors combined formed
a perfect bite.
The real surprise of the meal was
the dessert, a duo of a light lemony
cheesecake topped with a fresh blueberry
sauce and a slice of a frozen strawberry
mousse that had a layer of mint mousse
on top. The pale pink and mint green
offering wasn't cloyingly rich or overly
sweet. Instead, it was fresh and light and
made it hard to leave a bite behind.
Saturday started with walking a few
blocks from our hotel to Clare's Corner
Copia, 1000 Chapel Street. It was a little
reminiscent of our own Cloud Nine in
Spring Ridge. You ordered at the counter
and waited for the food to be brought to
your table. There were tempting baked
goods in the glass cases and then various,
and I suspect ever-changing, warm
offerings.
We started with a blueberry-laden
scone and a glass of blueberry infused
iced tea while we waited for our eggs.
The scone was perfect; not too dry, not
too sweet and not too heavy. Sharing it
allowed us to still be hungry when our
meals arrived. Mine was a simple dish of
whole wheat toast topped with avocado

slices and slightly undercooked poached
eggs.
John's breakfast was a Tex-Mex
inspired wrap that featured a whole wheat
tortilla over-stuffed with eggs, black beans,
peppers, red onions and corn. It was so
large it was almost impossible to eat with
one's hands. Both featured just the right
amount of protein to fuel our scheduled
activities for the day.
Dinner our last night in New Haven
was a feast at Barcelona, a tapas bar, at 155
Temple Street. We started with a signature
gin and tonic that featured Miller's Gin,
Fever Tree Tonic and muddled rosemary
with orange slices. It was sublime. I suspect
there was a little rosemary infused simple
syrup in it as it had a sweetness that did
not come from the tonic or the gin.
Shortly after we settled into our drinks,
the stunning succession of tapas began
arriving. As one dish was set in front of
us, we ordered the next, just as we did in
Spain. The best of the best was properlysliced Iberico Jamon, which was our first
course. It was rivaled by croquettes that
were so good we ordered a second plate as
our final dish. Our server recommended
the tiny meatballs in a spicy red sauce.
A couple of vegetable selections followed
and we kept ordering until we felt like
we'd had a well-balanced meal. The whole
experience was so authentic to what we
enjoyed in Barcelona, Spain, that I want to
go back to New Haven.
What we learned from our accidental
food tour of the beautiful college towns we
toured is that wherever our son decides to
go to college, if we visit him often, we'll
have to be careful to avoid gaining the
dreaded freshman fifteen.
Ms. Denaro is with the Wyomissing law
firm of Georgeaidis||Setley.



The Barrister Fall 2017

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