Tuesday, June 1, 2010

A Monumental Memorial Day in DC



Memorial Day has come to mean many things to American culture.  The official creation of Memorial Day back in 1868 was to give a day of remembrance to those who had died in service, originally during the Civil War.  It has now become a day to honor men and women who have given their lives during all military engagements that the United States has been a part of.  Did you know that it also was originally called Decoration Day?  Just thought I would throw another interesting fact at ya.  But Memorial Day has also become a day to celebrate life, to gather with our friends and families, and enjoy what we have at this very moment.


It also seems to be the definitive marker for Summer to begin, which can only mean that it is time to fire up the charcoal and cook the ubiquitous hamburger and hot dogs that grace most of our gatherings. But let’s get one thing straightened out here before we go on any further, what most of us call a Memorial Day BBQ is really not….is your mind blown yet?  A BBQ purist will tell you that barbecuing involves cooking your meat low and slow for hours or even days.  What most of us are doing is grilling, which is when you cook over high, direct heat for a much shorter period.  So what was happening was grilling and we did some damn good grilling on Monday. 


The usual food suspects were there but with the Equinox twist and attention to only having the best ingredients that all of us have come to adore.  Handmade hot dogs and hamburgers, fresh brioche buns, coleslaw, potato salad, and of course it wouldn’t be a party without something sweet.  Is strawberry cake with fresh whipped cream good enough?  Why yes it is!   


When humans are near fire and are in the act of cooking food over it I feel like our inner caveman starts creeping up to the surface.  I have nothing wrong with that when the results are so delicious.  I only had a hot dog, so I could not speak of the hamburgers virtues, since when anyone is grilling I must have one or my life would be over as we know it; dramatic, but true.  And these dogs were spicy, smoky and had that great pop when you bite into them, which can only be achieved from being cooked over the flames. 


The weather was beautiful, good people surrounded us, and even our own personal chef guitarist was there to serenade us.  We only let him stop when he expressed the need for food.  Selfish, I know! J  But you never know, when you come to Equinox sometime you may see him playing again.  So come by and see us because the doors are open again and we are looking good. 


-Veronica

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