New Year's Eve/Day

As the song says: What are you doing NYE? And Day?

Staying in, going out? Do you have a special dish you make for NY Day?

I'll be staying in on the Eve. I always grill steaks on this day. I love the smell of the grill when its cold & snowy!

On the day I will be resolution mode, semi-fasting to clean out all the toxins of the holiday season....welll, either that or I'll be nursing a hangover

Staying in again this year, my wife and I are in our mid-late 30's, and we have done the going out for dinner, a Key West trip, the hotel party, the house party, and the bar party for New Years in years past. My favorite of the above is the hotel New Years Eve Party & of course Key West on New Years. Now that we have a 1+ year old daughter we will be staying in for the next few years I imagine.

Our menu the past couple of years has been surf and turf. A couple of nice prime steaks(porterhouse, or filets), and either lobster, or king crab legs. This year will probably be the same. The food matched with plenty of top shelf tequilla will make for a fun night.

My resolution will be to eat more prime beef than I did this year, and also to hit as many GNR restaurants as I can in the new year(we went to 10 this year)

happy holidays all.

I've been staying in for NYE almost every year for the past 2 decades. We were on a cruise one year which was nice. I prefer to have a small dinner at home withe wife.

Staying in, cooking either steak or lamb leg on the grill

Interesting...

When we moved back here from Santa Barbara, my neighbors decided I was a genuine California fruit/nut when I grilled on my patio year-round.

Glad to see there are other hardy grillers, too.

Staying in. As usual for the past 7-8 years.

Good food, good wine and my wife.

That's all I need/want.

We always stay in, and we always make a nice dinner, usually steak (although one of my kids won't eat steak and we have to have something for her). The day is my youngest's birthday, so we always have a family celebration, either stuffed shells at home with salad, garlic bread, ice cream and cake, or dinner at Three Happiness in Chinatown (in recent years). It's so hard to go out to eat on her birthday. We used to go to a chinese place in the neighborhood every year, but they up and closed on us about 5 years ago.

Suzy

Since I am the first other, I guess I should clarify. I'll be driving with my wife to CT so she can start her new job. Then on January 1st I get to fly back alone. Can anyone say "Party at Flips!!!"

Flip

ps: I am just kidding about being happy to be coming back alone, but dead on serious about the party. You bring the beverages, I'll cover the table, cards, and food.

My friends and I brewed 10 gallons of Alt that will be on tap at my buddy's house party. Still haven't decided what food we'll whip up for the party but we've had the same basic group of people doing a roaming NYE party for the last several years and there's always a ton of good food there. This year will be the first that we've had a kegerator full of homebrew though.

I made a reservation for 6 at Bon Soiree but now it seems some of my friends are waffling A trip to the Empty Bottle or a party will probably happen either after or instead of Bon Soiree (could I 'sell' the res here if I have to cancel ??)

I'll be skiing for a week in Snowmass and Aspen for the 4th year in a row.

(could I 'sell' the res here if I have to cancel ??)

I've seen people post their reservations on the Events section - don't know if they've had luck, but it's worth a try.

I'm another other - I'll be working on both days.

MikeLM wrote:Interesting...

When we moved back here from Santa Barbara, my neighbors decided I was a genuine California fruit/nut when I grilled on my patio year-round.

Glad to see there are other hardy grillers, too.

HEH! YEP :> My neighbors think I am crazy...crazy like a ....grilled steak in the middle of winter eating fox ;>

New Year's Eve plans aren't set yet. We usually go to whatever friends is convinced to host us for dinner and drinks. We know it's a night when we are singing (shouting?) "Daydream Believer" in our friend Jean's voice mails at 2 AM. On New Year's Day, Mr. X and I cook up a several pots of chili, some jambalaya and whatever else strikes our fancy and invite friends to stop in any time that day. We start and noon and go as long as the guests are there. (That usually means we kick the last person out around 9 PM.) I will be researching chili recipes soon.

-The GP
(Mary)

NYE we will be in Napa. We're doing what my parents want to do (this is a chance for my fiancee and myself to spend some time together with them). My guess, a couple of bottles of sparkling wine from Napa, burgers in the room and sleep by 12:02.

tem wrote:I made a reservation for 6 at Bon Soiree but now it seems some of my friends are waffling A trip to the Empty Bottle or a party will probably happen either after or instead of Bon Soiree (could I 'sell' the res here if I have to cancel ??)

What time are the res? We were thinking about doing the 7:30 seating with 2 friends, but it sold out...

We're going to a house party and then out to see a band, there's a pack of about 15 - 20 people going! It's always a good people watching night!

Staying In....It is always a sort of amateur hour on NYE....Anyway, it's our soon to be 5 year olds Birthday on NYE....Like we said when the doctor informed us that my wife was going to be induced on NYE...

"Induction for Deduction"

Finally got my menu together for New Years Eve Dinner for my wife, daughter and myself


New Years Eve:

Shrimp Cocktail - Just a basic shrimp cocktail with brined shrimp & homemade cocktail sauce

(2) 12 oz. Prime Filets(cooked medium rare of course) from my local butcher w/ sauteed mushrooms

2# Snow Crab Legs - Steamed

Peas

Paired with as much Budweiser, and 100% Agave Tequila as I can drink before & after midnight

Well my plans have changed a bit...I will now be having a sleep-over party for two 7-year old girls (my daughter & a friend who's Mom will be bartending at the Drake that night), & a friend is coming over as well.

I'd like to make it a festive night for the girls...any suggestions are appreciated.

I think I will get some of that sparkling cider for them & not sure what kind of finger-sandwiches to offer....

For my friend and myself, we'll be having a cheese platter (Jerry's in Niles has an incredible sale on cheese this week...I got 8oz of bleu & 8 oz of romano (Stella brand for both ) at 2 for $3.00, and some Alouette creamy swiss at 99 cents each, plus some smoked mozzarella with roasted tomatoes for 99 cents, some Rondele pub cheese for 99 cents....just amazing!) So I will offer cheese with a tray of tri-color peppers and carrots, and I am attempting to make hummus for the first time (& I am going to make the pita triangles), and some Carrs water crackers & olive oil/rosemary triscuit with the cheese & also some stuffed mushrooms & maybe will get some spinach pies from Butera & slice then up & serve warm, and some ham & turkey slices in puff pastry...and then later I will grill steaks & serve that with pasta primavera in an alfredo sauce. I just wish I had more people coming over!

Oh, BTW, FYI: Binny's has Frexenet Cordon Negro on sale for $4.99 a bottle right now...I plan on having a nice bottle of real champagne at first & then switching to that after.

Can you believe how fast this year has flown by??

Well, until Friday it looked like "Stay In"... until the Trib reported on Chris Thile's new band, The Punch Brothers, at Old Town School of Folk Music, and we got what look like the last two seats together for the 10:30 show.

So looking at the GNR map, Spoon is only a couple blocks away. When we asked to make reservations, they said to just come in, no reservation needed.

So anyone else thinking of going to Spoon for NYE, we'll be there around 8.

Going to Timo for dinner, the earlier seating. They are closing for good after tonight, and we will miss them sorely as neighbors, friends and as a GNR. I called John Bubala for a reservation, and he said to come in whenever we like. I hope that doesn't mean that he'll be having a slow night for the Last Hurrah. If you are out and about, at least stop in and buy a drink...

Staying in and writing last-minute papers for school....wippee! (being only partially sarcastic) Not much of a partier. Special dishes? Not really...might snack on some baguette and gouda and pesto later.

Preparing a nice beef stew in the crock pot for my lovely wife and I to enjoy after she's finished cooking at Kuma's - which I'm sure will be insane.

Eating crappy neighborhood Chinese takeout and watching college football.

We are in Birmingham where we ate at the Fish Market, a Greek seafood restaurant that was inexpensive yet had a great selection of fresh seafood.

As usual, we made it home by 8:45 pm to avoid all of the drunks (and to enjoy baklava, bread pudding and Mrs. Jlawrence's birthday at 12:39 am.

Staying in. I haven't been out on NYE since the first year I was 21 for it.

Tonight was my first stuff out of the French Laundry cookbook... the butter poached lobster and the parm custards/ceasar thing. Both turned out good, but the Lobster was enjoyed much more.

Tomorrow it's a tradition the hubby and I started when we moved in together many years back... making a roast duck. Still have to decide on sides. I might go as simple as some buttered noodles this year.

my hot box of a boyfriend is out snow plowing in wisconsin here so I made red beans and rice and I am enjoying it with a budweiser right now. His friends are picking me up and he is meeting us out later.

I have to tell you smoked ham hocks are my new favorite thing. Dried red beans cooked slowly with the ham hocks and some Keilbasa slices thrown in towards the end. (of course onions, garlic, seasonings and the ham hock meat eventually) Its pure heaven. Where was this dish all my life.

In a related story, how can people choose tabasco over red hot? Red hot has sooo much more flavor and I douse my red beans and rice with it. I hate when I go out and the only hot sauce is tabasco.

funholidaygirl wrote:my hot box of a boyfriend is out snow plowing in wisconsin here so I made red beans and rice and I am enjoying it with a budweiser right now. His friends are picking me up and he is meeting us out later.

I have to tell you smoked ham hocks are my new favorite thing. Dried red beans cooked slowly with the ham hocks and some Keilbasa slices thrown in towards the end. (of course onions, garlic, seasonings and the ham hock meat eventually) Its pure heaven. Where was this dish all my life.

In a related story, how can people choose tabasco over red hot? Red hot has sooo much more flavor and I douse my red beans and rice with it. I hate when I go out and the only hot sauce is tabasco.

I'm with you on everything except referring to your boyfriend as a hot box. I'm not saying, I'm just saying... HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

We just returned from a lovely sushi dinner at Asian Avenue...where they keep our gluten-free soy sauce and we need not explain anything to Alan, the owner. Our kind of a dinner out - worry free and no lengthy explanations, especially on a night like tonight when places are so busy. Our sushi was delicious as always, accompanied by an inexpensive bottle of Symphony wine - it is wonderful with Sushi.

Now home and undecided. We could walk over to Clark street in Wrigleyville and watch the masses celebrating...or we could just stay in and snuggle....or, based on our walk home, could just walk down the street to Fizz.

On our walk home from Asian Avenue, we were surprised to see two people standing in the doorway smoking outside of Fizz. Apparently Fizz has already gone smoke free and are bringing in the New Year as such, while Belly's and Bourbon are taking the opposite approach--going out with a smoke-filled bang.