>ANOTHER PAIRING IN CHELSEA>>

Thursday night, was David's TRANSIT show at the Nabi Gallery on 25th Street. It was a really good show with a rockin' piano and percussion piece by Ted Hearne and a haunting performance, by David, of Daniel Wohl's Aorta. Afterward, the whole TRANSIT crew (and a few young composers) went for a bite at East of Eighth--a much underrated restaurant in Chelsea.

I always seem to forget about this place because it's a little on the outskirts of Chelsea--just off 8th Avenue on 23rd Street, but it really is one of the best places (if not the best) place to eat in "Gay Chelsea."

Now I say that it's underrated because I also always forget just how good the food is there; the food isn't flashy and the dishes aren't exotic--it's just good restaurant food. I've never been disappointed with a meal there (except one time, I think the chef got a little too adventurous with chestnut & strawberry pancakes--not the best combination.) But more often than not, I take out of town visitors there and on the rare occasion that David and I have a free Saturday or Sunday morning together, we brunch there. ($14.95 prix-fixe)

Back to Thursday.

The ten of us sat down (and amazingly, we all picked very appropriate seats) and since my meal was "on TRANSIT," for being their ticket-taker and wine-pourer, I didn't want to order anything too extravagant. The Warm Goat Cheese Salad caught my eye and I placed an order for that (and a glass of sparkling white wine).

When the dish came out, I was pleased over its size, because although I've been trying my best to "eat for summer," this salad was also going to be my dinner. Additionally, I was delighted to see all the goodies lined up on my plate: grilled endives, roasted apples and warm goat cheese, on crostinis, with roasted organic beets hidden just below them. The salad was not only delicious, but left me completely satisfied as well. And believe me, I'm not one of those people who normally order a salad as their entrée--but on this night, I found it to be just fine...

Alluding to my previous post--this salad, paired with Cafeteria's Chesapeake Crabcake Sliders, would be a perfect match, making a complete dinner (minus dessert) and a much lighter option than my previously stated Crabcake & Truffle Fries combo. Sure, you'd be doing a lot of hopping around, but that's the beauty of Gay Chelsea. > >