Running with the Bulls

Wednesday night I was invited to not one but two swank soirees in Chicago. One was the Food & Wine event at the MCA (Museum of Contemporary Art). And the other was dinner at moto - on a particularly star-studded night. Normally I would have gnawed off an arm to go to either - but I went to neither - and went to a little joint in Chinatown instead. Why? To catch up with my friend and former Bull - Chris Edwards - better known to our Spanish speaking brethern as "Krrreeesss". He was in town for one night only and asked for casual and quiet - the good food part is implied. So casual, quiet, good food - we did - at Ken Kee in Chinatown Square. It's Hong Kong style food known to locals as good value for the money. So it was there - over spicy jellyfish and dry-fried beef chow fun - we caught up. Right after El Bulli, he finally had a chance to travel around Spain a bit - for some more gastronomic discovery. A couple of the other guys - two of his nine roommates in that notorious apartment - are now working at the Taller in Barcelona - doing "creativity". And he'd heard from everybody that I'd had a LOT of fun at the wedding. Bastards. We're probably not going to see each other again for another year - if that. I'm sure we'll keep in touch - but you know - it's never the same. It's not the same as working shoulder to shoulder - or drinking and smoking and bitching after - side by side. Our fellow Bulls are now off in every far flung corner of the gastronomic world. It's good to catch up when we can.