Jack Rose Dining Saloon

Adams Morgan is unique slice of Washington, DC life. There are nightclubs, restaurants and small shops. You can find reggae, blues, jazz, and karaoke. Good eats include Ethiopian, Peruvian, French, Mexican, a 24-hour Diner, and of course, Jumbo Slice. Now there is Jack Rose Dining Saloon to complement the southern tip of 18th Street.

I walked in one very hot day in May of this year, uncertain about what my very near future held. Unlike most unopened restaurants in my past, this place looked fully built and ready to serve! The huge granite bar, the comfy booths, and all the wooden detail. beautiful! Then I saw the upstairs Open Air Terrace, semi-private Tiki Bar, Scotch room, and balcony overlooking the smaller pubs below, and I was convinced that this was going to be a cool place. Chef Michael showed me around and gave me a detailed plan of his menu for the downstairs Dining Saloon as if I was already hired and getting ready for service that night. It was basically a done deal; my new challenge would be to become a whisky expert. With well over a thousand whiskies lining the walls like books in a library, it was sure to become a destination for aficionados of the brown spirit. Someone would have to be able to talk about them.

Jack Rose has been an idea long in the making - to essentially become the largest whisky bar in the world. The bulk of the collection are single-malt Scotches, however there is a very large selection of American bourbons and ryes, even some white whiskeys and little-known selections from several US states outside of Kentucky and Tennessee. The Irish collection is nothing to scoff at either, rounding out the western end of the bar. The curious will also be delighted to find the award-winning Amrut from India, as well as single malts from Japan and Austria. A significant number of rums, gins, tequilas, vodkas, and cordials take up some space as well. However, anyone seeking their favorite Ardbeg, Caol Ila, or Talisker, or hoping to find a rare or special release of Macallan, Bruichladdich, or Springbank should be delighted at what they find.

Contrary to what my mentor, Harvey, says that "Who drinks whisky with food?", Chef Michael has put together a cozy and eclectic, non-traditional-yet-familiar menu to make Jack Rose also a food destination. Some favorites so far have been the Buttermilk Fried Frog's Legs, the grilled "New Caesar", and the Braised Local Pork Belly - for starters. The grilled ribeye Steak Diane is sumptuous and captivating, and the Pennsylvania ? Chicken with beet and goat cheese dressing will re-affirm your love for the often maligned poultry. New items for the fall include Boneless Bison Short Ribs, a Muscovy Duck Breast, and a Stuffed Saddle of Rabbit. I think we can get people to eat with their Scotch. In fact, I have already begun working on pairings. Dessert, anyone? Try it with a Willett rye. Ever try chocolate with a port-aged Bushmills? How about vanilla ice cream with Jack Daniel's Honey? Or Cabrales cheese with a sherried Scotch? I have. I think we can make it work.

I will look forward to your visit.

To Remember

Ten years.

It has been quite a decade.  We all remember the horrors of that September morning.  I won't re-live it here, but I wonder what did we discover about America that day... and the days that followed?  I will always remember demonstrations of extreme heroism, kindness, and patriotism.  We were angry.  We were vulnerable.  We were full of grief.  Quite frankly, we were dumbfounded, and we were scared.  However, what struck me following the horrific attacks of that day, was how we were all American again; we were a people.  We were determined to overcome being dumbfounded and scared by being proud of who we were... or at least, who we were supposed to be.  We have all grown up knowing stories of American courage - from George Washington to Martin Luther King, and beyond.  We tapped into that because it is part of the American identity; we do love a comeback, and we have a core belief that good will conquer evil.

Of course, we should never forget the lives lost and the practical lessons learned from September 11th, 2001, but the discovery I hope we all will share ten years forward is just how good we can really be.  May God comfort those still grieving, protect those still defending, and fill us all with the will to recapture that American spirit.

 

What You Don't Know

A younger friend recently asked me to comment on the decade of a person's twenties, as of course I am an expert in such a topic. It got me to thinking that as life takes you on your journey there is simply so much you just don't know. As luck would have it, part of the beauty of life is finding knowledge, gaining experience, and growing into someone who is wiser than the younger version of yourself. Inevitably, we all learn some things the hard way, and that is not always beautiful. Eventually you find yourself in a place where you simply don't know what you don't know, and have the maturity to realize it.

When my mom last visited here in DC, we toured the National Geographic Museum to experience, what was well-documented and vividly retold, the story of two expeditions racing to be the first in history to reach the South Pole. Both teams made it there, but only one team made it home; the other team froze to death in the snow and ice. It was not a matter of courage or of determination, but rather a battle against the unknown. One team was better prepared.

As it turns out, life is a battle against the unknown. Variables are everywhere, and even some of the best plans fail. Friends will disappear. People will die. Politicians will disappoint. The company for which you toil will actively work against you. Terror will strike. Even God may say no to your prayers. What on earth can you count on? There is one certainty, aside of course from death and taxes, and that is uncertainty. The sooner we accept that, perhaps the better. This is not to say we give up, nor is it to say we should have no faith. On the contrary, uncertainty in the world is what gives us purpose in our ability not only as a variable, but in our ability to affect other variables (too algebraic?).

When we are young, we spend a lot of time seeing the world in the manner which it affects us. As we grow, we learn that we can and should actually work to affect the world. Throughout that path we grow from idealists to pragmatists. Martin Luther King, Jr. was an example of a man who not only had a dream, but acted on a purpose to attain an achievable peace. It is only through purpose that we navigate through this sea of uncertainty and only in our resolution that we find success. It takes a good bit of life to come to that understanding.

But, what do I know?

"Thy purpose firm is equal to the deed. Who does the best his circumstances allows, does well, acts nobly; angels could no more."
-Young

The God Card

America, from day one, has been bold. The very act of signing the Declaration of Independence would have been considered evidence of treason if we had failed in our endeavor to confront tyranny. Are we a perfect people? Hardly, but our boldness has been part of what defines us and has made our experiment great. Today, we can be proud of many things. Not only do we struggle for peace, justice, liberty, equality, opportunity, and charity in our own land, but we have chosen as a people to share this vision with the world. The United States have always been at our best when we have been a light of the beliefs that inspired our founding. We have been at our worst when we cower and selfishly act to destroy, ignore, or pervert any part of that vision.

It is interesting to note that "God" has been indispensable to the mission of our nation even from the time of settlement (by the White Man). The argument used to claim our independence relied upon the theory that God gives us rights that may not be usurped by man; a bold statement. The belief in a Creator - not to be confused with religion - is the basis for who we are as Americans. The reason for which "in God we trust" is that He holds the key to our argument for why we should be free. Thomas Jefferson could very well have written, "We hold this truth to be self-evident, that all men are born equal with certain unalienable rights." He did not; he played the God card.

As a bold people, our thirst for freedom and rights has endured and grown, and in some ways this can be self-defeating. Many have even asserted their right to be God-less, which does not logically follow my argument, but we afford ourselves this right nevertheless. An unfortunate pitfall in the journey of America is the notion of rights uncoupled with responsibilities. Every man will fail, but we will ultimately not succeed if we do not seek responsibility; that's what leaders do. Otherwise, we are simply impudent. Our mantra of "God Bless America" might seem selfish, were it not for our belief that our country exists only because God gave us the right to operate in this fashion - so it's actually a prayer. When we say or sing, "God Bless America", we are humbly recognizing one of the greatest gifts of our lives. If we are to boldly rescue this country from the fate of obsolescence, which I believe to be imperative, it will be necessary for us to make and keep promises, work toward standing undivided, and, yes, express ourselves in a culture of morality deserving of such a gift.

God Bless America.

This is a Test

"Adversity causes some men to break; others to break records."
-William Arthur Ward

"This is a test. This is only a test."

Remember that annoying public service broadcast interruption that would break into your normally scheduled programming on television? It was designed to test an alert to be used in case of emergency; but really it broke in on my valued time with Vanna White or Three's Company. You couldn't wait for those emergency alerts to be over! However, somehow we knew it would serve some greater purpose.

The more you live - notice I purposely substituted "more" for "longer" - the more you learn about interruptions and obstacles. I remember studying the concept of adversity when coaching soccer with the goal of helping my teams through troubled times. One of the trials of a coach is how you confront defeat and somehow turn it into a teachable moment and an opportunity for growth. One fact I learned was that a lot of times you lose because you put yourself out there, and putting yourself in a position vulnerable to losing is, indeed, necessary in learning to win. Adversity, in short, is a test. It's only a test.

The saying, "everything happens for a reason" always rubs me the wrong way. I get it; it's all part of a plan, and either God or the forces of nature will always steer us toward some equilibrium. However, to me that theory always seems to propose that we are powerless, when contrarily the "reason" is that we are presented with an opportunity to be an active participant in our own rescue. Winning is what happens after the hurdle of the last thought of giving up. Adversity gives us that opportunity.

It's all a test.

Take Me Out to the Ball Game

Barbara Claypool was a fine woman and a good mom to a great friend. She was fiesty, friendly, fun, and generous. Apparently, known to her son as "Bulldog", I could never bring myself to call her that.
May she rest in peace.

Waking Up With John Kerry

Well, I woke up in Boston this morning. It happens. Actually, I woke up in Providence and then went back to sleep. One morning, I woke up in the French Riviera - now that's where you want your eyes to crack open from hours of darkness. Thanks to the invention of train travel, or as I refer to it - "the choo-choo".

Still rubbing my eyes from my eight-hour choo-choo slumber, upon my arrival at Boston South station, I was greeted by a media frenzy! Now, that is exactly why I have my personal assistant always put out misleading Tweets such as "out golfing" or "golly, this Big Mac is off the hook" so as to avoid such harrassment. However, I snuck past, undetected, a press conference featuring the mayor and Senator John Kerry and got a few photos myself. I'm thinking about my newest photo exhibit "Guys Who Do Not Live In The White House". I already have McCain and Fred Thompson on film. It's gonna be great!

Boston is a great city. Due to the nature of me being between jobs, and I've been here before, this day has been dedicated to relaxation, photos, and (of course) food. I actually write this from a park bench in the Public Garden - excellent place with a large pond, ducks, and swans. It's been a fantastic day of excellent weather, but getting a bit chilly as the dusk falls into night. Off to find some seafood!