Save a horse, ride a cowboy!

Just when Miss Tea thought she knew every spot in NYC, along comes something new ... to Miss Tea, that is. Sure, you've all done it...but do you talk about it?

Miss Tea is talking about that rambunctious mechanical bull housed at Johnny Utah's Restaurant and Bar. The dark, underground arena was filled with strapping, young men and sassy, young women, all drinking to their hearts content while cheering the latest victim of The Bull and waiting for the Shot Rounds when Miss Tea was present. What a perfect place to bring family.

Miss Tea needed some liquid motivation before getting on that thing so natch, we had bottle service (Prosecco $40). After struggling with mounting The Bull, Miss Tea held on for dear life, worried that she might break a nail. Sure enough, as the The Bull moved quickly, she slid slowly (and pathetically) down the side until she just let go of the rope. She glanced at the announcer/controller with a sheepish "I tried" look, to which he pointed at her to get back on The Bull, saying "You're not done." Sadly, Miss Tea tried again, only this time to be thrown off again as the bull spinned around. Trust, Miss Tea did not look sexy in front of the gaping audience.

On the other hand, Miss Tea's cousin, Miss KB, stayed on for a good 5-6 minutes. With one hand on the rope and the other in the air, Miss KB's agility to ride the bull in a rocking motion was quite impressive. It figures, the young ones know how to do this sort of thing.

Ah youth, come back. Miss Tea misses you.

Miss Tea vs. The Bull.

Tapas in Union Square

It's been awhile since Miss Tea saw her dear friend MLS and last night we finally met up! Of course, Miss Tea was in the mood for something new to dine and catch up. Big thank you to Miss Lala for suggesting Pipa Tapas y Mas, at Union Square. It's the restaurant that's part of the ABC Carpet store.

With an abundant amount of dimly lit chandeliers (and price tags hanging down in case you had an urge to splurge) spread throughout the room against the brick walls and dark wood, the restaurant is definitely 'muy romantico' and, judging from the crowd last night, definitely popular. Thank goodness Miss Lala told Miss Tea rsvp ahead of time.

The menu has a few sopas, a few ensaladas and a lot of tapas. Miss Tea and MLS both started with the Maiz Dulce (Hot) which is sweet corn and milk soup. MLS had the patatas bravas while Miss Tea nibbled on the crispy calamari with smoked paprika aioli, a little sweet but delish nonetheless. Miss Tea also had a glass of the Torrentes from Argentina.

Miss Tea definitely liked the vibe of this resto and wouldn't mind coming back just to hang out at the bar because of the Village crowd. Pipa is a welcomed addition to the list of USQ standbys: Heartland Brewery, Republic and Coffee Shop.

Incidentally, for those of you who have not heard, my beloved Pamplona hangout has closed. Wah! So Miss Tea must search for her next neighborhood hangout. Courage!

Visit www.pipa-nyc.com for reserverations, directions and menu. Ciao-ciao!

The Garden at Four Seasons NYC

Well, hello you!

That is probably what Miss Tea sounded like after a glass of the Ruinart champagne, served during the opening event of The Garden, the new restaurant and wine bar to hit the Four Seasons Hotel in New York. Luckily Miss Tea was able to bring a few plus ones to enjoy the event with her! Miss Lala, Rocky and Pdizzle were all in tow and mingled with the suits and high-maintenance chicks that cruised this "swanky party" (as Pdizzle would say). We also had the pleasure of meeting other people on the Manhattan Magazine circuit, and then some. ;o)

Aside from the bottomless glasses of champagne, we nibbled on serrano ham, machego cheese, goat cheese and flatbread crackers while waiters served passed apps of prociutto-stuffed and salami-stuffed dates, breaded risotto balls, spicy shrimp skewers and pate on top of toasted bread.

On top that, each of us got $50 off dinner to boot! How you doin'!

The Garden Restaurant and Wine Bar can be found on the lobby level of the Four Season Hotel.

http://www.fourseasons.com/

Do Some Good

Woo hoo hoo! Welcome back everyone! Hope you had a nice long Labor Day weekend like Miss Tea did! Now that the NYC kiddies are back in school and September is in full swing, it's time for you to do some good. So if you're going to be in the NYC area, check out Safe Horizon's A Night Under the Stars presented by the organizations Junior Council. Not to mention that this event will be held at one of Miss Tea's favorite joints - Empire Hotel Rooftop. Enjoy the weather while it lasts! Before you know it, we'll be shivering in our shoes...brrr. Well, maybe just you guys. Miss Tea is planning yet another adventure somewhere warm!

Schmoozing...well, sort of.

Miss Tea is fatigued today because of last night's soiree. pubLiZity and Miss Tea received an invitation to Manhattan Modern Luxury Magazine's celebration of their Restaurant Issue (July/August 2009). Unfortunately, pubLiZity couldn't make it last minute. Luckily Miss Tea found three friends to replaced her. Yes, it takes three people to replace the illustrioius pubLiZity. Also, Miss Tea likes having an entourage.

Off to the Poliform showroom Miss Tea went, with Natasha 98, Miss Lala and P.Dizzle in tow. Thankfully, the list-checking, crasher-kicking bouncer chicks let Miss Tea through with her, uh, plus three. (Honestly Lala, Miss Tea just gave her name and the woman crossed out the plus one and changed it to three. Miss Tea's reputation precedes her perhaps? Nah.)

When the elevator door opened to the 6th floor, we were greeted by several handsome/beautiful servers who offered us champagne - now that's how you say hello to a guest! Manhattan Mag certainly knew how to throw a swanky party, complete with DJ, a Leblon Rum-stocked bar and some of the restaurants featured in the magazine.

First stop was Anthos, where Chef Michael Psilakis served us his Greek sushi (and almost slaped Miss Lala for taking her plate before he was done putting the toppings on it). Next stop was Jean Georges, where the master chef himself served us breaded shrimp laid on a a special dipping saunce. Our last stop was Bouley, where Chef Isao Yamada served a lobster treat. Throughout the night we sipped on Leblon Sangria Blanco and enjoyed watching all the beautiful people, servers and guests alike, like us.

Here are more pictures from the evening. The Poliform showroom worked well as the backdrop for this event. Miss Tea wishes she had some of these closets and kitchens in her own house.

Miss Tea needs to create a T-shirt that reads "I HEART food." P.S. Were the chefs really there? Um, yeah! But Miss Tea did not take pictures of them, because she was starting to embarress her entourage.

Breach of the Cancun Diet

Miss Tea would like to apologize to Rocky Stillwell for the breach of agreement made regarding the Cancun diet. Despite her attempts to maintain said diet by attending three Bikram yoga classes and feasting on fish for the past week, Miss Tea lost all discipline during dinner at Agua Dulce, a new restaurant in Hells Kitchen. Within the compounds of this "Havana beach club," the initial neglect of compliance occurred with an order of one passion fruit mojito at the bar with Miss Ija.

After being seated and joined by fellow cohort Miss Charly, the infraction continued with appetizers of warm tortilla chips and freshly made guacamole, pulpo gallego (galician octopus, smoked paprika, arbequina olive) and salmon citrus cerviche.

By the approximate third mojito, the ultimate injuction manifested in the dish of churrasco skirt steak with chimi churri, sea salt and roasted potato. All parties present also engaged in the allotment of one smoked tea braised beef short rib with soy charred string bean and crispy ropa vieja. Miss Tea is guilty of partaking in such excessive and exquisite dining, as she admitted such remarks to Chef Ulrich Sterling upon visitation of her party's table.

Such insubordination three weeks prior to the Mexican sabbatical may still be amended if the original purpose of the Cancun diet is reinstated and motivation is reinforced on a visual level. Thus, Miss Tea must review the analysis of the muffin top:

Exhibit A

All this work just to look good while lounging on a beach. Sigh.

Swing of Things

Do-ba-do-bop-bop-bop...

Miss Tea spent a beautiful night under the stars at Lincoln Center's Damrosch Park, the location of their Midsummer Night Swing ...a series of evening dancing all summer long.

In honor of Lincoln Center's 50th anniversary, the Young Patrons of Lincoln Center (YPLC) held the "Swing of Things" Summer Event where Miss Tea, Miss Ija and Miss Charly sampled summer creations of area restaurants and specialty cocktails. The vibe was all summer mellow. Despite the fancy food and fancy fashion (the women obviously went home to don their best, shiny cocktail dress and strappy sandals), everyone was incredibly friendly and chatty...not your typical NYCer.

It was a pity that there were much more women that men at this event. If you were a single guy at this event, you seriously had your pick .. and we all looked good.

The folks at Arpeggio served mushroom-topped crostinis with a cream sauce while Vermillion served spicy duck on a polenta cracker (interesting cuisine of Indian-Latin fusion). Miss Tea also tried the pork belly and veal cheeks served by Seasonal. All of it was delish and kept Miss Tea in line for seconds. Other interesting discoveries were Bulldog Gin ("Definitely Delicious. Authentically London" and Starr African Rum - perhaps because the servers weren't as stingy as the ones at the main bar who served a shot glass of wine per person. Boo!

Of course the 3 gals had to inquire about the Young Patrons of Lincoln Center, young professsionals dedicated to celebrating and supporting the performing arts. While Miss Tea is teetering on membership, she is interested in the Fall Masquerade Gala on October 29th.

Because, you know, Miss Tea can't resist the glam...all she needs are swing lessons! :o)

For more information, please visit www.lincolncenter.org.

Mum's the Word

Miss Tea and Miss Ija hit the town Wednesdsay night to try out a new, hush-hush, Japanese restaurant called Bohemian. Miss Tea had been rejected before by the GM because she didn't have a reservation, but at least she got a bizcard. The whole concept of this resto is to keep it low-key, hence the Spanish Inquisition when inquiring or reserving seats at the speakeasy.

This small, one-room restaurant is simply decorated with beautiful skylight, a paint-brushed design of the world on white and an alcove Zen garden. Miss Tea guesses there are about 20-24 seats (armchairs and sofas here) plus seating at the counter. The soothing ambiance would make any diner focus on their dishes and the conversation at hand.

If you happen to come across Bohemian and are granted an reservation (seriously, reserve 1-2 weeks in advance to get a seat), Miss Tea highly recommends the Tasting menu...go ahead and spend the money - it's worth it! Miss Tea sampled six dishes, all of which were amazing. They don't have a liquor license so BYOB. Miss Tea brought a yummy bottle of Yellow Tail Chardonnay from Australia (compliments of Lala - thank you Lala!). Hmmm, Miss Tea has started to choose Chardonnay over Pinot Grigio lately. Must be the change in weather...

If you happen to use the restroom, be warned. It is the typical Japanese toilet with remote control on the side. Thankfully Miss Tea has already been to Tokyo and experimented with each of those buttons to know that she should "look, don't touch."

After din-din, Miss Tea and Miss Ija went off to Wine Bar where we had a couple glasses of Chablis and Viognier. Though we didn't order anything, Miss Tea can vouch that the food at Wine Bar is incredibly good for noshing and all those wines lined up against the brick wall just put a smile on Miss Tea's face. There's outdoor seating and the seating is "community table" style inside. Miss Tea prefers coming here at night when it's dark and cozy and full of people.

Ahhh...there's nothing like spending a night out filled with food and wine, accompanied by a good friend who will bitch with you about everything else. :o)

To find out more about Bohemian, visit www.urbandaddy.com (New York) and search for "Bohemian."

To visit Winebar, visit www.winebarnyc.com.

Public Service Announcement

Natasha 98 has been telling Miss Tea for the longest time about the Shake Shack in Madison Square Park (http://www.shakeshack.com/). However, Miss Tea has never had a desire to try it out because of the habitual long line of a block and a half.

Finally last Friday, since Miss Tea and Natasha 98 both found some free time, we headed over there. The menu was interesting: they served beer and wine along with burgers, hot dogs, and frozen custards. Gone for an hour and a half, it probably took us 45 minutes to stand on line and 10 minutes to down the soda, fries and "Shackburger." To be quite honest, Miss Tea still thought the burgers at Burger Joint were better. But at least we got to sit in the park on a nice, sunny day.

Unfortunately, Natasha 98 was having unusual issues with our dining neighbors - a father and daughter duo - where the girl kept on feeding fries to the pigeons. Now, this was quite annoying because these pigeons flapped away between us, vying for a crumb. And these "New York" pigeons clearly have no fear of people as Miss Tea has personally seen one swoop down and almost scratch a man's head.

However, Miss Tea deals with the birds as one of those NYC things, like oddly black squirrels in Washington Square Park. Natasha 98, on the other hand, has a vehement haterid for these 'loathsome' creatures. "Why are they allowed to roam free?! Why aren't they kept in a zoo?!"

So while Miss Tea shooed these pigeons away with a folding chair (because there was a flock of them gathering between our tables), Natasha 98 remarked out loud, "It's her! She keeps on feeding them!!!" Miss Tea has never seen Natasha 98 so upset that she was shaking. Thank gawd this girl got a clue and stopped feeding the birds because Natasha 98 was ready to bitch-slap her.

Let this be a lesson, everyone: enjoy the outdoors, the sun, the park - but please, DO NOT FEED THE BIRDS.

Run Woman, Run!

Last night Miss Tea went to the 40/40 Club for an information session with The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Team In Training® - the world's largest endurance sports training program. The program provides training to run or walk a marathon or half marathon, swim, hike, bike and run a triathlon or take on a century bike ride (100 miles). In attendance with Miss Tea were Miss Ivy and Fau, who left with a gorgeous door prize – a big box of cosmetics. After asking as many questions about why Miss Tea should NOT participate, she finally did it…yes, Miss Tea signed up to train for the Nike Women’s Marathon in October 2009. So you’ll be hearing Miss Tea talk about this ever so often this year, and will probably throw a few fundraising parties in the mix. Of course, Miss Tea appreciates the support of her family and friends…even the ones who snickered (ahem, Rocky).

One of the items in our goodie bag was a discount card to Bikram Yoga, something that Rocky loves and wants Miss Tea to try. Rocky, so sweetly, offered to attend a few classes with Miss Tea so that she won't feel so self conscious about sweating like a piglet and falling over in some kind of twisted eagle position. Awwww…

Afterwards, the gals headed over to Pranna for a cocktail quickie and dished on topics like the swine flu (and everyone’s over-exaggeration) to Millionaire Matchmaker’s Guide (yes, Miss Tea did by Patti Stanger’s book – need all the help here) to learning how to play golf. Looks like Fau will plan a golf lesson for us at Chelsea Piers…Miss Tea hopes she won’t hurt anyone with her…um…what do you call it? A stick? Huh?...oh…a club. Thanks Natasha 98!

By the way, Miss Tea is not one for the sports bars (in face it’s more of a nightmare ambience) but the 40/40 Club was fascinating and the food was surprisingly good. For some reason, Miss Tea associated sports bar menus with pub grub…wonder why.


Anyhoo, stay tuned…

Team in Training
http://www.lls.org

Bikram Yoga NYC
http://www.bikramyoganyc.com/

http://www.4040club.com
6 W. 25th Street
New York, NY 10010
(212) 832.4040

Friday Night in NYC

Miss Tea received an invitation to attend the first in a series of “Cultural Pairings in NYC” last night (4/24/09). Not knowing fully what this event entailed, Miss Tea seized the opportunity to snag Rocky Stillwell (colleague and confidante) as her date for the evening – woo hoo!

First stop was Pranna for their Weekday Warm-up Menu. Rocky and Miss Tea needed to prep up, in case there were no appies or alcohol at the event. Rocky sipped on the Emerald Bay cocktail (Sonnema Herb Vodka and St. Germain elderflower liquor, green tea, fresh lemon juice) while Miss Tea had her soon-to-be-usual Muscadet Cuve St Vincent Michel Delhommeau 2007. Both of us also tried the Penang Chicken Spring Roll with Tamarind Mustard and Paneer and Potato Croquettes with Homemade Banana Ketchup….both were sooooo good (ok, Miss Tea will tone down the gushing of food…soon). Seeing Pranna for the first time, Rocky thought it was a gorgeous restaurant and asked the servers about the crowd and ambience in the PM. Miss Tea informed Rocky of all the hidden spaces for private parties within the venue – even Condé Nast Traveler hosted their Hot List Party at Pranna last week (Natasha 98 and Miss Tea noticed them setting up).

Next stop was the Agatha Ruiz de la Prada NY Store, the venue for the “Culturing Pairings”. After walking around the wrong way because of wrong directions (Miss Tea still gets confused in the Village area), we finally found the cute and colorful store. Agatha Ruiz de la Prada is a Spanish fashion designer, known for her whimsical and colorful styles. Rocky and Miss Tea loved the cute clothing and creative designs. This soiree had a DJ and acoustic band in the front of the elongated store, painted all white with a few colorful stripes here and there.

On the tables were mini brochures promoting the designer and co-sponsor Global Events, a worldwide special events management company (www.global-events.com). Miss Tea was glad to see this party also promoted Vibrant Rioja, celebrating the wines of Spain. Check out www.VibrantRioja.com to learn about Rioja Restaurant Week in NYC (April 29th to May 2nd). While we checked out the crowd, Rocky shared a rather endearing line: “Food is the way to my heart, wine is the way to my bed.” Sigh. I can see it now: Greeting Cards by Rocky Stillwell.

After sampling the Rioja and a few passed appetizers (the chicken cups and tuna tartar on a fried wonton crisp were pretty good), Rocky and Miss Tea mingled towards Señor CL, my host for the party. An incredibly nice Spaniard, Señor CL told us about the concept of the Cultural Pairings – this event was the pairing of art and fashion. He told us how popular Agatha’s clothes are in Spain and this NYC store served as the perfect venue for exhibiting the works of four NYC photographers:

Jon Smith - www.jonathansmithphotography.com
Michael Creagh - www.michaelcreagh.com
Andrew Hetherington - www.ahetherington.com
Benjamin Lowy www.benlowy.com

After thanking Señor CL for the invitation, Rocky and I moseyed on to Pangea Restaurant for dinner, another favorite haunt of Miss Tea. Imagine my delight to greet owner Arnoldo, still looking fabulous and flaunty, and Douglas and Marek still serving it up! Rocky had a pear cocktail special (so delish!) as well as fried calamari, roasted bistro chicken and spinach and ricotta ravioli. Miss Tea LOVES Pangea because of the Meditrerranean-esque menu, the incredibly decent prices, and of course, for the friendly faces who welcome you back with open arms after months of absence. After dinner, Miss Tea showed Rocky the private party room in the back. Rocky’s planning a birthday party for Mama Stillwell so in hanging out with Miss Tea, Rocky got to see two potential venues – Pranna and Pangea. :o)

Finally Rocky and Miss Tea headed off to subway land. Kiss kiss, huuuuug, goodnight.

http://www.prannarestaurant.com/
79 Madison Avenue
New York, NY 10016
212 696 5700

http://www.pangeanyc.com/
178 2nd Avenue (between 11 & 12 Sts)
New York, NY 10003
212 995 0900

http://agatharuizdelaprada-com.blogspot.com/
135 Wooster Street (at Prince)
New York, NY 10012
212 598 4078

Miss Tea Makes Her Own Food & Wine Week Schedule

This week was all about food and wine – Miss Tea could’ve planned out the week like a festival if she did enough research on it!

On Saturday (4/4/09), Miss Tea and friend, Bella Italiana, attended a wine seminar at Le Bernardin, hosted by sommelier Aldo Sohm. The topic of the seminar was “Differences Between Champagne, Prosecco, Cava and Sparkling Wines.” Definitely a useful course for Miss Tea on “How to Taste", noting the differences in color, aroma and yes, even the size of those cute bubbles! Miss Tea loved the set up – a U-shaped table for 22 with eight numbered glasses clearly marked at each place setting, along with a seminar pamphlet.

Miss Tea took plenty of notes for future reference. You never know when information like this could come in handy, perhaps at some benefit gala or society brunch or romantic date to fill the lull in conversation…but I digress.

Both Bella Italiana and Miss Tea learned that the handsome Aldo Sohm was from Austria (love his accent). Bella Italiana remarked that he looked more my age than hers, and that Miss Tea should “go for it.” Sigh. As Miss Tea is still single, clearly she has no idea how to “go for it” and managed a timid handshake and a smile instead.

After the seminar, we had a few canapés which were delish! We thanked Aldo for his time and went on our merry way. Yes, Miss Tea did leave Le Bernardin just a tad tipsy. Incidentally, congratulations to Aldo Sohm on his nomination for the Outstanding Wine Service Award 2009 by the James Beard Foundation. Clink-clink!

For dinner, Miss Tea and Bella Italiana went to Estiatorio Milos, a seafood restaurant in Midtown. It’s been awhile, but yes, Miss Tea came back to Milos…only to find the service has slightly been downgraded. She did not appreciate being seated in the corner of the restaurant right next to the bar, nor having to track down a server to order her meal after waiting for 40 minutes. Shambles. If the food wasn’t so enticing, Miss Tea would have walked out (and probably embarrass poor Bella Italiana).

The prix-fixe menu is also a plus, served from 5:00pm – 6:30pm and from 10:00pm – 11:45pm. Miss Tea dined on the grilled octopus, followed by a plate of Greek salad, then the main course of grilled Loup de Mer (a fish from the island of Kephalonia, similar to sea bass) and for dessert, Karidopita, a walnut cake with vanilla ice cream. All this, accompanied by a glass (or two) of the 2008 Malagousia wine (Greek), from the “Mountichas Family” Avantis Estate, Evia. After a nice day of wonderful wine and food, and great company, Miss Tea needed some rest.

Le Bernardin
155 W. 51st St., New York, NY 10019 Between 6th & 7th Avenue
(212) 554-1515 www.le-bernardin.com

Estiatorio Milos
125 W. 55th St., New York, NY 10019 nr. Sixth Ave.
(212) 245-7400 http://milos.ca/

On Wednesday (4/8/09), Miss Tea had the pleasure of meeting one of the newest chefs on the scene – Curtis Stone, Australian chef of the popular reality/cooking show titled, "Take Home Chef". He has released his latest cookbook “Relaxed Cooking” and was at William Sonoma in Chelsea for a booksigning and cooking demo. People Magazine voted him as one of the sexiest men alive and if you haven’t guessed yet, Miss Tea is fan of the sexy men, especially those who can cook. And to those sexy, cooking men who are single – Miss Tea is available.

Miss Tea read about Curtis’ appearance on his web site, www.curtisstone.com, and followed his schedule to NYC and William Sonoma. Luckily, Miss Tea was able to drag another friend, Natasha 98, to the event for moral support…and to humor Miss Tea as her photographer.

We were both pleasantly surprised to be served two tidbits from “Relaxed Cooking” while waiting on line for Curtis to appear. Everyone on line was served a veggie fritter and Eggplant dip with toasted pita bread. Very thoughtful, considering Curtis was late.

I love his accent. I love all accents!

At the event, Miss Tea got to introduce herself to Curtis, shake his hand, take a snug picture with him (he had to come close as Miss Tea is vertically challenged) and have her cookbook signed. Then Curtis asked Miss Tea to stick around for the cooking demo (didn’t know there was one), to which Miss Tea replied instantaneously “Sure!” Curtis could ask anything of Miss Tea and the answer will always be ‘yes’. You hear me Curtis?!

So Miss Tea and Natasha 98 waited (again) in front of the workspace diligently until Curtis was ready to cook, inconspicuously noshing on more pita bread and eggplant dip until the server took it away to serve the other people on line. Oops!

Okay, it’s babaganoush – come on, we all know that’s what it is. Sorry Curtis, that eggplant dip ain’t new.

When Curtis started his demo, he entertained the audience, cracking a few jokes that put everyone at ease – he is quite charismatic. Of course, he had a “very bad cook” helping him (chosen from the audience) as his sous-chef. No joke, she really was bad and didn’t even know how to slice a pickle. Then people got to shout out questions to him, including Miss Tea: Do you plan to open any restaurants in the States?

Curtis: If I did, it would probably be somewhere in LA because I would want to be around so that I could be at the restaurant. Although, I’ve thought about looking for place here in Manhattan. I like it here.

Mind you, Miss Tea is paraphrasing as her memory has gone shoddy in her thirties. And yes, Miss Tea and Curtis are exactly the same age, in case you were wondering.

One unsightly girl with a pancake layer of makeup and uber-gratuitous cleavage stood directly in front of Curtis. Miss Tea does not condone the slutty and flirtatiously offensive. This girl was re-applying her makeup (ugh) and making loud comments about how Curtis is such a “hot chef” to a point that everyone else around was embarrassed for her. And Curtis did not appreciate her banter either, in fact he looked peeved and just started to ignore her altogether. Miss Tea was tempted to ask Curtis, “So how do you handle brazen women who shamelessly throw themselves at you?” But that would’ve started a cat fight (which Miss Tea would’ve won) and Natasha 98 would’ve had to drag me out of the store.

Ladies, please be ladies no matter who you’re drooling over. Desperation is sooooo unattractive.

All in all, it was a lovely evening and Miss Tea left with a big smile on her face. A special shot-out to Natasha 98 for having to endure all this with me. Thank gawd she enjoyed it all.

Later that evening, Miss Tea sat down with a glass of wine (Bigi Orvieto Classico 2006 – a dry wine, great for cooking) and reviewed all her photos and videos from the event.

Miss Tea liked this week – thumbs up!