Wicked the Musical

Location:  Ohio Theater
Date:  July 31, 2010

I've been hearing a lot of good comments about this musical even before it came here in Columbus and it really made me curious.  With no idea what the story is all about, I went ahead and bought tickets as soon as it went on sale.  And I wasn't disappointed.  It was WICKED indeed!  The music is fantabulous! The cast is superb! The costumes and stage are gorgeous!  I have been to a few Broadway shows and so far, this is one of my favorites.  I just love everything about it! I wouldn't hesitate to see it again!

Without giving too much spoilers, the story conveys the social message of "Don't judge the book by its cover".  It is also about pursuing your dreams and taking a stand to follow your principles and moral sense.  But I wasn't expecting that it would also be about friendship.  A friendship that found a way to go beyond the tests and challenges thrown upon them and ended up having a mutual love and hope of good for both of them.  Everyone can really relate to the story.  This is an excerpt of Glinda's part from the song "For Good":

I've heard it said
That people come into our lives for a reason
Bringing something we must learn
And we are led
To those who helped us most to grow
If we let them
And we help them in return
Well, I don't know if I believe that's true
But I know I'm who I am today
Because I knew you...

My favorite scene was when Elphaba is lifted up from the stage like she's flying.  This is when Elphaba discovers the wizard's true and evil character and decided to change her dreams and not to join his kingdom.  So, the wizard ordered the people to kill her because she's wicked.  Despite social rejection and separating from her best friend Glinda, Elphaba took a stand by following her inner moral sense.  In this scene, I could really feel the character's passion and emotion taking a stand, pursuing her dreams, flying high and defying gravity.

So if you care to find me
Look to the western sky
As someone told me lately:
"Everyone deserves a chance to fly"
And if I'm flying solo
At least I'm flying free
To those who'd ground me
Take a message back from me:
Tell them how I am defying gravity
I'm flying high defying gravity
And soon I'll match them in renown
And nobody in all of Oz
No wizard that there is or was
Is ever gonna bring me down!

As I was looking at the cd's pictures, I noticed familiar faces in Elphaba's and Glinda's characters from the original Broadway cast.  So, I googled it and lo and behold!  They were Rachel's mom and Will's high school crush, April, respectively, from the hit television show "Glee"! I feel so stupid as I'm the last one in the whole world to know.  Anyways, it would have been cool to watch the original cast.  But Jackie Burns did an awesome job!

Maggiano's Little Italy

Location: Indianapolis, Indiana
Date:  July 29, 2010

It's been a very long time since my last visit to this Italian-American restaurant.  I couldn't even remember what I had.  Anyways, we were thirty minutes early for our 7:30pm reservation but they graciously seated us after a just a few minutes of waiting.  Their waiting area has an ample space and seats so there were no inconvenience at all.

Right after we were seated, my hubby said, "Happy anniversary!". How can I forget!  It's one day early but yeah, it's our second year of marriage.  How time flies!

After spending a few minutes on their big-size dinner menus, by the way, do you notice how most expensive restaurants have this big size menus?  It's like the bigger and heavier their menus, the classier they are.  So, after spending a few minutes browsing these menus, for appetizers, as crab cake lovers, we couldn't resist but order this.  They are priced at $12.75.  They came in two medium-sized lumps, topped with crisp onion rings and served with a side of mustard sauce.  They were superb (well, for the price, they should be)!  They're soft and very tasty.  You don't actually need the sauce to get more flavor.

For the main course, I ordered the Balsamic-glazed salmon ($17.95) served with Mediterranean orzo with pine nuts.  The aroma of the first slice of salmon is appetizing!  The temperature was hot not warm. This is my first time to eat Mediterranean orzo.  It looks like a different kind of rice and tastes like pasta, of course!  It's a rice-shaped pasta!  I find it kinda weird. I guess, it takes getting used to.  It's like I keep on expecting the taste of rice and couldn't get it.  Funny!  Italian servings are huge and so does this one. The dishes on my photos may look small but they are really more than satisfying.

Luckily, the taste of my sweet red sangria ($7) complimented with the dish.  I like their red sangria which came with a slice of orange and cherry.

DH had the Medallions of beef ($22.50) served with a delicious roasted garlic mashed potatoes (one of the best tasting mashed potatoes I've had) and a portabella mushroom sauce.

DH paired it with Maggiano's signature wine ($7), a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Sangiovese.  DH loved it!

Unfortunately, the service was mediocre for this type of restaurant.   Our server didn't mention the specials which the other server did on the other table.  She didn't come back to check on us after serving the main courses.  We may have come during a busy time but we should be given the service that we deserve.

Nevertheless, we enjoyed our anniversary celebration.  It's the special person that you're spending your dinner with is ultimately what really matters.

Petit Chou

Location: Carmel, Indiana
Date: July 29, 2010

Today's my third time to dine in this casual, French restaurant, perfectly situated in the corner of Clay Terrace boulevard.  They have patio seating which is very popular in all restaurants during summer but hubby and I prefer to be seated inside especially dining during lunch.  Once seated, you will be served with a glass of ice water.  (Water is a staple for me.  I seldom order drinks, only in special occasions.  I know I should start ordering a variety of drinks if I continue making reviews).  One of the things I like about this restaurant, is they have this variety of coffees in thermos bottles, oh, like in Panera Bread.  Just help yourself, feel at home and grab a mug from their coffee mug tree and pour your heart out.  Their selections this time are Costa Rica blend, coconut cream pie and the usual patachou blend and patachou blend decaf.  The coconut cream pie tastes coconut and the aroma is distinctly coconut too.  But this is only at first.  After the few sips, you begin not to notice it anymore.

So, for my lunch, I chose Crepe Complete, which is a choice of bacon or ham, goat cheese and a touch of bechamel - a French white sauce made of butter, flour and milk.   Their crepes, as they mention in their menu, are made to order using French flour to ensure authenticity and flavor.  And that is true.  The crepe was made perfectly.  Once you make that gentle slice to the paper-thin crepe, the bechamel began oozing as well as the ham and goat cheese.  This is just a simple meal, nothing complicated.  But it always amazes me how they make a perfect crepe.  You know, how they look like neatly folded.  I can barely cook an omelet without dissolving it into pieces.  The lightly dressed field greens which is served alongside the crepe also compliments the flavor.  

I also ordered Harrison's crepe to go for dessert.  Hubby is already late for work so I just savored it (all by myself hahaha!) in the hotel.  Our server forgot to include a fork in the bag so I just got one from the hotel's cafe.  With berries and chocolate, you can never go wrong.  It's really the best of both worlds.  The crepe is filled with strawberries and blueberries, chocolate ganache and creme anglaise (rich vanilla-flavored sauce).  The warm chocolate ganache is just perfect, not too sweet.

Just a trivia:  What does "petit chou" exactly mean?  I learned that the literal translation is "a little cabbage" but generally used, however, to express how cute or sweet someone is.