The Living Room Theater

I enjoy a good Bloody Mary.  I enjoy going to the movies.  Both things help me relax.  What could possibly be better than the union of those two things?  I salute the Living Room Theater in Portland, OR (there's also one in Boca Raton, FL) for not only combining two of my favorites but doing so very well. 

I recently stopped in to see The Trip.  It was a great movie, truly hilarious and worth a see in any theater.  Seeing it at the Living Room only enhanced the experience.  I had a Bloody Mary at the bar before the movie started, and then settled in to a very comfortable chair in an intimate theater and had another delivered to me by a cheerful staff.  The popcorn is served a size substantially more manageable than the usual 55-gallon drum that I never finish.  Concessions also run to the much more substantial, though I stopped at a Toblerone.  If you enjoy the movies and find yourself in Portland or Boca, I highly recommend you stop by and take in a show.  I can't imagine you'll be disappointed.

Il Localino, Atlanta Italian

I try to maintain an honest distance in these posts, an unclouded perspective.  In this case, I'd be lying if I said I was completely unaffected.  I've been eating at Il Localino for more than half my life.  If you don't have in your life a place that feels like Cheers, I highly recommend you cultivate one.  I've just been exceptionally lucky in that mine is one with exceptional food and a persistent good time. 

If you love Italian food (an honestly who doesn't?), you have to give Il Localino a try.  The food is immaculate, the owners and staff are warm, and the environment is a constant party.  I personally go with the veal scaloppini in a champagne sauce with mushrooms, but you can't go wrong with the menu.  Stop in and say hello, enjoy the food and the party.

The Flying Dutchman - St. Petersburg, Russia

The Flying Dutchman is a restaurant, but I'm definitely labelling this post as entertainment.  The Dutchman is a moored pirate ship just past a famous drawbridge that goes up nightly in St. Petersburg.  After a typical overcharging by a cab driver, we arrived at the pirate ship to find it mostly empty.  But, it was early for St. Petersburg at 2330. 

We began with an attempt to order Bloody Mary's.  The language barrier we were trying to cross was only semi-permeable, so we ended up with several iterations of tomato juice and some vodka shots.  Ultimately, a share ceasar salad was above average.  We were able to sit outside and enjoy the the first real night seen since arriving in St. Petersburg a week ago.  Unfortunately, we were on the wrong side of the draw bridge and had a flee to another restaurant/ship on the other side of the river before the bridge went up. 

I can't hold its geography against it though.  Definitely stop by the Flying Dutchman, especially if your Russian is rusty to non-existent.  You're almost assured a good time to accompany the view and food.

Swan Lake at the Alexandrinsky Theater St. Petersburg

In a bygone era I dated a girl whose good friend was in the ballet.  At that time I did enough studying of the ballet to be conversant at a very very basic level.  Last night, I reached into the deep memory banks for that knowledge while attending a performance of Swan Lake at the Alexandrinsky Theater. 

This is by no means a critique of the ballet, for that I am completely unqualified.  I will say from what I can recall the dancers for the most part were technically proficient.  I thought the set was magnificent, and the orchestra played a terrific set.  In any event, though it perhaps borders on the cheeseily stereotypical to attend a ballet in Russia, I had a really fantastic time, a lot of which was definitely the great company I shared it with.  There was a nice balcony where we enjoyed drinks and a view of the park below before the show and during intermissions. 

Not sure what will be showing if you find yourself in St. Petersburg, but the venue was enjoyable and the evening perfect.  I would highly recommend you try and take it in.