Sydney’s 30th annual birthday festivities!
January 23, 2009
I’ve always made a big deal out of my birthdays – and the birthdays of my friends as well. It’s so much fun to shop for great cards for my girlfriends, and I receive a lot of really terrific ones too. For years I had big parties, but lately have more small or one-on-one dinners.
Those of you who get my newsletter read about The Big Night itself already, but for those of you who haven’t, here is a reprint: Even though my annual 30th birthday was last week, I spread out the festivities over the entire month! On “The Night” itself, we celebrated at Aureole, a beautiful private townhouse where I once had what still rates as the best meal in my entire life. We drank Taittinger champagne and had and the four-course tasting menu (my choices were foie gras, medallions of venison, small dishs of three different kinds of crème brulee for dessert and finished up with a cheese course). I was so full I couldn’t eat a thing the entire next day!
My assistant, Patty, and her boyfriend both have birthdays within two weeks of mine, and every year we get together in her big loft apartment in Chelsea and she cooks a wonderful dinner and I bring dessert. Once again, I couldn’t eat another thing the next day! She is a terrific cook and we always have such a good time together.
My friend Marcia McCabe, who some of you may remember as Sunny from the now discontinued soap opera, Search for Tomorrow, always takes me somewhere fabulous, and this year we went to Porterhouse in the Time Warner building. We had a booth overlooking Central Park, a bottle of Charles Heidsieck champagne, a porterhouse steak for two, and the best creamed spinach ever made! Oh, and an ice cream sundae for dessert. Yummm… She took pictures, but is the only person I know besides Dan Kennedy who does not have email, so I can’t post then for you.
Then last night, I went with another friend who runs a private equity firm and whose birthday is a week before mine, to PJ Clarkes, which is right across from Lincoln Center. He told the waiter to keep the cocktails coming, and eventually we had some appetizers, but basically it was a liquid meal! He walked me the seven blocks home to my apartment and believe me, we both needed that blast of cold air!
One more dinner this weekend at the home of an old friend, and I believe that’s it for this year. I hope all of you make a big deal out of your birthdays too. It’s the one day of the year where you’re the star, so go for it!
Posted in 
content rss