After hearing about my night at Bennigan’s, Caleb wanted to go and try his luck at finding the sandwich with a pretzel bun — which is no longer on the menu. We had an early dinner around 4:30 as the BBQ invite was to arrive between 5 and 6, so I knew dinner would be later and it was definitely worth the wait. I got to meet Wasan’s husband, the French chef; her neighbor who likes cigarettes, Carlsberg beer, and dog kisses; and one of her triathlon training friends.

The rest of the crowd was waiting on the chicken, meat, and shrimp to finish on the grill while I enjoyed the asparagus and other veggies, two salads consisting of carrot and onion and another mostly olive and potato, two loaves of bread — one zaatar and the other olive, and baked potatoes. There were plenty of nuts, trail mix, and Cheetos and the drinks of which I had mostly water didn’t disappoint either, but there was champagne, red wine, XO cognac, and an alcoholic punch. I’d have stayed a couple more hours but my ride, without having to worry about a taxi, was ready to go.