NOTTI BIANCHE

Executive Chef Brendan Cox previewed his Fall Menu for us this week at Notti Bianche on New Hampshire Ave. between 24th and 25th NW. I actually felt like I was participating on TLC's Top Chef -- We were served multiple (yummy) mini-meals and they were all paired with wine. Since I don't drink, I had to skip that part. Kind of cheesy, huh?

These opportunities are fun for me because I get to rub elbows with "foodies" who actually write about the restaurant scene and whatnot for a living. It is an instant opportunity for me to ask etiquette questions as the "situation" is unfolding.

Erin Hartigan, food and dining editor for Washingtonpost.com, was especially helpful when I said "Okay, I morally object to veal and the next dish includes veal. Should I just politely tell the waiter 'no thank you' when he goes to place the dish down?" Erin said I should do what makes me feel the most comfortable. She suggested that accepting the dish will at least allow me to play with it and not make it uncomfortable for the other folks dining and wondering why I wouldn't have a plate. So that quickly solved my dilemma.

Then there was the "which fork do I use?" dilemma. You know how they put a small fork on the outside and a large one on the inside at the place setting? In math, when you have a set of equations that are within parenthesis, you work your way out -- start inside the innermost parenthesized part and work outwards. Well, in food, it's the opposite. Following Erin's lead, I used the small fork on the outside that was replaced every time.

Of course, no dinner would be complete without my buddy Tommy McFly from Mix 107.3, bumbling with me through the food etiquette dilemmas. I enjoyed his look of panic when some Foie Gras was placed before him (another food item I am morally opposed to.)

All in all, what I *did* eat was delicious. The company was even better.