Jazz and Chocolate

Mom, Dad and Emma Grace came to visit for the weekend. I picked up Emma Grace in Alpharetta and we had dinner in Buckhead at Anis Bistro (http://www.anisbistro.com/). "Tucked away in a sleepy side street in the heart of Buckhead, Anis Bistro is located in a converted house that has been renovated to look and feel like one of the many charming restaurants you're likely to find in the Provence region in the south of France". We had Orangina in little red wine glasses and Emma Grace liked getting a new set of silverware with every course. We met Mom and Dad downtown and went to Atlanta Symphony Hall to hear Wynton Marsalis. We then went to Dailey's downtown for dessert (http://www.daileysrestaurant.com/). We each got our own dessert and shared among the table. Emma Grace had the BLACK AND WHITE CAKE, a three layer chocolate cake layered with whipped cream and chocolate mousse filling, wrapped with a semi-sweet chocolate shell. Papa had the PARIS BREST, a pastry shell filled with bananas, homemade whipped cream, vanilla custard, hot fudge, and nuts; topped with more whipped cream, hot fudge, and nuts. Nona had the CHOCOLATE BREAD PUDDING, served warm with vanilla ice cream. I had the CHOCOLATE CHARLOTTE, a Fudge brownie shell filled with a dark chocolate mousse and topped with homemade whipped cream. Nona was the only one who could clean finish hers. The others came home with us to be consumed the next night while in our jammies with tall glasses of milk. But it wasn't all about the chocolate, the jazz was amazing, mind-blowing actually. They played songs composed by members of the ensemble. The fact that you can hear music like that in your mind, put it on paper, for multiple instruments and then have the talent to play it is astounding. Jazz is a whole realm of music that in itself is simply all over the place, but comes together in beautiful holy chaos and you always hear something different each time. It is incredibly multi-faceted obviously and the art of jazz just blows me away. The chocolate was pretty amazing though and the Orangina and our French Mediterranean experience all made for a fantastic Friday night. And of course, I could not have picked a better dinner companion than Emma Grace.