RAVE - A Walk Among The Tombstones

Liam Neeson is an ex-Cop, and a recovering alcoholic. He's employed as a private detective by a drug trafficker whose wife has been abducted and murdered by two serial abductors and murderers who seem to be targeting the families of criminals.

I've heard this described as a B-Movie, but we thought it was A-caliber, with a very strong story line with albeit B-Movie undertones. It was dark, brooding, relatively slow paced while still being engrossing with not an ounce of fat.

There's nothing much else to say - there's no intense action, no unexpected plot twists - just good old detective sloggery.

RAVE - Stone's Throw

First of all, take a cab. Take a horse. Just don't try and drive - or more specifically - don't try and park anywhere near this place. It's impossible. Tellingly, once you reserve your table they tell you they have a deal with Uber that gives you a piddling 5% of your taxi fare off your restaurant bill. Did I say it's IMPOSSIBLE to find a parking space without half an hour of circling?

Anyhow, with that embuggerance out of the way, we enjoyed the food - we were in high spirits, which helped - and the service from everyone we met was excellent.

I'm repeating myself, I know, but we enjoyed the food. Mostly.

The Duck Pate and Mousse, with French's Mustard, Cornichons, and Warm, Soft Pretzel was f.a.b., while the Brentwood Corn Risotto, with Summer Truffle, Trumpet Mushrooms, and Tetragonia was equally delightful. Mrs Page really enjoyed her Pan Seared Salmon, Brentwood Corn, Chanterelle Mushroom, and Sauce Diable, while I devoured my Prime Beef Ribeye, with Tomato-braised Romano Beans, Confit Potatoes, and Toasted Garlic Vinaigrette.

If I was to criticize - and I will - the menu writer is perhaps a bit too full of himself, as I found it all a bit over-written without properly describing the wine, the beer, or even the food. And the decor seemed to be all over the place, with no cohesive theme.

We'll probably go back again sometime, but we'll make sure the chauffeur circles the block in the Bentley while we relax inside.

RAVE - The Drop

One of these days, someone will make a movie set in Brooklyn, or New Jersey, where the sun occasionally shines, and people occasionally have a smile of their faces. But neither were to be seen in this gloomy portrait of a bar used as a drop for the ill-gotten gains of a Chechen gang.

One side-note was the devastating logic used by the dour barman, Bob Saginowski when he told Cousin Marv that he was wrong to call them Chechnyan. "But they come from Chechnya" said Marv. "Right, but you don't call people from Ireland 'Irelandians' do you?"

Bob was played by Tom Hardy, who among other roles was Handsome Bob in RocknRolla - despite Mrs Page constantly referring to him as "Gorgeous George".

Bob's slow-burning love interest was Naomi Rapace. I seldom remember actresses from their earlier roles. My excuse this time was that she looked unrecognizable with eyebrows (she was eyebrowless in The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo trilogy).

And the Drop bar's former owner, James Gandolfini, was in his last role before sadly passing away.

Bob and his love interest were not the only slow burners here. The film's pace, tone, and action was almost always on a low heat, which allowed us to focus on the excellent performances by our main trio, and equally on the plot. It took some time to develop, but it was worth it in the end.

RANT - The Cavalier

It might be a little unfair to Rant at The Cavalier, and it might also be a little uneven of me to flip from Raving about it the last couple of times we've eaten there, but my judgement is based on sound bias.

Coming from England, I had hoped that The Cavalier's intent of being a "British Gastropub" would mean their execution would be somewhere higher than pubs - gastro or otherwise - reach in England.

But it ain't.

The fact that - as their web site proclaims - it was set up by the "owners and creators of the critically acclaimed restaurants Marlowe and Park Tavern" - both of which I have come to dislike (and not for their food, necessarily), nailed their aspirations, and their fate firmly to the mast.

The Cavalier's attempts to out-Brit the British failed on every front:

• Farrow and Roasted Beets, with Basil, Pea Tendrils, and Pumpkin seeds was basically a small seed salad.
• Lamb Strumpets, with Pickled Mint and Chile tasted of nothing, aside from the hard-to-achieve dull-tasting mint.
• Fish and Chips, with two small pieces of "seasonally caught" fish, "thrice-cooked" chips - I'd have been happier with once-cooked, and tasting perky, rather than three-times cooked and being decidedly un-perky - and minted peas that one had to dig for amid the always uneventful mountain of watercress.
• Ale-brined Berkshire Pork Tenderloin, calvados and apple jus. Mrs Page tellingly thought her sides of Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Cabbages stood out on this dish, an opinion I'd rarely share where sprouts and cabbage were concerned.

Come on Ramsey, Heston Blumenthal, and Jamie Oliver - where are you when we need you?

RAVE - The November Man

We had varying opinions as we left the theater after seeing Pierce Brosnan shake the mothballs off his secret agent suit.

My wife had high expectations of the movie, and came out disappointed with its violent tone. In perfect disharmony I had low expectations based on the rather dull, been there done that feel from the trailers, but found myself surprised for a few reasons:

a) There's still plenty of life in the wrinkly Brosnan
b) A little bit of muscle never did anyone any harm (unless it does in fact, harm them)
c) There are still too many heavily-armed cold war types swanning around in Serbia to put it on my "must visit" list, and
d) Brosnan, the CIA, and those heavily-armed cold war types seemed to have been sprayed with equally heavy cop repellent as there's not a single anti-crime official attracted by the various explosions, gun fire or car chases perpetrated around Belgrade or any other location behind the former Iron Curtain.

This was an old school spy versus spy story, with enough intrigue and action to keep 50% of the Page household happy for ninety minutes or so.

RAVE - Afflicted

A low budget but nevertheless engaging story of Derek and Clif, two Canadian friends who plan a year long trip around the world and intend filming and blogging about the trip as it progresses.

One snag is that Derek has a blood clot near his brain, and this clot could erupt at any time. It's no condition to begin a round the world trip in my esteemed medical opinion but hey, my medical opinion is usually reserved for haranguing my wife's - and by association, her family's - advice on potions and tinctures to be deployed when one sneezes.

Where was I? Or more importantly, where were Derek and Clif? They started their trip in Barcelona, then on to Paris by train where they meet up with some friends. These friends seem like just the pair you need when visiting Paris, organizing a night out at a club where the main intent is to get Derek hooked up with one of the local ladies.

All seems fine until the friends discover Derek passed out in bed, covered in blood. There's no sign of the "lady".

Derek seems OK when he's awake and showered, so he and Clif continue their travels to Italy. After a couple days Derek starts to display symptoms of an unusual disease. On the positive side he can see better than before, but on the negative his skin is discolored and blotchy.

And then things go pear-shaped. The film bears some of Blair Witch's hallmarks, but comes out mostly unscathed.

Which is more than I can say for Derek.

RAVE - 1760

While it's not the best-looking restaurant around town (it's on mostly ratty Polk Street, and is perhaps a bit cafe-ish for a full on date) the food definitely stands out - in flavor, presentation, and execution. Mostly.

I say "mostly" because there were a couple of misses along with the hits.

We started with the Shishito Peppers - a favorite of mine made even better by them being served with chopped olives, hazelnuts, and smoked sea salt. Then came the first miss of the night, the Lollipop Kale, with Guianciale, red currant, and ginger. Quite why it was "lollipop" was a bit of a mystery, as it looked like regular kale. But hey, even the menu writer has to get his kicks somehow.

The second course was excellent. I had the fingerling potatoes, with charred avocado, cilantro and more nuts - roasted peanuts this time. Mrs P had the Hamachi Crudo, with pluots, avocado-yuzu kosho, and sea grapes. It was delicious, apparently, even though we had to consult a culinary dictionary to find out what animal / mineral / vegetable produces yuzu kosho, and an atlas to find out in what sea one grows grapes.

Yes, there was room - or at least my eyes told me there was - for a third course. And this was where my first miss of the meal came. I chose the Fried Duck Sandwich, with slaw, pickles, and spicy aioli. It certainly made an entrance, with a large steak knife skewering the bun. But once I took my first bite I'd had enough. There was just too much slaw, too many pickles, and not enough duck to taste. It was a good job I was already full up. Saving the course was my wife's BBQ Pork Belly, with corn porridge, peaches, and charred frisée.

All in all, a great experience, with interestingly - even adventurously - prepared dishes.