“Life is short, and it is up to you to make it sweet.”
—Sarah Louise Delany
I was blessed to have had a full day of celebration for my 71st Birthday yesterday. My biking buddy Bill Rothenberg treated me to lunch at "On the Roll," a Thai inspired Vietnamese fusion restaurant and surprised me with a Nutella birthday crepe that we shared at San Pedro Square in San Jose during our 24-mile bike ride.
For dinner, my dearest wife Cecile had made early reservations at Sweet Sicily Italian Restaurant in downtown Sunnyvale. Our daughter Michelle and husband Kyle and our granddaughters Lyla and Emmy joined us as did our son Jason and his partner Alex. As a first generation Sicilian-American I couldn’t help think about my late mother Maria Micalizzi, who had the courage to come to America by ship in 1947 during a challenging electrical storm to meet my late dad Frank. They married, and mom gave birth to me in 1950, with three of my siblings to follow years later. We were escorted to our table by our waiter Emanuel from Modena, in Northern Italy, a region where promising chefs go to learn the trade, source of the finest balsamic vinegar, and, best known to sports car fans as the birthplace of Enzo Ferrari. The ambiance couldn’t have been more inviting. It exuded a feeling of eating in a piazza in Italy. Historic Murphy Avenue which is blocked off is the home of Sweet Sicily as well as other ethnic restaurants. The heat of the day gave way to a gentle breeze. We checked out the pastry case just inside the open air entrance. They looked like works of art.
We began with beer, wine and cocktails and a Stagioni pizza with mozzarella, Italian ham, mushrooms, artichokes and oregano; and Rigatoni Alla Norma: fried eggplant, pecorino cheese, mint and tomato sauce for the table. It was a great start to a great feast and the entrees were equally outstanding. Cecile enjoyed Amalfi-style swordfish with potatoes, cherry tomatoes, black and white olives, capers, and white wine. Jason savored his Spaghetti Carbonara; Alex and Michelle had Pappardelle Pavarotti with miniature meatballs, diced tomato, guanciali, butter and basil, Kyle Involtini Marsala: Chicken wrapped with bacon, wine Marsala sauce, butter, tomato sauce mushroom and I feasted on Lasagna Della Nonna: ground beef, onion, carrots, celery, tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese and béchamel sauce. Lyla shared food some morsels of food, including pizza.
After dinner I got to open my birthday cards and presents from the kids: An Apple TV app, and a cushiony bicycle seat for my long bike rides.
For dessert, we had cannoli with Ricotta Cheese and Pistachio ricotta cheese that was out of this world. Lyla devoured her gelato. Our waiter Emanuel offered a shot of Limoncello liquor. “It’s on the house,” he said, adding “I made it." It was compliments of the owner, Saverio D’Anna from Palermo, Sicily who brought it to the table giving us a chance to talk a bit about the changes to the old country.
When we Cecile and I returned home, there was a Lemon Bundt Cake from Budnt Cakes with their signature cream cheese frosting waiting at our door from Kyle’s mom Kim and husband Al Chein with a heartwarming card. Thank you!
I am feeling gratitude. A more perfect day, it could not have been.
