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Hello, everyone.

Travers Night is considered one of the big nights of the Saratoga summer season because so many people come to town for the stakes race. But for restaurants, it's usually a bit of a disappointment, because the last race doesn't go off until 6:30 p.m., which means that most of the diners don't get to their destination until well after 7, regardless of when they made their reservation for. The Philadelphia Orchestra has already left town, so there's usually no early pre-show seating. There tends to be a lot of no-shows, especially if people bet wrong or make multiple reservations at several restaurants. (And yes, people will reconfirm reservations at multiple restaurants, knowing full well they can't honor all of them.)

It's almost impossible to seat high volumes under Travers-like conditions, so as a restaurateur, you hope to do moderate numbers with people who won at the track and are in the mood to celebrate.
And since people tend to disregard the time or existence of their reservations with a frequency that exceeds even Skidmore Graduation Weekend, there's a lot of shifting, maneuvering and moving around of tables that can either be exhilarating or exhausting, depending on how well it's going.

We started Travers Saturday rather better than expected. We had a few early reservations, and as the weather turned dark and stormy, people fled the track early, correctly assuming that we'd be happy to seat dry, early reservations more easily than wet, tardy ones. As the storm intensified, the restaurant filled up rapidly, both with reservations and with walkins that we reckoned we could serve before the next reservation came in needing the table.

Then, around 7:30, the power went out.

We're in a hotel with generators, so it came back on pretty quickly.
But the failure basically fried the computer systems that allow us to send orders into the kitchen and run credit cards. Cheryl jogged off to restart the six units and two processors, leaving the servers and our young host Matt in charge, while she ran the circumference of a football field repeatedly to try to get things going again. Three times, she did a cold shut down and three times tried to start it up again, getting weird error messages each time.
The floor staff, almost all of whom worked at Chez Sophie when it was in the diner and didn't have computers, rapidly reverted to writing their tickets out for the kitchen in magic marker on big sheets of paper and handwriting the bills on paper guest checks. Thomas, the waiter-expediter, did a spectacular job of helping the staff keep the tickets straight and letting the chefs and cooks know what was expected of them. We used a backup credit card terminal attached to the only un-networked telephone line in our back office, a 50 yard sprint from the dining room.

After four unsuccessful tries to get the computers started, Cheryl called Team Howard for technical assistance. The chief tech guy was at a cricket-serenaded barbecue on Long Island with a half-charged cell phone, but made heroic efforts to talk Cheryl through three more cold starts, to no avail. By now, more than an hour of prime time had elapsed, and everytime Cheryl ran through the restaurant with a cellphone attached to her ear, increasingly desperate servers grabbed her every few feet to ask for help running credit cards or decanting wine bottles. She heard, as she was running through, that Siro's and the restaurants on the west side of Broadway were still without power, and when she looked around the dining room, she realized that most of their customers had descended upon Chez Sophie.

The cash registers behind the bar wouldn't work without the computers. Because Cheryl was trying to fix the computers, Chef Paul left the line to put together a cash box so the two bartenders could run a cash-only bar. Strange men were shouting at the beleaguered
bartenders: "Dude, learn to use a pencil and paper!"

She stopped to ask Matt, the poor young host, how it was going. He hesitated.

"I know you're really busy right now. It's bad. There are a lot of people at the bar waiting for tables, and I can't really tell any more who anyone is. I think I have five reservations waiting for tables, and I don't have anything open. I can't remember who anybody is. People keep coming in, looking at the seating chart while I'm away from the desk and pretending to be somebody who does have a reservation."

Cheryl stopped, cellphone still attached to her ear, examined the seating chart, looked around, and said, "Sorry kid. You're on your own. I gotta try to get these machines up."

An hour later, she gave up on technology and decided it was a manual kind of night. She checked back in with Matt, who seemed to have found seats for most of the people who were waiting, although he wasn't entirely sure if he had seated reservations or imposters. She started going from table to table, expecting to find irritated patrons who expected her to comp their dinners or get on her knees to apologize. (We learned a long time ago that people don't care if the power is off completely and flood waters are rising, they want their food and they want it NOW, no excuses.)

Miraculously, as she talked to each customer, she realized that most of them didn't think anything unusual was going on. Most of them stopped her to say hi, or ask about some ingredient in their dinner.
We're sure our service wasn't perfect because, from the back of the house perspective, it was a trial by fire, but the most irritated customers must have forgiven us our lapses when they realized we were working with half our equipment in shambles. The guests were gracious and wonderful. And Cheryl and Paul couldn't have been prouder of the staff. We still had a line of people hoping for dinner tables at 11 p.m. And for once, Travers Night was not a disappointment.

We got a few of the computers working by breakfast, having eventually deduced that the power failure had fried the network cards in two point-of-sale terminals that were pulling the rest of the system down. The next night was busy, but relatively calm by comparison.
Then Cheryl, who was standing between the bar and the wide-open doors to the lobby, saw a baby bat fly into the bar. She was the only one who saw it, at first. She grabbed a menu and tried to shoo the confused, tired rodent back into the lobby before it created panic among her dining guests. Unfortunately, she only persuaded it to leave the bar and settle on the floor next to the handbag and dainty ankle of one of the dinner guests.

By now, Earle, the hotel house porter and Dave, a hotel engineer, who had been chasing the bat around the lobby for about an hour huffed into the restaurant. Expecting everyone to be in a screaming panic, they stopped short to see Cheryl quietly trying to shoo the exhausted bat into a corner away from the customers. The customers held their seats, calmly exhorting Cheryl not to hurt the poor little thing.

Eventually, it tried to hide at the top of the floor-to-ceiling wine wall, which was convenient, because that wall has a rolling ladder attached to it. Cheryl grabbed a plastic sour -cream bucket, climbed the ladder and clapped the bucket over it, slipped the menu under the bucket and gave it to Dave to he could free the thing in the courtyard. There was cheering and applause and a lot of giggling. The poor little bat was so tired and confused it took it 10 minutes to figure out how to fly out of the courtyard, while the customers watched it buzz around the "fishbowl."

So now that Travers weekend has passed with a minimum of bloodshed, but a fair amount of swashbuckling, it's practically the off season.
Business has slowed down a little so we can spend extra time with our customers, and we're starting to have fun thinking about creating new things, rather than simply trying to figure out how to catch up.

Our first wine dinner of the "off' season happens Thursday, September
6 and is a benefit for the Saratoga Performing Arts Center. The four course meal will feature five wines donated by Louis Jadot and Taittinger. The "welcome wine" at 6:30 p.m. will be the crisp, minerally 2004 Chablis. We will pair the 2004 Meursault with barely broiled tilapia with local corn and potato, then move to the 2004 Nuits St. Georges with quail with foie gras butter and fall greens.
The next course will be Denver leg or axis venison forestière with Jadot's 2004 Chambolle Musigny. The last course will be pear tatin with Valdeon Bleu Cheese with Taittinger's "Nocturne" Sec Champagne.

Tickets are $120 and can be purchased directly from SPAC by calling 518.584.9330 ext. 121.

One of our guests on Thursday night brought in a flyer for a charity event for which she is a volunteer, and we thought this was a good place to mention it. The third annual "Empty Bowls" fundraiser will take place Sunday, October 7 from noon to 3 p.m. A minimum donation of $10 per person gets you entry to the Italian Community Center at 1450 Fifth Avenue in Troy, where a number of Troy restaurants will provide a simple repast of soups, stews, chowders, breads and desserts. The empty bowl that you start with is designed to serve as a reminder that less fortunate people go to home hungry each night.
The proceeds will benefit the food programs of Bethany Center, the Commission on Economic Opportunity, Hope 7 Community Center, Joseph's House, St. Mary's Food Pantry, the Rourke Center, Troy Damian Center, Unity House, the Italian Community Center, Troy Larger Parish Food Pantry and Troy Y.W.C.A.

Our Sunday Jazz brunch this week with pianist Cole Broderick will feature Thai curry chicken with jasmine rice ($14); pan-seared tilapia with torchio pasta and oven-roasted ratatouille($15); plum- glazed duck breast with a wild rice pancake ($16); and eggnog French toast with your choice of bacon or sausage ($13). Appetizer specials include moules marinière ($13); a salad of Sunset Hill Farm greens tossed in a red wine vinaigrette ($7); crabcake with lemon caper mayonnaise ($16) and soup of the day ($8).

The brunch specials run from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. The complete menu,
offered from 7 to 2 p.m., includes a Continental assortment of
muffins, pastries, fruit, yogurt, frittata etcetera for $9;
omelettes ($10 to $12); pancakes du jour ($10); the All in One, which includes 2 eggs any style, homefries, toast and sausage or bacon ($10); waffles with sweet cream butter and local maple syrup ($10); and Irish steel- cut oatmeal ($8).
Jazz pianist Cole Broderick plays from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.

You can now order a Chez Sophie picnic box lunch to pick up in the morning and take with you wherever you plan to spend the day. There are three options: chilled filet mignon with a variety of condiments; roasted Cornish hen and a vegetarian 'grand plateau des sans visages'
which will be an array of salads with a balance of proteins, vegetables and starches. Each of the dishes will be served with two sides, something with fresh, seasonal vegetables and something like fingerling potatoes dressed in olive oil and sea salt. You can order the boxes by telephone the night before by calling 518.583.3538 and pick them up any time after 8 a.m. The prices range from $17 to $21 per entree.

Live Piano Jazz
Jazz pianist Cole Broderick plays the baby grand Tuesday and Friday night, and during Sunday brunch from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.
(barring special events that preclude live music.)
Cost: No cover charge

Tasting menus
Chef's Choice seven-course tasting menu available each night. The
menus are designed based on the best and most creative dishes Chef Paul K. Parker is serving each evening. We will pair wines for you at an additional charge or you can order from our extensive wine list.
Cost: $80 to $200 per person for seven courses, plus tax and tip.
Everyone at the table must partake in the tasting menu.
If you're feeling less impromptu, you can call ahead to arrange a
special tasting menu with the number of courses and wine pairings
designed to suit your capacity, dietary restrictions and budget.
Tasting menus arranged in advance will be printed on commemorative vellum scrolls personalized with the name of the host or the reason for the event.
Cost: Depends on the number of courses and the wines selected; available for two to 75 guests. Call Cheryl to make arrangements at
518.583.3538

The Pink Plate Special is on summer vacation.

Notes on Nico and Léo:
18-month-old Léo's vocabulary has bloomed, as well as her ability to express herself nonverbally, and it's fascinating to see what she's learning first. After "Mama" and "Papa", her most frequently used words are "hug" "kiss" "book" and "cocoa", which says wonderful things about her priorities. She's a snuggle bunny, far more than her electric wire of an older brother, and loves to crawl into a lap, snuggle into an armpit and then turn her hand upwards like an anemone to say a silent hello once she's comfortable.

She's far more likely to sit and entertain herself quietly than Nico, who has always wanted interaction - the more vigorous, the better.
Last night, she suddenly decided she was interested in the crib in her parents' room that she has never once slept in. It has become a rather large receptacle for extra blankets and pillows. Nico slept in it until he was two and a half, then Cheryl got pregnant with Léo and she and Paul bought him a red racecar bed. He slept in that for nine months, until Léo was born, and after that, he wanted to be with his parents and sister at all times.

Léo has never even dozed off in Nico's old crib (although she has spent a fair amount of time screaming in it) but we haven't taken it apart. We keep thinking that she'll suddenly desire a little privacy without being kicked by her brother all night. We thought that moment had come when she looked at the crib last night, held up her arms and told her Mother: "Up, Up." Mom lifted her in, and she began gesturing to various pillows and blankets, stuffing them around herself until she looked like a china doll in a packing case. When she was completely cosseted, she began demanding books, which she spread across her lap and proceeded to study quietly.

Holding her breath, Cheryl decided to let it play out and see if her daughter would read herself to sleep in the crib. She climbed on top of the adult bed next to the crib, pulled out a book and watched with one eye to see if Léo would read herself to sleep.

We were almost there, until Nico came searching for his mother and sister, jumped on the bed and then trampolined into the crib,
declaring: "I wanna play too!"

The Parker family
at Chez Sophie
518.583.3538

Chez Sophie was founded in 1969 by sculptor Joseph Parker and his French-born wife, the late Sophie. The business moved to a vintage stainless steel diner in Malta Ridge, New York, in 1995. It is owned today by Sophie and Joseph's son, Paul Parker, and his wife, Cheryl Clark. In June of 2006, they moved the restaurant into their current location in The Saratoga Hotel on Broadway..

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P.S. Each month we draw a name at random from our database of customers and send them a $50 gift certificate to Chez Sophie. If you would like to be added to this promotions database, which is owned by Chez Sophie, please send us an email with your name, address, telephone number, birthday and anniversary. People on the list will also receive a gift certificate by mail or email for a free glass of champagne or dessert on their birthdays or anniversaries. (You only need to enter once to be eligible every month.)

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