variety
16 September 2013
the Collegian : 6
Stars and Smoke creative
writing Alex White Student Writer
Kimberly Poff / Collegian
During Tulsa’s annual Restaurant Week, entrees at The Wild Fork were paired with a lovely salad of baby greens (pictured above). The salad characterized the last tastes of summer though the use of sweet and juicy tomatoes, which contrasted nicely with the savory vinaigrette dressing.
Delicate flavors found at The Wild Fork
Located in the heart of Utica Square, The Wild Fork features a number of exquisite entrees that are certain to delight the palate and ignite the senses. Helen Patterson Staff Writer
Kimberly Poff Staff Writer
The Wild Fork is a quiet restaurant nestled behind Moody’s in Utica Square. The dining rooms are full of windows letting in an ample amount of light tinted green by the trees. Patio seating faces a small park, and there is enough vegetation to hide the Starbucks on the other side. However, given the recent temperatures in Tulsa daytime, patrons will likely find the air-conditioned interior more pleasant. Last week, as part of Tulsa’s annual Restaurant Week, The Wild Fork offered a three-course prix fixe menu: $12.95 for lunch, and $35 for dinner. This year, 10 percent of the proceeds went to the Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma’s Food for Kids program, and each donation will be matched by the George Kaiser Family Foundation up to $25,000. The menu offered three options for the appetizer, four for the entree and two for dessert. Aside from the comparatively pedestrian caesar salad on offer, the two soups presented perfectly encapsulate the season: a Sherry Tomato
and a Harvest Mushroom with Grains. The first offered a slightly spicy fall flavor, but preserved the strains of summer through the use of the sweeter sherry tomato. Small chunks of celery, carrots and tomato make the soup filling, while the sprinkling of basil on top kept the palate awake and excited. The second soup contained fresh carrots, mushrooms, celery and onion stewed with a mixture of rice and barley. The mushrooms in particular were succulent and flavorful, and the hearty taste was warming and reminiscent of fall. The soup was sprinkled with fresh parsley, which provided a nice contrast to the other, heavier flavors. The soups were accompanied by a bread basket which left a little to be desired. The rolls trumped the sliced white bread in flavor and consistency, but neither were quite fresh enough; perhaps they had been left on the warmer a bit too long. In terms of the entrees, the four cheese and fresh herb stuffed mushrooms were particularly delightful. Each mushroom was slightly crispy on the outside while maintaining a decadent gooey richness on the inside. Again, the heavier flavors of fall were paired with the last strains of summer: this time a beautiful salad of baby greens. While the greens themselves were unbruised and bright, what really distinguished the plate were the tomatoes. Their sweetness was balanced with a brilliant vinaigrette perfectly matched to the mushrooms. The snow crab and corn cake was beautifully arranged on a bed of coleslaw and tomatoes. The coleslaw was crunchy and fresh. It was dressed perfectly, neither
too light nor too soggy. The dressing was tangy and did not have too much mayonnaise. As in the stuffed mushroom dish, the fresh tomatoes in vinaigrette, topped with cilantro, were superb. The star of the dish was the crab cake itself, which was crispy on the outside, and moist on the inside. In many crab cakes, the corn and other ingredients overwhelm the flavors of the crab; however, in this cake, the balance was just right. The only complaint about the crab cake was that it was not bigger! At The Wild Fork, portions are of a reasonable size, making it quite possible for a diner to skip the dessert course. In the case of the petit four berry cobbler, you would not be missing much. It was a little thick on the cake and a little heavy on the sugar, overwhelming the delicate flavor of the berries. Unlike the petit four, the creme brulee was a treat. The creme brulee was served with strawberry halves and whipped cream. The cream was generic, but the strawberries were juicy and tangy, a great complement to the dish. It was perfectly caramelized on top, browned without being burned. Overall, the dish was sweet without being saccharine, and melted in the mouth - a perfect balance. Guests looking to extend their experience to beverages will find quite a variety of wines on display at fair prices. The Bree Riesling goes quite well with lunch fare, complementing both the soup and the mushrooms as well as the deserts. Vegetarians will appreciate the availability of meatless options; although the prix fixe menu only features one, the regular menu features several vegetarian dishes.
“The World’s End,” hysterical thriller From director Edgar Wright, comes “The World’s End,” an apocalyptic actioncomedy that tells the story of five friends who must fight to escape a horde of robots, while completing an ambitious pub crawl. Lily Clough Staff Writer
The World’s End” is the final chapter in director Edgar Wright’s trilogy of action-comedy movies in collaboration with actors Simon Pegg and Nick Frost. Pegg and Frost have previously worked with Wright on both “Hot Fuzz” and “Shaun of the Dead.” For those unfamiliar with those movies, it may be difficult to get excited for “The World’s End,” described as “an apocalyptic comedy that takes place during a pub crawl of five reunited friends.” But for those who have seen the aforementioned titles, you know just how exciting this idea could be. In addition to Pegg and Frost, “The World’s End” also stars Martin Freeman, who recently stepped
into a much-deserved spotlight as Bilbo in Peter Jackson’s “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” and as John Waston in Mark Gatiss’ and Steven Moffat’s “Sherlock” for the BBC. The first twenty minutes of the film are gold. Pegg is hysterical as Gary, who, twenty years later, is pining for the past and wearing the same black trench coat and Sisters of Mercy t-shirt. Now an adult, a burned-out Gary decides that he wants to finish something started years before: an ambitious twelve-pub pub crawl with his four childhood friends (five guys, sixty pints) through their hometown of Newton Haven. This rather messy ordeal finally ends at a pub called The World’s End. Gary’s four childhood friends are initially disinterested—they have moved on with their lives and now have jobs, wives and cars. But with some morally questionable attempts to convince the four friends, Gary persuades them to return to their hometown. Everything goes as planned, until Gary makes a startling discovery that turns the pub crawl into a nightmarish fight to escape the town without being made into alien robots. All in all, “The World’s End” shines. The movie is depicted as “an apocalyptic action-comedy”—
a description that does not accurately portray how deeply funny it really is. The heroes of the story are a farcry from Jim Kirk, but the averageness of each of the characters is a delightful twist on the norm. Inventive and effective directing and editing contribute to the absolute uniqueness of the movie, and you can certainly tell that Wright has an eye for arranging objects, and even people, in meaningful ways. “The World’s End” is not just a silly movie; it is well-made, dark and even profound title that achieves surprising depth for such an absurdly-premised plot. For example, facing destruction, the friends seem like an unimpressive group, but they comprise a perfect representative sample of humanity. As Andy (played by Frost) aptly puts it, “(Humans) are more belligerent, more stubborn, and more idiotic than you can possibly imagine.” The heart of the film, however, is Gary’s attempt at redemption. Newton Haven is touted as the site of the first roundabout, and the idea of cycles of self-destruction is not lost on Wright. Gary finally breaks that cycle, showing that sometimes there are second chances at happiness: when escaping New Haven, instead of driving around the roundabout, the friends drive straight through.
This youth drives me to kiss those I don’t love, listen to songs I never liked, earn wealth I despise at jobs I detest, spend it on friends who use me because maybe 1/10 of the time I’ll change my mind and find myself happy relishing secondhand delights with someone surprising, foot on the floor of someplace new. This youth I have is all that I have. More than anything I want it to be like stars burning indelible, bright, but, as days whip past, falling fast into years,
I realize, youth is smoke. It leaks from lips, bleeds into air— young for an instant then evanescent. Nevertheless, a decrepit house sitting perched at the edge of ruination proves youth and wrinkles can collaborate. Inside, the walls are lined with impressionist magnum opuses, the halls echo with Monk crackling from a cool record player, and artists frolic in the throes of intellectual vitality, cascading scribbled verses spawned from mosaic minds down creaky stairways while I grow younger day by glorious day.
Fall movie preview: some thrill, others fail
preview This fall, a number of new releases are set to hit the silver screen; included are unoriginal remakes, lackluster sequels and a few edgy and imaginative titles. Helen Patterson Staff Writer
Sequels rarely live up to their predecessors, but studios know that they can make a lot of money off of them—and so, every season, a “fresh” batch arrives. “Insidious: Chapter 2” (Sept. 13) opened last Friday, an appropriate date for a horror movie. Patrick Wilson and Rose Byrne reprise their roles as Josh and Renai Lambert. The film depicts the supernatural terrors in store for the Lambert family who have not managed to escape the grip of the spirit realm. From the behemoth that is Marvel Studios comes “Thor: The Dark World” (Nov. 8). Starring Chris Hemsworth as the title character, Natalie Portman as astrophysicist (and love interest), Jane Foster, and Tom Hiddleston as the duplicitous Loki, the film takes place after “The Avengers,” and pits Thor and company against Christopher Eccleston’s Malekith. Fresh from the Oscars, Jennifer Lawrence returns as Katniss Everdeen in “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire” (Nov. 22), the second film adaptation from the hit dystopian series. Katniss is a forced participant in another round of the games in which she must compete against past winners. Other not-quite-originals include a remake of “Carrie” (Oct.18) and yet another “Romeo and Juliet.” Though some might question the need for another “Carrie,” the casting of Chloe Grace Moretz (“Kick-Ass”) as the titular outcast, telekinetic teen, and Julianne Moore as her abu-
sive, zealot mother makes this a movie to consider. “Romeo and Juliet” seems to be going for a fresh perspective with its twentyfirst century setting; perhaps this will make it stand out from the sea of other adaptations. There is a potentially stellar line-up of edgier movies this fall. “Gravity” (Oct. 4), starring Sandra Bullock and George Clooney as stranded astronauts desperate to return home, has been getting some good buzz. Ridley Scott directed Michael Fassbender and Penelope Cruz in “The Counselor” (Oct. 25), a movie about the horrors of drugtrafficking gone bad. Fans of “Ender’s Game” will be anxious about how well Orson Scott Card’s sci-fi coming-of-age classic translates into film. Hopefully Asa Butterfield as Ender and Harrison Ford as Colonel Graff will help make the adaptation a success. Moviegoers who want to see more of Leonardo DiCaprio should consider “The Wolf of Wall Street” (Nov. 15), in which DiCaprio portrays a stockbroker forced to work with government forces in order to unravel Wall Street corruption. That same weekend, “The Book Thief” opens, based on the bestselling work by Marcus Zusak. Set during World War II, the film follows a girl in Nazi Germany who finds solace for herself and others through books. On the lighter side, Keri Russell’s “Austenland” (Sept.13), based on the novel by Shannon Hale, opened last weekend. Russell plays Jane Hayes, an allthings-Austen fanatic, who goes to an Austen theme park in search of love with her very own gentleman. Joseph Gordon-Levitt writes, directs and stars as Jon Martello in “Don Jon” (Sept. 27) whose relationship with Scarlett Johansson’s Barbara is potentially compromised by his addiction to internet porn. Those seeking mindless stupidity can always tune in to “Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa” (Oct. 25) for a painful series of lessons on how not to behave.