picnic in the park

For many years, it has been our long-standing summer tradition to gather family and friends, along with a loaf of bread, some runny cheese, and a bottle of wine–or two, or three–and enjoy     a picnic in the park. But not just any picnic in any park. Each July, the New York Philharmonic presents a series of free concerts on the Great Lawn of Central Park, come heat or high humidity. People gather from all corners of the tri-state area to lay out their blankets, lay out their feasts, and then lay down to listen to some divine classical music, usually followed by fireworks. 

Of course, the weather is precarious this time of year as midsummer thunderstorms inevitably threaten to dash our designs on fun. This time we were unusually lucky because, while there were cloudy skies, the forecast only called for a slight chance of showers. Laden with multiple bags, chairs, and pulling our cooler behind us, we made our way up the path to the Delacorte Theatre, turned left at the Romeo and Juliet statue, then marched to the front of the Great Lawn. We picked our spot, set up camp, then sat back to take in the scene around us. In front of us, a group of older Asian women surrounded an elaborate spread of homemade dumplings and assorted veggies; several young professionals on a blanket behind us were happily scarfing down a large box of Krispy Kreme donuts; to our right, two women, deeply engaged in conversation, chomped on carrot sticks until other friends showed up with the rest of their feast.

As soon as the rest of our group arrived, I began to lay out our goodies. We began with a couple of nice cheeses: a molten L’Edel de Cleron and semi-soft Sottenocere, laden with truffles. Thin slices of imported Prosciutto di Parma paired perfectly with ripe figs, and a fresh French baguette from Balthazar rounded out our appetizer. Chilled, crisp Rosé–my new summertime fave–was our deliciously refreshing beverage of choice.

Tonight’s concert program, conducted by Alan Gilbert, included Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 4, and two lovely compositions by Ottorino Respighi. As we listened to the orchestra tune up, it was time to dole out bowls of my chunky, cool Gazpacho–its bright and happy flavor makes it a must at many of our picnics and beach outings.

For our main course tonight, I served one of my picnic favorites, Chinese Chicken Salad: roasted, shredded chicken breast, tossed with snow peas, red and yellow bell peppers, scallions, and that heavenly peanut sesame dressing that combines the perfect balance of salty and sweet. Some more bread, a lot more Rosé, and we were content to lay back, look at the stars and listen to the wonderful sounds of the Philharmonic.

We nibbled on chunks of ripe honeydew melon for dessert and then, during intermission, it began to rain just the slightest bit. Unlike quite a few of our neighbors, we were not yet ready to pack it in. We covered our heads with blankets and, thankfully, our tenacity was soon rewarded when the drizzle stopped, the band played on…and then, over the skyline of Manhattan…