E-Newsletter Archive

E-Newsletter ~ February 28, 2009~ Vol. 9, No. 6

It’s hard to believe that March is upon us, but indeed it is. This is the sixth regular mailing of the USC University Club E-Newsletter for the 2008-2009 academic year.  We want to keep you informed of special events, new menu items, seasonal specials, recipes and any news that we think will help you get the most from your membership.

This and past issues of our newsletter are available online all the time at:
http://www.usc.edu/bus-affairs/uclub/about/enewsarchive/index.html

Contents:

1. Reservations, Menu Updates and Your Thoughts
2. Recession-Proof “Blue Plate Special” and Other New Items Now on the Menu
3. Waitlist Only for Meet-4-Lunch with Carol Muske-Dukes
4. No Dinner Service During Spring Break, March 16-20, 2009
5. Next International Buffet on Wednesday, March 25, 2009
6. La Table Francaise Scheduled for Monday, March 30, 2009

7. Spring Musical Event, “Brigadoon,” Set for Friday, April 3, 2009

8. Midori Goto/Student Concert Returns on Monday, April 20, 2009 – Almost Sold Out!
9. Opera Night, Mozart’s “Don Giovanni,” Set for Friday, April 24, 2009
10. Other Events on Campus in March 2009

11. Reciprocal Club of the Month
12. Recipe of the Month

1. Reservations, Menu Updates and Your Thoughts

If there is one thing I hear from our members more than anything else, (with the exception of how much you all appreciate our staff!) it has to be the difficulty in getting a reservation at 12:00.  I wish we had a dining room large enough to accommodate all the requests that we receive for the noon time slot.  Given the physical and operational limitations of the club space, here are some suggestions that may help ease your frustration level:

1. Try to plan ahead as far as possible.  The 12:00 to 12:30 time slots are always the first to be filled and can sometimes fill up as much as a month and more in advance.
2. Try to be flexible.  There are always lots of tables available at 1:00.
3. Try just walking in.  Chris, our hostess, will do her absolute best to get you seated as quickly as Is humanly possible.  She is proud to say no one has had to wait more than 15 minutes in the last couple of months.  In fact – she boasts an average wait time of only 5 minutes!

Want to be informed of all menu updates the minute they happen?  Click here to subscribe ot our new Menu Update notifications.  We will send an email any time we update any of the restaurant menus so that you have the most current information to help make your ordering easier.  We promise to keep them short and simple. 

Have something to say about the club you think we should know?  The staff at the University Club always welcomes comments and suggestions from our members.  If there is a menu item that you think should be on one of our menus, or if you have a comment on service, a current menu item, or anything that has to do with your experiences at the club, please let us know - even if it's just to say we are doing something right...

Email Ed Kasky, Club Manager, and he will make sure that your comments are directed to the right person.  We promise to follow up with you.  So, if you have something to say, let us know!

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2. Recession-Proof “Blue Plate Special” and Other New Items Now on the Menu

We introduced our new, recession proof “Blue Plate Special” last month, along with three new menu items on the lunch and dinner menus.  The Blue Plate Special, priced at $7.99 ($9.95 including tax and gratuity), changes daily and offers diners a choice of three different entrees from the Hot Buffet, two side dishes, and a choice of soft drink, lemonade, iced tea, or coffee.  Our Blue Plate Special is plated by you server and brought to your table.

Other new menu items at lunch and dinner include Three-Cheese Stuffed Poblano Chile, Housemade Tamales, and Hanger Steak, all equally delicious and reasonably priced. For more information about our entire menu, please visit our web site.

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3. Waitlist only for Carol Muske-Dukes, Featured Speaker at Meet-4-Lunch on 3/5/09

We have started a waitlist for our Meet-4-Lunch event featuring Carol Muske-Dukes, California’s newly-appointed Poet Laureate and esteemed USC professor of English, on Thursday, March 5, 12:00 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. If you’d like to get on it -- and people do cancel -- please call Stephanie Helper at (213) 740-5208 or email her at helper@usc.edu.

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4. No Dinner Service during Spring Break

The USC University Club will be closed for dinner for the duration of Spring Break, Monday, March 16, 2009 through Thursday, March 19, 2009. Dinner service, which is offered Monday through Thursday from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., will resume on Monday, March 23, 2009.

Lunch service will continue through the break. To make a lunch or dinner reservation, please call (213) 74-2030.

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5. International Buffet on Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Our next International Buffet is scheduled for Wednesday, March 25.  We would like to hear from you for some suggestions for a particular cuisine that you’d like us to research and execute.  Nothing is too far-fetched or weird to consider.  So don’t be shy – email us today with your suggestions!

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Natania Meeker, acting chair of the USC Department of French and Italian, continues to graciously stand-in for Pani Norindr (who is at Duke this semester) to moderate our monthly La Table Francaise, in which members who like to practice their French, convene over lunch. The March table is scheduled for Monday, March 30, 2009, at noon in Room E. Participants order off the menu and pay individually. To reserve a spot, please call Stephanie Helper at (213) 740-5208, or email her at helper@usc.edu.

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Our Annual Spring Musical Night, which we plan in conjunction with the USC School of Theatre, is set for Friday, April 3, 2009. The production is “Brigadoon,” book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner, music by Frederick Loewe, and original dances created by Agnes de Mille. The USC production will be directed by John Rubenstein.

"Brigadoon" is a light-hearted musical fantasy set in a village that disappears in the mists of the Scottish Highlands, returning only one day every 100 years. It is a tribute to true love and goodness, and features such classic standards as "Almost Like Being In Love," "The Heather on the Hill," "Come to Me," and "Waitin' for My Dearie." Book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner, music by Frederick Loewe, and original choreography by Agnes de Mille, the USC production will be directed by John Rubinstein.

This event usually gets underway at 4:30 p.m. and features not only cocktails, dinner, and preferred seating to the show, and as an added bonus,  an exclusive preview performance by student cast members, all for just $47.50/person. Tax and gratuity are also included. To make a reservation, please call Stephanie Helper at (213) 740-5208 or email her at helper@usc.edu.

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Professor Midori Goto, world-famous violinist and professor at USC, will return to the University Club with three hand-picked student musicians for an intimate concert in the Banquet Room on Monday, April 20, 2009. The event, priced at $39/person, starts at 5:00 p.m. with a cocktail reception in the Courtyard, followed by a private concert at 6:00 p.m. for up to 80 people in the Banquet Room.  A steak dinner is served “family-style” in the Main Dining Room at 7:00 p.m. For more information or to make a reservation, please call Stephanie Helper at (213) 740-5208 or email her at helper@usc.edu. We are nearing a sell-out on this event, so please call or email soon.

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Our spring “Night at the Opera” event,” in conjunction with the USC Thornton School of Music, will take place on Friday, April 24, 2009. This year’s production is Mozart’s “Don Giovanni,” based on the legend of Don Juan, the quintessential rake and womanizing scoundrel. Mozart’s “Don Giovanni” is widely regarded as the greatest opera ever composed.

Mozart's "Don Giovanni," based on the legendary womanizer Don Juan, is considered by many to be the greatest opera ever composed. It premiered at the Estates Theatre in Prague in 1787, and Mozart's two-acts with music, accompanied by a libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte, brilliantly blends comedy, melodrama and supernatural elements, which have endured to this day. Even two and half hundred years later, the opera delivers many uproarious moments that are driven by Giovanni's unprincipled, devious schemes, with a trail of jilted women in his wake. At our event, Thornton Opera Faculty member, Ken Cazan, will deconstruct the production before our guests head over to Bing Theatre, and a student from the production will perform an aria to give guests a taste of what's to come.

This event, priced at $39/person starts at 5:30 p.m., includes a cocktail reception, buffet dinner, lecture by a Thornton Opera faculty member, a preview performance by a student performer, and preferred tickets to the show. Tax and gratuity also included. To make a reservation, please call Stephanie Helper at (213) 740-5208, or email her at helper@usc.edu.

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10. Save the Date for Other Events on Campus in March ‘09

Tuesday, March 3, 2009, 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Behind the Scenes at MySpace

Hear from CTO and Co-Founder Aber Whitcomb reveal how MySpace went from 0 to 125 million users in just three years.

Location: Seeley G. Mudd Building, Room 123

Admission: Free; Obtain ticket online.

For more information, please call: (213) 740-4542

Wednesday, March 4, 2009, 12:00 p.m. to 12:50 p.m.

What Matters to Me and Why with Judy Haw

Hear what’s important to Judy Haw, director of the Supplemental Instruction Program and associate director of the Freshman Honors Program.

Location: Ground Zero Coffeehouse

Admission: Free

For more information, please call: (213) 740-6110

Tuesday, March 10, 2009, 8:15 p.m.

Out of a Black Hole

Renowned physicist Stephen Hawking, a USC visiting professor, will talk about black holes and why they aren’t a black as they are painted.

Location: Bovard Auditorium

Admission: Free

For more information, please call: (213) 821-4418

Monday, March 16, 2009, through Friday, March 20, 2009

SPRING BREAK; Classes resume Monday, March 23, 2009

Monday, March 30, 2009, 4:00 p.m.

Seeing Los Angeles: Exploring the Invisible City

Radio host Patt Morrison heads a distinguished panel that explores aspects of the City of Los Angeles that is unknown to many residents, new and old.

Location: Doheny Memorial Library, Intellectual Commons, Room 233

Admission: Free

For more information, please visit: visionsandvoices@usc.edu

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11. Reciprocal Club of the Month – Temple University Diamond Club

Located on the scenic campus of Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the Diamond Club is a very special place, founded with the intention of “providing a gathering place for faculty and staff to share ideas in an atmosphere of warm camaraderie, where books, arts, science and the affairs of the university would be the subject of an ongoing conversation.”

The Diamond Club features three private rooms and the Garden Room for meetings, workshops, lunches, dinners and receptions, accommodating groups of 20 to 300. The Great Court, located directly above the Diamond Club in historic Mitten Hall, is a grand, Gothic-style ballroom which accommodates groups of up to 600. Many weddings have occurred in this room.

Members enjoy lunch Monday through Friday, 11:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. in the Main Dining Room, and The Lounge offers an a la carte menu Monday through Friday, from 11:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., where guests can enjoy a more casual meal, including dinner. There are no overnight accommodations.

             Contact Info:

             Temple University Diamond Club

             Sodexho Mitten Hall

             Lower Level North Broad Street

             Philadelphia, PA 19122

             (215) 204-6622

             Fax: (215) 204-8502

             http://www.temple.edu/diamondclub/

             email:  langelon@nimbus.temple.edu

How to Visit a Reciprocal ACUC Club:

Please call the USC University Club Business Office at 213-740-8345 to request an ACUC card. Before visiting a reciprocal club, please remember to telephone ahead to introduce yourself as a member of the USC University club, confirm the club’s hours, services and make reservations. Individual clubs may have restrictions in the use of their facilities or in the frequency of visits. When you call, be sure to inquire about any restrictions that may apply.

To find out more about the ACUC network of clubs or to find a club in or near your travel destination, please check the ACUC website at www.acucclubs.org for the most up-to-date information.

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12. Recipe of the Month - The Best Chicken Noodle Soup Recipe – Ever!

So there I was, standing in my kitchen, staring at a beautiful, whole organic chicken and no idea what to do with it.  It was a rainy weekend and I wanted something comforting and warming.  What better medicine for a horrible economy than some chicken noodle soup?

After about 30 minutes of scrubbing books and web sites, I settled on the following recipe from Cook’s Illustrated.  It was so good that we made it at the club the following week.  And leftovers?  My wife and I were able to stretch it for two dinners and a lunch and it just kept getting better.  If it seems a little thick when re-heating, just add enough water to give it the consistency you want.

And bread?  An absolute must – something with a chewy crust and hearty flavors.  I recently discovered Breadbar’s 5 grain and thought the pairing with the soup was most satisfying…

Hearty Chicken Noodle soup

Makes about 3 quarts, serving 6 to 8.  

Ingredients

Instructions

• 1. Heat oil in large soup kettle. When oil shimmers and starts to smoke, add chicken breast halves; sauté until brown on both sides, about 5 minutes. Remove and set aside. Add half of chopped onions to kettle; sauté until colored and softened slightly, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to medium bowl; set aside. Add half of chicken pieces; sauté until no longer pink, 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer to bowl with onions. Sauté remaining chicken pieces. Return onions and chicken pieces (excluding breasts) to kettle. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer until chicken releases its juices, about 20 minutes. Increase heat to high; add boiling water along with both breast halves, 2 teaspoons salt, and bay leaves. Return to simmer, then cover and barely simmer until chicken breasts are cooked and broth is rich and flavorful, about 20 minutes.
• 2. Remove chicken breasts from kettle; set aside. When cool enough to handle, remove skin from breasts, then remove meat from bones and shred into bite-size pieces; discard skin and bone. Strain broth; discard bones. Skim fat from broth, reserving 2 tablespoons. (Broth and meat can be covered and refrigerated up to 2 days.)
• 3. Return soup kettle to medium-high heat. Add reserved chicken fat. Add remaining onions, along with carrot and celery; sauté until softened, about 5 minutes. Add thyme, along with broth and chicken; simmer until vegetables are tender and flavors meld, 10 to 15 minutes. Add noodles and cook until just tender, about 5 minutes. Adjust seasonings, stir in parsley, and serve.

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That about wraps it up for this issue.
Be sure to say hi next time you're in.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ed Kasky

Club Manager and  Program Director
The USC University Club
University of Southern California
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