This date has made the letter “J” my favorite so far in our Date Night Challenge.

Tom knows how much I love music. When it’s performed LIVE, of high quality, and the genre I love (JAZZ), it doesn’t get much better. He outdid himself in planning this date for me.

We had recently heard about Jazz Tastings, a restaurant offering a tapas-style menu and live music every night. We had tried it once before, but were not impressed and didn’t stay to give them a fair shot. However, when it was highly recommended by some friends whose opinion we value, Tom was convinced to give them another chance and make this our “J” date.

When we arrived there were only a handful of people in the small venue. The house band was setting up and the owner, Rory Far greeted us with a welcoming smile as well as a menu.

We started with an appetizer of cheese, olives, bruschetta and dried meats.

Next we enjoy a delicious flat bread.

We took our time with each dish wanting the evening to last.

When the music began we knew we were in for a treat. They are known as the Jazz Tastings House Quartet, but on this night there were only three. The lead guitarist is also a doctor who happened to be on call and couldn’t play. But you would never have known they were missing their lead by the way the entertained us with their skills and passion for music.

They introduced themselves, sharing interesting facts about their history and experience. We loved the nicknames and funny stories they shared; it made us feel as if we were a part of their family.

Meet Ezra Henry, aka “EH”, who has played for many celebrities including a famous talk show host who requests him for private events she and Stedman host. 🙂

This is Larry McRae, aka “Boom Boom”. He was privileged to play for our late President Ronald Reagan at the White House. He comes from Philadelphia and has played with such stars as Roberta Flack. He told us that he discovered there is a video of him playing at the Reagan Library in CA. When his dad heard of it, he couldn’t have been more proud of his boy!

Finally, Mark Falcheck, aka “MF” which means My Friend. 🙂 He is a Berkley graduate and they lovingly call him the magician because of what he can do with the keyboard.

They asked if we wanted classic jazz, smooth jazz, pop music or a mixture. We opted for the latter wanting to hear the full range of what they could do. It was amazing!

Some of my favorites were:

• L-O-V-E by Nat King Cole. My dad and I used to sing this song together around our piano. I’ve always loved it!
• Route 66
• And others of which I don’t recall the titles.

We ended the night with one of their many desserts–Pecan Bread Pudding. Yeah, it was a sweet ending to a great evening. One I hope we’ll repeat again and soon.

Here is a sampling of the music offered at Jazz Tastings…Enjoy!