The Dinner Party - S2E14

On today’s show, we’re welcoming an in-studio guest for a walk down memory lane as our dear mother Beth Harper joins us to reminisce about a certain night a couple of decades ago when the two of us put on a dinner party for the ages, with a little help, er, no, A LOT of help from a certain southern gentleman and service industry magician from Matt’s culinary past, Montgomery Sinks.

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Transcript

SPEAKER_05 0:00

It's the pop culture show with Cult Classic Swagger. This is Inglorious Brothers. I'm Matt Harper, and together with my brother Justin, we dive into the deep end of the zeitgeist each week to bring you cool talk and hot takes. No genre is too specific, no topic too broad, and no rabbit hole too deep as we open our minds and enjoy each other's company. Sound good? Then let's ride.

SPEAKER_02 0:28

Hello and welcome to Inglorious Brothers. I'm Justin and I'm here with my brother Matt. And on today's show, we're welcoming another in-studio guest and our number one fan. Yes, it's none other than our wonderful mother. Say hello, everyone, to Beth Harper. We're thrilled to have mom aboard for her second appearance on the show, but her first true guest spot. We've asked her here to sit down in on a walk down memory lane as we dig into our remembrance of a certain night a number of years ago, a night which still holds a special place in all our hearts for many reasons. We're calling this episode the dinner party. And as you'll see, it was a dinner party for the ages, at least so far as the house at one Vandever Court was concerned. So tuck that knackbackkin into your collar and ask that adorable waiter with the cool southern drawl to refill your wine glass one more time as we go back in time to 1999. 99 was it? It had to be.

SPEAKER_05 1:33

Summer of 99? Summer of 99, yeah. Does that sound about right?

SPEAKER_00 1:38

I would have to work back on it, but I know it was um when Justin was in culinary school.

SPEAKER_05 1:44

Well, I think I think it was before you when you were headed to culinary school.

SPEAKER_00 1:49

Okay.

unknown 1:49

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 1:50

99 sounds good.

SPEAKER_02 1:52

Yep. Um so I wanna so I I was just I've been like kind of thinking about where I wanted to start. So the first thing I wanted to, I wanted to pose the question to mom. We so full disclosure, we had a whole conversation about this on our show a few months ago, and the recording got botched, and so we didn't go back because we decided that the topic was so good when you and I, when Matt and I talked about it that it would be a lot cooler if we had your perspective on it, because uh obviously you and dad played a big big big part in the whole dinner party, you know, situation. And so we decided we were like, you know what, let's scrub talking about it again, and let's bring you in as a guest and we'll talk about the dinner party, you know, as a whole episode. So that's uh you know how it how it uh came to be that we're doing this today. But uh I wanted to know, because this was the part obviously that we didn't have in our first conversation, how do you and and I don't trust my memory. So I had a massive brain hemorrhage in in 2014, if some people know, some people don't know. And since then I don't trust my memory because I find that there's certain things in my memory that that now my brain just like starts plugging in information that sounds correct, that might not necessarily be correct to fill in blank spots in my memory. And so my wife has uh so very kindly pointed out to me on many, many occasions that while I have the gist of something correct, my details of this, you know, these certain things are are not quite uh not quite exactly how I remember them. So that being said, I'm very interested to hear your perspective on how all of this came to be.

SPEAKER_00 3:45

Well, we my dad dad and I were in a club with three other couples, and we just called it the gourmet dinner club. And all all eight of us like to cook to some extent, and we would just get together every couple of months at each other's houses and just have an eight-person dinner party.

SPEAKER_05 4:09

Who are the uh who are the other couples in question?

SPEAKER_00 4:11

The other couples were Jim and Kathy, Mundy, uh no, Cadigan, Bill and Bill and um Kathy Mundy, Rosemary and um Jim McHugh and Dad and I. And we would each kind of try to outdo each other, either with what we've cooked or uh you know, somehow how we've set the evening up. So Dad and I got this idea that it would be really cool if you Justin, who were ready to start culinary school and very interested in cooking, uh at least helped prepare the meal. That would be really fun. And then Matt, at that time, you were working at a restaurant in DC, uh rest uh a pretty high-end restaurant in DC as a waiter. And so we thought, well, we could have Matthew be the waiter and Justin be the cook, and we could have our little restaurant. So that's how it came about. Okay.

SPEAKER_05 5:19

So did I I have to take an issue with a little bit of this.

unknown 5:22

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 5:22

Okay. Hold on. I want to ask one other follow-up question just about the the couples and the setup. So when you guys were doing these dinner parties, it was up to the host to do the cooking. Like it was not like bringing food in from out the city. No, no, no, no. It was 100% you trying to outdo your friends with a fancy dinner.

SPEAKER_00 5:41

Correct. I mean, it wasn't terribly competitive, but somewhat competitive. So if you could come up with a good idea, good thing.

SPEAKER_02 5:51

Okay, so do you do you before we get in, do you remember any of the other ones like that people did like when you did one at the Cadigan's house or at the Mundy's house? Do you remember any of those like off the top of your head?

SPEAKER_00 6:05

You talk about your memory being bad, my memory's worse. I get it. I'm not gonna I'm not gonna I really can't.

SPEAKER_02 6:11

Okay, that's all. All right, so Matt, you you take Umbridge with mom's version of the story, apparently.

SPEAKER_05 6:17

Okay, well, I I I just want to give like a little bit of backstory about like where I was at in life at this time, um, because I was living in DC uh in a group house with my buddies and working at this restaurant, and two of my roommates, Rich Rich and Alan, um they Alan was an only child. Rich was an only child, but he had stepsisters. Um but both of these guys were like very wrapped up with their parents, and it was like I feel like one of them, it was like every Sunday night, boom, he's out to the parents' house for dinner. Like it was there was no argument or anything. Like that's what he did. And the other one, I feel I feel, I feel like that was Alan, and and Rich was like, he was constantly bemoaning the fact that like his parents were always after him to come see us, come see us, come see us, come see us. And he just wanted to, he just wanted to stay down and you know keep hanging out at the house with the rest of us. You guys were the opposite, like you, you were I I think, I think you liked it when I would come out to see you, but you were not, you know, putting a lot of pressure on me, as I recall. Do you remember it that way?

SPEAKER_00 7:34

Definitely.

SPEAKER_05 7:35

To your credit.

SPEAKER_00 7:36

Thank you. Thank you. To your credit, but yes.

SPEAKER_05 7:38

Because I, whereas Rich had no guilt whatsoever about his desire to not go and see his parents, I had lots of guilt, but I was still a selfish asshole in my 20s that was going to do what I wanted to do.

SPEAKER_00 7:51

But see, where I was coming from as a parent at that time was I'm an only child, and my parents drove us crazy about seeing them all the time. And we lived in Virginia, they lived in DC, and you know, it was like an hour over there, and we just were not interested in going over there all the time. And so I was very, very determined that I was never going to do that to my children. So as it turns out, I'm I mean, I never have done that to my children, but my other son, who's not here at the moment, really thought we had like abandoned him after he got married because we didn't bug him. And so there's a happy medium, and we apparently didn't have that quite right.

SPEAKER_05 8:36

Well, your your intentions were good. But I felt I felt guilt about this at the time. And as I recall, like I was we we talked on the phone a lot back then. That was a thing. Yeah, back in the past, when you would actually just like get on the phone and have a 30-minute conversation with someone on a regular basis. Um, so uh, you know, I would talk to you a lot on the phone, and and as I recall it, I remember you telling, just kind of mentioning to me um that you were doing this thing with Justin, and I was the one who was like, Oh, I should come out and be a waiter. That's entirely possible. And then my very next thought was I gotta bring this guy Montgomery with me, because at the time, um Montgomery, who is you know one of the the main you know feature players in this tale, uh 100%. He he was he was living in my house with me. So so I do I don't want to dominate the conversation, but like this is a crucial, crucial kind of piece of backstory here. I I feel like so Montgomery.

SPEAKER_02 9:43

You need to tell it because mom might not know some of this backstory. So it's a we're all getting to fill in these these little these little our parts of this story and and how it is. Mine's like really honestly the lamest part because it it was really just the dinner. But your part is much more interesting. So go go expound.

SPEAKER_05 10:02

Okay, okay, yeah. So by the end, we will have a definitive version with all three of us uh for the record. So I like it. So um Montgomery, his name is Montgomery Sinks, and he was quite a character, uh so much so that I once wrote a song about him called Montgomery Sinks, where Sinks plays uh a dual role as a as a uh as an a proper noun and a verb. Um and uh he was kind of uh a troubled guy. He was from the South. Um he was gay and he was he was like kind of one of these he was the the version of gay guy that's like like not flamboyantly gay, but like, you know, he's just like well dressed and well mannered, had worked in all kinds of you know, high-end restaurants over the course of his careers. I remember he was maybe a couple years older than I was, um, had waited on some some big time celebrities and stuff. I seem to recall him saying something about having waited on Nancy Reagan or something like that. And anyways, so he uh but he was in a relationship that sounded to me like it was more of like he had like a sugar daddy or something that didn't treat him very well, and he was trying to get away from this guy, and but he wasn't good with his money, and he he was he was just kind of spinning his wheels and and really sort of upset about it, and I could see it in him because I got to know him at this restaurant, and uh as it happened at the time, I was in this mode where I'd gotten myself into a bunch of credit card debt and I was bound and determined to dig my way out. And so I was picking up every shift that I possibly could at this restaurant, and I had I had set upon a course of like Spartan existence where uh I would just work and then I would just go straight home. I wouldn't spend any money. Every single day I'd wake up, I'd make myself a pot of coffee, I'd walk up to the bank and deposit every dime that I had made the night before, just go straight into the bank. And I've just made this a matter of routine. I tried to work every shift I possibly could. And then alongside of this, I was just like, I'm not gonna go out after work and you know, drop $20, $25 on on drinks after work with people. I just I can't do it. You know, it's I have to cut down my expenses where I can, and that's where that's one of those like those areas. And so that's what I was doing. And people would come up to me at work and say, Hey, you going to you going to the bar after work? And I'd say, Nah, I gotta go home trying to save money. And they're like, Oh, come on, man, seriously. No, I'm saving money. I'm not going out. I'll I'll buy you a drink. And I and I would literally say to people, okay, but I need you to know that after that drink, I'm gonna leave. I mean, like, I'm like, yes, I told you I'm not I'm not spending any of my money. So if you want me to go out to the bar and have a drink, that's fine. You can buy me a drink and I'll be thankful for it. But when I'm done, I'm leaving because I'm not gonna sit there not drinking and watching you guys drink, and I'm not gonna spend any more money on drinks. So just understand that. And people would give me weird looks and be like, okay, psycho. So that's where I was at. And Montgomery was a partier. This was he was a social guy and wanted to go out every night after work, and he knew that I was on this whole saving money jag, and he was having the hard time making ends meet and keeping his bills paid, et cetera, et cetera. And finally he came to me one day and he just like threw himself on my good graces and was like, You gotta help me. You gotta help me. Like, I just you seem to be in control of what you're doing with your money, and I just can't get it together. And I I I owe bills to everybody. And can you help me? And I was like, Yeah, I can I can try to help you. And um what I realized was like, I'm just gonna move you into my house. I'm gonna offer it to you. I'll move you into the basement of our house. The the roommates aren't gonna care. Nobody ever hung out down there. You can you can sleep on my couch because I knew he was in a bad situation, and this guy was always trying to get rent money out of him. And uh, I said, just tell that guy to F off, be done with him, move into my house, and you can stay as long as you want, and we'll get you fixed up. We'll we'll we'll we'll get you back on track until you can plot your next move. And I don't really recall how everything played out. I think, I think at some point he just moved out, you know, later on or whatever, just wasn't working for him. But to his credit, he hung in there for a few weeks and I had him under my wing. And like every day he at work, he's like, Let's go out. And I'm like, Nope, we're going home. Let's take a cab. Nope, we're taking the metro. Like, just shut up. You said you were you were in for the program. And so that's what we were doing. And what happened is he ended up being buddies with Rich Miller because he was a night owl and he was a social butterfly, and we'd get home from work, and I'd be like, All right, I'm going to bed. And he'd be like, Oh, I'm gonna hang out with your roommate downstairs that can't seem to get in bed before four in the morning every morning. So he and Rich became these like these like 1 a.m. to 4 a.m., you know, after midnight friends hanging out, smoking cigarettes. And uh, you know, that so that's that's sort of the backstory of like where Montgomery was and why I was able to go to him and be like, hey, we're doing this thing on Sunday night. The restaurant was closed Sundays, as I recall, and it was like, we're doing something Sunday night, you know. I'm not asking, I'm telling. And but he was into it. Like as soon as I told him what it was, he was like, Oh yeah, let's do it, you know, because this is like his perfect thing. So so that's who he is uh going into this. Um we had the conversation. I said, How about I bring Montgomery?

SPEAKER_00 15:31

And yeah, I'm sure you were just like, Oh yeah, I I'd been hearing stories from you about Montgomery, and I knew he was good. So yeah, I was real interested in it.

SPEAKER_02 15:41

So the table was set, and uh and and the notch was kicked up because obviously this is now going to be a very different kind of dinner party than you've had previously. So as in the lead up to it, like had you told your friends that it was gonna be like No, absolutely not.

SPEAKER_00 16:04

I didn't tell them anything. I just wanted it to be a super cool night that nobody anticipated or had any expectations for.

SPEAKER_02 16:13

Oh, that's cool. See, I did that's something I did not know.

SPEAKER_00 16:16

I'm big into surprises.

SPEAKER_02 16:19

So am I. So am I always have been. I like surprises. Um my wife does not like surprises, but I do. I do. Um so we're so now so so we'll let let's take it to the to the actual night of the dinner party when when we all kind of get together.

SPEAKER_05 16:37

Well, wait, I want I got a little more backstory out of you that I want to get. Okay, so so had you been working at Pumper Nichols at the time? Yes, I was working at Pumpernickels at that time. Okay, so so so you're headed off to culinary school, but you've been grinding in a kitchen. So like like you know how to cook already. Like Yeah, so you know what I'm saying? You you weren't you weren't just like an absolute novice or anything.

SPEAKER_00 17:02

Well, also, Justin, you had been in that culinary program in your senior year of high school.

SPEAKER_02 17:08

So the two things that that I had kind of done. So I got the job working at Parper Nichols when I was either 15 or 16. Um, you you and you know Andy, but you mostly got me in to BJ Pappernickels. I think did you actually call Jerry Irlitz and and like no? I don't think so. I swear that at one ago I think you did, but anyway. So I had been working there and I started as a busboy, and I just I literally did just about any every job that they had. But through my senior year, you know, because I had been there pretty much my entire junior year as a busboy and a food runner, and then you know, I started working in the deli and I started working in the kitchen. I was the only besides this old Jewish guy that would work on Sunday, I was the only white guy that worked in the kitchen besides Barry. And you know, they really like took me under the under their wing. Um I I especially Barry, like the my very first day was was working in in a uh was working in the freezer, in the walk-in freezer, reorganizing the freezer with Barry and at the end of the day.

SPEAKER_05 18:19

A tale a tale which you have told on this very podcast.

SPEAKER_02 18:23

Yeah, and he he you know literally was like, Well, if you could put up with that, you'll be fine. And I you know, from that on, from that point on, it was it was it was on like Donkey Kong with at least with them. In my senior year, i I had I had been working in the back, I'd been working with the catering, I'd been working in the deli, you know, I was slicing meat, I was delivering you know, platters on like the really busy weekends. They'd they'd let me, you know, throw a couple platters in my car and you know, deliver them. And you know, I mean that that place really, really took care of me. I mean, it was like, you know, and like I said, I did just about every job, you know, in the place.

SPEAKER_05 19:01

But well that's that's why I was that's why I was asking, because like uh I was thinking on the menu, and you know, before we get into night of, I I I know that at some point I talked to you about what you were gonna be making, and it sounded to me like you had the meal itself on lock. And so I remember at the time I was into rolling my own sushi, and I'm pretty sure that I brought out my own, like I made some sushi rolls um in in advance uh to to serve as like a past appetizer. Because as soon as I told Montgomery about it, he and I started like talking about like how things were gonna go down. And I remember him saying, Oh, we need to do, you know, when the guests arrive, they need to be cocktailed and we need to do past apps. And I was like, Oh, yeah, I'll do suit, I'll make up sushi rolls. So yeah, I know there was sushi, but yeah, but I but I feel like there was something else that we we served. Do you recall or no?

SPEAKER_00 20:00

I don't, but I remember you passing around appetizers.

SPEAKER_05 20:04

Yeah, people were out on the back patio, right? And we were we were cocktailed out on the deck and all out in the backyard, yeah. Um so uh but the reason I was just asking you about like where your culinary skills were at is just because I mean I was a I was a full online cook at that point.

SPEAKER_02 20:21

I mean, like I was cooking on the line at BJ Pumper Nickle's and I was working at the deli.

SPEAKER_05 20:26

Because I I seem to recall the menu being pork tenderloin, asparagus, and roasted potatoes. Does it how does this that sound right? Definitely the pork tenderloin for sure.

SPEAKER_01 20:37

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 20:37

Yeah, no, the pork tenderloin 100%. I think the side was asparagus.

SPEAKER_02 20:42

But I mean, if by that point, like I was doing I was doing catering like smaller catering jobs on on my own. I mean, there were there were definitely times when like I did stuff at the the Alney House or whatever that is out in Brookville. I would do they would they would have like a rotary dinner and I would do that by myself. Like they'd take me out there on my own.

SPEAKER_05 21:04

Yeah, I think I think we also did a salad.

SPEAKER_00 21:07

I think this you had a salad. I think the salad was served ahead of at the table, but ahead of yeah, yeah, it was it was like three courses.

SPEAKER_05 21:15

Does anybody remember what the dessert was?

unknown 21:17

No.

SPEAKER_05 21:18

There had to have been a dessert.

SPEAKER_02 21:20

Guarantee there was a dessert, and I'm sure there was something something to do with it. But yeah, that the the the the you know, in any any modern age, there would have been a million photographs of this thing. I bet there isn't even a photograph of anything from that.

SPEAKER_00 21:35

There is a photograph somewhere. You remember, well, of course you remember we had wide staircase that went up to the second floor from the foyer, and we were all sitting in lines on those steps.

SPEAKER_05 21:48

Yes, with with all of us in there. Like you all were like in the film.

SPEAKER_00 21:53

And we were like, No, I think somebody set up a tripod.

SPEAKER_05 21:57

Oh, maybe.

SPEAKER_00 21:58

I think I don't, I'm not sure. But I've got that picture somewhere.

SPEAKER_05 22:01

Oh, you gotta find that picture.

SPEAKER_00 22:02

I'm surprised you don't have that, Justin, because you have so many of my pictures.

SPEAKER_02 22:05

No, because my my photos only go up to like a certain era, and I think it's in that drawer that we have never gone through. Because you have probably another 20 years worth of photos in that drawer in your bedroom. I'm not sure about that. We've never gone through that.

SPEAKER_05 22:22

Most of what I have I can remember seeing that picture like in subsequent years.

SPEAKER_00 22:25

Oh yeah. I I have seen it in fairly years.

SPEAKER_02 22:30

Then it's probab that's why I say it's probably in that batch of photos I've never gone through. So all right.

SPEAKER_05 22:35

Well, you have a task to do before the end of the week, because I want to get that into the show notes. That'd be amazing.

SPEAKER_00 22:40

That'd be amazing if I could find that. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 22:43

Yeah, that would be incredible. So now so now we so now we know all the players, all right, and you know, we've deciphered what we remember of the menu. Man, it's like it's sad that we can't remember all the all the different things. Maybe it'll come to us as we talk.

SPEAKER_00 23:00

I can't believe one of us doesn't remember dessert, but I don't. I really don't.

SPEAKER_02 23:05

I just I I because it the problem is that it could be a million things, and for me, I like I I I know that I conflate details, and so I don't want to like go like, oh, it was probably a K or it was like you know, I could just be completely remembering something different, and we've also been talking about other memories, and I could be like starting to mix them up anyway. So Sunday Sunday night arrives, and obviously I I I know that I remember like I was getting stuff ready prior to them arriving. But did do I remember, did you guys bring like wine pairings as well? Like I I know there was like a a wine element to it. Uh uh.

SPEAKER_00 23:47

I I think you told us what to get ahead of time.

SPEAKER_05 23:51

No, no, no, no. First of all, I I want to mention, I believe at the time, I know that there was like a long period of time, six, seven, eight months at some point when I was living uh down there in that house, that like my car was broken down and I was too broke to afford to fix it. And I definitely think that that coincided with this time when I was trying to save all this money. I feel like I feel like my car was broken down, I couldn't afford to fix it. And I was like, I gotta do a deal with this debt situation. And I was just like, you know what? I'm just gonna get around on my bike in the metro. I'm not even gonna deal, like, I'll I'm gonna make the car payment and I'm not even like it can sit there. I I'll save on the gas and stuff. And I think that is why we rode the metro out there because Montgomery and I rode the metro and you had to come out to Shady Grove Metro, pick us up, take us back to the house, and then afterwards you had to drive us back to Shady Grove Metro.

SPEAKER_02 24:43

Um Yeah, because I yeah, because I was the only one that hadn't been drinking. This is correct.

SPEAKER_05 24:48

And and it was it was there was no sense in us in in uh there's no way I wouldn't have driven, you know what I mean? Like that that could given the fact that you would be making this meal to have to ask you to take you know 40 45 minutes out to go, you know, schlep us to and from the metro. So um, so that is why we rode the metro down there. You came out, you picked us up, you got to meet Montgomery, drove back to the house, and uh we get there, and Montgomery just took over. This is like one of my favorite parts. My favorite parts of the story is like it suddenly became becomes very apparent who is in the who is in charge, who has done this before, and who knows how to make this happen. And some of the details here are so great, so great.

SPEAKER_02 25:35

So um I can start, but if there's things that you guys remember of the the before the guests arrive, period, do do tell I remember him like wanting a a complete debrief of what the food was gonna be, and then his his then okay, we need to, you know, he gave us a lot of different tweaks, and especially the sauce. The sauce was one big thing that I have to give him all basically all the credit for is we know we made like a wine reduction sauce for the pork.

SPEAKER_05 26:06

Um we get there, and you're you're exactly right. The first thing he we did was a debrief on the menu. We got the we got the the sushi rolls locked in for our past app. There may I feel like there might have been something else, but it might have just been I think there was more than one thing, it might have just been like cheese and crackers, crude decay or something like that. Um but uh so so that's gone now. So he wants to hear, he wants to hear about the the the menu. So you're like, all right, so you know, salad, tenderloin, dessert, whatever. Um, I remember he's like, all right, salad plates. Where are the salad plates? Get those into the refrigerator. We're like, huh? Plates need to be chilled for salad. And it's just like, as he's doing this, it's dawning on us. Oh, we're in such good hands here. Like, like, in case anybody thought that we were gonna look like amateurs, that is not about to happen. I'm almost positive we were wearing our our Deo uniforms. Oh, yeah. So we had like our bistro aprons.

SPEAKER_02 27:04

And didn't you have a chef coat? I had definitely was wearing my chef coat, yes.

SPEAKER_00 27:07

I was gonna say, I know you had a chef, chef's hat. I can't remember I think you had the hat on.

SPEAKER_02 27:15

I probably had my uniform for like because I probably got the uniform for culinary school ahead of going up, and it was probably that though. Yeah, that it was either that or I had one for my from from the culinary class that I took at the vote. I may it may have been that one.

SPEAKER_00 27:30

I think it was, but I know you had a chef's hat. And I also remember you being really worried about how the meal was gonna turn out, the food. You were very worried.

SPEAKER_02 27:43

As we got closer, it was like the pressure was like very on. And I was very young and oh, yeah, you're like completely overconfident.

SPEAKER_00 27:51

Yeah, yeah, you were like 17 or 18 at that time.

SPEAKER_02 27:54

I would have been like 17. Well, and I figure, I figure for the timing of it, it has to be it had to have been before it had to have been in the spring because I got surgery in July or June of that summer. I had my my maxiofacial surgery, was that I remember it, I feel like I remember it being summer.

SPEAKER_00 28:19

We were definitely outside, so it had to be good weather for sure, not iffy, you know.

SPEAKER_02 28:25

I just I think it was before my surgery because after the surgery, like I was I was maybe in May.

SPEAKER_05 28:31

Maybe it was in May.

SPEAKER_02 28:32

Well, it could have been June, because I don't think the surgery was until like early July. It might have been after vacation because I remember I was still I was still messed up on my birthday with the the whole like mouth wired shut yeah. And I remember that like those two I know that those two things were like you know together like time-wise. So it had to have been before, like it has to have been before like before that moment. So late June probably or mid-June is would also work for that timeline.

SPEAKER_05 29:16

All right, so Montgomery comes in, we he gets the salad plates into the into the fridge, uh, now it's on to the entree. What Justin, what are you serving? Uh pork tenderloin.

SPEAKER_02 29:27

Roast pork tenderloin.

SPEAKER_05 29:29

And he's like, he's like, okay, tenderloin, asparagus, potatoes, what's the sauce? And you're like, sauce? Yeah. There's there's a sauce. He's like, it's gotta be a sauce. You're not gonna serve pork tenderloin without a sauce. And you know, this is this is just the beautiful detail here where he's like, okay, okay, give me the phone. So we grab the little remote phone and put we pull out the we pull out the antenna. And Montgomery calls calls the restaurant and he gets the sous-chef Fred was his name on the phone. And uh he's like, Fred, I need your help here, buddy. He's like, All right, what's up? He goes, I I'm at I'm at this, I'm at this dinner party thing. They're serving pork tenderloin, but there's no sauce. I need you to help me make a sauce. What do they have? I don't know. What do you need? I don't know, go to the refrigerator. So Montgomery goes to the fridge, he's he's standing there at the phone tucked on his thing, and he's he's going through the fridge. Oh, I got this, I got this, I got this. And I believe if memory serves, they made a wine reduction sauce, but there was like some kind of they they used like some grape jelly or some raspberry preserves or something like that.

SPEAKER_02 30:34

It was like a raspberry red, and I think we had shallots. I think we had shallots. I think we had the raspberry thing, and it was definitely red wine in it, all right. And then and then we we finished it off with with a pad of butter to smooth everything out. I remember that that was being very specific is that is that he was like, do this, this, this, and this, and then, and then you know, once that reduces, you know, finish it off with a pad of butter, and had like a really, really beautiful um you know, purple, you know, fusia, red, you know, kind of color. I remember that. It was absolutely and utterly delicious. I remember that.

SPEAKER_05 31:15

And and if if I recall, like he he literally was sort of like dictating to you, all right, do this, do that, like start this, get this medium heat, did-da-da, throw the, you know, like just kind of here's how it goes like the go-between between Jeff Fred and so just total magic, you know, just just created it, created that night out of thin air.

SPEAKER_02 31:36

So um and we and if I remember correctly, it if memory serving, we could we had like blocked off the kitchen, like kitchen, like typically had that's another one, that's another one of the great details.

SPEAKER_05 31:48

So he he he gets everybody involved. So he grabs my dad. He's like, he he well, first he's asking, like, what's the layout like? And we're like, well, we're here in the kitchen, and in this house, like the kitchen, there was like a there was a a pass-through into the dining room. There was no door there, there was just a doorway into the dining room. So when you're standing in the kitchen, if you look that way, you're looking at the dining room. So he was he was like, wait, so kitchen here, dining room, like you can see the dining room, they can see the kitchen. We're like, yeah. And he's like, nope, that's not gonna work. And he grabs, grabs dad, he says, Go find some kind of cloth, a bedspread, a blanket, I don't care what it is, and you got to nail it up over this door. We can't have them sit in the dining room looking at you in here cooking in the kitchen. It's not gonna work. We're covering this door, we're gonna do service through the living room. Because from there, it's like you had to go all the way around into the foyer, through the living room, and then into the dining room. It's like all service goes through the dining room. There was no question about it. Had to happen. Dad's like, aye, Captain, off he goes to get a hammer. He's he's got himself a project now. You know what I mean? So then it's like the next thing he wants to know about, all right, what's up with the wine? And we're like, uh, well, the guests bring the wine, isn't that how it worked?

SPEAKER_00 33:02

Like, oh, you know what? That could be true. Yeah. I sort of forgot that, but I think you're right about that.

SPEAKER_05 33:07

So we're like, yeah, so we don't know what's up with the wine until the guests arrive. And he's like, hmm, okay.

SPEAKER_02 33:14

He was Did he raid did he raid mom's the mom's very modest wine collection at that time? Now that now that you say that, I'm like, oh, did he maybe go get a bottle of wine off the wine rack?

SPEAKER_05 33:27

Oh, he absolutely did. He was like, because I think that's where the sauce came from. Yeah. Oh, and and he was like, and we need to have wine ready to go when people arrive. You know what I mean? Like we already we have to be able to offer them something when they come in, even if they're they're the person that's bringing the wine. So what do you got around here, Beth? So Beth goes off and finds the wine, and here's what we have, and he's like, Okay, we'll use this and this, and blah, blah, blah. And has that, and then he's got it to use for the sauce as well. Um, that wasn't the only alcohol supply at that house that was raided by Montgomery that night, but but we'll get into it. Um, actually, we could probably we it that probably starts to figure into the story now because at some point I know, like while we were in the kitchen before services started, he was like, All right, we need to do a shot. You got some liquor around here? And I was like, Well, daddy's always got Jack Daniels, and he's like, Go go ahead and get it. So somebody peeked their head out into the garage through the spring-loaded screen door and grabbed a bottle of jack from off the top of the refrigerator.

SPEAKER_02 34:36

At that time, dad had like a little cabinet that was like to the right of the in the freezer. All right, and to the right of the freezer, there was like a on mounted on the wall, there was like a wooden cabinet with two doors, and that's where the liquor was.

SPEAKER_05 34:52

That was a liquor cabinet, you're right about that. Um So a bottle of Jack Daniels made its way into the kitchen, and there it remained, I believe, for the rest of the evening. And I know that you did a shot with us in the afternoon. I'm sure mom and dad were out of the room someplace, but I'm almost positive that the three of us did a shot and we were like, let's do this.

SPEAKER_02 35:14

Um Well, I mean, I was like, I was full on smoking weed back then too. I mean, I was like, yeah, I was yeah, I mean, like, you know, when I was working at when I was working at Pumpernickels, you know, Teddy and I would get a bottle of Bicardi Lamon and be drinking through most of the shift. So yeah. Sorry.

SPEAKER_05 35:34

I wasn't that bad. I wasn't that bad. I wasn't drinking it.

SPEAKER_00 35:36

You were the bad influence on him, too.

SPEAKER_05 35:39

I'm not true.

SPEAKER_02 35:42

I mean, I won't I won't give him complete immunity, but yeah, I mean, I was definitely a a a man of my own in that sense.

SPEAKER_05 35:50

Let's say I wasn't I wasn't I wasn't a role model for him, but I wasn't optively trying working to corrupt him. He was taking care of that on his own. Like I said, not a role model.

SPEAKER_02 36:03

Um so trust me, trust me, mom. There is a lot of stuff that probably Matt doesn't even know that I was into. So there's a lot of people. Well, I would imagine, yeah. There is some dicey, dicey things that we're gonna.

SPEAKER_05 36:15

We'll get into that on another podcast. Yeah, we'll we'll we'll we'll do our deepest dark darkest secrets episode one day. Um it's a good one.

SPEAKER_02 36:22

I like that idea. I like that idea. All right.

SPEAKER_05 36:25

So so mg montgomery, uh so to to continue with the wine thing. So once once the the the guests who were bringing wine arrive, we get one of my absolute favorite moments of the night because one of one of the uh wine offerings that were brought to use for the dinner party was a box of wine. Oh that's right. Someone showed up with a box and Montgomery looked at me and he was like, if we use that wine, it gets poured into the empty bottle and then poured into the guests. Okay.

SPEAKER_02 36:59

I remember that as well.

SPEAKER_05 37:00

That's the only way that wine is getting served to these guests. They better not see this freaking box of wine. So as it turned out, I don't think we we used much of that box of wine. It will figure into this story later. Um but uh so I I think that that was uh that's all I can really remember from the pre, you know, from the pre like party starting time.

SPEAKER_02 37:28

Uh yeah, I can there's no details that are like popping up prior to the party that that I can remember.

SPEAKER_00 37:34

Nothing that uh we haven't said already.

SPEAKER_02 37:37

Any any anything like with dad that you remember specifically? Because obviously, you know, there's a key element is obviously our father's no longer with us. Do you remember any other like little minor details with dad from the other?

SPEAKER_00 37:49

I don't from before, you know, because before it's happening, you know, I'm getting ready, you all are in the kitchen, you know, I don't know what's going on in that time frame. And then once the guests come, I'm with the guests, so I don't know what's going on in the kitchen.

SPEAKER_05 38:03

I just remember dad being very enthusiastic and engaged and just like in a great mood.

SPEAKER_00 38:10

Oh, absolutely. He loved, he would tell you that he hated to entertain, but he actually loved it.

SPEAKER_02 38:15

All right, well, let's happy. Let's take a quick break, and then when we come back, we'll get into the dinner party proper. Stay with us, we'll be right back.

SPEAKER_05 38:26

Please check out our other show, Beyond the Slipstream, a weekly podcast about pro cycling, pro cycling, and oh, did I mention pro cycling or kind of obsessed? Search and subscribe in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube, or click the link in the show notes.

SPEAKER_02 38:43

Welcome back to Inglorious Brothers. Uh, we are here with our guest, Beth Harper. Uh and we are sponsored by Jack Daniels. No, we're not.

SPEAKER_03 38:56

Yes, Jack Daniels, see? I have I have I have my Jack Daniels bottle back here too. It's right here.

SPEAKER_02 39:02

So in the spirit of of the show or of the evening, we decided we were gonna do a shot of whiskey uh in in honor of the the about to be uh partaking of meal that we're going to talk about. So we'll do a quick shot. We'll raise a glass to uh to dad who's not here here. Cheers.

SPEAKER_05 39:27

Cheers. All right, and uh as as as was the case back then, mom is not doing a shot now. All right. That one's for you, Pops. We love you, Dad. Um you think he's up there listening down?

SPEAKER_00 39:49

Absolutely. He's loving it.

SPEAKER_05 39:52

He never ever comments on our YouTube page, it's and he's got all the time in the world. He's loving it. So, and at this point in the evening, we probably would have done a shot of Jack. So it kind of makes sense for uh for what we're doing here. Um yeah, so the the the service proper starts. We bring the guests in, we get them seated. Um, I'm sure that that there was a conversation had about the the seating chart, who was sitting where and why, if I know, if I know Montgomery, or if I knew Montgomery. Um, but then as I said, pr service proceeded through the living room. So uh, you know, we would we would have to leave the kitchen through through the back way, essentially, come around and into the um and into the dining room. Uh, and Justin is back there just like cranking away in the kitchen. And I recall like you were not only cooking the food, but you were like rocking through all the dishes and stuff as it was going on, like like we were on top of it. If you think about it, three people serving eight people, right? It's not hard. Like this is very easy to get this done. Um, so Montgomery stands up. He's quite clearly the front waiter, and I am the back waiter because he stands up, he's like, I'd like to welcome everyone, um, you know, to this dinner, wonderful dinner party, blah, blah, blah. And he was like, and he and he gave the description of each course that came out. So it's like, are your first course this evening is gonna be a blah blah blah blah blah. Did we and did we have a soup done as well? What could there have been a soup done as well?

SPEAKER_02 41:34

There was a there absolutely was a soup. Yes, there was. Now that you say it, and and I can't remember what it was, but I think that it had something to do with with peanuts. I think I had some sort of like a a peanut and pumpkin something. Something like that, or peanut and squash. There's some reason that sticks out in my head now that you say that. So I do think there was a soup course.

SPEAKER_00 42:00

I don't remember that at all. Can't help you.

SPEAKER_05 42:03

So, well, nonetheless, Montgomery came out and he he introed every dish. You know, he gave them a beautiful description of the dish, and then we did um, you know, the the just the flawless table service uh throughout the whole thing. And once once things were rolling, we were just kind of hanging back in the kitchen most of the night with you, and like you're you know, you're he was just making sure that things were rolling. And I mean it was it was a real service, you know what I mean? Like every, you know, every single every single course was given the attention that it was due, and we were making sure that the all the silverware was perfect, the glassware was perfect, you know, water's topped off, wines topped off, um cold plates for sure. I mean, drinks were totally flowing.

unknown 42:47

I remember that.

SPEAKER_05 42:48

I believe we also helped in the plating of like once the once the entrees were ready to go, like we were helping in the plating. It was like you were you were putting the you were putting the medallions down and Montgomery was saucing them, and then I was coming through and finishing them up with the potatoes and stuff. And uh Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm I'm pretty sure he heated the plates too. I think it was not only cold salad plates but warmed dinner plates.

SPEAKER_00 43:11

Um one thing I remembered during that time when it was being served was if anyone got up to leave to go anywhere, somebody would run right in and do the napkin folding thing and put it on their plate. That happens and they'd come back and they were like, huh, where did this come from? You know, it was really cute.

SPEAKER_05 43:36

That's such a good one. I don't know. I don't get a chance to do that very much these days at a bar, but occasionally someone will get up and leave, and I'll I'll leave a nice little bird of paradise waiting for them when they come back. Right. Um very cute.

SPEAKER_00 43:48

Yeah, it was a nice touch.

SPEAKER_05 43:50

So so so yeah, get into that more. Like, how do you recall like being on the on the guest end of it during during the service, like once we were eating? Like, do you recall? feelings of of pride knowing that like you're about to win the win the annual contest.

SPEAKER_00 44:06

Not so much that but you know and you all both being parents should know this now. It's such a a thrill to see your ch offspring do something wonderful. And I could just tell dad did as well as we're sitting there enjoying the food and the company that all of them were like loved every minute of it. I mean they were so into it they were blown away by just every little detail and I I'm sure it was a lot Montgomery but there were so many little details. And um yeah I mean I was just really proud of just that you all could do this for us. You know there's just something about it. I'm sure you've both felt that pride in your children at some point. Absolutely yeah and you know only a parent can really know that. Do you recall anybody's like reactions to it like specifically like um you know any of the couples like you know I think that the probably what I can s remember in one part that I can remember is that nobody really realized that you Justin were capable of really doing this stuff. I mean you were a kid you know and I think it was like oh my gosh is he really cooking this is this is really good you know and I think that was kind of their reaction to you and both of you were very outgoing growing up so all of our friends knew both of you and your personalities and everything. So the outgoingness of it didn't surprise anybody it was wonderful. Um but they just I think they just didn't realize you at such a young age could do what you did. And then as far as Matt goes I mean I think many of our friends had already had time to be blown away by Matt because he was in his late 20s and I mean he just did amazing things because of his talent and his personality but I remember like coming down to restaurants and stuff like that where I was working like when you would go with them yeah and and also though uh many I think all of them were at a 25th wedding anniversary party that um the Mick Hughes Jim and um rosemary had given for us and you had written a song and you were the only one at home then living in the Washington area then um and you came to that party and sang that song. Do you remember that? You don't remember that I yeah I kind of remember it.

SPEAKER_02 46:59

Yeah but in in any event you know they knew your personality and your talents already but I think are you I think that you're you're you might be misremembering I think that was your fifth that was a birthday party for you that you're thinking of was it your was that your because you got like a like a like a big like I was it at it was at the McHugh's right it was at the McC's but I think that was you could that have been your okay maybe it was yeah maybe it was I don't think it was a song I think it was a poem.

SPEAKER_05 47:30

I think I wrote a poem for you.

SPEAKER_02 47:32

You played it on your guitar yeah did I no I don't remember you playing your guitar yeah um but I'm I'm pretty sure that was your 50th birthday yeah because the 25th anniversary hangs on your hangs on your wall because I I signed it I signed it in a stupid place but Rosemary McU made you a beautiful card and I was right idiot that signed it in the one place and I'm pretty sure that was your 50th birthday.

SPEAKER_00 47:56

Okay well it could have been but my point there every time I go yeah I don't even know what you're talking about.

SPEAKER_02 48:00

I gotta you gotta show me this sometime where it's all it's on the long wall with all the pictures yeah all the way to the far far right like very close to the uh to the washer and dryer.

SPEAKER_05 48:11

I'll have to check it out. By the way that picture the you'll see my signature in a very odd spot when when we unearth the photograph of this dinner party that we're going to unearth it must go on that wall like it must go on that wall in your house.

SPEAKER_00 48:25

I hope I find it so but anyway my whole point was they were familiar with you and your creativity and so I think they were just so happy to be the recipient of that you know from both of you actually well yeah that that's nice of you to say and of course you so you you point out that you know it was a lot about like me and Justin's personality because we were all so outgoing.

SPEAKER_05 48:52

And then you throw that little charmer Montgomery into the mix. Yeah exactly and that's a powerful combination because he is one of those guys and and I've known a few of them over the years but not many that people fall in love with him like when they first meet him you know like I look back on this guy Wayne Prince that worked at that worked at um at Jackson's restaurant he was this cat from the islands from St. Lucia and uh he was just like he was almost like a walking he was like a walking parody of like an of like a happy island guy. Hey man hey what's happening man just always had a smile on his face it was that and people just fell in love with this dude and Montgomery was like that people would get to meet him and he kind of it just worked folks so well he was so charming so sweet but so good at what he did like he he he made he made taking care of you seem effortless and yet the most important thing in the in in in the on his agenda you know what I mean was making sure that you're an amazing another another part of you know how proud I feel which you all would never identify with but I'm very introverted and Dan dad was more introverted than not so here we've produced these two extreme extroverts that's like can this be real you know it's just such nature nature versus nurture.

SPEAKER_02 50:16

Yeah you know the thing is though that the in the right setting dad could hold court as well oh yeah you know he may not have been the guy that was you know you know everywhere you go doing that but I mean he absolutely had oh he could yeah some extrovert tendencies and he was a great he was a great storyteller he really was a great storyteller and I know that that's something that Matt and I get from him is that you know he he was uh you know a tremendous storyteller when when you when you think back on this like supper club you know thing that you guys did do is there are there any other times that that kind of stick out in your mind where or was this like the coup de gras like did you oh no no question I think every couple would say it was a coup de gras I don't think anybody ever came up with that because it was I mean it was just like being in a restaurant it really was you know I mean you'd basically turned our house into a restaurant and you were the perfect chef and waiters.

SPEAKER_05 51:20

I mean you know nobody's gonna match that well it was it was nice a nice touch too that Montgomery had you come out and uh take a bow yeah at the end of the meal. I'll never forget that I could tell you exactly where you were standing and everything. Um and uh yeah that was so cool and they gave you a hearty round of applause as uh as I seem to recall. Yeah um I had forgotten but I remember that now yeah so uh I did I was thinking uh of one other little detail about Montgomery that that you guys might find entertaining um he was he was very game you know he was always always willing to have fun um always willing to try things and one of the little things that he and I did when we were working together um he was into he was into lingo and like how you said things and how you delivered things and uh one of the one of the early things that I picked up on was he would very deliberately use the word sexy to describe the Pinot Noir on the on the wine list that he liked to sell. And there was something about cool Suave Montgomery saying that it was like a sexy little Pinot Noir. He sold tons of that wine and it was like a $70 bottle of wine and everybody else is you know selling 40s and 50s and he just consistently like table after table yeah they got the they got the blah blah blah pinot noir and it you know because he would sell it we would use a little sex to sell it. And I thought that was so great. And so we would play this little game where uh you we would decide on a word of the night before the shift started you know and it would be just some absolutely ridiculous word you know what I mean just some some odd word uh supercilious you know okay supercilious is the word of the night and then the challenge was was to use that word at tabside as you're like describing the menu to the people but the ultimate coup de gras was if you somehow use the word and the other the other guy was nearby enough that he could hear you use it. So you'd be standing there tableside saying folks and our you know the pheasant tonight is a blah blah blah blah blah and all of a sudden you notice out of the corner of your eye that like Montgomery's kind of about to walk right past the table and just and blah blah blah blah supercilious and you know like and uh so that that was like that was like the ultimate like you won if you could pull that off that they're an earshots so but he was cool with stuff like that you know stuff where you had to be improvisational and and uh so yeah so as the I guess as the meal finished um we I I I'm certain we did coffee service along with the dessert the mystery dessert could it have been creme brulee did we did we bur did we did we burn any creme brulee is some some part maybe that thinks that it is creme brulee. I think so but I did not want to say it I somehow remember there being the thing that makes the you know the creme brulee creme brulee were you doing creme have you had you done creme brulee's at some point before that they weren't doing those at BJ Pumpernickels were they no but I may have done it in in my um in my uh in your class in my vote class yeah yeah I mean there was I was I was very very familiar with creme brulee at that point in time I had probably I I'm I'm certain I had burned creme brulee tops because I did that at Cafe Deluxe all the time just for fun.

SPEAKER_02 54:50

I feel like she she's right like because it's I think so that I thought that earlier and I was like I could be I could be misremembering this.

SPEAKER_00 55:00

And we must have planned that well ahead of time because we certainly wouldn't have had one of those burners things that makes the top so somebody had to bring that I'm not certain about that we could Mung could it be that Montgomery and I had brought a dessert I think no I don't think so I think it was creme brulee. I mean I guess you could have brought it with you I mean I I don't know but I remember creme brulee.

SPEAKER_05 55:24

For now we're saying it's it was creme brulee um and coffee and then you know I think everybody kind of left pretty pretty shortly afterwards.

SPEAKER_02 55:32

Now we we did some heading of the belly it was a long drawn out do you know so yeah yeah it had been many hours that they had been there because we had done the the outdoor past hors d'oeuvres and the the sitting you know the seating dinner and that was you know it three courses for sure four courses so yeah it had been a while.

SPEAKER_00 55:52

Yeah it went on for a long time so yeah and I guess I was thinking if anybody had to get home for their children but I guess we were all into the period of young adult children. Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 56:04

So I mean it was probably it was probably it was probably 10 30 11 o'clock something like that. Took the photo on the stairs uh saw everybody out the door right um and then we were hanging out on the deck right I feel like I was I stayed inside and was talking to some of the guests as they were leaving dad had made his way out back and was smoking uh makes sense Justin and Montgomery had gone out there.

SPEAKER_02 56:31

I remember doing a shot of Jack Daniels out there uh I believe does that sound right to you did we do a shot afterwards it's entirely possible the after I have the least probably the least recollection of because for me it's always been the story of like the remembering what you had told me that you and Monty got up to afterwards which we'll get into I'm sure well I my my main biggest recollection from that from this time though is standing out there on the deck when you go out the back door of the house if you go to the left that little fence rail that's like right in front of the back garage door I can remember I was like leaned back against there with my drink sitting there and dad was like kind of standing right there and he was like you know what he's like boys I think this was the greatest meal that's ever been served in this house and like I will I'll never something dad would say I'll never forget him saying that. And uh and him being very like complimentary to to Montgomery and uh yeah so we uh I mean that that was one of the best things about dad is that dad dad had no pre-reservations on anybody and he would love every any person that he would meet that he connected with you know he had love for that's one of the things that you know I've I've carried with me throughout my adult life is is just dad's attitude towards uh you know strangers and others and you know it surprises me not at all that dad would use those superlatives it surprised me not at all if dad had a had an instant connection with Monty you know none of that would surprise me with dad because I could just see dad being so completely you know inclusive of this guest in his home who just you know had the great who just helped host the greatest you know uh dinner party that was ever served in in you know in his home so like it's none of that surprises me he's it's he was so funny though because you know like for instance you realize we gave like a million Christmas parties for probably 20 or 30 years every Christmas it would be like oh I don't want to go through it it's too much trouble we have did it anyway and he like loved it you know I mean it was like it was like going against his grain but then when he did it he loved it and this went on for our whole life.

SPEAKER_05 58:58

Classic classic curmudgeon yeah no so event was done everybody left had a nice moment with that out on the uh thing now you needed to take us back to the metro Montgomery uh we we we had a backpack with us I guess we brought some of our stuff with and stuff Montgomery said uh the box of wine it's coming with us so I remember you de first off you de-gloved that box of wine and got rid of the box and just took the bag I remember specifically we took the bag out of the box left the box there and then on the got onto the metro and we just had to like barely unzip the backpack you could feed the little little spout of the thing out and just pouring ourselves little cups of wine as we're on the metro and we're just like slugging back shitty Almudan Almadin Chardonnay. I believe it was Francia it was Franzia yeah it was it was the Franzia Francia uh uh what do they call it um it's like a it was like a blush it wasn't like a red it wasn't yeah what what was the what what was that wine back then that everybody drank that was yeah white zinfandel exactly it was yes Francia white zinfandel anyways so and this is mind you after steadily having like Jack Daniel shots throughout the evening so we're now I now find myself on the metro with Montgomery we're plowing our way through this um through this uh bag of wine and you've got a good like 30 40 minute metro ride home like I mean yeah from Shady Grove you hit basically every stop and it's it was like on the other side of the red line so you had to go like through the district and and out right yeah yeah you didn't shady grove went straight down straight no shady oh yeah you're thinking of Glenmont oh shady grove exit went straight down so so we get to we get to uh friendship heights which is the stop that that we would get off to go to my house but now you got to go back to what I was telling you about the situation was with me and Montgomery at this point in time we're on spending freeze we're on this like new program right and uh montgomery realizes his moment to strike he's got me he's got me vulnerable number one I you know have like 10 drinks in me number two number two I have just done so much work to get back in my parents' good graces because as I said I was always feeling so guilty because they were always like when are you going to come out and see blah blah blah and like you know I just my roommates were always going to see their parents and I was just like you know and and so I went out and just knocked them dead like they were both oh my god you know so I was I was back to being the golden child the the rightful order was restored to the universe I was feeling good and we're getting up to to friendship heights metro stop and Montgomery's like can we go out please and I was just like hell yeah let's go and he's like good good good so we take the metro down a few more stops to Cleveland Park down in Cleveland Park I know you'll remember there was a restaurant down there called the Child Herald remember child herald yeah we get off the metro we walk down to the Child Herald I'm like where are we going? He's just like just don't worry about it come with me right so like I had my backpack and then he also had a bag with him that he brought right and little did I know he had designs on the entire evening when we left right so we get to the Child Herald which is apparently a bar that he drinks at because he knows the bartender and as we walk in we just blow right through the bar he gives the bartender a little gonna be in back kind of thing and the bartender's like no problem bro and we just walk right on through we go straight into the men's room um he uh opens up his bag and he's like all right you wear this and then he's got his outfit so he brought an outfit for him and for me. Oh jeez he's like well we're going out tonight afterwards I'm doing you a big favor and that's what's gonna happen you know like like he knew from the get-go so he's got he's got like a shirt and a jacket for me or something like that so I'm like looking good he's looking good we get all freshened up I wouldn't be surprised if uh we did a shot or something that he finagled or finished up the bag of wine or something but finished up we didn't even get a drink at the child herald so we literally just went there to change right and we were not going to be hanging out in Cleveland Park but that's where we got off because he knew he could change there. We come out of the Child Herald and I'm thinking so I guess we're gonna go back to the metro I didn't say anything and he he just turns to me and he's like we're taking a cab and like hails a cab and we go down to like 17th street to like an area with like a bunch of gay clubs and stuff like that. So we're headed to the gay clubs to hang out and uh things got got pretty crazy that night I uh long story short um ended up doing some smooching with with Montgomery ran into a only roommate that did that if I recollect well don't don't don't don't get ahead of yourself uh I ran into a kid named Mohammed who had been a like a busboy at the restaurant at Cafe Deluxe back when I was working there as a manager before now um and so I hadn't seen this guy in a while but I'm hanging out at the bar in this club on 17th Street and I'm sitting there making out with Montgomery and all of a sudden this kid sits down and he sees this going on and I turned I said oh my god Mohammed I haven't seen you in a long time he he goes Matt you are gay you are gay he's so excited he's like I had no idea and I was like well uh actually I don't know about that but like and this is like basically the only like gay experience of my entire life you know this is my one dipping of the toe in the waters and and but but he doesn't know that you know I'm saying he's just like holy shit I I thought this guy was straight here he is and uh I did I did do a little kissing with Muhammad that night uh as well so that was insane you were just the so opposite of get that it's just unbelievable. So it's all it's all a spectrum we're all in the spectrum nonetheless crazy night we end up leaving we definitely take a cab back to the house uh we get out of the car head into the house I immediately go upstairs to pass out montgomery Montgomery immediately goes downstairs and begins Hanging out with Rich Miller. And I I pass out. So fast forward like a week. It's like the following weekend. And at this time, I was not seeing a lot of Rich Miller for whatever reason. Like, I don't know, our paths just weren't crossing. I mean, he worked a day, day job, I worked a night job. And it was not uncommon to go a week without really even like having a conversation with him, you know, just because we just never had the time to sit down and be hanging out or whatever. So um, but um, I remember I was out at the 18th Street Lounge, and it was definitely warmer weather because I was I remember I was hanging out on this like cool like rooftop back back patio thing they had or something, and um Rich was there and I said, Oh my god, dude, what have you been, man? I feel like I haven't seen you in a million years, kind of you know, oh my god, what are you being up to? And it was very good vibes. We were super stoked to see each other there because neither one of us knew we were gonna be there, and uh so I'm like, man, wait till you hear this story about what me and Montgomery did last weekend. It's just unbelievable. And I proceed to tell him the entire story that we've been telling this whole day, you know, my my end of it. And I get to the end and he just starts dying of laughter when I tell him that Montgomery, that little that sly little schemer, had had his tongue down my throat by the end of the night. Uh, and I'm like, dude, what is so funny? And he's like, that was last Sunday night, right? And I was like, yep. And he's like, Yeah, after you guys got home, I made out with him too. Like so that that dude seduced two little straight boys in one night. Absolutely unbelievable. Uh totally insane. And it's like the perfect little PS to this tale. The fact that he seduced Rich Miller unbeknownst to the rest of us, uh, incredible.

SPEAKER_02 1:08:03

Rich Miller makes it makes uh uh uh an appearance on the podcast as a second completely seducey, seducey, yeah. That's so funny. Oh my lord. So do is there anything else that you would like to say about that night aftermath-wise? Like, you know, did it come up in conversation later on where people were just like, oh, I can't believe how great of a night it was.

SPEAKER_00 1:08:36

It had came up in conversation for years after it, you know. I mean, it's it was just memorable. I mean, nobody forgot it. I'm sure I could go to each one of those girls today and say, you remember when? And they all would remember it in detail. Yeah, it's amazing.

SPEAKER_05 1:08:52

Well, maybe we'll maybe we'll do a part two sometime down the road, and we can we can have them all zoom in and we'll get them all in a zoom call.

SPEAKER_00 1:08:59

Well, the problem is none of them live here anymore.

SPEAKER_05 1:09:02

So we can get them all in a zoom call.

SPEAKER_00 1:09:03

Oh, oh, okay. Yeah, that way we could do that. Yeah, that would be cool. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:09:08

So wait, and and so none of the men are still with us, great, or except for Jim Cadigan, you said.

SPEAKER_00 1:09:13

Jim Cadigan is the only one.

SPEAKER_02 1:09:15

So we have so we'd have Jim and Kathy Cadigan.

SPEAKER_05 1:09:17

Greg Beatty. No.

SPEAKER_00 1:09:19

No, he they weren't in that.

SPEAKER_05 1:09:20

Oh, that's right. No, it was Cadigans, McHugh's, and Mundy's. Mundy's.

SPEAKER_00 1:09:25

That's right.

SPEAKER_02 1:09:25

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 1:09:26

And once in Colorado.

SPEAKER_02 1:09:31

And both Kathy Cadigan, obviously.

SPEAKER_00 1:09:33

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:09:34

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_05 1:09:35

We could get all them in there.

SPEAKER_00 1:09:36

Yeah, that's an interesting thought. That would be awesome. Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 1:09:39

Yeah, it would be a cool, a cool part too. All right.

SPEAKER_02 1:09:42

Well, you need to send them a group text or something to tell them what's up. Well, you need to tell them the tell them to watch the episode. Or listen to the episode.

SPEAKER_00 1:09:50

Yeah, I should do that actually.

unknown 1:09:52

Here.

SPEAKER_00 1:09:54

They'll find it on YouTube, right?

SPEAKER_02 1:09:55

Yeah, I'll I'll send you the link that you can send to them.

SPEAKER_00 1:09:58

Okay.

unknown 1:10:00

Cool.

SPEAKER_02 1:10:01

It would be so great if you could somehow come up with that photo. I could use it for the thumbnail.

SPEAKER_00 1:10:05

But I'm not gonna do that. I'll try, but I'm not making those promises.

SPEAKER_05 1:10:09

It's gotta be around there somewhere.

SPEAKER_00 1:10:11

I know it's around somewhere.

SPEAKER_05 1:10:12

Because I've I've I've seen it in somewhat recent times. I'm certain of it.

SPEAKER_00 1:10:16

So have I.

SPEAKER_05 1:10:18

Well, uh, what about you, Justin? Do you have any other any anything else related to it?

SPEAKER_02 1:10:23

I just I just re like I just remember it being such a good time and it's such a fond memory for me. Um you know, it was like it's it's definitely one of the last vestiges of my of my childhood before I kind of had to become a an adult like very fast in my in my late teens. So, you know, it definitely is like one of those last, you know, memories of home that I have that is kind of indelibly burned into my you know, into my uh my core consciousness.

SPEAKER_05 1:10:57

Yeah, I I yeah, it's certainly one of one of my great great memories, great stories. Um, I'll say this a lot of a lot of the people, people that I know um are great cooks, you know. Uh people love cooking. And I would just like to encourage listeners, if you're like into this kind of stuff at all, don't be afraid to, you know, go out on the limb and and create some kind of just like a cool, memorable occasion, you know, just like really lean into it. There's, you know, there is no too taking it too far, you know, like try something. I I look back and I can remember like I remember one time when I was living with Tony Fletcher, he uh his his his girlfriend, who's now his wife, Kathleen, um it was like her birthday, and I was like working at a restaurant and he wanted to do a nice birthday dinner for her, and he got me to wait on her. And I know there's a picture hanging around somewhere of like me standing there, like in a tie, you know, in a waiter's apron, and you know, Tony and Kathleen sitting at the table doing a little toast or something like that. You know, it's just like it's fun and it's so so memorable.

SPEAKER_02 1:12:03

Um, you know, I did remember remember when we did the uh the pizza competition in Hilton Head? Oh yeah, yeah, pizza competition.

SPEAKER_00 1:12:11

Now that we just talked about, I just talked about when I saw the um Neskeys the last time we were in Hilton Head, and they they brought that up.

SPEAKER_02 1:12:22

They remembered that I have I have photos, I have photos of that night for sure.

SPEAKER_05 1:12:26

Do you? And then when we did that podcast a few months ago with restaurant stories, I also told the story of like that crazy like high-end dinner that I did for Mandy in the restaurant, where I I had the chef reimagine all of the menu items as like little tasting plates, and we did like a 10-course menu made out of Jackson's food. Um, that was super fun. And then recently I just did my uh my bartender's ball, um, where I had the the bar crew over and I did like seven paired courses, this time with it was like paired with cocktails, but you know, some some really cool food and and some really amazing drinks.

SPEAKER_02 1:13:03

So we did that last that last day of the Tour de France a couple of years ago where we made croque massour that day. I mean, that's right. There's so many like cool little things that you can do with food and and and match them up to the vibe that you're going on and and you're and you know, and and and I encourage everybody to to to get outside of their own box and and create one of those memories because it really is neat because food food creates such great fellowship. You know, everybody doesn't matter what your beliefs are or what you've got going on, everybody can enjoy a meal singularly inside of the microcosm of their life and have it be a very memorable moment.

SPEAKER_05 1:13:45

Yeah, and I mean here we are talking about it 25 years later, literally. And I mean, not only are we we talking about it, we are we're going into great amounts of of detail and depth. I mean, because it's you know, when you when you start doing very sensory activities like like cooking and dining and interacting with people in an intimate way, the the the details are so much richer, you know what I mean? Like like they they really pop. Um well this was uh amazing.

SPEAKER_00 1:14:16

Well, I appreciate you having me on. I really enjoyed our little walk down memory lane. It was you know unrehearsed and just off the cuff, and it was just nice. I really appreciate it.

SPEAKER_02 1:14:28

Well, we really appreciate you being here, yeah, for sure. It's it's fun to have these little trips down memory lane.

SPEAKER_05 1:14:35

Off off the cuff. This was certainly the very least amount of prep I ever had to do for a podcast episode, and yet I honestly think this is one of the best.

SPEAKER_02 1:14:44

I do, I agree, I absolutely agree. So uh on that note, I will say thank you, mom, for being here, Beth Harper for joining us. Matt, I have enjoyed my day potting with you in in entirely, and this has been a just a great end cap. And as ever if you're listening, thank you for listening. Hit that subscribe button, drop a comment for us. We would love to hear back from you, especially if if one of mom's friends ends up you know watching andor listening to this episode. Please drop a memory if you if you have one uh of that night. We would love to uh to to hear from you. So um on that note, I'll say thank you for joining us. Uh join us again next time on Inglorious Brothers, and uh we'll say adieu. Adu here.

SPEAKER_05 1:15:34

Inglorious Brothers is a Harparama production and a part of the Harporama family of podcasts. You can find us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube. Please like, subscribe, and follow, leave a five-star review, and most importantly, tell all your friends about us. Thanks for listening. Talk to you next time. And uh, oh yeah, Ariva Derchi.