I thought I knew where we were going to have dinner after I met friends at the opening for Michael Tompkins' show at Paul Thiebaud on Columbus. Da Flora, a Venetian osteria and one of my favorite places, is nearly catty-corner to the gallery, and I knew Peter, Anita, and Robert had never eaten there. Tompkins' meticulously painted, meticulously arranged still lifes often contain packaging familiar from the larder, and a pasta box glimpsed here or there added to my hunger. I yearned for the sweet potato gnocchi sauced with cream and bacon and the duck livers with caramelized onions and pancetta in a brandy-sage sauce that I was sure I'd soon be feasting on, even as I greedily stared at the... More >>>