Let’s just imagine you know you’re going die and you could have any meal in the world what would that be? This was the most interesting dinner conversation I’ve had in a long time. I was at the Publican. John started it when I asked him what his favorite daily eats is. He replied that would be impossible to answer and a better question is what would my last meal be.nutritious properties.

The Publican
837 West Fulton Market
Chicago, IL 60607
312-733-9555

I digress slightly from this dinner conversation to – over the past 6-12 months I’ve been noticing an up tick in tools for longevity online. The preservation of your Facebook or Myspace after you die, Deathswitch notify your family, friends, loved ones of your departure, the future me will send my family/friends an email of my thoughts from the past, the list goes on, and on. This thinking stems from the need for self preservation of your 0s and 1s even after dead. Science has corner the medicine for longevity of life if your life ends what happens to all that makes up your personality?

Elaine Paque mentioned some day science maybe able to save your DNA. If science is able to recreate your physical you will you still have the same personality that was you? My opinion is that I don’t believe so. But what if you were able to save you digital personality and then have it transferred into a new body or a body that is made up of your DNA? This is where I think Kurzweil has it right but wrong. The singularity is going to be man and machine and AI will provide the ability to download our digital bits preserving our personality, thought patterns, desires, education, and experiences. Chew on that was a while.

Back to the last supper discussion…

John said his last supper would be a cheese burger and a Schlitz beer at Charlie Binlich’s. I learned tonight this is the best place for burgers in the Midwest.

Dave had very unusual thought about his last meal, which would be sweet corn and butter. He described with the sensory detail the taste of harvest sweet corn dripping with butter. I can see from his face the joy in eating his last meal.

Elaine Paque wanted a destination meal. This would be Sun Lodge in Sun Valley, Idaho. She would order cream of wheat with brown sugar, raisins, and bananas and wash is down with OJ and coffee.

I opted for the sweet death that would be a tray of the best dark chocolate in the world and a glass of my favorite red wine. For me that would be so long and sweet dreams.

All this discussion made me think of my childhood. Growing up, my siblings and I would often question what would your last meal be if you had so many hours to live. I can’t for the life of me remember why this was a topic of conversation. But I do remember each of my siblings answers. And when it came to the last few days before my brother Tony died I had Maine lobsters and New England clam chowder shipped to his bedside for his last meal request.

Interesting dinner conversation, right?

It could have been the meal at Publican which induced such thought provoking conversation. Or the fact that the meal was high in cholesterol that caused pause and thinking about destiny. The Publican is a gusty eatery in away that brings back memories of my childhood. Yes there were several moments in which I was thinking about childhood tonight. Growing up I ate food which would be considered delicacies for today: cow’s brains, blood pudding, chicken bone marrow and calf’s liver and chocolate covered ants. The Publican is known for pork and oyster dishes and great selection of beer.

One of the dishes served to us during this meal was beef marrow. Beef bone marrow was scrapped out of bone and spread over bread. It was extraordinarily rich tasting I could actually feel my arteries starting to backup. Beef bone marrow was once thought to have

All served family style, we also enjoyed variety of oysters, Aged ham served with goat butter and peasant bread, Spinach salad, Scallops Nantucket Bay, Massachusets; maitake mushrooms, celery root & grapefruit, Country ribs from Slagel Family Farm, Fairbury, Illinois; kholrabi & pomegranate vinaigrette, Beets from Nichols Farm, Marengo, Illinois; ricotta & hazelnut, and Lamb Milanese. For dessert we shared Waffle with plum jam & honey butter and 7 Dark chocolare cremeux with almonds, passion fruit & jasmine. The menu is exquisite and atmosphere European.

If you visit the Publican you’ll enjoy the magnitude of the menu and hopefully have a stimulating conversation to complement the delicious food.