David Sellers: Birthday Boy

Recently Cafe Drake gathered with friends to celebrate the ???th birthday of David Sellers, dining in the moody lighting of Chimu's sequestered courtyard. Peruvian cuisine reigns supreme at Williamsburg's Chimu, with an especial emphasis on seafood and steak. Surf and turf aptly describes the festive meal, and see above photos of David, Natalie, Octavio (curiously, captured throughout the night reacting to the tartness of the acidic seasonings - or perhaps Cafe Drake's equally bracing repartee), Christine and yours truly. Our feast began with gianormous pitchers of spiced Sangria and fried calamari (topped with citrusy sliced onions and partnered with a fiery chimichurra sauce), followed by a mixed seafood ceviche. Entrees included tender, marinated strip steak flash-fried with tomatoes and peppers, then tossed improbably enough with perfect fries! Also: a paella of tomato rice studded with more seafood and a filet of fried red snapper blanketed in a rich cream sauce and buried beneath clams, mussells, crab legs, shrimp and tender calamari. Happy Birthday was sung to the tune of large wedges of tiramisu and more Sangria. Join us in wishing David another happy and healthy year ahead.