What makes a picnic a picnic? Is it eating outdoors? Maybe but not quite. Wine and cheese on a picnic blanket on the floor of a hotel room may qualify.
When dining at restaurants, I prefer their patios, weather permitting. Outdoors adds to the dining experience. Picnicking for me is enjoying the outdoors and nature. However not the ants!.
The picnic enthusiast may have a picnic basket full of all the essentials, except the fresh food, ready to go on a short notice. You may use your insulated carrier or perhaps you prefer an old English wicker basket. Do not forget the plastic trash bag.
If you are planning a road trip, I suggest stopping at a local deli close to your destination to put together your picnic. This way the food is fresh, local and a bit different.
If you are packing it is easier to keep cold food cold than to keep hot food hot for a picnic. Neither should be kept more than two hours.
For a chilled basket, simple sandwiches like egg salad, turkey and avocado, cold cuts and cheese are easy and quick to prepare. Do not forget to layer the sandwiches properly so the bread does not become soggy during the ride. A first course salad is a good way to lengthen the meal into courses. Potato salad and cole slaw make nice side dishes for the sandwiches.
For a more upscale picnic meal, a shrimp cocktail as a starter is easy and raises the bar a bit. The Caprese salad is another starter to consider as is a charcuterie board, which can be offered instead of sandwiches.
For the main course, a warm or chilled roasted chicken served with a couple of side dishes is a lovely main. Another thought is a chilled or warm lamb rack with Caponata. Sliced flank steak with a pasta salad is another nice choice.
If you were lucky this lobster season you may still have a couple of tails in the freezer, a perfect high end addition to the picnic. You can also do the New England lobster roll. However, if that is your choice I suggest you fill the rolls with the lobster salad after you have arrived at your spot.
Plastic glasses work well for a picnic. Wine as my beverage of choice. Good quality, plastic wine glasses are available. Do not forget the corkscrew or buy a screw capped wine.
There are many good thermoses on the market today, making it quite easy to keep soup hot and chilled tomato Gaspacho cold. Stanley is a well known company. They have been making metal thermos since 1913.
The Hollywood Bowl, the Greek Theatre, wineries, museums, and some sporting events offer picnic opportunities, though I’m not sure tailgating is a picnic, or is it?
On the Peninsula there are many nice spots for a picnic. Some that come to mind are: Trump National Golf Course, which has public areas with picnic benches and grassy spots; along Palos Verdes Drive South is Point Vicente Park, with great ocean views, park benches, tables and grassy picnic areas. There are four to five spots on the bluffs along Palos Verdes Drive West, but it may be best to bring along beach chairs. Miramar and Veterans Parks above the Ocean in Redondo Beach are also very good spots.
Hopefully you will enjoy more than one Picnic this season. I will.
