The dinner, and some of my thinking aloud on the subject

This Saturday's dinner with my father should be good. I have planned the menu. I need to buy some stuff (nowhere near as much, actually as I did for dinner with ravenstorm27 andvervain13). I think I'll walk to the Indian shop in Central today and see what they've got, on my way home.

The menu:

Starter: Probably storebought naan and chutneys, though I would love to find an alternative. Every goddamn Indian appetizer is FRIED. (Accompanied by a basil martini: fresh basil muddled with sugar, and Hendricks gin. Maybe a little vermouth.)

Edit: OMGWTFBBQ! This is with HENDRICKS. Put some ROSEWATER in that there martini too!!!

Soup: Mulligatawny, without chunks of meat to keep it light enough for a multi-course meal.

Main course: Tandoori chicken, seasoned basmati rice (saffron and cardamom, most likely), and bhaigan bhartha, a smoky charred eggplant dish with sliced tomatoes.

Dessert: Fresh mangoes topped with a rosewater-cardamom syrup.

Accompanying wine for soup, main course, and dessert: a nice, not-overly-sweet gewurztraminer

Notes to self: I can slice the mangoes and prepare the syrup for dessert in advance. The chicken will have to start marinating on Friday night and go into its second marinade on Saturday MORNING. Most of the chopping, measuring, etc. can be done in advance. Grocery shopping should be completed on Thursday night.

Help me get Hendricks?

Locals,

Kappy's and Downtown have both failed me! They're both out of Hendricks gin, and gods know if either will have it at a time I can get it before my father comes for dinner on Saturday. Does anyone know of another liquor store that might have it? I know Atlas should, but they are a pain in the ass to get to without a car as the one bus (101) that goes by it is highly inconvenient to anywhere else I will need to be. This is really frustrating.

I'm particularly hoping for some good suggestions in the Kendall, Central, or Harvard Square areas, close to the T stops, so I can visit them on my lunch break tomorrow.

TIA.

Edit: I called Downtown, hoping I'd catch them before they closed, and they told me that they should get some more in either tomorrow or the next day. Whew! If I don't have time to pick it up tomorrow, I'll get it Thursday. If I don't get it Thursday, well, gods help me, I'll do my best with Tanq or Sapphire.