Alex Williams

Won the bottle of Aviary Select Eagle Rare
by cracking the code to get into Torus

Alex with his wife.

How did you hear about the game?

I got an email from Alinea explaining the puzzles for their 15th Anniversary. I was pretty bummed because we weren't able to order the 15th anniversary meal since we're in Alabama during this self isolation period, but figured the puzzles would be a great way to at least still feel some what a part of it! 

How many of the puzzles have you solved?

I've solved all of the puzzles so far. Line Break had me going there for a bit until I realized the small to big connections. Space Bar was a quick solve.  Foodstock was my favorite since I picked up all of the bands/songs really quickly!

Walk me through your experience with solving the Torus puzzle.

For Torus, I had a spreadsheet (I'm an accountant so of course I went to my most trusted tool) that I worked off of. I first figured out all of the corresponding Flavor/Filling for the doughnuts, and solved the Zodiac sign piece. I noticed the "O" pattern - as was hinted in the clue text when the puzzle was posted. Initially, I thought that's as far as I needed to go, so I started listing out all the possibilities of letters - i.e. the O in Roe is the second letter so the second letter of Aries is R. I didn't come out with any sequence of lettering that made sense, so had to think long and hard. Realized it said "Filling & Flavor" so had to go back to figure out what the second piece was. I'm not sure why, but I started listing out the corresponding Zodiac symbol/gloss/character (? not sure what it's called exactly), and then used the same methodology, O is the second letter in Roe, second letter in Ram (Aries) is A. That brought me to alibabasline. This is where I stared at the screen for a solid 20 minutes before realizing it reads "Ali Baba's Line" not "Ali Baba SLINE". What the hell is SLINE?! And of course Ali Baba's line is open sesame.

What other kinds of puzzles or games do you play?

We've really been into GoT Catan these days - quarantining with two really close friends, so now we just keep a running tab on who has won the most during this bizarre time. 

Are you much of a bourbon drinker?

I was meant to win this prize, bourbon on the rocks is my go to drink.  I'm really excited about winning this bottle - hopefully I still have a chance at winning that Pappy Van Winkle bottle as well! 

Have you dined at Alinea or our other restaurants?

Yes! We have dined at Alinea, we did the kitchen table with a group of friends and it was a once in a lifetime experience. We've frequented the Aviary & the Office quite a bit, we take everyone who visits to both places.  We've also visited Roister a few times, that fried chicken is ridiculously good. And we have also been to Next for my wife's birthday a few years ago. 

How do you spend your days?

Right now, I'm spending my days working from home, trying to find ways to stay entertained - which usually ends up in going for a run (training for the Chicago Marathon - if it happens), playing a board game, having a drink, or constantly annoying my dog. 

How are you keeping healthy and sane during quarantine?

I don't know if I'm doing the best at keeping a healthy diet during quarantine, but I try to go for a run everyday.  It keeps me active and sane. We're also quarantining with two of our closest friends so it's nice to have some people to spend time with and not go stir crazy.