Well, I did manage to go out for that meal with my wife at a poncy modern cuisine-type restaurant. It turned out to be a memorable night for a number of reasons.
Firstly, the place was completely and utterly EMPTY. It has an upstairs and downstairs section and there appeared to be nobody in either. That didn't exactly make for a great atmosphere and I felt the waitress (who was lovely) seemed more than a little embarrassed by the situation. Still, we weren't going to let that spoil the night.
I had a seafood risotto to start (or risoni as they called it) which was more than passable. My main was duck breast in a plum sauce with noodles. The duck was good and tender but, unfortunately, some unnecessary salady stuff had landed at the side of the dish. One for my one ingredient too many book. My wife had a goats cheesy tartlet thing to start (very tasty but again on a bed of too much rocket) and an amazing vegetable curry which came on a huge frosted glass plate. Pretty tasty and an impressive layout.
The whole experience was sweetened not only by the company but also by the fact that with expert eye I had spotted something on the menu at the start of the evening. Grappa £1.65! You little dancer. A night out with the wife AND an unexpected grappa. La vita e' bella...
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8 comments:
The Grappa Diaries discussing food!!??
What in the name of Nakamura is the world coming to?
Glad you and Mrs R had a good night old boy. See you soon.
As the inimitable Bertrand once put it - "A big meal is something to be got out of the way in order to get to the grappa!".
hehe in fairness, grappa on an empty stomach might be a tactical error
it's started to get cold here which for me means one thing only: caffè corretto. mmmmm. and no, not with Sambuca you southern heathens, stick a grappa in there and let's hear no more about your aniseed abominations thanks very much.
caffeine, alcohol & sugar: that's three of the four major food groups right there, you only need some kind of fattening cream-based pasticceria on the side (for fat) to cover all the ingredients of a balanced diet.
I'm always miffed by the addition of limp salad on the side of a dish - what's the point of having it on the plate if you can't eat it. I mean, I love salad, but it has to be dressed. Who the hell eats lettuce on its own?
Spangly
In my neck of the woods a corretto is always made with the deadly Nardini black rum. Undrinkable outside of coffee it becomes strangely pleasant inside it. I once got caught by one of my relatives, had three before lunch and don't remember much else after.
ACT
My dad used to run a restaurant and I often worked there on the coffee machine. I can remember clearly one old eccentric woman getting her fish and chips which had a little salad garnish on the side. She looked at it, sniffed and said: "Folly! Sheer folly!". I think she was absolutely right. There's a place for salad but that wasn't it...
Ciao! Thanks for stopping by my blog. Your dinner sounds like it turned out great in the end, despite the first impact of the empty space. Hope you managed your objective of helping your wife remember why she married you...the grappa helps, no? ;-)
Shelley
I'm not sure if grappa is the greatest aide-memoire in the world but, what the hell, I'm willing to give it a try!
Ginkers
Stories of your dad running his restaurant would make a great blog.
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