Gloomy

I didn’t work my restaurant job today. I really needed some money, but I had lots of errands to run, so I gave it up. I wound up with a little time left over, so I took myself to lunch thinking I could knock out some reading while I was there.

In the end I was able to. But at first all I could think of were two similar events. One is a scene in the movie The Idiots. In an introductory scene a woman, dining alone, is ridiculed by her server for being cheap. In the last minutes of the film it is revealed that she was dining out to have time to her self, an attempt to do something nice for herself after the recent death of her infant son.

The second happened a month or two ago while Casey and I ate at The Omlettry. A woman unexpectedly flew off the handle when she was told that she couldn’t serve herself. It wasn't that she was receiving poor service - actually, its a little complicated. I was irritated with her for quite a while before I understood what was going on. The Omlettry is cash only, and she had not remembered this when she arrived. She wanted to serve herself so that she wouldn’t be taxing the servers because she didn’t have money for a tip. So, being told that she wasn’t allowed to do so frustrated her, and she quickly began to quiver, yell, and then sob. With fragments of speech, sandwiched between sobs, she told the manager that her husband had recently died. It was raining and she was sad. She kept repeating that she had just wanted to have a nice lunch. They had frequented the place, she said, and he had proposed to her there. The situation made me extremely uncomfortable, and extremely sad. The manager did the only thing that could be done and listened while she spoke of him until she was calm enough to go home.

It's been swimming around my brain all day. I had to write it down before I could get any studying done.

****The Omlettry is another of my favorite places here. I think I need to make a huge "Guide to Austin - Through The Q's Eyes" post. This would be a huge undertaking. Do not expect it any time soon - I'm reading Chaucer.****

Eau de The Q

Mr. A took this photo with his new camera Friday night. He says this captures my essence.
Kids, I'm a drinker.
He showed it to my dad last night and told him the same. My dad said, "Yeah, it runs in the family."

We were at Star Seeds, I normally love it, in spite of the predictably bad service. Friday it was worse than usually and I was really disappointed. Actually, I was very angry about it. I think that is the only part of my "essence" this photo lacks. How seriously pissed I was. The girl is lucky Casey paid.

Dinner Date

Remember how I craved curry in September?

Last night Casey and I finally made it to Bombay Bistro.

Color me impressed!

The restaurant is located in a strip center, but once you're inside you have no idea. The lighting is dim and romantic, the decor is at once striking and unobtrusive. It is a very nice place. Where you could take a date - and not break the bank. Pre-tip, our meal was $30.oo, which included a glass of wine, soup, an appetizer (which was my entree), and one entree.

Service was SUPERB - and I don't say that often. Our waiter was extremely helpful, making suggestions and offering comparisons to foods we might be more familiar with. He even suggested a really perfect Pinot Grigio to accompany my meal. As a server I have always found this difficult - despite my love for wine.

We wound up with TONS of food, and I will be having left-overs for lunch or dinner today. I look forward to it.

The only this I found disappointing was the fact that menu items did not indicate whether or not they were spicy in many instances. I don't mind. I LOVE spicy food. However, Mr. A and I have a completely different sort of tolerance for heat in a dish:

The Q: (reaching across the table to sample his side dish) "Mmm.. It is a little bit spicy, but it's really good!"
Casey: (takes a bite, coughs, and send me a good-natured, albeit dirty, look) " A little spicy??? Ha! You have a different definition of spicy!"

I was extremely pleased, and I will definitely return, and share the Bombay Bistro love. North Austin needs a place like this. So, when you're in town let me know, and I'll take you there.

Want more glowing information? Here's what the Austin Chronicle has to say. They are dead on!