Last night the SO and I had a romantic dinner out. It was an interesting situation because the restaurant we chose had a 4 course prix fixe, 2 choices per course. The second course was problematic: either risotto, or prawns. Now for most CR'ed or Paleo people, this is not an issue; you pick the prawns. However, prawns make me break out. It's the iodine. So I nicely asked if rather than either of those, could I have each one of the two salad options offered in the first course. And the chef (via the waiter) kind of pitched a fit at me, but in the end agreed.
And you know what? I didn't feel bad. I was actually kind of annoyed the chef was annoyed. I have worked both the front and back of the house in restaurants, so I try very hard to be a good customer. And I would have completely understood if my request had been refused because the kitchen was running low on a particular dish. But to give me a hassle for a minor alteration to the prix fixe for a relatively expensive dinner didn't strike me as particularly classy. Happily, the food was excellent.
As a side note, it always surprises me how easy it is to get what you want if you're willing to be creative. I could have ordered one of the two second courses and been unhappy. But as I get older I realize that quite often, situations are far less rigid than they appear. You simply have to think a bit outside the box to find a way of getting what you want. I remember how April, a fellow CRON blogger, once talked about stealing kale used to decorate plates of food to snack on. Following her lead, I would go to lunch meetings at work and rather than avoid the sandwiches, I would take two and eat the delicious chicken breast or ham or turkey out of the middle. A corollary of this way of thinking is the realization that if you really want something, you will find a way to make it happen. And I think that's true of most situations. Anyways...
Today we had a lovely celebratory New Year's supper with the SO's parents. Roasted pork loin with sauerkraut is apparently a traditional German New Year's dish, and the SO's mother did a lovely job with it. And, sweet lady that she is, she also provided steamed cauliflower, steamed scallops, and steamed peas with the meal for me. Like I said, I'm not suffering.
But I also can't wait to get back into my own kitchen :)
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