Weekends are tough especially when you have 3 events in 2 days. Unless you are a saint, there are always trip-ups. There is the good, the bad and the tasteless. I have had them all. On Sunday we went to the horse races at Woodbine and were fortunate enough to be invited to the Northern Dancer room where the buffet is second to none and is worthy of two trips where most aren't. Even eating one floor below where there is a fine dining room doesn't compare to this. Some people don't care about presentation but I do. I am a firm believer in first you eat with your eyes. The presentation was beautiful, all different levels with ice sculptures with sliced lemons inside. Even the simplest of foods like a tomato and bocconcini salad was done with great aplomb. The mini cherry tomatoes were peeled to begin with, a labour intensive job that is certainly most welcome. There was such care put into the artichoke salad and although I didn't eat everything that was served because of the enormity of choices I was still in awe of it all. The potatoes in the hot section were laid out in rows inside the chafing dish and each one looked like a sea anemone with a thousand fronds. That was the best meal of the three events.
Then last night I was invited to a friend's birthday. I won't mention the friend or the restaurant. It was a boring evening with mediocre food. Only red wine was offered. I didn't partake because I was driving and yet I might have had a glass of white wine with the meal had it been offered. My take on this small, dingy, dark, Italian place was they were not used to serving more than a couple of people at at time. There were probably 16-20 people in this party and definitely not a good mix because after all, interesting people help make the evening. Everything about it seemed lacking in preparation. Even the hostess and her family arrived late. The food was even later. I believe there was a chef/server in the house and one other person. To serve that many, some of the food must has to have been prepared ahead of time and stuck in the fridge. My Caesar salad was limp and wet. My main course didn't taste home made. It was a chestnut ravioli that looked machine made and wasn't very tasty. The birthday girl ordered Osso Bucco. Now anyone who knows Osso Bucco knows it is a two day labour of love. Granted she was served last by about 5 or 10 minutes, but let's face it, it must have needed thawing but it definitely wasn't made today. If I had a small restaurant and had 20 people for dinner, I wouldn't have people ordering from a two page menu jam-packed with stuff. I would have picked a first course and had a couple of choices for the main. I would have preferred simple and fresh. I was finally about to leave when I was asked to stay for a few minutes for the presentation of the birthday cake which I did out of politeness.
We are back on Monday again. I have to rid my body of all the bad deeds of the weekend. My plan is to keep it simple. I had my delicious homemade carrot soup for lunch, a meal worthy of my eating.
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