Whatever, Suburbia. The whole reason I moved here is so that I wouldn't be faced with hordes of people in every restaurant. I would be able to find a parking spot. I wouldn't be jammed in a line trying to get a table at fucking Outback Steakhouse at 5 p.m.
Well, maybe that isn't the only reason I moved here. But, damn, when you can't even get a table at Pizza Hut and the line is out the door, something is wrong.
Becca and I used to go out to eat together for lunch a lot in Alaska. Because she was still taking two naps, there was just a two or three hour window when we could go out and do things. If I got lunch down her (and me) while out and about, the nap didn't happen too soon or too late (which you know, spells total disaster in my world.)
But, we don't eat out too much anymore. Today I was feeling a bit cooped up and thought Becca and I should just go out to eat for dinner! John is on a trip, but why can't we go out? It will be like old times. This is what I was telling myself, anyway...
We were already over at PetCo looking at the mice and fish (for the THIRD time this week. Free entertainment for your toddler. For hours. Whenever I'm feeling annoyed, I just strap that kid in her carseat and we flee to PetCo!) I figured we would just meander across the parking lot and have dinner. But, the lines were out the doors at all three restaurants near there. I went into THREE OF THEM. At 5 p.m. WTF?
So, I carried Becca BACK across the parking lot to this little Japanese restaurant that I've been eyeing. I went in and it was half empty! Yay! I could have sushi, Becca could have rice and chicken. Great! They said they could seat us right away. He led us to a Benihana-type grill thing already filled with other random people. I took one look at the menu and fled. I was not about to pay $23 for an entree.....that I would have to eat with strangers, who were eyeing us very suspiciously. And, I'm betting these strangers didn't come in that restaurant to eat with a toddler (which, let me tell you, is one of the most revolting sights known to man.) We ran out of there before the high chair even arrived!
So, then I drove our asses back across town to the Pizza Hut near my house. Oooh! A close parking spot. This was the right choice. I opened the door....and.....smacked into the back of someone in line to talk to the hostess. Every table was jammed. People were piled in the entry waiting for tables. So, by this point I was just pissed. Is there no restaurant with a table for two available? Seriously? I have never encountered this at such an early dinner hour. Becca was crabby. We were both strarving. We ended up with a take-out Little Caesar's pizza (only five bucks!) and ate it at home. I should have just done that in the first place.
***Whew. That was pissy. Sorry 'bout that. I'm actually okay. I swear.***
Aging is for the weak, and everyone else
2 months ago
6 comments:
At 5 pm??? Really?? Was it all the senior citizen early bird special types?
I am so impressed that you can look at the mice with your daughter. I can NOT look at any of those rodent type animals at the pet stores. I just got a little icky shiver just typing about it.
At 5 PM? I've thought before that was an advantage to eating with a toddler, since noone else seemed to eat at that time. Was something crazy going on in town?
I've never even heard of there being a line at a Pizza Hut before...really?
I SWEAR, people. I SWEAR TO GOD. A line at PIZZA HUT?? What has the world come to??
we have learned that if we are going to venture out do dinner with the girls we go at 4.30PM. LOSERS, but we get a table, it is not crowded and right when we are done and the girls are melting down is when it is jam packed.
if we haven't left by 5, i won't go.
I'm with Angie. What was going on in town?
Eating out with small children is, as you know, a complete nightmare more often than not. To top it off, here in Portugal restaurants don't open until 7:00pm at the EARLIEST!! Okay, my kids are on their way to bed by then. When the hell are we supposed to go out to eat? And, what if I don't feel like cooking? Take-out restaurants don't open any earlier either. I LOVE it here. But, hate the restaurant situation. We finally found an Indian restaurant (yummy) that opens at 6:30. So, if I put the girls down for a late nap, we can pull it off...sometimes. Most of the time, we get a sitter, put the kids to bed before we leave and arrive at a restaurant at 8:00 - we're usually still the first to arrive. We're still hunting for that elusive restaurant that opens for dinner at 5:00...
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