A Dinner Date
Different Dining Styles
FOOD, WINE AND HOME
11/4/20252 min read
When one is young, fifty years seems like a long, long time. Suddenly I look up and notice that the past five decades have passed by in a flash. It was exactly fifty years ago that B. , not long returned from Africa, decided to visit me in Germany where I was working as a teacher. It was our half term holiday and I was free for a whole week. Suddenly, on the spur of the moment, we decided to marry. But alas, there was no way that the formalities could be carried out in Germany in such a short time. And so , we returned to London , where he was currently living, and arranged to be married there. We celebrated our marriage with pints of real ale on the bridge over the canal at Little Venice, accompanied by our three friends who had acted as witnesses. Two days later I took the ferry back to Northern Germany , alone , to work out my notice.. Exactly fifty years later, we decided to celebrate this anniversary in slightly greater style with our two sons and daughter in law. And so, last Saturday we found ourselves at an acclaimed restaurant in a small English town.
Coming from France , the wine seemed very expensive, but hey....this was special . On this occasion, a pint of English ale would just not be good enough. As promised, the food was extremely delicious. Indeed, the best of food critics had deemed it so. It was served like a series of tapas, that we shared around the table. Not a morsel disappointed us. By the time the desserts came round we were feeling exceedingly happy and relaxed. But what was this? Before the last plate had been thoroughly scoured for the final delicious crumb of apple tart, a roll of paper was placed in the middle of the table. It was the , not insubstantial, bill. But surely, we thought, this was the time for us to relax a bit at the end of our meal. Perhaps take a coffee, or even a brandy. Alas no! Apparently we had been booked into a set slot, and the staff were waiting close by to clear our table and prepare it for the second sitting of diners. Coming from France where meals often extend over hours, and each dish takes its own leisurely course, this came as something of a shock. Let's hope that this newer style of restaurant, never takes off... not elsewhere in England, and certainly never in France....Just saying!
