Finally, a date

It's been a long time since Isaac and I have gone out, alone, to a nice place, just to relax and be together. But lately we've had some occasions to celebrate, so we decided to take the time and do just that.

We went to Buffalo, a steak restaurant on Emek Refaim. I'd take the time to describe the ambience of the restaurant, but I'm tired, and who are we kidding, what you really want to know is what we ate and how much it cost. The food was really yummy. I am usually all about dairy and pasta, but those eateries are a dime a dozen here, all serving those "tostim" and salads. I wanted meat, but didn't want that Jersualem Mixed Grill type of place with all the salatim and chumus (sorry, Benji) and techina. I don't love steak, but Buffalo wasn't only about the steak. To start, Isaac had sweet-and-spicy chicken wings with a ranch dressing and I had tomatoe soup. The wings were tangy and had a great kick to them and the tomatoe soup tasted like grilled tomatoes. My mouth is watering as I am remembering this. Best part of this course is that Isaac doesn't care for tomatoe soup so I didn't have to share, but of course he had to share the wings with me. But he didn't mind. After all, it was a date.

For the main course I had roasted chicken in some kind of yummy sauce (I'd really make it as a food critic, wouldn't I?) with rice and salad. Isaac had some kind of boneless chicken that was extremely tender, but not so flavorful--it was the only dissappointing part of the meal. But it also came with a salad and these huge french fries, which of course he also shared with his beloved. That would be me.

Am I boring you yet? Aren't you glad we don't go out more often?

For dessert we shared the chocolate souffle, which just melted in my mouth. The waiter looked horrified when I asked for non-dairy creamer for coffee, so that was a bummer, I had to settle for tea with nana which just isn't the same.

The evening was a real splurge for us. It's not a cheap place. The sodas were 12 shekel a piece (note to self: drink water in restaurants!) and the souffle was 39 shekel. I won't translate that to the dollar, because it will just depress me. It's an expensive restaurant, so if you're on budget, beware. If you're not, go often.

We also had entertainment at the restaurant. Or rather we created our own. Isaac and I are big people watchers. We were the only ones sitting in our corner of the place when we arrived, but another couple arrived soon after. She was a gorgeous, willowy redhead with snow-white skin and he was a tall handsome fellow, clearly American, while her English sounded European. When the waiter came around (he was Italian), he was decidedly besotted with the redhead, who stated she was Ethiopian. The waiter looked to her partner to see if she was kidding and he shrugged and said, "I don't know, I just met her". Needless to say, that couple got excellent service the entire evening. Or at least the redhead did.

Meanwhile the restaurant filled up. Over at the next table a young couple sat, bored to tears. At one point the girl was so slouched down in her chair, I thought she had fallen asleep. Her partner wasn't even making eye contact with her. I didn't sense any tension between them and it didn't seem like it was first-date behavior, so I decided they had to be brother and sister. The male did seem to like the waiter, who was keeping his eye on the aforementioned redhead. Hmmm.

Finally, at the last table in our section a couple walked in as we were finishing. They decided to sit next to each other as opposed to across from each other. They seemed to be really comfortable and happy with each other. Now why didn't I think of that?

And that's about it. A rare night out on the town for Isaac and Baila. So enjoyable, we may just do it again soon.


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And here's a late reminder that the latest edition of Haveil Havalim is up at Chaviva's. And look for the new edition coming this Sunday.