A week after I moved to the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg ensued by all the rejected job applications, it was time to beat the blues and paint the town red. A few debates, discussions and considerations later, the Man of the house (hereafter known as MOTH) exasperatedly says "if you only want to think about saving money and cheap eats, we may as well eat at home". That dialogue works every single time and so off we were to a place he had been to earlier and thought was definitely worth another visit.
We put on our best blacks (our favourite colour, hides all the unflattering bulges quite well and especially in a country where EVERYONE was fit and tall and oh well that rant is for another time....) and off we went to this restaurant which was cheap by no account and whose name sounded more like a type of fish.
First thought, "very nice ambience" and there's live music as well. This will be fun! The place was filled with what seemed like fancy connoisseurs who knew what to eat, drink and smoke. We had no reservation but were happily seated amidst other people. Next to us sat an elderly couple who seemed the jovial kind, then there was a family of 6 - well built men, women, grandpa, grandma et all, and further away there was a group of 4 wherein the women seemed to be more interested in comparing their painted nails and men looked blissfully drunk.
We asked for the menu from an enterprising looking young man and were promptly handed the drinks and the food menu. I needed alcohol for the reason stated in the first line and decided to try the LIT, it delivered what it promised to my happiness. And so it the main course.
Sometimes just asking the right questions makes life a lot easier but of course we are attracted to the hard way... having said that, following 'seemingly socially accepted norms in the culture one now lives in' is another pitfall we all love to fall in and happily that too.
Anyways, more on that later. We order Tapas for appetizer and the 'Poissons - Fruits de la mer' for the main course. The enterprising young man (EOY) mentioned that the main course can be served only for two. Since we matched up to the number plus did read the fine print on the menu card which said "serves two", we nodded in agreement. And that's when EOY said "Excellent Choice, Sir!". A quick mental math told us that with the €32 main course plus 2 LITs and the Tapas we did a pretty good job of selection and would wrap up a fine dinner within € 50. Smug in self satisfaction, we did what we usually do best, me honing my observation skills and MOTH googling away on the phone, occasionally sharing his learnings and I my conjectures.
Food was served in no time (must credit the fast service and the young hostess) and contained a huge plate of 'tapas'. We gobbled away, praising the chef and his sous chefs. Then came the surprise and the main course (they were the same). Two huge portions were placed before us and we found ourselves literally at sea with the 'Fruits de la mer'. We explained to the hostess that she was probably mistaken since we had ordered for a plate that serves two, and she said that is what the menu says and that that was what she had served - 'Poissons - Fruits de la mer' that can be ordered for two people and that it serves two. It dawned upon us, in an instant, that while we had read the fine print, the finer meaning another thing 😅😅. With no choice, we forked our plates and again did a mental calculation of what that meant on the final fine print. Needless to say we could not finish what we started and laid to waste what seemed a fine plate of 'fruits of the sea'.
The check confirmed our thoughts as we took a final sip of our strong LITs and against better judgement decided not to dogypack the leftovers. Again making another mistake of assuming behaviours and cultures in a foreign land.
Final Bill = €110.
Learnings = priceless.
Lesson 1: Reaffirming the saying- when in doubt, ask!
Lesson 2: Assumption is the conclusion of fools (had read this somewhere, makes for a poignant thought when one experiences it live!)
Lesson 3: Beware of the words , "Excellent choice, Sir!"
Next up- My first Blog on my new laptop
We put on our best blacks (our favourite colour, hides all the unflattering bulges quite well and especially in a country where EVERYONE was fit and tall and oh well that rant is for another time....) and off we went to this restaurant which was cheap by no account and whose name sounded more like a type of fish.
First thought, "very nice ambience" and there's live music as well. This will be fun! The place was filled with what seemed like fancy connoisseurs who knew what to eat, drink and smoke. We had no reservation but were happily seated amidst other people. Next to us sat an elderly couple who seemed the jovial kind, then there was a family of 6 - well built men, women, grandpa, grandma et all, and further away there was a group of 4 wherein the women seemed to be more interested in comparing their painted nails and men looked blissfully drunk.
We asked for the menu from an enterprising looking young man and were promptly handed the drinks and the food menu. I needed alcohol for the reason stated in the first line and decided to try the LIT, it delivered what it promised to my happiness. And so it the main course.
Sometimes just asking the right questions makes life a lot easier but of course we are attracted to the hard way... having said that, following 'seemingly socially accepted norms in the culture one now lives in' is another pitfall we all love to fall in and happily that too.
Anyways, more on that later. We order Tapas for appetizer and the 'Poissons - Fruits de la mer' for the main course. The enterprising young man (EOY) mentioned that the main course can be served only for two. Since we matched up to the number plus did read the fine print on the menu card which said "serves two", we nodded in agreement. And that's when EOY said "Excellent Choice, Sir!". A quick mental math told us that with the €32 main course plus 2 LITs and the Tapas we did a pretty good job of selection and would wrap up a fine dinner within € 50. Smug in self satisfaction, we did what we usually do best, me honing my observation skills and MOTH googling away on the phone, occasionally sharing his learnings and I my conjectures.
Food was served in no time (must credit the fast service and the young hostess) and contained a huge plate of 'tapas'. We gobbled away, praising the chef and his sous chefs. Then came the surprise and the main course (they were the same). Two huge portions were placed before us and we found ourselves literally at sea with the 'Fruits de la mer'. We explained to the hostess that she was probably mistaken since we had ordered for a plate that serves two, and she said that is what the menu says and that that was what she had served - 'Poissons - Fruits de la mer' that can be ordered for two people and that it serves two. It dawned upon us, in an instant, that while we had read the fine print, the finer meaning another thing 😅😅. With no choice, we forked our plates and again did a mental calculation of what that meant on the final fine print. Needless to say we could not finish what we started and laid to waste what seemed a fine plate of 'fruits of the sea'.
The check confirmed our thoughts as we took a final sip of our strong LITs and against better judgement decided not to dogypack the leftovers. Again making another mistake of assuming behaviours and cultures in a foreign land.
Final Bill = €110.
Learnings = priceless.
Lesson 1: Reaffirming the saying- when in doubt, ask!
Lesson 2: Assumption is the conclusion of fools (had read this somewhere, makes for a poignant thought when one experiences it live!)
Lesson 3: Beware of the words , "Excellent choice, Sir!"
Next up- My first Blog on my new laptop
Well written. Do write frequently. Congratulations!
ReplyDeleteExcellent Choice Ma'am, for the experession dé rant :)
ReplyDelete