Well, that was a fun night
Sandy went to a rather unusual birthday party last night. Parents were to drop the kids off in Chinatown for dinner and then the entire party was going to go to a hotel for a sleepover. (The parents rented a suite for the night and put the girls in sleeping bags, but I still think that's a lot of money for a thirteenth birthday. But I digress.) Since she had to be at the restaurant sometime around 6:00-6:30, that really put a kink in our dinner plans unless we went out ourselves. Chinatown is not too far from Greektown, however, and we haven't had Greek food in forever, so that was the plan. I spent all day pysching myself up for roe-spread and flaming saganaki and spicy lamb dishes. The anticipation was wonderful.
We get to the restaurant where Sandy's supposed to get dropped off, but it looked like it was locked up. Chris double-parked the car while Sandy and I tried to figure out what was going on. After puzzling over that for a few moments, we went into the restaurant next door and were told that the entrance was actually on the alley on the other side and we had been looking at the locked back entrance. Not seeing what else to do, Sandy (sleeping bag draped over her shoulders) and I walked through the other restaurant to get to the back alley. It smelled wonderful in there and I almost decided that we should eat there, but no, I had my heart set on Greek food.
After dropping Sandy off, we set off for Greektown. Most of the restaurants there have free valet parking, but we weren't sure where we wanted to eat and decided to pay the six dollars for parking so that we could walk along the street and decide on the perfect place. Besides, we had eight bucks in cash and couldn't see why we'd need any more when we'd be paying for dinner with a credit card. (This is important.)
Soon enough, we were sitting in a lovely booth, nibbling on nice warm bread and perusing the menus. It was almost seven by then and everybody was starving, so the scene was set for a perfect dinner. And then it happened. Sarah, who had had a fever on Thursday but seemed to be completely recovered, began throwing up everything she'd ever eaten. I think she threw up everything EVERYBODY'S ever eaten. It was mortifying.
The wait staff were wonderful. A legion of busboys swept in, clearing and resetting the table in record time. I think they were offering us the option of staying if we wanted to, but of course we couldn't. (Chris wanted to stay and I was SEVERELY tempted, but Sarah was whimpering that she needed a bath and new clothes.) The manager told Chris he was glad that we decided to go because he didn't want to risk flu in that contained area, possibly infecting other customers, which was certainly understandable.
But then we faced a new difficulty: we had no cash for a tip. True, we hadn't ordered anything, but one doesn't go into a restaurant to dirty water-glasses, scarf up bread and vomit all over the napkins and tablecloth without leaving more than two bucks and change (which was all we had) for a tip! I asked the hostess if I could put a tip on my credit card without paying for a meal, but she directed me towards the nearest ATM instead. So, leaving Chris to get the kids to the car, I ran off to get some cash... only to find out that the machine was broken. I could see a Walgreens in the distance, so I ran there, got some money, bought a pack of gum to break the twenty, and then ran back to the restaurant. By the time I got there, they'd already seated another family at our table so I wasn't able to leave the tip there for the busboys to find. I gave it to the hostess and I'm sure she passed it along, but I still felt like I should have given it to them directly. I mean, cleaning up that mess isn't what they're paid to do at all!
It was over 7:30 by the time we got home and we were all STARVING. I pulled some leftover spaghetti out of the fridge for the kids and ordered takeout Lebanese food for Chris and me. Middle Eastern food is NOT the same as Greek, but it's close enough for government work and by that time I just wanted sustenance. As it happened, it turned out pretty well in the end. The kids were both fed and bathed by the time Chris came back with our dinner. Sarah was even snoring. So Chris and I had a quiet, candle-lit dinner for just the two of us and it was delicious, even if it wasn't Greek.
There was a nice bonus to the events though. I was supposed to be at a day-long retreat/Council meeting today, but Sarah provided me with an excellent excuse for not going. Chris couldn't take a sick child on his errands today and somebody had to say home with her... Hurray for missing six-hour meetings!
We get to the restaurant where Sandy's supposed to get dropped off, but it looked like it was locked up. Chris double-parked the car while Sandy and I tried to figure out what was going on. After puzzling over that for a few moments, we went into the restaurant next door and were told that the entrance was actually on the alley on the other side and we had been looking at the locked back entrance. Not seeing what else to do, Sandy (sleeping bag draped over her shoulders) and I walked through the other restaurant to get to the back alley. It smelled wonderful in there and I almost decided that we should eat there, but no, I had my heart set on Greek food.
After dropping Sandy off, we set off for Greektown. Most of the restaurants there have free valet parking, but we weren't sure where we wanted to eat and decided to pay the six dollars for parking so that we could walk along the street and decide on the perfect place. Besides, we had eight bucks in cash and couldn't see why we'd need any more when we'd be paying for dinner with a credit card. (This is important.)
Soon enough, we were sitting in a lovely booth, nibbling on nice warm bread and perusing the menus. It was almost seven by then and everybody was starving, so the scene was set for a perfect dinner. And then it happened. Sarah, who had had a fever on Thursday but seemed to be completely recovered, began throwing up everything she'd ever eaten. I think she threw up everything EVERYBODY'S ever eaten. It was mortifying.
The wait staff were wonderful. A legion of busboys swept in, clearing and resetting the table in record time. I think they were offering us the option of staying if we wanted to, but of course we couldn't. (Chris wanted to stay and I was SEVERELY tempted, but Sarah was whimpering that she needed a bath and new clothes.) The manager told Chris he was glad that we decided to go because he didn't want to risk flu in that contained area, possibly infecting other customers, which was certainly understandable.
But then we faced a new difficulty: we had no cash for a tip. True, we hadn't ordered anything, but one doesn't go into a restaurant to dirty water-glasses, scarf up bread and vomit all over the napkins and tablecloth without leaving more than two bucks and change (which was all we had) for a tip! I asked the hostess if I could put a tip on my credit card without paying for a meal, but she directed me towards the nearest ATM instead. So, leaving Chris to get the kids to the car, I ran off to get some cash... only to find out that the machine was broken. I could see a Walgreens in the distance, so I ran there, got some money, bought a pack of gum to break the twenty, and then ran back to the restaurant. By the time I got there, they'd already seated another family at our table so I wasn't able to leave the tip there for the busboys to find. I gave it to the hostess and I'm sure she passed it along, but I still felt like I should have given it to them directly. I mean, cleaning up that mess isn't what they're paid to do at all!
It was over 7:30 by the time we got home and we were all STARVING. I pulled some leftover spaghetti out of the fridge for the kids and ordered takeout Lebanese food for Chris and me. Middle Eastern food is NOT the same as Greek, but it's close enough for government work and by that time I just wanted sustenance. As it happened, it turned out pretty well in the end. The kids were both fed and bathed by the time Chris came back with our dinner. Sarah was even snoring. So Chris and I had a quiet, candle-lit dinner for just the two of us and it was delicious, even if it wasn't Greek.
There was a nice bonus to the events though. I was supposed to be at a day-long retreat/Council meeting today, but Sarah provided me with an excellent excuse for not going. Chris couldn't take a sick child on his errands today and somebody had to say home with her... Hurray for missing six-hour meetings!