Friday, February 11, 2011

And since I haven't fallen over yet...

I guess I'll write a bit more about things food. I will probably come back tomorrow and discover my prose loaded with homophone errors and incoherent.

As mentioned previously, I was running on very little sleep, and I was an easy target when La Peliroja suggested we go down to the culinary arts program's Bistro for lunch. The Bistro is apparently what CA fondly believes that fast food ought to be.  Yes, food arrived rapidly, but trout almondine, Brussels sprouts, and something that may have been a timbale  -- it was definitely divine -- for six dollars are the apotheosis of the idea of a value menu.  That was La Peliroja's lunch.  I NEEDED coffee, and intended to eat my chicken sandwich later, so I ordered a cappuccino, and then upon intolerable temptation a chocolate hazelnut brioche -- my snack was both perfect and cost less than a mocha at Starbucks.*

The portion of trout almondine along with everything else on on La Peliroja's plate was heroic.  She offered to let me help her with it.  I helped in a helpful fashion.  It was perfect -- so perfect that I liked it even though trout is a fresh water fish. (Browned butter and lemon makes up for most things.  Crunchy almonds don't hurt either)  The probable timbale too got shared.  Then I was eyeing my companion's Brussels sprouts.**  I asked her, "may I taste the Brussel sprouts?"

She looked down at her plate and looked at me, than back at her plate.  "I'm feeling kind of territorial, but I suppose I could let you have that one," she said pushing one of the smaller ones towards me. 

"I'm sorry," she said, "but these are so good." 

When I finished thoughtfully chewing my sprout, I had to give my wholehearted though sad assent to her territoriality.  Fortunately disaster was averted when more sprouts were discovered beneath the giant fillet of trout (there may well have been a half pound of fish on that plate), so I got to have another. 


*I do not expect cappuccinos in America to be perfect.  I'm always delighted when I'm taken by surprise.  This was one of the delightful surprises.  There may have been moaning upon my first sip.

**With apologies to William Carlos Williams. 

so much depends
upon

a green Brussels
sprout

flecked with black
pepper

beside the trout
almondine.

No comments:

Post a Comment