Tonight was it: the dinner with the menu I’d rather have avoided. We spent the day skiing, which wasn’t too smart because we were tired. But since we didn’t get hurt on the slopes, and we’d already paid our 85 Euros for the meal, we went.
Only about 20 people came. That’s half as many as normal; many scared off by the dining options. But it wasn’t really a bad thing having a smaller group. It made it easier to get a chance to talk, at least a little bit, to everyone.
The evening started off with an aperitif. Cocktail. It was some champagne and lime concoction. It was really good. A little too good, I had three. There were trays of puffy appetizers to go along with it. I stuck to the ones that I could identify what was sticking out of the puff. Green olives. That was it, really, green olives. Bill tried the one with a hot dog bit. Hot dogs here can be tricky, so I passed on those. I did eat one that was pretty plain, except for some poppy seeds sprinkled on it. Some sort of cheese was hiding inside, but it was mild, so it was ok.
I didn’t wear a watch, so I don’t know how long we all stood there before moving to the tables for the meal to start. Long enough that I’d downed lots of puffs and for one of the other ISE’s to come just short of gnawing on his arm.
The entree (appetizer) was either something with gizzards… which was what I’d gotten… or toasted goat cheese… which is what Bill had. The gizzards were just sitting on top of some lettuce, so I scooted those over. I ate the stuff I recognized and left the gizzards and the giant slab of pate (cat food, as one person at the table called it) on the plate. Bill gobbled up his goat cheese. I hate goat cheese.
Next came the main course. I had the quail. Bill had the fish, which was risky because it was a kind we’d never heard of served with fruits du mer… fruit of the sea. The quail came with a sort of sweet dark sauce and veggies. It wasn’t bad. Honestly, tasted kinda like chicken. It was served in four chunks, so I didn’t have to look at a bird or pull it off the bones. Although an early bite did include something small and crunchy that I assume was a bone. That I had to spit out into my napkin. The veggies were superb. So was the gratin dauphinois (creamy potatoes). But I had a little trouble getting excited about the prospect of another bite of bones. Bill’s fish was ok. I tried a bite of it. It had some weird pureed fish filling. He did pick a small, complete, octopus or squid (I didn’t count tentacles) out of the fruits. Gross. Most people seemed to clean their plates.
The cheese course was next, which I didn’t even realize we were having. The new people were both fascinated and grossed out by the fromage blanc. It’s a little like yogurt. You get this blob of white, creamy, cheese in a bowl and a big dispenser of sugar next to it. Because you need a lot of sugar to counteract the tang of the cheese. A couple people opted for the fromage sec (dry cheese). I didn’t know you had a choice, but I’m far too scared of strong cheese to take a chance like that anyway.
The cheese was followed by the dessert. Mine was chocolate something-er-other. It was ok. Bill got what I thought was described as fruit salad. It was fruity sorbet with a merange coating.
That, of course, was followed by coffee. I asked the waiter for milk and everyone else at my table laughed… they figured if he was going to bring me some, it would likely include his spit. I don’t know if it did, but I did get some.
The evening turned out to be a very pleasant one. We had a very good time. And the food was fine. Ok, except for those bones. Now, I have a year to worry about next year’s dinner… since I am supposed to plan it.
You have a year to gather facts on wierd provisions. Sounds like persons in France eat whatever is put in front of them.
which is why you fit right in when visiting