thoughts of a food snob

i eat out a lot, both fancy and not so fancy. usually, i'm disappointed, but like all humans i get hungry. and like most americans i'm lazy, so that means excessive amounts of take-out and other cheap faire. it normally tastes about as good as the box it was delivered in, but i'm morally opposed to expecting a reward for wasteful and slothful behavior.

fine dining introduces a whole different set of standards though.

over the last 10 days, i'd patronized three separate expensive restaurants (at least $$$ in the standard pricing system) and for the pittance i must subsist on, this is a signficant expenditure. yet, not once did i leave the restaurant satisfied. was it possible that good food has reached the point of cloying?

for someone practical, this would be a terrific development, like saving a bunch of money on your car insurance by switching to geico. instead of clearing out your bank account for an ounce of goose liver, you could take a weekly visit to the grocery store for a 24-pack of top ramen. and with the savings, you could open an ira or something else people approaching their 30s are supposed to start learning about.

but for me, as much as i yearn for financial security, this development would deprive me of one of my true joys in life. when i have a spare evening, i plan the night's events around the restaurant i want to dine at. when i make my way to another country, the first section i turn to in my lonely planet guide is food.

which is why my visit to myth signified much more than just another dinner.

and i'm happy to report that i can now return to my free-spending ways and lavish dinners with a clear conscience. almost everything we ordered ended up delicious, and the buttery richness of the mushroom dusted scallops will be a sensation you still recall many months and hundreds of meals later.