FINE DINING

I have done some fine dining lately. Normally, my dining is at Del Taco, or if I want to splurge, Norm's. Last week, I went with my daughter and her best friend and kids to a very fine Italian Restaurant, by name Pizza Pi, on Broadway in Long Beach, CA.

The first thing you notice at a fine dining establishment is the ambience. Unfortunately, I felt the ambience of Pizza Pi was a bit lacking. The room we were in looked more like a warehouse than a restaurant, rather cold and uninviting. Apparently, we entered the sports room. There was a very large TV in the restaurant. If I wanted TV, I could've stayed at home. Bethany (best friend) explained to me that the the sports room was the choice for children since running around like wild little banshees (well, ok, she didn't say THAT) was more acceptable there than in the restaurant. And indeed, there was a restaurant area, we just didn't go there. No matter. The kids, Jaylin and Isabella, were extremely well behaved, and Jaylin was very attentive to his little sister and made sure she was comfortable.

The next thing you notice is the food. I give mixed reviews to the food. The kids got pizza, which looked REALLY good, but I didn't have any, so can't review. The three adults ordered three different pasta dishes. Bethany had pasta with vodka sauce, boring, bring on more vodka and I might change my mind! Keturah had something else which was interesting, tasted like it had nutmeg in it, and mine was the best by far. Pasta Nicolina, really good. Tasty sausage, spicy sauce. Yum. We ordered antipasto, big disappointment, cutting up a few salami sticks and putting them on packaged lettuce, adding a few grilled eggplant do not an antipasto make!
The piece de resistance was the bread. Wow! Crusty on the outside, soft on the inside covered with Parmesan cheese. So much for TAKE TWO, yep, I took two and then I took two more. Delish! I feel guilty about it, but how often do you fine dine?

How's about the wine? Well, I can't say there was any sommelier (Aren't you impressed that I know what that is?) I believe I was the only boozer in the party. I don't like red wine, and could care less about wine in general, but the white zinfandel I ordered was fine. I've had wine in the past that tasted like toxic swill going down, and this was very smooth.

One of the most important aspects of fine dining is the staff. Are they helpful, are they unintrusive, do they do that little something extra for you? On this level, the staff was excellent. The waitress, helpful, sweet to the kids, brought extras when we asked, and I really liked her "Alice in Wonderland" tattoo too!

The staff member who really impressed me though was the "powder room attendant"
When the call of nature arrived, as it always does, I was escorted to the powder room by a gracious, informative helper. She took me by hand and made sure I made it to the ladies room, and not the men's. She ran a little ahead to open the door for me, then opened the stall door, inspected the toilet, the toilet paper dispenser and made sure I properly lined the toilet with "hiney liner". I do believe she was going to wait inside the stall with me, but I asked her to wait outside, please. This she did, with only a few "peeks" under the door to ensure I was safe. I must say, she considered my safety more important that my modesty! Task completed, she made sure I properly flushed and inspected the toilet for confirmation. Then she ran, literally ran to the sink to ensure proper washing with hot water, and lots of soap, she then brought me a paper towel with which to dry my hands. I was walking to the door when she said "Wait!" and ran back to the towel dispenser, got a towel, and used that to open the door with. No germs for me! I do believe I have never been afforded such attention to the necessities of life!

Oh, by the way, my attendant was Bella, Bethany's daughter and she is three years old. Thank you, Bella! Good job Bethany and Terrance on the way you raise your children! And a fine dining experience was had by one and all.