2 posts tagged “restaurant”
Oh! Oh oh oh. I can't believe I forgot one very awesome thing in my post of Awesome Things yesterday. My husband and I went out for dinner and a movie on Saturday night, which we almost never do. M's schedule is such that we're often lucky enough to be able to go out on weekdays, when the masses are at work/school/whatever and the crowds, lines, and waits are therefore nonexistent. Sometimes, though, we just have to shake things up and play the game along with everyone else. I had forgotten how many more people flood restaurants and movie theaters on a more standard date night, but we survived with a minimum of irritation at the "damn kids" (because, y'know, we're so much older than most of our fellow restaurant- and movie-goers... but what we don't have in age, we more than make up for in curmudgeonliness).
We dined at California Pizza Kitchen after about a fifteen-minute wait, which the hostess had told us would be half an hour. Maybe it's just me, but I hate it when hosts pad their wait-time estimates. I understand the reasoning behind the practice--that it's far better to surprise people with a shorter wait than a longer one--but I would prefer getting more a more accurate range of seating times so I can make an informed decision on whether to stick it out or try someplace else. The hostess can go ahead and pad that estimate by five or ten minutes, but doubling it seems excessive.
In any case, we got to our table more quickly than anticipated, which wasn't too bad. Since this was a date night and we were shaking things up, I did something I almost never do: I ordered a pink, fruity, girly drink. My inclination normally runs more towards Guinness, a dry martini, or a Manhattan, but I was feeling the strawberry daiquiri love. That was the extent of our adventurous spirit for the meal; we ordered our usual hummus-and-flatbread appetizer and split our standard roasted pepper and goat cheese pizza. One of these days, we're going to have to take advantage of CPK's "Menu Adventure Guarantee," where you order something you haven't tried before, and if you don't like it, they'll replace it with your usual favorite. Gotta ask about the fine print there; it sounds too good to be true.
With dinner accomplished, we walked over to the theater that was showing a movie to which I had been looking forward for a long time: Coraline. Our reasons for seeing it opening weekend included not only that long-built anticipation, but the fact that we would only have the opportuntity to see it in 3D for a couple of weeks, after which there's some Jonas Brothers ridiculousness coming out that will take over the 3D screens at most cinemas.
Please note: If you want to see Coraline in 3D, go now before it's too late. Also be aware that when you're looking for showtimes, "Coraline 3D" is distinct from just "Coraline," so choose your search terms accordingly.
With extravagantly expensive popcorn and conveniently recyclable 3D glasses in hand, we took our seats. There was a gaggle of teenagers one row ahead that reminded us eerily of our friends from high school. As I put it to M, "I don't know these kids, but I know these kids." With their clever remarks to one another and hair in every color of the rainbow and their excitement at seeing the late showing of a slightly dark-weird-wonderful film, we would have fit right in about ten years ago. Good to know that some things don't change.
I loved the movie. The atmosphere was as delightfully creepy as that of the book, and all the filmmakers' painstaking stop-motion efforts yielded a smooth, evocative, detailed world in which we could get lost along with the nine-year-old protagonist. There were plenty of laughs--They Might Be Giants singing the "Other Father's Song" comes to mind--but there were some scenes that would have bothered me a lot when I was a kid, but added to the delicious chill for me now.
As for the 3D experience, it's worth it. The cheese factor can get out of hand in some films whose creators were a little too enamored of the gimmick of making things "jump out" at the audience, but I found the use of the technique in Coraline felt natural (even when portraying very unnatural things). If you're at all inclined to see the movie, I would highly recommend finding a showing in 3D before it disappears.
Dear readers, do go see this movie. You may never look at buttons or Scottie dogs in the same way again, but you will have had a movie-watching experience that stands out amidst the legions of Hollywood sameness.
Warm Weather: I don't care what Punxsutawney Phil said about six more weeks of winter--spring is definitely in the air. This past weekend was sunny and glorious with highs in the low 70s. I helped M wash the car, so we've been enjoying the shiny blue brilliance over the past few days. We also tried out a new sushi place with a fantastic "bento box" lunch deal and spent some time at a local park. That place was hoppin': teenagers tearing it up at the skate park, young kiddoes screaming gleefully at the playground, kite-flyers flying kites of all colors at the top of the hill, and walkers, joggers, dog-walkers, and stroller-pushers making the circuit around the lake. I love that this park used to be a landfill, and now it's the place to be for all the locals who want to soak up a little outdoor fun.
Star Trek: For the first time in a while, M and I remembered that SciFi shows Star Trek: The Next Generation on Monday nights. So, we watched four hours' worth of my beloved TNG last night. Four hours. It was decadent, even if I did refrain from having any "Tea, Earl Grey, hot."
Hangar Dance: M and I are going back in time for Valentine's Day this year by attending a 1940s-themed "hangar dance" at a military aviation museum. What could be better than listening to a live big band and dancing amongst all manner of really awesome airplanes (the vast majority of which are restored and still flyable)? M is going to look classically snazzy in his Service Dress Blues, and I'm wearing a vintage 1940s suit from my grandmother--with bright red lipstick. I found out about the dance through a fellow Civil Air Patrol member who also happens to volunteer at the museum, so I knew there would be at least a few acquaintances there, but I just found out that a buddy of ours is also going. He'll be wearing the eminently historical Aviation Working Greens, which he has been campaigning hard to save from the Navy's scrap heap. I can't wait to see what the other dance-goers come up with.
