Mmmm. That's just the first plateload at last Sunday's brunch at the Four Seasons in Austin, Texas. I'm concentrating on the raw fish here but there is much, much more at this all-you-can-eat extravaganza. The waiters will whisk away plates of uneaten food without the slightest trace of disapproval. Personally, I think if you take it, you'd better eat it, but you get the impression they want you to be wasteful. Go get something else. Take one bite and move on. Waste away. You won't waste away.
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Reminds me of a brand name I came up with for a line of diet foods: Waist-away!
That's an artfully arranged plate. When I go to a buffet the plate always looks terrible. And what's more, I'm really bad at picking food that goes together. My best meals are always when the chef decides for me.
The best brunch buffet I ever had was at the Sun Valley Lodge, around 20 years ago: Mt. Baldy in the background, steam from the hot outdoor pool in the foreground. The food, more delicious things offered than one could try: But no sushi, this was before raw fish, at least before raw fish in central Idaho.
Normally, I hate buffets. I don't want to overeat, and you have to serve yourself. I ran into it by accident just going down for breakfast when I was staying at the Four Seasons last spring. I was put out that I had no choice but to take the buffet. This year, when I was staying at another hotel, I went out of my way to get back to the Four Seasons for a Sunday brunch.
(It's about $50 a person by the way. Includes all the mimosas you want too.)
My Granny said it best, oh, about 50 years ago: "Take what you need. But need what you take."
For my money the best brunch anywhere is Lidia's (several cities) which for 20 bucks includes your choice of three excellent hot entrees, and they have a wonderful list of $25 prix fixe wines.
Two people, 75 bucks, plus tax and tip. It's a much better deal than their dinners.
Wow, that plate is art.
Over here (at the Golden Corral) a buffet plate is something like a Jenga game. You stack it as high as you can so you don't have to make as many trips back and forth to to get yours and everyone else's moneys worth.
I don't like buffets either. In order to justify paying a large of money (and good Buffets cost money), I feel I have eat my money's worth but still not waste food. It always leads to overeating.
I usually just go to a regular restaurant and order exactly what I want and eat a reasonable amount.
Lox and bagels...and caviar?!
My oh my have we come far.
Seriously, that's a beautiful plate of food.
Caviar! Ha, so it is. I need either glasses or a better monitor: I thought the caviar was blackberries and the salmon behind it cantaloupe!
And, you know, this wasn't the best meal we had that day! We had dinner at Uchi. All in all, a great day for eating fish.
Was John just pacing himself or did he really only have coffee for breakfast?
Feeling particularly heavy after a raw fish meal?
Oh, that's beautiful. The best breakfast buffet I ever had was at the Maui Sheraton. You had your egg dishes, with a daily Benedict. You had your salmon with lox and capers and red onion and all that. You had your Irish steel-cut oats with cream and sugar. You had your pastries. You had your fresh fruit. You had your miso soup and steamed rice. You had your black beans and tortillas. All of it, available every single morning.
My kids, ages 5 and 2 at the time, are still talking about it.
Can we go back to Hawaii, Mom? It's a great place to eat breakfast.
I like sushi (well, mostly the wasabi--yum--and sticky rice that comes with it), but somehow I just don't see it as a breakfast food. It's not necessarily fish in general for breakfast. After all, there's nothing quite like fried rainbow trout in the morning next to the campfire.
"Mom, we'd rather have cash, than all your expensive meals and gifts"
"Just send us a gift card, with the cash-value, next time, and then none of us has to be inconvenienced with the bother, and hassle, of getting out of bed on a Sunday morning".
They take the plates away so you won't take their precious fish home and COOK IT!
20 years from now those boys are going to look at these pictures of themselves, with the goofy looks on their faces, and think how simple and uncomplicated their lives really were.
They don't see it now. It will take them 20 years, maybe less, to see how effortless, and how easy life really was.
It's not just the carefree nature of youth. These boys, in particular, lead a particularly charmed existence. Like I said, it will take them 20 years, or less to realize that.
All the options that they have----all those entrees at the buffet, the different places that are available to them to reside in, friends on MySpace (not real), their parents friends, cousins, more food coming from every which way....
They don't realize that there are plenty of people their age who don't have any of that.
I know I know---they disagree, and I'm completely way off base.
How right I am, though.
20 years from now Maxine will be 93 years old....
Actually, I usually feel great after sushi. It seems impossible to eat too much. Never heavy.
I'd like it with less mercury, tho'.
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