(double) three strikes @ Minetta

Happy Bday Souffle

The hubs turned 33 yesterday.

Doesn't ah look a day over 29, I'd say :) It was a celebration that started middle of last week with a family dinner at Jumbo, then on Saturday, lo hei with the girls and their respective halves at Min Jiang. Flying approximately 10,000 miles back to NYC, we had pre-birthday drinks at Apotheke followed by a hearty Mexican dinner at Pulqueria. Yesterday on the actual birthday (1/2/12) we dined at Minetta Tavern.

Yup, the oh-so-famous Keith McNally-owned Minetta Tavern, where the secrets of its Black Label burger is legendary and pilgrimages are made far and wide, just for the burger. YUM. VERY YUM. Except, of course the hubs' cluelessness made me squirm in my seat on several occasions.

Strike One/
Ignorance is bliss they say, but in this case, not so much, because the hubs innocently asked "So is your black label burger any good?" Shocked, wided-eye bewilderment with just a tinge of contempt registered across our server's face. Poor woman. I would slap his face with the menu if I were her. "People travel far and wide for our burger, Sir." came the swift retort. Aye, aye.  I almost wanted to cover my face with the table cloth.

Strike Two/
The burger arrived as cooked as steak tartare. Because the hubs asked for "medium rare". So when it was too rare, he wanted it recooked, divulging to our server "I know I'd asked for rare but its too rare. Most of the places we go to tend to fuck it up by overcooking, so I wanted to be safe." Errrrrrrrrrr. "Not at Minetta Tavern." again the retort came swift and fast. This time, I almost crawled under the table.

Strike Three/
Finally it was time to leave. (Please help me). We walked over to coat check and hubs could not find the change he'd just put aside, just, like 5 seconds ago. So here we go again.. dug into our pockets, bags, wallets.. And guess what.. Server girl came over "Here. I thought it must be for your coat check." Smug look across face. I bolted for the door, literally ran for the door.

So 'nuff said. At least she deserved her 20% tip.

Happy Birthday again hubs. Just um leave the talking to me next time.