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Night 9: Raku
I like to go out with a crowd on a weekend. I've got
one tonight and when we get to Raku in Bethesda, it
is jammed. It's a good thing I made a reservation. Le
tout Bethesda is here tonight, or so it seems. It's
a nice room, spacious but not cavernous, full but not
squashed. It's also lively, a lot of full-tilt eating
and talking is going on, but it's not unpleasant. I
snap open my napkin, glad I am here.
The Asian outfittings are handsome, and the menu sounds
fantastic. There is so much to choose from: sweet, savory,
crunchy, raw, steamed, fried, the carb eater and the
carbless can be happily satisfied. My little group negotiates:
there are two hearty omnivores (Volker, the man in the
group, and Guess Who), Dale, a South Beacher, and female
Michael, who, as I have previously observed, might be
happy with a saucer of poppy seeds.
The room is homogeneous, a large crowd of well-tended
people passing plates and bending their mouths up to
catch dripping chopsticked morsels. But wait. Among
us all, I would say, several hundred souls, there is
one remarkably shorter patron. He's got a silken slide
of blond hair and rosy cheeks that must draw old ladies
like groupies. He is accompanied by his senior familial
associates and the chatter and smiles among the three
of them are irresistible. I think I need his statement.
I introduce myself, explain what I'm doing and am invited
to a seat. His name is Trevor and my honed maternal
eye is correct: he is six. He has just eaten chicken
and noodles, using a really neat little pair of learner
chopsticks. They have a nifty little rubber thing that
attaches the sticks and makes manipulating the food
easy. A free dessert is placed in front of him, bread
pudding with some whipped cream and strawberries. A
finger goes into the cream, a cat's smile crosses his
face. A free dessert? I thought I was the only person
being comped this month!
"Oh, he's a regular," his mom explains.
"What's your favorite restaurant of all?"
asks the roving reporter.
Not missing a beat, he answers "Café Deluxe."
Ah well. Back to restaurant list
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