Survival and food in the great wilderness

Come with me, like Mr Peabody, into the way back machine to the early 1800's to discover the story of Col. Ezekiel Moreland, and his daughter Genevieve or Jenny.

You see, the Col. in 1823 set out to explore the USA Pacific Northwest. A war veteran and recently widowed he went looking for a new life. Then he stumbled upon the most beautiful valley, with a small creek running through it and beautiful forest surrounds.  The Col. named this spot Silver Creek Springs.

 

The Col. and his party decided to remain at Silver Creek Springs for it provided everything he needed - protection from the worst weather, plenty of food and fresh water and beautiful surrounds. Over a two year period the Col. made his fortune in beaver pelts and other furs and soon was settled enough to invite his daughter Jenny to come out and join him.

And with her, she brought a small troop of men to build a permanent lodge - resting place for all the other travellers moving west. 

Jenny built the lodge following the design and style of the great lodges of the north west national parks, particularly Yellowstone and Yosemite. Using lodgepole pine from Oregon, they created a huge 8 story atrium.

They installed a beautiful fireplace, using the local stone that was stratified, just like the Grand Canyon.

The continuous supply of fresh water gave them security and constancy, and made their lodge one of the most popular places to stay.

 

The success of the lodge allowed them to expand and improve, always drawing inspiration on their local surrounds.

Jenny, also appreciating the beauty of the landscape, invited out an Austrian artist: Frederick Alonzo Gustaf, to both capture the beauty in art himself, and support a visiting artist programme.  Gustaf's favourite place to paint was from a large rocky bluff, where he could get a clear view of the landscape.

(source: onlywdworld.com)

Of course, there is a funny story of how one day the earth beneath his feet trembled and Gustof discovered he was standing on a geyser! He and his easel fell backward, but he kept returning to this spot time again to paint more. 

As the lodge become more successful Jenny hired an ex-army sergeant, and opened a formal dining room, named after Gustof, as Artist Point.  Artist Point still operates today, and in the same way Jenny envisaged. And with Gustof's murals around the walls and ceiling.

(source: walt disney company)

The basis of the menu is locally available and seasonal foods, cooked in a fresh and simple manner to enhance the main ingredient.  You can read the current menu on the restaurant website.  However, there are some dishes for which this restaurant is famous, and guns would be drawn at their withdrawal! Items like the Smokey Portabello & Shiitake Mushroom Soup, Buffalo striploin steak with wild game sausage and Penn Cove mussels.

I enjoyed 3 of their all time favourite dishes:

Mixed field greens, with shaved stone fruits, sunflower seed granola, blue cheese, candied walnuts and ice wine vinagrette

THE signature Cedar plank roasted King Salmon with lemon butter sauce, accompanied with sour dough bread and black sea salt butter

and of course dessert - and, of course, the signature dessert has to be a seasonal fruit cobbler.What else to have in the wild west?

mine was berry with black raspberry ice cream

I admit I entered Artist Point at the end of the Food and Wine Festival and was already in a Mr Creosote state. In fact I started the meal with peppermint tea in an effort to aid my digestion throughout. So I chose a standard meal. It is however possible to go totally Mr Creosote style if you have no restraint - just go read that menu again.  So I will give the restaurant 2 Mr Creosotes for the ability to constrain one's consumed volume.

but for yumminess, and the potential for even MORE yumminess, Artist Point has to have 3 spoonfuls of sugar.

We will be visiting Artist Point for dinner on Saturday, 28 June. If you are coming to Convention and would like to join with us, please contact me asap - preferably via the Mrs. Banks Facebook Group 

If you would like to see more of the dishes available at Artist Point, the Disney Food Blog has two very good reviews, and the Disney Tourist Blog has beautiful photos.

Hungryyyyyyyy

The change you've been looking for - hints on tipping in Orlando

We Zontians are always up for a bit of controversy and discussion. We are not phased by robust exploration of multiple perspectives and allow differing opinions to co-exist.

And with such a spirit I boldly write the TIPPING IN THE USA post!

Let the flood gates open and the rush of advice and conflict pour in!  However, there are some topics I will not debate with you, including:

Guidelines from the Tipping Sticky on the DisBoards

Act 1 - Setting the Scene

The Australian walks nervously into the hotel. Heightened sense of awareness - looking and watching for the smiling, helpful people. A hand reaches forward towards the luggage and the Aussies lurches forward, grabbing the bag and blurts awkwardly "no worries, mate. I've got it".

Walking into the bar, the Australian decides to order the Midnight Madness specialty cocktail.  After handing over a $20 bill, the barman gives back all of the change in coins. The Aussie wonders how much of the coinage can be jammed into pockets.

The average Australian arriving in the USA will be cautious - tipping rarely happens here but we don't want someone to spit in our drinks. Everyone knows that it is the deal and everyone has a different opinion about how it works and what to do.

Act 2 - The Cast

The leads - Wait staff in table service restaurants : In Orlando, I tipped between 18 - 20% of the pre-tax bill, and that is average. Disney very conveniently calculate an 18% and 20% tip for you - I added that and then rounded up the bill. Your tip is the same for buffet meals - they still bring drinks, clean the plates away, make sure you have what you need. And apparently bar staff are meant to be tipped - especially depending on the complexity of your order. And maybe sommeliers. (I have never done this).

I always charge the tip to the room account with the whole bill, but you can pay cash. This one is a given - unless you have truly dreadful service.

Thank you Touring Plans Blog - who have the most wonderful article on tipping

Regular appearances - Mousekeeping (Housekeeping) staff: Pretty much everyone tips the housekeepers. $1 per day per person in the room. In fancy homemade Disney themed envelopes.

yes - it's a thing. Have you chosen your theme for your homemade tip holding envelopes?

So there is a huge debate about whether housekeepers are a "tipped" position or not. Whether you leave daily amounts or a big lump at the end (you may have different housekeepers throughout your stay). If you end up with a room full of sand or you've spilt the toiletries everywhere - then leave a tip. You won't find a trashed room if you don't tip. Any loose change left lying in the open will be assumed a tip and taken by the housekeepers. Sometimes I tip - sometimes I don't. I have NEVER gotten better service (extra toiletries, towel animals etc) because I left a tip.

except for the time they left me this towel kitten

Wardrobe and Costume - Baggage Handlers: This one is like those drinking games. If someone touches your bag - that's $1 - per bag. Touches 3 bags? $3 dollars. Bus driver loads your bag - $1, bellhop holds your bag in storage - that's $1. Bag delivered to room - another $1.
 

Mickey now expects $8

At Dallas Fort Worth airport they have curb-side check in. You pay extra for it AND you tip the bag handler $1 per bag.

Carry your own bags and avoid this pain.

Transportation - valet, limo, bus drivers, taxi's: Cab drivers - just give them 15%, say nothing, accept it and you won't risk abuse coming your way. Bus Drivers are a mixed lot. I have never tipped a Disney driver. However - other bus companies are not so accommodating. $1 / $2 per person will suffice. Bus' usually have a sign up front that indicates if a gratuity would be nice.

Getting picked up at the airport by one of those town cars? 20% - no argument. In cash - to the driver.

FL Tours take away all doubt

Valet - OK - this is my sore point. I just don't get the point of tipping the valet. When I tip wait staff, whilst their pay structure includes tipping, the wait staff add value and service to the food delivery. But Valet is parking your car for you - and you pay for it. It already is the value add thing to car parking. Is that the kid ran to get the car instead of walking? Isn't that a management / supervision thing? I mean - how does the kid add any value to the valet process?  The other aspect is if you pay on arrival, your car will come back faster. I suppose valet is one of life's mysteries to me.

OK - he is paid a poverty wage.  So if the dude runs for your car - esp in the rain or heat - give him a dollar or two.

Make up! - Hairdressers, beauticians, massage therapists: Always 15 - 20% of the total cost of the service. I have stopped going to US spas, massage and beauticians - FAR too expensive. The cost of a massage is about 25% higher than Australia. Then I have to add 20% to the therapist. Then they push products at the end. Their spas and salons are very plush and you will have a luxurious time - but you will pay exorbitantly for the privilege.

Act 3 - The story plays out

I suspect tipping is the reason why the USA still has $1 notes.

The Guest Services / Reception / Check in Desks at the hotels will exchange your big notes for $1 bills.  It is poor form to ask a service person for change when tipping.  So keep a stash of $1 notes ready.

This, too, is a thing. Disney have their own currency system, which you can use on WDW property. Except not recommended for tipping.

You don't have to tip in the theme parks - except the wait staff at any table service restaurant. So no tipping guest services / tour guides / ride loaders / counter service / food cart people. At Disney, the staff member will refuse the tip if offered.

Disney hotel concierge will decline tips, but the Marriott concierge will accept! Especially if you have asked for a complex thing.

There is a lot of variation and inconsistency with tipping. These guidelines are the average - sort of. Disney are famous for their incredible customer service. Tipping doesn't really change the level of service you will get. Because you tip AFTER you receive the service, this is not a mechanism to get the waiter to like you. No-one is going to give you bad service because you didn't tip (although some taxi drivers might complain)

Whatever you are budgeting for your trip to Convention - just add 20%. It will cover all that tipping and leave you a bit for additional expenses always encountered.

If not sure, just ask. The kayaking tour guys didn't accept a tip - they said they were the owner of the business and there was no point!

Act 4 - You've seen the ad, now read the book.

a real book -  and guess what? the amount you tip has nothing to do with service. available from Amazon

Google is your friend. You will find a plethora of ideas and guidance on tipping. Every guide book, every chat board and travel forum will have lots of discussion on tipping.

This blog post from Touring Plans is a great post in itself AND at the end has links to more very good advice sites.

Let the heckling begin!

If you read one article about Disney Dining, make it this one.

Any one who follows Mrs Banks on Facebook knows that time has just disappeared with Christmas and birthdays and travel to Sydney and dining reservations. I am now enjoying my summer holiday and have the chance to sit and relax to prepare these posts for a couple of weeks - in between bouts of chopping things with my new chainsaw!! Oh - how The Ken Man knows me so well......  

OK .. On with the show! Here's a post I started writing about 2 weeks ago: 


It's all fuss and excitement and crazy internets clicking here tonight!

If you want to secure your favourite table service Disney dining reservation you have to book 6 months in advance - and that day is almost here past for me!!  (ha ha ha - that shows how long it takes me to write a post)

guess what I'm doing tomorrow evening?? (source: pscalculator )

Only 4 more sleeps until (now after) Christmas Day - but I feel like it's already arrived as I go crazy with the dining reservations!

We have some underlying rules to follow with our dining arrangements, including:

• We want to try lots of different things
  
• We can't eat everything (dang!) SO a la carte dining more often to give more control over the amount of food purchased and consumed.
• We are happy to split large dishes, and taste each other's meals - also happy to hoard if it's too good to share!
• Limit buffet attendance. (Usually poor food items and some of us have limited intake.)
• Enjoy meals with others.
• No cheap and nasty park food - hot dogs, burgers and dreaded Disney fries (oh, I shiver just thinking about Pecos Bills - ewwwwww - and where they ask you not to spit. Well not in front of women and children.)

Please don't make me go here (source:Disney food blog)

• Let your friend wear stretchy pants

By getting online the moment bookings opened I was able to get everything I wanted - some of which are very coveted bookings! Here are some highlights from our bookings so far:  (the links will allow you to see the current menus)

• Breakfasts - Staying in Boardwalk Villas gives easy access to fabulous breakfasts including Greek style Kouzzina (21st); Captain's Grill (22nd) and Kona Cafe (26th) (the home of REAL coffee in WDW). We are also visiting Safari Donald at Tusker House (24th) for Harambe style.

Kona Cafe's Tonga Toast. My precious ....

• Good fun themery lunch at 50's Prime Time Cafe (23rd) where you eat your veges and keep your elbows off the table.  Biergarten (21st) where it's Oktoberfest every day! Liberty Tree Tavern (22nd) where it is 4th July everyday!

 

No, Please, your quiet enjoyment of the meal will be thanks enough for these coveted bookings:

• Le Cellier - the Canadian Steakhouse (21st). This small underground wine cellar serves it's signature dishes: cheddar cheese soup and Filet mignon on truffled mushroom risotto. Oh sigh.

 

•  Chef's Table at Victoria and Albert's Restaurant - this classic is rated one of the USA's 15 most iconic restaurants, and with scores like 29/30 is one of Zagat's most highly rated. 

Now the category: "Everyone is arriving in Orlando now. Let's all go out together for a meal"

• The Crabby Shack! Fulton's Crab House will be hosting at least 10 of us on the 25th. Will you join in for more than you can eat seafood?

lobster tails, crabs, prawns, clams, oysters - served on platters, in towers, in buckets!

• On the afternoon of the 26th, we shall be raising our pinkies and ensconced at the Grand Floridian Resort's Garden View Tea Room for Afternoon Tea. It's all cucumber sandwiches with the crusts cut off and scones with jam and cream.

(source: wdwinfo - read their full review including menu)

And now here's a booking that will be a highlight of your trip - the all new California Grill! (26th)

Closed for 8 months in 2013 to undergo a complete overhaul, I am so excited to see this new look and new menu. One thing that hasn't changed - location. It is still on the roof of the Contemporary Resort and every meal offers premier viewing of the Magic Kingdom fireworks show!

Our last evening in WDW will finish on a high note! (source: DisneyFoodBlog - read their full review)

Who cares about pictures of the restaurant or what's on the menu. Because FIREWORKS!

UPDATE: I have now secured a 2nd California Grill dinner booking for Sunday 29 June - when everyone will be in Orlando.

If you would like to come meet everyone and join in, please contact me ASAP before seating books out! As is the case with Zontians, the more the merrier!

Are you a foodie? What type of cuisine do you want to enjoy in Orlando?

Munching my way to paradise - at Victoria and Albert's Restaurant

Everyone at some point can enjoy a great meal - right?

Even people who just see food as a calorific experience or at the other extreme - gourmands who chase down extreme meals - even these people can occasionally spot an exceptional experience (surely?)

And so I donned my Mr Creasote attitude and the infinity expanding dress and went to enjoy my highlight meal at Victoria and Albert's restaurant at the Grand Floridian Resort.  My highlight meal - at the Chef's Table!! Solo ..........(said in singsong voice)

yep - I booked that baby - one sitting per night - and it was all MINE!

and, really, that attitude was pretty much the one I maintained throughout 11 courses.

OK - so one arrives at the delightfully elegant restaurant entrance, and am pretty swiftly escorted out the back - although I may tempt the situation at times, I was not escorted ALL THE WAY out through the rear exit. Down to a little area at the back of a pretty small kitchen is where they have the little guest table.

Not a revolving restaurant with fireworks

I have no idea what dishes they produce from this little tiny area - it was obviously not the only  preparation area. There seemed to be working on appetizers / entrees / main course - savory meaty things. There was a distinct lack of dessert.

Sitting there slowly getting tipsy on the provided glass of Piper Hiedieck Cuvee champagne, Head Chef Scott Hunnel was suddenly present - joining me with a glass of champagne - and welcoming me to the restaurant.

so ... it was kinda like this ...except less beautiful people and more Mr Creasote (source: doctored by me, original by wdwcompany)

Chef Hunnel reiterated my booking requests - no chicken or offal, more seafood and game! and then the dishes began to arrive.

In my desire to simply serve you I have made this little mini film of all the dishes! See how I care for you?


Oh WOW - did you catch all that? Here are some little fun facts:

• The "fog" in the lamb dish is made with appley juice - so the room smells all appley!
• The miniature herbs and vegetables come from a specialist gardener in Ohio, Chef's Garden. They grow everything to precise order - so 21 day old carrots or 14 day leeks as small as your finger. And they are harvested by miniature bunnies.

(source: cheezburger.com)

• You can pay extra to add special ingredients including caviar and Australian wagyu beef
• You can pay extra and get completely smashed with a matching glass of wine for every course! yes 11 glasses of wine for dinner .... your cordon bleu would quickly become "cor, I'm bleurgghhhh"
• They customise every dinner, so no two meals are the same, and you can have dishes different to what is served in the main dining room.
• The seating lasts about 4 hours. You can take a break - or possibly even go watch the Magic Kingdom fireworks.
• Every dish was served by a different person - I met all the main players in the restaurant.
• The Chef's Table can accommodate up to 10 guests
• If I had a man with me, his take away gift would have been a small loaf of orange bread stuff

The whole time I am munching away, these guys are working

Chef Hunnel like to run what he calls a "quiet kitchen" - so sorry - there are no Gordan Ramsay-ish outbursts. I suppose it works for him. He does have an awful lot of awards and is considered Orlando's No.1 restaurant by a number of outlets and check out the reviews on Tripadvisor

So this meal went both to my head and my waistline. I was a giggling food expert about 3 dishes in - admiring the technical expertise, how the beauty and flavour of best quality ingredients was highlighted in every dish, and pleasantly surprised at how new blends of flavours came together so well - or old favourite flavours were masterfully replicated.

Preparing the meat portions on a large baking tray on the top burners. Up top is a tray of prepped golden chanterelle mushrooms

I simply can't say anything bad about this meal - they delivered all my favourite ingredients, prepared perfectly, there was plenty of theatre, talking to all of the people was like having a chat with your best friend - they are just so delightfully friendly!

Whilst a lot of money in absolute terms, my proposition is that this meal is actually excellent value - the meal cost me USD $300 - that covered everything - including tax, gratuity, world class 11 courses, an upgraded Dover Sole dish (not in video), 2 glasses of wine, tea, the take home chocolates and rose, and all the pleasure of private entertainment!

I am definitely doing this again in June - bookings open 180 days in advance of my hotel room arrival date - so I will be on the phone seeking a seating!

Of course - YOU ARE INVITED TOO!

Save up your pennies now, join up with the Mrs. Banks Facebook Group and you will have first notice to join the group when I book.

I give this meal, 3 Mr Creasotes - cause it really was an extraordinary amount of food

and 6 spoon fulls of sugar - for absolute delightfulness!

What dining experiences are you joyfully anticipating for our trip to Orlando?

Disney dining discounts deliver delight when deliberating the dollar's deepening dive.

"All right, don't practice your alliteration on me"

Maybe I have managed to pique your interest, just slightly, in the wonders of WDW. 

Perhaps even gotten you interested in going over for a meal or two?

It may be that in doing your own WDW research, you have noticed there are rather a lot of dining options and rather a lot of food.

Given the Aussie Dollar is now starting to slide away from the USD, I'm looking for any discount I can get so I can still eat like a king - rather than stand in a car park sucking an ice cube. 

FREE FOOD?! I'm sooooo there.

We have already explored that WDW is HUGE! 

Look at it! The huge lump! Just like my arse. Which is kinda congruent really. Cause dining at WDW is how my arse got to its "huge lump" state.         OK.........ONE of the causes.

What Disney want, is for you to stay on property and never leave. And spend all your money there.

One way in which they lock you in is to sell you a dining plan attached to your Disney resort accommodation booking.  These dining plans come in different sizes for different budgets and different desires. The Disney Food Blog does a very good job of explaining how the plan works.

So if you are going to join Mrs. Banks and our other Zonta friends who are having a little WDW holiday in the week before International Convention, you may want to work out if the Dining Plan is a sensible option for you.

To work this out is very easy - or really really hard -you just need to, for every meal:

• work out where you want to eat
• what you want to eat,
• the price of all that food compared to the chosen dining plan price.

Excel is my 2nd best friend

The WDW Dining and All ears.net are the go-to websites to check out the menus and prices.  At the DISboard Dining Reviews everyone is food critic! with photos!

Every single menu from every single dining option - AllEars - I luvs you

I have done the Deluxe Dining Plan a couple of times, and it was fabulous to eat amazing, top class, table service meals every night of the trip, at a decent discount and ...... well .... we're back to the size of my arse again, aren't we? But it is A LOT of food - maybe too much.


Another option is to get an Annual Pass or get a friend with an Annual Pass - like me. I have an Annual Pass! With an Annual Pass, for $100 I can purchase a 'Tables in Wonderland' membership and eat almost everywhere with a 20% discount on food and beverages. And I take 9 friends with me and the whole meal scores the discount.

My precious

Read those restaurant menus and decide where you would like to dine. Then whip out your excel spreadsheet and start doing your sums. The best option will be different depending on your family size and your hunger levels.

If you are an obsessive-compulsive planner, this is HEAVEN!

If you are not, then just tag along to my restaurant bookings.

So rabid, hungry readers, what is your favourite dining cuisine?

A brighter, cleaner, Prime Time World at 50's Prime Time Cafe

Ahhh.... life in the 1950's. Everything was all floral dresses and 60 watt light globes over the sandwich making pull out lap board.

This is the Australia of ye olde worlde - before Miele, Thermomix and Highlander stoves.

Frankly, I'm glad its gone. I wonder what our grandchildren will think of our ceiling mounted rangehoods and built in micro steamers? Anyone who knows me will tell you I have a dishwasher fetish. Oh .... how my heart sings with joy about the time and energy saving little box splashing away in the corner.

But when you look at life in 1950s Australia, well .... you'd wish the 1950s were gone too. I mean how drab. How mundane. Betty and her mother live in a "handy kitchen" where the saucepans are conveniently located. WOW!

(oh and there's a piece of classic Aussie culture! go back and listen to the first minute. Everything good she says, she tempers: "it's shiny and new - now - the scratches will come". The sink is too low for her friend. New cooker!! well - the electricity is on so she "might as well use it". Crikey! I am sorry you have to go through the whole new kitchen bother. "Oh look we've won the lottery! I suppose I'm going to have trail down to the bank and open new accounts and go on some kind of luxury cruise now - sigh)

Yes she has baby poop olive green coloured cabinets, and a place for the salt. But where is the trailing plastic ivy and wax fruit baskets?? I demand textured wall paper and a solar system inspired wall clock!!

I demand a world where the table corner is trimmed to match the sink!

Fortunately there is a place in this modern world that understands the desire to visit that mythical version of the 1950s. A place that reaches back in time to those innocent days of Yore (can there be such a thing?). A place that transports one back to the magic that was Sunday night dinner at your Aunty's house.

"Kids!! It's time for dinner!! and set the table

It's the 50's Prime Time Cafe - where the Dick Van Dyke Show and Leave it to Beaver are FOREVER on TV.

The 50's PT Cafe harkens back to that imaginery time when laminex ruled and plasticky nickynacks are jammed onto every flat surface. The whole cafe is a series of "kitchenettes" where you come in for your home cooked meatloaf.

So my friend, Clare, and I came in when called, washed our hands, set the places, kept our elbows off the table and had a look at the menu.

(source: disneyfoodblog.com click to embiggen)

For first course, how could I go past deep fried cheese?

Herb and garlic cheese with warm raspberry sauce, crutons, apple and grapes

I think the last time I had a deep fried cheese was in the infamous Double Bay Steakhouse (geez - remember that?! in 1989). All of that fruit was needed to cut through the cheesy creamy smoothness, but for me, this was easy. A great dish - deserving of a spot right through to 1989.

My friend Clare needs a celiac diet and accommodating her requirements was too easy. First up she selected a gluten free item: the Wedge Salad

Iceberg, blue cheese dressing, bacon and chives

Wedging anything has several different connotations in Australia and so it is not something Aussies do to our lettuces. However Clare was very happy and this is a simple dish - you can easily imagine the taste.

Next up for main course:

The chef made a special gluten free version of the chicken pot pie. Neat! Apparently the filling was already gluten free - thickened purely with vegetables, milk and slow cooking. Instead of a pastry lid, they provided a rather sad piece of gluten free toasted bread.

This bowl was FULL of chicken. No skimping on the protein here. and carrots. Carrots must have been cheap at the markets that morning

(note: Orlando is a place feeding 55 million+ tourists every year. If you have dietary requirements they are easily accommodated. I have seen the most astonishingly limited people adequately catered for)

Once Clare and I had finished bitching about the travesty that is gluten free supposed "bread" (do not try this stuff); our attention turned to my main: The Sampler Plate.

Fried chicken, pot roast and meatloaf with all the "fixin's" : name potato mash with gravy, steamed veges and tomato sauce.

Each item in the sampler is available as a dish in its own right. The meatloaf was actually very good and the tangy sauce was a perfect match. As a lover of the deep fry, that chicken was great at first. I suppose the deep fried batter was great! But the actual chicken was a bit bland, and a bit dry. Still, that is why gravy exists. The pot roast was very moist and unexpectedly good - however the whole dish was HUGE and I got into trouble for not eating all my vegetables.

After all, you can't have dessert if you don't eat your vegetables. One of the kids at the next table scored his uneaten vegetables, buried under a pile of whipped cream with a cherry on top AS his dessert. Mom's tough love here.

However, instead of dessert, we ordered specialty drinks:

Clare enjoyed a "lemonade with wildberry foam" (foaming things was VERY in) and I had my favourite root beer float.

Who needs green beans with cream when you can have root beer? Oh and check out the boomerang patterned table top.

By this stage I was giving this meal 3 Mr Creasotes. I was STUFFED - imagine if we had done dessert? eek!

and I am going to give 2 spoonfuls of sugar - however - one of the spoonfuls is alloted because the restuarant is sweet!

Everyone stays in role, the restaurant is committed to the theme and completed fitted out to suit the era. Even the cute little TV's on every kitchen counter are showing old 1950's family TV shows. Your Aunts and Uncles treat you like family (and you'd better know what colour is the soap in the bathroom) and if you misbehave? Well - it's standing nose to the wall or perhaps a rendition of "I'm a little teapot" as penance.

Frankly, dessert was not worth it. A brownie with vanilla ice cream, cheesecake, apple crumble/crisp - it was if the 1950's had not yet discovered the joy of baking. Nigella's influence is yet to come.

But 50's Primetime Cafe - I'll be back. Like every family, eventually you have to have the get together and catch up on old times.

Arrgghh - they stole the solar system clock!

So dear reader, do you have a favourite childhood meal?