You Get What You Pay For

Today was Mrs.Waring's birthday. Yeah, that's right xmas eve. As a child, she tells me, she got ripped off royally by her Mum & Dad who never made the effort to separate the two most important days of their daughters year. Instead they gave her one set of presents that were intended to suffice for both occasions. As a result, I feel obligated to do my best to make both days special. It's not much of chore, I enjoy making her happy, I get a good feeling from it. Besides, if I didn't the earache would be unbearable.

For the past 10 years she has often said that the best steak she ever tasted was at Ruth's Chris in Beverly Hills and how much she would love to go back there. I would dearly have loved to have taken her back but for two reasons:

1. I have an intense dislike for Beverly Hills. I'm from Wigan. I feel uncomfortable there. Nobody likes to feel inferior but I'm not sure that is the only reason. What bothers me about that city is not so much the citizens there, although there is definately a higher percentage of arseholes living there than most other places I have been, but the people who work there. The uppity motherfuckers who work in the stores, restaurants, even the fucking valet parkers have shitty attitudes and look down upon anyone who they deem to be skint. These people probably work for shitty wages, get no benefits and live in some shithole apartment next to the freeway but somehow consider themselves better than average just because they get treated like shit by the rich and famous. Anyway, I'm ranting now and getting away from the point, besides which I should not generalize as that makes me just as bad. I'm sure that there are good people there, charitable, magnanimous folk who would do anything for you. I just haven't met any yet.
2. Four $ signs. In many a restaurant guide Ruth's Chris is followed by the dreaded $$$$. I am in the $$ league, occasionally the $$$ league and often the $ league. I'm not cheap and I'm not a miser. I believe in value for money. I have a hard time reconciling paying big bucks for food. It's a short lived pleasure followed by a (hopefully firm) shit. This is also the reason I will never pay for a hooker, slip her a roofy and do a runner when she passes out - that's how I play......

Anyway, since Ruth's Chris opened up in Pasadena reason #1 is no longer valid and since you can't put a price on the happiness of the woman you love, reason #2 can hardly be used as an excuse not to splash out now and again.

I have to say that as far as steaks and service go, Ruth's Chris is the best I have ever had. There may be better and if there is, I can't afford it. The service was outstanding. Polite, friendly, not at all pushy and the waiter even told us that we were ordering too many sides. The atmosphere was very relaxing and the decor elegant. The steaks are cooked at some ridiculously high temperature and served on plates heated to 500 degrees which apparently seals in the flavour, or so they claim. I'm not about to argue as the ribeye was outstanding and Mrs.Waring's filet lived up to her memories. They also make a fantastic potatoes au gratin. All in all it was well worth the $$$$. The Kraft Macaroni & Cheese we will be eating for the next week will pale in comparison.