A couple nights ago Earl and I went to a nice restaurant, the type that would be called “white tablecloth” even though it was trendier than that and didn’t have tablecloths at all. But there were cloth napkins and pillows on the banquettes and impeccable service. So you know what I mean. It wasn’t McDonald’s.
When we arrived, we noticed that there was only one other table seated, even though it was a Friday night, almost six o’clock. That table consisted of a young woman with a babe in arms and a rambunctious toddler who enjoyed standing on his chair and holding court.
Our hostess proceeded to seat us near the mom and babes, but we stopped her and said we’d prefer something more secluded. I’m not sure she understood why, but she did give us a table further away from the mom. We ordered drinks and planned to sit and relax. But the toddler had other plans. He began whining in a loud voice that one couldn’t miss regardless of one’s location. And so it went for at least another half hour, until the mom received her bill, paid it, and left.
In the interim, our server reseated us even farther away from the offending family and also reseated another couple as well. It made me suspect that the restaurant owners would have preferred the mom took her brood to McDonald’s and foregone the pricey meal she paid for. I couldn’t be in greater agreement.
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