Last week my traveling companion to India treated me to lunch for her birthday. (Yes, you read that right. People who have birthdays here treat others to lunch or cake, and not the other way around!) We went to one of the few unrenovated, old-style restaurants that still remain. By this I mean that the restaurant is very unpretentious, the tables are covered with simple white tablecloths, a lot of people are smoking, and the waiters, dressed in dark pants, white shirts, and black vests, are professionals, but without the snootiness. This particular restaurant hasn't changed since I moved here over thirty years ago. The white plates with the blue trim and the paper napkins under the serving dish took me back in time, as did the salt, pepper, and toothpick holder. That's a mulled wine you see to accompany my sarma, rice and meat wrapped in cabbage leaves, with a piece of pork, potatoes, a corn muffin, and homemade bread in the basket. The only things that are atypical are the the bottle of balsamic vinegar and the olive oil that replaced the regular wine vinegar and sunflower seed oil!Thursday, February 4, 2010
An old-fashioned restaurant
Last week my traveling companion to India treated me to lunch for her birthday. (Yes, you read that right. People who have birthdays here treat others to lunch or cake, and not the other way around!) We went to one of the few unrenovated, old-style restaurants that still remain. By this I mean that the restaurant is very unpretentious, the tables are covered with simple white tablecloths, a lot of people are smoking, and the waiters, dressed in dark pants, white shirts, and black vests, are professionals, but without the snootiness. This particular restaurant hasn't changed since I moved here over thirty years ago. The white plates with the blue trim and the paper napkins under the serving dish took me back in time, as did the salt, pepper, and toothpick holder. That's a mulled wine you see to accompany my sarma, rice and meat wrapped in cabbage leaves, with a piece of pork, potatoes, a corn muffin, and homemade bread in the basket. The only things that are atypical are the the bottle of balsamic vinegar and the olive oil that replaced the regular wine vinegar and sunflower seed oil!
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21 comments:
Hmm. Looks good. Like that mulled wine! And I had sarma last evening at a Bosnian restaurant in Manhattan. We had tasty burek (cheese pie) to start off the meal. And local wine, Vranac. Ziveli!
What a beautiful meal! It looks delicious.
And I'm certain everything tasted as great as it looks in your photo. Such restraint you have, taking time to arrange and make a photo before diving into this succulent feast! (Comes with age, I expect! (giggle-giggle)).
Hey, I bought you a nice birthday treat at the market! I do hope you enjoyed your vicarious sweet? I know I certainly did! LOL!!
... and a side note, the word verification letters are German for "eaten". Essen! Buon appetitto!
Oh boy, that looks soooooo tasty! No wonder that restaurant has been around a long time!
A delicious full meal, you will not be hungry after all that.
It sure looks great!
I remember the restaurant "Daća" in Belgrade at the southerns banks of the Danube (cannot remember the name of that specific part of the town, its near to the bridge to Panćevo) there you can find such a lovely, "rural" place with fantastic food. And (for Belgrade standard) already rather pricy...
And the best is, that kind of plates'n'stuff brings back memory from communist times.
Btw: how is that restaurant called you have been in? Is it in India?
pozdrav
Hey! Wait for me! Wait for me! Wait for me! Delicious photo! As our 7 year old would say, "that's not fair!"
Fun photography... loved the egg shot, my favorite food!
I like this place. And, yum, that meal looks delish. Hope you saved some for me. ;-)
I just checked the term "mulled wine" and discovered that my mother prepared it every Christmas, known as "glögg" in Swedish. I had never seen the term in English. Proustian memories. It's wonderful to be able to go back to haunt old restaurants that haven't changed. Skål!
Nice to see this type of old style place. I too remember the requisite salt/pepper/toothpick holder on every table. Hope the sarma was tasty.
(Cruising Hawthorne, ha - pretty fun? Nowdays, the teens just text.)
Chuck---you ate MY birthday treat?? I expect another when in Seattle!
Grochi--Daco (no accent on my keyboard!) restaurant is in Karaburma, and it's still going strong...and good.
Ooh, looks delicious. Everything looks very crisp and tasty.
Oohh yum. I love this photo, and it's making my tummy sit up and take notice, too! We're expecting a snow storm to hit tomorrow, and you've given me inspiration to make a batch of mulled wine in anticipation.
I like that custom. When is your birthday again?
a perfect meal for a winter's day...i would be in heaven feasting upon that meal.
have a wonderful friday!
It looks lovely and I am sure it tasted good ..
Sarma & boiled potatoes now you have made me hungry. That sounds wonderful, perhaps I will make it this weekend. As for the resturant, I LOVE old-style places. They are so hard to find in big cities here, but small towns, ah yes. Nice shot.
What is the name of this place? I wouldn't mind checking it out :P
Milos, it's called Prolece and it's on the corner of Vuka Karadzic street and ...? near that used-to-be-old-and-quaint bar called Crveni Petao and near the Museum of Applied Arts.
Oh that place!! I've walked by there often and in the summer I always admire the people sitting outside eating their Ćevapi, I guess its time to actually sit down once and try the place out.
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