Sunday, March 25, 2012

Where Everybody Knows Your Name....

Hubster and I have "a restaurant".
When I say "a restaurant", it's one of those where the owners know us and the waitress asks if we want our normal.
When we walk in, it's like their faces light up because they haven't seen us in awhile.
Everytime we enter, it's like I hear the faint shouts of, "NORM!"  Like they always did on the show Cheers. 
This place is a restaurant in Portage, which is about an hour an a half away.
It's a hole in the wall.
It's clean.
It's delicious.
It's our restaurant.
We found it haphazardly.  We were in Valparaiso one weekend when we were dating and were starving.  We punched in Chinese restaurant in our GPS (who we call Marvina) and the place that we punched in wasn't there.  So we drove around.  We were so hungry.  I vaguely remember looking at the steering wheel thinking that maybe that wouldn't be so bad to eat. 
Then, all of a sudden, it was there.  It looked just a little shady.  But it said Chinese Food.  Hubster and I looked at each other and shrugged our shoulders and went in. 
We ordered, we ate, we left.
On our way home Hubster confessed that he may have just eaten the best Chinese food he has ever in his whole life.
I agreed.
After several minutes of rehashing each morsel of taste we wondered if we were just thinking it was the best ever because we were to the point of starvation.
We just had to go back and try it again some time.
So, a few weeks later, we went back to test our our hypothesis.
Was it just because we were hungry or was it absolutely the best ever?
We ordered, we ate, we left.
We concluded it was the best ever. 
Now we try to go every month.  Sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesn't.
We've been there while we were dating.
We've been there on our honeymoon.
We've been there as a married couple.
I suspect (God willing) we'll take our kids there one day,
Or maybe it will just be the place for the two of us.
Either way...
It is ours. 

22 comments:

  1. I love the way you found your restuarant, and then how you just had to go back, again and again. Sometimes it is a worry when they treat you like old friends (Do we come that often?) but mostly it is special to feel like you belong.

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  2. I like how you connected returning to your restaurant like Norm in Cheers. We have a favorite place too and when we don't want to go out, we order from it. They know my husband as soon as they hear the order.They know to add our weekly soda allotment, two ginger brews!

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  3. We too have a great and familiar Chinese take out place...where they know the "usual" will be Friday night whitefish with ginger and house fried rice....it's comfort food that I THINK they make special because they are like our Friday night family!

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  4. Isn't it funny how song lyrics or TV show phrases or themes can connect to our present stories? And it's great when you can share those connections with a friend, a spouse, or a child. This is how family memories are created. I hope you do get to take your children there someday. Or if it's just "yours"... either way, it's special.

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  5. Connections - what a great way to connect us as readers. You very effectively made me feel I was having a conversation with you. Oh and made me feel valued -they knew your name.

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  6. Now I want Chinese food! Isn't it great when you have a place that feels like home? Too bad it's 90 minutes away, by the time you are home, you are hungry again. :-)

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  7. Now I'm hungry for Chinese! Isn't it great when you have a place that feels like home? The unfortunate thing is it is 90 minutes away. So are you hungry again by the time you get home?

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  8. Great li'l story! It makes me think of the days, many, many years from now, when you and Hubster are walking in, hand-in-hand with walker, or cane, or maybe just shuffle-footing, and everyone still thinks you are as cute as you were "back in the day"! What a treat!

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  9. An enjoyable post to read! Those special places are liking being welcomed home. I hope it is there for you two to enjoy for many years to come.

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  10. Thanks for a great slice - I love when we find a place we love to eat, and the wait staff gives that knowing smile, recognizing you. I know you'll be bringing your kids some day!

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  11. What a great slice! You got me to thinking about the places "where everyone knows your name" in my life. Quite thought provoking.

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  12. That "Norm" connection from Cheers is what we all long for, isn't it? We like to know we matter to someone. What a romantic story. I like that you have gone there throughout your relationship, and will probably take your kids someday, too. Nice pet.

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  13. I love it! I'm a gal who loves that type of environment where every one knows you.

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  14. Love this, and I love that you guys try to go there regularly. This makes me want to find a spot like that for our family. Once upon a time (and a couple owners ago), there was a Chinese place here in town that knew our carry out order as soon as I told them our phone number. I miss that.

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  15. How nice to have such a special restaurant. I love that the story starts from the time that you were dating.

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  16. Oh, I'm jealous! We just moved and haven't found "our" restaurant here yet! I love that feeling of being known when you walk in--even if it isn't a fancy place, it makes you feel special. Glad you all find time to go back as often as you do!

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  17. what a wonderful slice, a great story of happenstance

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  18. We love finding restaurants like that...my parents have one like that where everyone goes for breakfast. It's called The Frontier...what state is this in? (I am thinking Indiana-but not sure)

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  19. It is really cool that you found a place like this...I love love that they know you !

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  20. So cute - "Hubster." And that's such a great feeling to have a connection like that!

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  21. I love this story! As the song says, "sometimes you want to go where everybody knows your name." It's comforting.

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