Subtitle: wtf? tuesday: restaurants that lie

Yesterday RzDrms was on a business trip only a few hours away from me, and we had plans to meet in the middle for dinner. I'd found a restaurant online that seemed perfect and late last week I called and made a reservation for us.

Last evening Rob and I were running late, so I called the restaurant to let them know. Cause I'm polite like that. But no one answered - I only got a recorded message. I thought this was odd, but I figured they were just too busy to answer the phone. The recorded message confirmed that they were open for dinner nightly, and I figured on a Monday night we'd certainly be able to get a table even without a reservation, so no worries.

Yeah, so we met at this restaurant only to discover that it was closed. Like, lights off and door locked. Rz asked a passerby about it and he said, "Oh, they're closed on Mondays."

Okaaaay. But their website claims they serve dinner "Sun-Thurs. 5 - 9:30; Friday & Saturday 5 - 10:30." And just like the recorded phone message, the sign on their DOOR says they serve dinner "nightly starting at 5." And a feature on their menu is "Monday Night Create-Your-Own-Pasta"! And did I mention that I MADE RESERVATIONS?! Like, over the phone, speaking to a real person who works at this restaurant? Like, for MONDAY night? WTF?!

[related aside in the style of mrtl's tangents]
I called them today. Basically to ask WTF kind of restaurant makes freaking reservations for a night they're closed? Well, apparently they are open on Monday nights seasonally, and that season begins next week. Apparently the person who took my reservation was a week ahead of himself. (I confirmed that the reservation I'd made was for yesterday. Yep, it was right there in the reservation book. For yesterday. Monday night. The night they are, you know, closed.) And I guess they just don't bother to seasonally change their website or their recorded phone message or the sign on their door because that would be such a hassle. Which makes sense. You know, in Fucked Up Land.
[end related aside in the style of mrtl's tangents]

We were, of course, able to find another restaurant. Actually, I shouldn't say of course because the next few restaurants we checked out were also closed Monday (but upfront about it, at least) and there was a point at which I think we all believed it was inevitable that we'd end up eating dinner wedged tightly between truck drivers at the counter of Mel's Diner, the only place with an OPEN sign on the door.

But eventually we found a restaurant that looked good. And by looked good, I mean had lights on. And we had a great time! I feel like I know Rz well through our online contact and emails, and yet she still managed to exceed my expectations. I already knew her to be cool, but she is WAY cool, y'all. (And beautiful, by the way.) Whenever I meet someone from the blogworld, I'm reminded that there is no substitute for knowing people in 3-D. We can convey so much about ourselves with words, can capture the essence of ourselves on the page, and yet the details are lost. And really, it's all in the details.

I could try to paint a picture of Rz for you. I could tell you that she has nice hands, that her eyes are kind, that certain words she says reveal her accent. I could tell you that, as she freely admits, her purse is where receipts go to die. I could tell you that she gives great hugs. But I just can't do her justice in two-dimension.

(Rz, it was a pleasure! But next time let's avoid Monday night, mmkay?)