Monday, May 11, 2009

Step away from the buffet!

The Sunday Brunch Buffet! It strikes terror in my heart. A culinary weapon of mass destruction. I say ixnay to any long table filled with plates. Is there a greater test of personal "will" than a buffet? A more devastating event for dreams of wearing a bathing suit? A seismic caloric catastrophy! Yet nothing says Mother's Day like BRUNCH! I ran and hid in my closet clinging to my size 4 clothes and the life I knew..."No, no, anything but a buffet"! But it was too late...

I marched eyes staring straight ahead into the restaurant and no, I did not wear pants with a stretchy elastic waistband to join in the gastromic tsunami. I was a warrior determined to spread my mother's brand of Jewish guilt to all the over eaters at my table; if I wasn't going to have fun neither were they. "Don't you think that's enough cream cheese dear"? "Another piece of cake, really"? Then comes the stare, and trust me it's a miracle you don't turn to stone. I knew the drill. I was ready to face down my fellow diners and the two rooms filled with long white tables of....

Lox, bagels, caviar (in 3 primary colors!), smoked fish, oysters, shrimp, creamed and fresh fruit (why bother?), 3 bean salad (for picnics only), beets, bacon, sausage, scrambled eggs, eggs benedict, blintzes, swordfish, chicken breasts, carved turkey, ham, roast beef, ribs, seafood Newberg, saurkraut (huh?), salami, herring (pickled and creamed,nicely non demoninational), a mashed potato bar (because?), and last yet least and why...cheese cubes! Anyone still hungry? Or able to breathe? Eclairs, brownies, apple struedel, sweet rolls, cream puffs, pretzels (huh again?!?), chocolate chip cookies, Oreos (tacky and Costco), marshmallows, whip cream, rice pudding, jello (for the calorie conscious?), cupcakes, chocolate mousse, pie, cake, custard, petit fours, and a CHOCOLATE FOUNTAIN. Tums with your coffee?

I left with only a mild case of sugar shock and ok, ok, .... a pocket full of cheese cubes.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hey Gail,

where was this buffet? Looks good to this hungry guy.

Jim

Dr. Ruth formally known as Viking Jen said...

OK, OK, OK I LOVE a good buffet and I also understand what you went through... Years ago I went to a restaurant where they have all kinds of food and pizza, I was standing in line, waiting for this lady in front of me to make a decision on what to put on her plate, mind you the woman was 5"3' and 300 lbs. She started filling up her plate to where it was now pouring over to the tray so I turned to my friend and said "she should just forget about the plate and use her tray as a plate" she didn't hear me.. I wanted a slize of pizza so I got in front of her and went to reach for it, can you believe she smaked my hand and yelled "I SAW IT FIRST!" I looked at here and said "Lady don't be hitting me and by the way, you should take a look at your plate and not only focus on the buffet table, can you tell me where you are going to put that slize?" she looked down and said "well watch this" grabbed it and plopped it on top of the mountain of Alfredo Pasta she had, I looked at my friend and said "oh well, this all-you-can-eat-women see a $9.99 buffete sign and decide to eat an equivalent of $1999.00 in food" the all-you-can-eat-women heard me and stared me up and down and I said "yes honey, you could have the body I have if you just ate 1/4 of what you eat on daily bases" the bitch pushed me again. SHE PUSHED ME... I have nothing against heavy women, I have a lot agains ugly pigs with an attitude so my Jewish Mexican Dyke attitude came out. I still love buffetes and I am sure that by now she has died of fat crawling into her heart... Again, nothing agains't heavy women, just a bloody attitude and NO ONE hits my hand (well not if they don't know me)... My friend told all my other friends and now the "all-you-can-eat-women" is used amongst us...

I am off to eat bagels with lox and capers, a little of caviar and a bowl of fruit, not into sweets but I will go for the chips and hot sauce...

Anonymous said...

Ever try a beet, bacon, blintze, brownie on a bagel? Or, a smoked fish, shrimp, sausage, scrambled egg, swordfish, seafood, sauerkraut, salami, strudel on a sweet roll?

Don't miss all of the enjoyment of a buffet can bring. Let your imagination go. Enjoy the moment - for an hour.