Yesterday was the ICC (Investor's Capital) Christmas Luncheon. The man who heads the Pittsburgh branch is German and belongs to the German Club (above) and that is where he decided to hold the lunch. I was a little apprehensive because of it being German food (more about that in a moment). We got to the Northside and even being native Pittsburghers we couldn't find the street that took us to the street that the German Hall was on. It was a classic Pittsburgh case of 'I can see exactly where I want to go but I can't see how to get there by car.' We have lots and lots of one way narrow streets in our city. It drives outsiders nuts. As it was, Rick and I ended up giving in, parking three blocks away and walking there.
The second floor of the German Club was set up with long rows of tables. I had a hard time getting any picture at all because of the people milling about but I tried. What you can't see is the side walls that had enormous glass covered shadow boxes on the walls that displayed items of all sorts representing various cities in Germany. Downstairs is where the members of the club usually dine but once a week (and also for rentals I think) they have a huge buffet style meal in the main hall.
I enjoyed the food despite it being heavier food than I usually eat for lunch. Despite it being German. I'll fill you in now on the German food. =)
When Rick and I first started dating, it was right away that he started taking me to lots of different restaurants that I had never been to before. I was a very picky eater. I'm talking the chicken finger/spaghetti/occasional PLAIN hamburger type of eater. It was obvious that Rick enjoyed a wide variety of foods. Rick is several years older than me (12) and I was afraid that he would think me immature to find out I only eat chicken nuggets. It was about the third restaurant he took me to that there was NOTHING plain on the menu. I decided on the spot that I had to order something and just try to eat it, otherwise I'd look like a child. So I did and I did eat it. I couldn't look at what I was eating lest it make me stop eating. It was some sort of chicken with a sauce of some sort--can't remember the sides but they were 'weird' too.
Probably around the 7th or 8th restaurant I realized that this 'weird' food I was eating was actually pretty good. I was able to actually look at what I was eating and see all the extra things mixed in and still enjoy it. Not bad! I thought, for a person who previously couldn't even eat the overcooked bits of celery in chicken noodle soup.
Then came the German restaurant. This one was also on the Northside but it was called Max's or something. I cockily ordered and didn't even blink an eye when the rabbit I ordered came out basically looking like a furless/headless rabbit. I dug in. It was pretty good. Then I finished eating the cubic inch that didn't have the sauce on it and I took a bite with the sauce on it.
Ugh.
Tried the potatoes. They had a different sauce on them.
Ugh.
Tried the vegetables. They had a different sauce from the first two also.
Ugh.
Ugh. Ugh. Ugh. I tried to eat the meal anyways but I just couldn't do it with the sauces. Or gravies. Whatever they are called. Sour puddles of pure torture is what I like to think of them. It made each bit of food taste as if it had spoiled 3 months ago. I scraped off as much sauce as I could and ate the best I could which wasn't a lot.
Now, a few years and lots of different foods that I've enjoyed later, I agreed to go to the German Club for the luncheon with Rick. i though perhaps maybe now that I've gotten a few years of various 'weird' foods under my belt that I might have a different opinion of German food. (Plus, lunch with Rick even at a potentially bad place is always better than lunch anywhere else). I did like the food at the German Club. I tried several different things and found them all to be tasty. But you know what?
There wasn't any spoiled-3-months-ago-sour sauce on anything!
I pose the question--Do I or don't I like German food?
I don't even know. =S
