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| - Do any of you ever eat out alone?
I find there's a bit of a stigma about eating alone. Antisocial weirdo? Loser? Smelly guy? Or just someone who wants a quiet breakfast and isn't afraid of his own company?
My wife wasn't feeling well this Sunday morning, so she stayed home while I went out for a breakfast to Sunrise Grill. I know, I know. I'm a devil. But I brought her home something to eat.
In this case, I really just felt like having some eggs and espresso, and didn't need or want a companion. I took a good book with me, and sometimes that's all you need. Sometimes....
Anyone who has read my other reviews knows I'm having issues with the profusion of wasps swarming around almost every patio I sit on. They smell fear and are attracted to anything edible. So I've started opting to sit inside by default. Damn you CUPE!
I snagged a table with a buffer zone on each side. If only it would buffer out the noise!
I can read almost anywhere. Not always well. Not always productively. I find in front of the television is actually the best place. Otherwise in the bath, or on the subway during a long trip. I don't often read in restaurants. Especially at busy yuppie restaurants for Sunday brunch.
Bad plan. At the next table were two couples in their early thirties. Two loud couples each with their own restless infant children.
Perhaps I'm a bit jaded. People have to eat. But do they have to pontificate loudly while doing so? The screaming kids I can take. It's just blind noise. But there's nothing like hearing two loud women you don't know discussing food processors, moving into a new house, and a vast variety of boring subjects while you try to read quietly. The guys looked as miserable as I was. It was obvious that their wives were good friends, and they, in contrast, appeared to be merely along for the ride.
I know I'm a party-pooper. But sometimes you just need or want a quiet place. I don't mind people talking, but some people talk so loudly it's as if they need to be heard by the entire restaurant. When you're sitting 5 feet away and can indiscernibly hear every word they're saying - too loud.
After reading the same page what seemed like four times, I gave up and about that time my food arrived. It was excellent, by the way. I ordered a portabello mushroom omelette which also contained Swiss cheese, onions, and tomatoes. It came with competently prepared home fries and a few slices of orange.
I love the omelettes here. But I don't know if I can take the ambiance.
It occurred to me that a simple solution would be to sit families with kids in one section, and introverted singles in another. That way you can have loud with loud, quiet with quiet.
It really is so difficult to find a good restaurant in Toronto. So many choices, but nothing is ever quite perfect. For example, I love the food at Sunrise, but the business and loudness of the customers annoys me. Other places, I love the ambiance, but the food is rubbish.
Lesson to be learned? Never leave the house without your mp3 player.
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