Worth It

In one of our afternoon strolls in the city, my friend Camille and I decided to treat ourselves to a nice supper at Union Square Cafe. Because the regular restaurant was closed between lunch and dinner, we were seated at the bar. Although limited, their bar menu was still quite a treat if only for the pretty good selection of oysters that they offer. At first glance, I thought that a $12 salad was pretty steep especially if you're on a student budget. Good thing Camille picked up the tab for the oysters!

Sitting at the bar for a meal was a new experience for me. Unknown to me, however, the afternoon would be quite worth the prices on the menu. The bartender was quite attentive, telling us what the difference is among the different oyster selections. I realize that I preferred the creaminess of the Western ones versus the sea water taste of those harvested here in the East. We also decide to have a beer or two, being seated at the bar and all. I ask the bartender if they offered some wheat beer and of course, they do and again, I am educated with the different kinds. He offers us an organic wheat beer, Edelweiss Hefenweisen (I hope I got that right). Although i couldn't really care less about it being organic or not, it was darn good beer. Each bottle was actually a pint, so two of those did it for me. What was so great, though, was that the bar tender even gave us a free taste of the one on tap, which naturally, I forgot what it was but was good, although a bit more spicy.

Camille, although reluctant to have a drink at first, now tells me she's actually craving for the beer. I can't wait to go back to the place because even if it was quite pricey, it is a good treat once in a good while. Not only for the food, but also for the interaction with the "help" which turned out to be educational. I can't believe I'm saying that about a bartender!

I get it now... why these places charge so much. They make you feel good about eating or drinking there. I haven't tried enough of the expensive places to say that that's how it is overall, but this place was, I have to say, worth the $10 bottle of beer.