Every now and then, life gives me a reminder to talk to people more often. Sometimes the most interesting stories are told by the people sitting next to you at the bar. It's amazing really. When a person sits down next to you, you judge them based on a variety of things. It's just what we all do, let's be honest. This is why it's so amazing to me that sometimes people can surprise you in such interesting ways. Here's what I mean...
A couple of weeks ago we traveled to North Carolina. It was our first time in the state and we had no plans other than to attend a wedding. Our first night in town was spent at a no frills Courtyard by Marriott hotel in the middle of suburbia. We checked in sort of late, but wanted to grab a drink. Under normal circumstances, the bar at the Macaroni Grill would not be on our radar of places to have a good time, but under travel duress and because it was walking distance from the hotel, we landed.
We ordered a bottle of wine because the bottles were 50% off! A few minutes later a man sat at the bar and got suckered into buying a bottle of wine too, because c'mon half price! A few minutes after him another man sat down and another bottle of wine was purchased. We were all traveling and all staying at the same hotel. Good gig for the Macaroni Grill bartender if you ask me :)
Shortly after we all sat down we started chatting. Scott talked about cars to the man next to him and I struck up a conversation about food and wine...and furniture to the man next to me. I realize the irony of talking food and wine in a Macaroni Grill :) Turns out the guy sitting next to me was a real life Gordon Ramsay. Going into restaurants across the country and consulting for them. Helping with menus and food and wine parings etc. He was really fun to talk to and I felt totally out of my league. He was friends with Rick Bayless for God's sake! I say that in a part sarcastic/part serious tone. Sarcastic, because Rick Bayless isn't a household name, and serious because he's one of my favorite chefs. He's on PBS (my favorite geek channel) Whenever I talk to someone who clearly knows more about a topic than I do, I get nervous. I don't want to come out of the gate with a statement like "I'm a foodie" and then when asked what my favorite restaurant is, draw a blank and say something like...TGIFriday's. This happens to me mostly when talking about music. I love music, I really do, but most of the time I can't remember album titles or song names. It's mostly like...um, the album with the blue cover? Or, the 5th song on the CD? But anyways, it was fun talking food and sharing our mutual love for the Chicago food scene :) The night ended with my new food friend gifting us with a bottle of wine he had in his room and some yummy chocolate.
Sometimes the most random people will surprise you with their kindness and generosity.
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