So That's What Pommes Frites Are

We finally decided on Cafe Bruges in Carlisle for our anniversary dinner, and it was very interesting. They have authentic Belgian food and beers, in some ways too authentic. I always wanted to try the fries and they were really good, although I balked at the traditional accompaniment, mayonnaise. I have an open mind, but it's not open that far. I went with the horseradish sauce, which I'm sure was mostly mayonnaise, but tasty. I had a salad of green beans, little red potatoes and bacon cubes. I think Bruges is Belgian for "Let's go carbo-load till we blow up." Joreen got something whose formal name I forget but it was basically a beef stew. The meat was great. The gravy was even better on the fries than the horsey sauce.

And of course, the beer menu is ridiculous. It's about a ten page booklet, designed to be taken by the patrons and used to make notes and keep track of the beers tried, and also to know the ABV, which is important. I got the flight of 5 ounce drafts, and surprisingly the one that made the most impression on me was the raspberry lambic. I disparage fruity beers all the time, but this was amazingly good.

We ran up a moderately impressive tab and didn't feel we'd wasted a dime. I'd recommend it to anyone who wants a different dining experience. The ambience is not very formal. The location was formerly a regular bar and grille, I believe, and it's kind of noisy, especially on a Friday when you're next to a table full of people whose trippels and saisons are starting to kick in. Fruity, sour, bitter, malty, however else you describe these beers, they are also high octane, and we were very careful to stay away from the "big" beers since we weren't planning to spend the night there. I would also recommend, if you're going to get a salad with your fries, take note whether it has potatoes in it. I didn't, and ended up bringing a bunch of fries home, which is okay because I'll reheat them for breakfast as soon as I come back from the gym


Oh, that's the other news I haven't put up here yet. I joined Planet Fitness last week. That's another one of the things I'm getting around to here in the Year of Getting Around to Things. I'm still in the process of being trained on the different equipment and I'm concentrating on the low-impact cardio stuff right now, mostly the elliptical machine which is kind of a cross-country skiing deal. Too early to start kicking sand in weenies' faces on the beach, but the big thing is it really clears the head and improves the attitude. I should have gotten around to this a long time ago.

Finally, I spoke to Dad last night (hey, Dad!) and he got a new car after somebody decided they were too damn important to stop for a red light on Derry Street last week. He's fine except for a little stiffness in the neck and an ache in the budget from having to go back to car payments for the first time in ten years. He got a Toyota Yaris. He said he likes it so far, and I'm going to have to check it out. It's a shame about his 1995 Saturn coupe, though. The cost to repair it was just too high. That was a cool car, and it sucks that GM discontinued them.

In a little while I'm going to set up for Roger Wilkinson's surprise birthday party. The surprise was for his wife and son when he found out about it a couple weeks ago. It's in the Abbey Bar upstairs at the ABC Brewery. I intend to concentrate on playing and socializing rather than eating and drinking. One side effect of resuming exercise is that you want to eat like a machine, and I can't go for that, no can do. In fact, I think I'll go break a sweat now.