Oh man. Where would I be without hubby who always manages to bring out the sunshine in my day? As you probably know, we love going out for lunch on Saturdays. Wonderful, slow lunches washed down with wine and filled with great conversation and plans for the future. Whether it be at one of our favorite restaurants, such as Bel Ami in Bussum, or at a new place -- it has turned into the highlight of our week, and it is something we both very much look forward to.
This Saturday, however, I wasn't really in the mood for some reason. "Let's just make something and stay home," I told him. But the boy wasn't having it. Off to Hilversum we went. To that restaurant called Rex which we had visited right before the autumn turned colder on what was probably one of our last outdoor meals.
This time we ate inside, and this time I chose their 'house salad' with all sorts of goodies including crayfish, grilled tuna, Jamon Iberico and lobster mayo. It went down a treat, first with a glass of Chardonnay and then with a glass of Provence rosé.
I'm so happy I listened to hubby, dusted myself off and went out to lunch. My Saturday would have probably looked very different had I decided to stay home.
For one, I wouldn’t have scored this fantastic Zola, or The Catcher in the Rye (for my teen, Kirstie).
And he wouldn’t have had the opportunity to be sneaky enough to pull me into Oldenhoff for a birthday present (more on that later!).
The rest of the afternoon was spent listening to Wende Snijders singing in French. We saw her twice during her ‘French’ period and each time she moved me to tears. Have a look at her here and here. I’m sure you’ll agree.
And when the evening fell, we drank bubbly with crystallized violets from Toulouse....
and later enjoyed a nice dinner of slowly stewed veal with truffle risotto and rucola -- a dish he had tasted at a restaurant. I just had to recreate it for us. It turned out pretty well, I must say.
We opened a bottle of one of our favorite wines from Duras (my heart’s home), and we happily ate and drank while listening to old French records and making plans for next weekend.
I am going to continue my birthday celebration (officially this Thursday) from Bruxelles! I can’t wait to have a damn sexy seafood lunch at La Mer du Nord and eat a proper steak-frites at the Drug Opera! My mid-30s are still rocking -- and man will they continue to rock!
