I Could Get Used to Eating Like This

Le Normandie is a traditional French restaurant on the fifth floor of the new section of the Hotel New Grand. We bowed regally to the waiters as the maitre d' ushered us across the room to a window table offering an awesome panoramic view of Yokohama's harbor.

Matsuzaki-san encouraged us to try the Japanese curry.  While we waited for our food, she shared photographs taken when she lunched in the same restaurant in the early 1950s.

Matsuzaki and her great-grandfather

I envy her possession of this photograph. Why don't I have one of me with my great-grandfather?

With her mother on a terrace that no longer exists.

Japanese curry is served with an assortment of condiments: pickled cucumbers and radishes, chutney, fried onions, coconut, pearl onions, etc. I placed little spoonfuls along the side of my plate but Fearless heaped her relishes on top of her curry. Fearless is not an ironic nickname.

All six options on the dessert cart looked scrumptious. Matsuzaki-san suggested we each order a different dessert to share with each other. We made Fearless choose the three desserts. This sort of decision is sheer agony for Matsuzaki and me.

When the waiter heard of our plan, he offered to divide the desserts for us. That turned out to be a great idea since the size of the portions he placed in front of us were larger than we expected.

The raspberry and cream sauce was an unanticipated bonus.

The week after next, Matsuzaki-san, Fearless, and I are going to Kanazawa for two nights to see the famous landscape garden, Ninja temple, and old samurai quarter. Something tells me we'll be eating well on that trip!