April 30: Leftovers and Chili Cheese Fries

 I met Watts at the shop after a quick pop in to a UNCG softball game where my nephew was with my daughter. I had been grading all afternoon and hadn't cooked dinner yet, but I did bring leftover spaghetti carbonara. That way we could eat something and only have the pressure of figuring out where to ride for a drink instead of dinner too because lately I've been disappointed by every single restaurant- new and old- that we've been too. It's a complicated disappointment. It's not that the food is bad and it's a terrible experience. It's just that something is always off. The sixteen dollar burrito that used to be cheaper and now is mostly filled with white rice. The restaurant that smells distinctly of sewage whenever anyone flushes. I could go on. And maybe a lot of the disappointment comes from the fact I love cooking and having deck dinners at our own house. But still. I want something specific and mostly ineffable from restaurants and I haven't necessarily found it recently. Until last night. 

We rode to a brewery we hadn't been to in a while and there were no surprises. It was the usual. Then we decided to head to Lawn Service. It's an outpost for another brewery in town and it's in one of downtown's parks. I used to go and sit at the bar and drink hot tea when my daughter took a ballet class on Monday nights. Right across from it the owner of several other nearby restaurants opened Parkside Pull-up. Burgers, Dogs, Fries, Shakes & Soft Service. The prices were reasonable and the meat options all came with veggie options too. I was sold. Maybe because it wasn't trying to be anything other than what it was. A little window operation. Watts got the all the way dog and chili cheese fries. I helped him. The guys behind us got burgers and I heard one say that was the best burger he had in a long time. 

We'll be back. Probably sooner rather than later.