Traveling Simile: "So join the movement! On Sept. 19, do not answer the phone with ''hello.'' Answer the phone with ''Ahoy me hearty!'' If the caller objects that he is not a hearty, inform him that he is a scurvy dog (or, if the caller is female, a scurvy female dog) who will be walking the plank off the poop deck and winding up in Davy Jones' locker, sleeping with the fishes." Dave Barry

Our sunny days in London allowed us the luxury

of dining al fresco a few times,

which in the UK is not always the norm.

One morning, Ren Man and I walked to a neighborhood cafe' he discovered

while in London a few months ago.

A lovely spot to catch a leisurely breakfast in the faux grass,

with some nice shopping nearby.

I don't know about you, but being unable to book a table at a particular restaurant

makes me want to eat there even more.

And so goes the saga of my multiple attempts to dine at...

A River Cafe, on the Thames Wharf.

After reading about Rose Rogers and Rose Gray who started the restaurant in 1987,

and admiring a few of their cookbooks,

I may have set my expectations a little too high.

The food was good, don't get me wrong,

it did however,

fail to overwhelm me.

On the other hand, it is hard to beat the riverside table with the sun adding its special touches,

while the most perfectly ripe figs I have ever tasted

kept this place from being remembered as just so-so.

I get why it has its regulars who return again and again.

Its formula has worked for twenty six years now.

Who am I to judge it by one meal?

Meanwhile...

Avast...I almost forgot...

Arrrrr!!!

Free Krispy Kreme doughnuts for those in the Birmingham, Alabama area who talk like a pirate.

Some folks are taking this seriously.

As Dave Barry explains...

"...talking like a pirate will infuse your everyday conversations

with romance and danger."

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2002/09/08/100129/arrrrr-talk-like-a-pirate-or-prepare.html#storylink=cpy

Have some fun with it!

Traveling Simile