I like being regular. Wait, I mean, I like being A regular, especially when it comes to bars and restaurants. There's nothing quite like the feeling of walking into an establishment and feeling immediately recognized and welcome. I've tried to achieve that feeling everywhere I tend to go: hair salons, auto body shops, take-out restaurants, etc. However the only place that has seemed to take root is a local Indian restaurant right in Towson called Cafe Spice.
Joe, another one who shares that unending mission to find his "place" (and did so for a while at Fazzini's, the Italian restaurant back in Timonium), and I would often meander over to Cafe Spice over the weekend to partake in their buffet. Before we moved whenever we got a hankering for some samosas and tikka masala we would walk to India Palace, where we felt we were beginning to become regulars but for some reason, out of nowhere, the same guy that usually waited on us turned slightly chilly, and we never regained our hold.
Still, it was the convenience and food we thought we would miss more, so when we moved to Towson we were happy to find another Indian place that was both in walking distance and held a weekend buffet. We began going so often in fact that we soon became recognizable to the owner, who always sat us and asked how we were. We began striking up conversations about her food, the weather, her travels to India, even the details of her husband's surprise party. She never called us by our names; still, whenever she saw us walking down the ramp to her restaurant below she always greeted us with a wide smile.
Soon, the perks started to happen. After we were full a small dessert would magically appear before us. One of the most recent times we commented on a drink called lassi, and thought it looked refreshing. Lo and behold as we were digesting two small glasses of lassi were placed in front of us. Joe and I would just beam at each other: we had found "our place". So you can imagine how bummed we were when the owner informed us they were moving.
"But...where are you going?" we both asked, sadly.
"Up to Timonium area. Then we can have actual windows to see outside," she said smiling. She seemed excited so we didn't want to bring her down, but after she walked away we were stunned. How could our place be gone?
As we were leaving we promised her we would still come up and visit as often as possible, but Joe and I knew it wouldn't be the same. I mean, where else could we go that was stumbling distance away and satisfy our massive hunger for less than $8 each?
So it appears the quest will begin again. Maybe we should try something other than Indian. I hear the Roly Poly is in the market for regulars??
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