Saturday, June 05, 2010

A night out

We went to the Cirque du Soleil yesterday to see their new show Totem. It was filled with native tribal imagery and music. It didn't blow me away like the early shows, I think Saltimbanco was my favorite, but there were some awesome feats performed. The one that impressed me the most was where four girls rode tall unicycles all the while tossing bowls onto their heads with their feet. Difficult to imagine I know, and as I watched I wondered who could have dreamt up such a thing. It was so improbable. Very cool though.

Serge liked this hat and though we pondered buying it for Georgie, it was clear he'd have had it in shreds within minutes. It was made of the fabric he loves to tear apart. We got a cute picture out of it anyway. At the intermission we had a soft drink for five bucks each. Such a ripoff. I had lunch on Thursday (general tao chicken - which incidentally I've now dubbed spicy chicken doughnuts) for five bucks. I can buy five liters of soft drink at the market for five bucks. It's just insulting to charge such a price. Next time I'm smuggling.

After the show, we did a kind of date night and went to the new Steak Frites in the village. This is a high end steak house with no liquor license. This concept may be unique to Quebec, the bring-your-own booze restaurants, but it's quite common here and a couple of big chains as well as many small restaurants do it that way. We brought in some wine and shared a delicious côte de boeuf (prime rib) for two. Although it was served with three delicious sauces (and all you can eat frites) I was a bit disappointed that I couldn't get horseradish. The American in me wanted to tell the waitress that there was a market just around the corner, but I zipped it and ate it the way it came.


I'd give you a Georgie pic but he has been the earl of stinkdom the last couple days. Instead of reaching for the camera, we're running screaming from the room holding our hands over our mouth and nose. Disgusting!


19 comments:

Lemuel said...

[insert appropriate Canadian French expletive here]! No horseradish with beef! Now there is where *I* would be smuggling! ;)

Franciscus van Munster said...

Glad you enjoyed Totem. I hear it's amazing. Hoping to see it in January in London

Colleen said...

I traveled to Toronto to see Allegria a few years back - amazing! My favourite show, though, is Quidam. I've not actually seen it live, but I have the DVD and the music CD - it's the music that I'm drawn to - so beautiful.

Glad you enjoyed Totem!

Jim said...

What! No horseradish with the prime rib? That's weird. Must be an English thing? It looks sooo good though.
Have you ever thought of a raw diet for Georgie? We switched Sophie onto it over a year ago....what a difference in her smells! She smells better and her farts aren't nearly as bad.

Mark My Words said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Mark My Words said...

Five bucks does seem steep for sugar water. But at least you saved a bit at the BYOB restaurant :)

Rox said...

Would an American really say "There's a market just around the corner?" OMG! As a Canadian, I'm mortified! LOL!

The earl of stinkdom. Sounds like someone I live with...

Cubby said...

Mmmm, I love meat. Oh, and the beef looks good too!

Blobby said...

No liquor license. I am SO happy we didn't go the Steak Frites in Old Montreal.

I think the place we liked the most was Restaurant Sauvagine. I think that was the name.

Anonymous, too said...

Who cares about horseradish?!? Where's the KETCHUP???? (For your fries, of course.)

Seriously, the only other places I know that have (or had) BYOB restaurants were communities with really tight liquor laws -- the same kind of places where you couldn't buy liquor on Sundays.

Java said...

Can't buy liquor on Sundays here, but this is The South (TM) and to be expected. Did I mention I want to move?

I LOVE the pic of Serge in the hat. Priceless.

Anonymous said...

Wonderful show! And Wonderful photo of Serge in the hat; makes his eyes really "pop".

Always up for a good new food spot in town... and I think it's always good to make suggestions to improve the experience at a new spot.

Anonymous said...

I think the Cirque beverage prices are expensive too.

Rebekah said...

What we spend and on what is so interesting; as if the honor of having a soda at Cirque is worth that much. I will spend three times as much on a bottle of wine at a restaurant than in the supermarket, but why? Because someone else opens the bottle and washes the glass?

Supply and demand. It all comes down to that.

I miss the Georgie pics, farts and all.

Rick Bettencourt said...

I still have yet to see a Cirque du Soleil performance...maybe someday. Glad you enjoyed yourselves.

that's J-O-S-H said...

I saw P!nk in concert last September. Not only was she amazing, but the show have a definite Cirque du Soleil vibe to it. Peepz flying thought the air, intense dancing, shiny costumes and lights. Twas a blast...Cirque du SoP!nk!

Birdie said...

I really want to see a Cirque du Soleil performance, but I have yet to be in the same city with one. I've been told the "home" performances are better than on-the-road.

What have you been feeding La Puppay? Stick with good high-protein dog food (and no poop snacks) to quell the toots.

David said...

While the hat looked cute on Serge, Georgie would have killed the plants if you brought it home for him. Dogs do have some dignity.

Well, maybe...

Patrick said...

Actually there are some BYOB places in Manhattan (mainly Indian, for some reason) and lots, I'm told, in Jersey. Bill, who is from Jersey, has gotten me in the habit of checking, just to be sure. Would love to see a home show of Cirque du Soleil; Quidam is probably my favorite as well. Have yet to see Ovo, which is playing here right now. My friend Michelle is the Ladybug. I love a world where a name-dropping about a ladybug can happen.