It is that time of year again…the annual company Christmas Party.  My current employer (whom I love working for) does dinner, although it’s a coworker that does all the planning.  This is my third one with this company and I have never been less excited to dine out.  The only plus is that the company patronizes local independent restaurants rather than chains.  This year they’ve picked a new place a bit more local to the office.

Last year’s menu allowed us to pick just an entrée; the appetizers and salad course were set.  This year we get to choose a salad *and* a main course.  Whoo hoo.  The salad options are generic, with a Cesare (that’s how it was spelled) or Arugula.  The entrée options are just baffling.  For your amusement, here is the menu options copied & pasted as it was distributed:
·         Penne Primavera:  Pasta with assorted summer vegetables in a fresh tomato broth based sauce
·         Chicken Pizzaola: With Fresh Oregano, sautéed mushrooms, onions and red peppers and fresh tomatos
·         Veal Scallopine: With artichoke hearts, shiitake mushrooms in a Pernod sauce
·         Tilapia Livornese: with black olives, capers and fresh tomatos

In case you aren’t aware: it’s December.  In New Jersey.  We haven’t seen an “assorted summer vegetable” in months.  At least not fresh & delicious ones.  I wondered how they plan on thickening that “fresh tomato broth based sauce”?  And “fresh tomatoes” at this time of year are obviously shipped in and can’t be nearly as good as a fresh Jersey tomato.

I can’t justify veering from my normal eating habits when the food sounds neither appealing nor appetizing.  I reluctantly went with my standby write-in: grilled chicken salad, fat free dressing on the side.  This was a huge issue for the planner because she had no idea what to do about the choice for the salad course.  I told her a salad with fat-free dressing on the side was fine.  Wow, did I learn my lesson.  Never allow anyone you don’t usually dine with to make a choice for you.

When the salad course was served I was the last to receive my plate.  I figured it had to do my request of “dressing on the side.”  That must have been it because what arrived was nothing more than a plate of romaine.  Remember that lesson above?  It is here that I learned it.  My table mates were aghast at what I had received, and I let them know I was just as surprised.  I thought for sure I was going to get just a wee bit more variety in my rabbit food, perhaps the arugula salad with “dressing on the side.”

My entree was also the last to arrive at the table.  My coworkers were being polite and waiting for my food to arrive.  I eventually convinced them that proper etiquette allowed them to eat so their food did not get cold waiting for mine.  My grilled chicken and vegetables was decent.  The skinless, boneless chicken breast was not totally dry although it did lack seasoning.  The zucchini was VERY well seasoned so the dish was tolerable when combined.

During the meal we all decided, as we do every year, that we’d be happy to help plan next year’s party.  Hopefully we’ll be taken up on that offer instead finding out we were declined by receiving the “save the date” memo in July.

*The restaurant has not been named as I had a special order.  It wouldn’t be fair to judge them on something that was ordered for me by someone that doesn’t know better.