Date Night

To easily irk me, Jason will turn to me during a mundane evening trip somewhere like Target or the grocery store and say, "You know, this counts as a date

As though any paired excursion outdoors, when it's dark, counts as a date.

We might even be standing by the dumpster, me holding up the lid and him hefting bags over the edge, "You know..," he'll begin. A quick roll of the eyes from me stops him, with a mischievous grin.

But Friday night was authentic date night. We hopped on the El to Argyle, Chicago's Vietnamese neighborhood - which is a good deal closer than the southside Chinatown.

I'd done a little research beforehand, jotting down a list of restaurants favored on food blog, Chowhound.
The place that we headed to had a great review, but walking in I was dubious. We were the only people there, at 7 pm on a Friday night. A twelve year old boy in a sweatshirt and sweatpants ran out to greet us. The decor was homespun and mismatched, christmas lights scotched taped along the wall.

I don't know how I missed it (goes to my earlier post on my ability to introvert readily) but there was also a jumbo screen television in the corner, with professional wrestling playing.

This is why you need date night: We laughed together at the melodrama of wrestling and how fake it all is. Then Jason interjected, "Oh but it's great. I went to see it live and it was hands-down one of the FIVE BEST NIGHTS OF MY LIFE. Me, Corey and Chris had t-shirts made."

This is when you look across the table at the man you've married and marvel at how you will probably never have enough time together to know each other completely. (This had not come up in over five years' acquaintance.)
You also secretly hope that a night that you spent together made his 'top five.' But you don't ask because that's something better presumed than demanded.

I laughed, but Jason made a good case for the energy of the live crowd, the fictional storylines of rivalries and alliances, the exaggerated personalities and antics of professional wrestling. Our twelve-year-old waiter chimed in. Once he realized our interest, he readily provided the biographies of each wrestler, including the dynamics of their signature moves. And remember, we were still the only people in the restaurant.

Wrestling aside, the food was also really good. Totally not what I was expected from the dingy interior. Fresh herbs like mint, cilantro and basil topped our Vietnamese pancake stuffed with bean sprouts. I enjoyed fried rice noodles with chicken and brocoli.

We realized looking at the over 100 items on the menu that my research should have also delved into not just 'where to eat' but 'what to eat." Although, our young waiter recommended egg rolls, which were tasty and crisp.

Next time I want to get 'pho' because that sounds pretty darn good.