The Tale of the switched-up supper spot

What could possibly go wrong when a well-practiced retired couple is in charge of organizing the quarterly outing for their leisure club? Not much, really — unless you count the restaurant mix-up.

The older gentleman and his wife, both retired and quite the seasoned team, took their assignment seriously. After a small scheduling change, they got to work: scouting the route, checking the rest stop, visiting the planned site — and yes, even reserving a table for dinner well in advance. They couldn’t check out the restaurant in person (most places were closed in the afternoon), but the internet came to the rescue.

On March 13th at 6:19 p.m., a table for six was reserved — and confirmed — for April 4th at 5:45 p.m. at a place called Restaurant Linde. On April 3rd, they received a friendly reminder email. The couple replied promptly and cheerfully: “We’re looking forward to it!”

And indeed, April 4th arrived with perfect weather. Everything went smoothly, just as planned.

The group even arrived a little early — around 5:10 p.m. — at Restaurant Hirschen. Yes, Hirschen. While the others enjoyed a drink in the garden, the older gentleman went ahead to check on the reservation.

The host looked puzzled. No table? The gentleman pulled out his confirmation — yep, the reservation existed. The host just shrugged and promised to set up a nice spot indoors. And he did. It’s worth noting that both the host and his assistant were missing a few teeth; the assistant also sported a significant dent in his head — but he was incredibly friendly, a real character. Together with a tiny woman in a black beanie — lovingly referred to as the “gnome-lady” — the trio served up a surprisingly delicious meal. Who would’ve thought?

You could tell the group was aging by the wine consumption: just one bottle of Goldenberger Pinot Noir 2022.

Around 8:10 p.m., the hostess, Nicole Jordan, sent a kind message thanking them again for confirming the reservation and gently asked if she might’ve written down the wrong date. At 9:30 p.m., the gentleman replied: nope, everything was correct, the group had a wonderful evening and a fantastic meal.

The next day, Nicole wrote again, saying how happy she was to hear that and mentioned she’d be passing the compliments on to the “gap-toothed host.” So far, so good.

Then came Sunday.

On April 6th, it finally clicked. On their way back to the parking lot from Restaurant Hirschen, the couple happened to walk past Restaurant Linde. The gentleman turned to his wife and said, “This place looks really nice too — maybe next time.”

Wait a minute…

The mix-up was complete. In a message to Nicole, the gentleman politely apologized and explained the whole situation. He promised to make it up to them with a visit in warmer weather, when they could enjoy the garden.

And the moral of the story?

Make sure you show up at the right restaurant — or enjoy a second meal and tell the tale!

©thomasvonriedt/true story

Image by DALL-E