Food coupons

This year I have put myself on the email lists of many of my favorite restaurants. Not that I am not already inundated with email; I just like food. Well, I ended up with 8 birthday coupons for ice cream, burgers & other treats - most of which were set to expire within a week. What to do with all those coupons? Some of the coupons required an initial purchase - what was this going to do to my pocketbook? Not to mention my waistline? (Those who know me and my not-as-fast-as-it-used-to-be-but-still-not-slow metabolism, stop laughing.)

In a flash of brilliance, I came up with the solution: Have my friends pay for it! I give them the coupon, and they "treat" me! I save money, they save money by treating me with coupons, and we get to enjoy one another's company - everybody's happy!

The first of these outings was last night - I met a friend at Red Robin and I brought my coupon along. Holy cow (pun intended)! I'd forgotten how big their burgers are. I opted for the salmon burger over the beef - not because I'm terribly concerned about total grams of fat and cholesterol (although I'm borderline there, so I should be more concerned) but because - I love salmon. And while I was expecting a salmon patty, I was pleasantly pleased to have the sandwich arrive in the form of delicious salmon fillets piled high on a whole wheat bun with a Dijon sauce and plenty of onion (too many places think one paper-thin strip of onion suffices - it doesn't!) And plenty of steak fries; who is going to argue with that? Potatoes are chock full of vitamin C and potassium!

I could have done without the waitstaff singing and clapping me birthday wishes (although their harmony was excellent) but the free sundae (no coupon required) made that tolerable. There were at lease two others in the restaurant who were there celebrating their birthdays. Somehow listening to the waitstaff sing to complete strangers was more entertaining than when they sang to me.

As good as the food was, the best part of the evening was spending time with my friend. I too often eat alone, by equal parts circumstance and design. Food somehow tastes better with loved ones. Somehow the belly seems a bit more contented. I think I need more coupons, and not just around my birthday.