Saturday, August 25, 2012

Baby gherkins, kangaroo, and not-so-high rollers

Baby sister and G-Man took their bridal party to dinner last night, as an early celebration for their first wedding anniversary.  I am still unclear why WE were the ones getting spoiled rotten, but I'm not one to question too much when a delicious meal is on offer.

We arrived early for our reservation in a private room at Barton's Restaurant, part of the beautiful and historic Caledonian Hotel at North Adelaide.  Me, Baby Sister, G-Man, and his brother elbowed up to the main bar for a couple of cleansing ales before the rest of the party arrived.  Ahh Crown Lager, how I had missed you.

Choosing what to have for dinner was a no-brainer for me.  My eyes zeroed in on the delicious kangaroo fillet with bush chutney.  I KNOW.  Amazing.  And I shared an antipasto platter with Baby Sister, remarking on the genius appearance of the cornichon (uh, that's baby gherkins, to you and me).

Our main meals took FOREVER to come out and G-Man was already crafting his scathing review.  When my roo arrived, I was not disappointed and quickly forgot the long wait.  I know, I'm so fickle.  Poor G-Man was not too impressed with his Bay Bugs pasta (and the scathing review got longer and longer), but I got the impression that everyone else was happy with their meals.  The empty plates were testament to that.  Beers, wines, and conversation flowed easily for hours.

After the meal and the goodbyes, we jumped back into Baby Sister's car and drove to a popular Adelaide club called Zhivago.  I only know the club is popular because G-Man's brother and cousin go there and they would know.  Plus there were two lines of patrons outside, which tells you something I think.  Anyway the club's website tells me that Zhivago first opened in 2003.  The fact that I only just heard about the place last night tells you something about how cool I am (NOT).  Totally out of my depth.  But in an effort to look cool, we actually lined up for a while outside the club, me moaning loudly about having sore feet and being about 1,000 years older than all the other patrons.  Nobody was paying much attention.  The line inched forward at a dead snail's pace, I kept rolling my eyeballs, and finally G-Man and Baby Sister had had enough and were happy to admit defeat.

We left G-Man's brother and cousin lining up and me, G-Man and Baby Sister did the skedaddle across the street to the Adelaide Casino.  When did the place get so popular?  I was pretty disoriented in there - all the renovations and glitzy lights made it impossible for me to get my bearings.  It was like being at Hogwarts - escalators going sideways, and loads of people in all manner of dress and undress.  And the crowd in the dancefloor/bar last night!  Crazy.  Admittedly, it wasn't exactly the creme de la creme of society by that time of night, but I will concede that what the crowd lacked in teeth, they more than made up for in enthusiastic dancing!  The people-watching was excellent.  I was fortified by vodka at this point, and I decided to rest on the velvet lounges to stop my sore feet killing me any more.  Baby Sister tried to inspire G-Man into a dance-off with her, but he was not to be moved.  So she rocked out around him instead.  It was great.

When KFC drive-through was closed on the way home, we called into McDonald's for some delicious chicken nuggets that restored me somewhat.  I think I collapsed into bed at 3am, which is totally out of character for me.  But the night was so much fun, the time just sped by.  I just hope Baby Sister and G-Man enjoyed their first anniversary celebration as much as I did.

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