As we sat down for our dinner at a favorite restaurant, I knew in advance that I wanted to try their tasting menu again. The first time I had the meal, it was stunning! I wondered if my experience was a one off thing or if the chef’s recipe and the kitchen were as good as I thought they were. Replaying the same dishes on another night with a new group would be the perfect test.
In case you are wondering, the second round was even better than the first. I did not think that this was possible, but it was. Wonderful, sublime, beautiful, heavenly, and ridiculously inspiring all come to mind!
As the meal progressed, I watched the faces of my fellow diners. It was interesting to see my emotions being played out on their faces. There was a natural sequence that I observed with each course. First, each was captured by the sights and smells coming from the plated course. Especially after they had tasted the first round, they were looking, anticipating for what came next!
Second, there was a natural silence that always followed the first bite of each course. I could see the silence change with experience. Initially it was a stunned, I cannot believe I am tasting and experiencing what I am tasting facial expression without words. As the courses progressed, the initial silence changed into a eyes closed, do not speak I am experiencing something out of this world warning on the face, and at times very quiet sounds of wonder and satisfaction.
Third, with each experience there was an expression of thanksgiving! I realized it was taking on the form of a thanksgiving prayer – acknowledging the creator and source, heart sharing of thanksgiving, and a blessing on the individuals that had the honor of gifting (delivering) the dish.
I found myself turning to one of the chefs and paraphrasing an old psalm; “Oh! Teach us to live well! Teach us to live wisely and well!” (Psalm 90.12)
I left the staff with the echo of an endlessly repeating, “thank-you.”
