Birthday Happenings PT 1

Since my birthday was in the middle of the week this year, I chose not to do anything during the week because I don't want to get too tired and not be able to wake up in time for work the next day. However, that's not to say that it was nonexistent, because I was still given lovely surprises and smiles my way on that day.

First off, Tuesday night dinner with the boyfriend wasn't exactly a surprise, but still lovely nonetheless. We went to Chop Steakhouse thinking we would be ordering from their Winterlicious menu, but we ended up not doing so (sorta). My boyfriend is not the fondest of dessert or starter foods, so ordering from that particular menu would not be the best thing to do since they are included. I'm the type to lean more towards sweet food than he is, so I could've ordered, but I wasn't entirely feeling dessert that night. I don't know why. Either way, even though I never got to try their raspberry crème brûlée, I have no regrets.

Maple Bourbon Haddock with seasoned vegetables

I've been feeling seafood lately so I ordered fish. My mother makes really good Chinese-style steamed fish, but this Maple Bourbon Haddock was just nothing like I've ever eaten before (or maybe I'm still really sheltered? haha). It was sweet, soft and savoury all the same, and pretty much perfection in every bite. I now understand how Jody-Ann feels when she was on her last bite of my mother's tiramisu :P Sucks that the portions were kinda small (for my plate that is), but it definitely helps that my boyfriend ordered steak to share, along with this little dish too:

"Mac and Cheese for Two"... Har har

If you saw this in real life, you would probably agree with me that this is not a side dish that could satiate two people, let alone one. However, because my boyfriend and I were sharing food, we actually left the restaurant with our stomachs full, surprisingly.

Even this side dish left a memory of a distinct taste not quite like the other Mac and Cheeses I've had. Usually it's either too salty, too filling (too much cheese maybe?) or not tasty enough (my somewhat fail as a cook). This one, I can't put an exact word to it. I'd like to say that there were traces of garlic but my taste buds could be wrong. #notgoodenoughtobeafoodcritic

Regardless, good food and good company would definitely make this girl happy

On my actual birthday, I came to work finding this:

A simple gesture that brought a smile to my face

I guess it's because as a kid, I'd be the one making locker birthday greetings and it's been so long since I had received something similar to it. I mean ya, there have been birthday cards every year, but this is different, you know? So thanks Talisa for this :) I also gotta thank Julie and Jody-Ann for their surprise as well. Unfortunately, I was so famished that I devoured their red velvet muffin like no tomorrow.

Ya, no actual food photo. Sorry guys!

I also failed to get a photo of the crab legs that my mother prepared for my at-home birthday dinner, oops! Another thing I failed to capture was another sweet gesture a friend of mine had done, in which he wrote happy birthday on a piece of paper, blew confetti and got me to play the party horn sound effect on youtube to go along with it all, haha. All in all though, good birthday so far :D