Fruits de Mer

I walk by several restaurants with raw bars on my way to the gym but only this gentleman is kind enough to always smile at the American lady in her ratty exercise attire. Finally last week, I decided it was time to stop and engage him in a little conversation. I put my camera in my gym bag only to pass by several times and find someone else at work, cracking open the crates of oysters and cutting up lemons.

But Friday, I hit the jackpot and made a new friend. Monsieur Alex (or maybe it's Alice or Alyce?) was all smiles and happy to pose proudly at his post. And he was able to speak with authority about a question that's been bugging me for some time. That is, when you order a seafood platter in an elegant restaurant like the one where he works, how do you eat the shrimp? Can you use your fingers or do you have to use a knife and fork? Those of you who have seen the film, Mr. Bean's Holiday, in which the hapless Mr. Bean confronts this issue at Le Train Bleu in Gare de Lyon, know what I'm talking about. (The rest of you can look it up on YouTube.)

He assured me that fingers are the way to go and that warm water with lemon would be provided afterwards to wash up. Frankly he seemed kind of amused by the whole thing and a little puzzled that I didn't want to have my picture taken with him. I'm not really sure he understood that I'm in deep cover on this blog. Oh those Americans. You know, we are just so comical with our funny accents and odd ways.

Anyway, now I can order one of those platters without fear of committing social suicide. Even better, I made a friend.