Ahhh, what a lovely lunch. I always enjoy myself at Can Can. Could it be because the Can Can was the dance of choice for Parisian Courtesans? Or the attention to every delicious detail by servers, chefs, and sommelier at Can Can Brasserie in Richmond? Who knows...
But I was enjoying a fabulous lunch at Can Can yesterday with two lovely Sister Goddesses, when desert was served. Oh, no! The three flavors of homemade sorbet were NOT the ones we ordered!!
Now, I have to tell you that I am a Goddess who loves perfection in food: the perfect taste, the perfect presentation, the perfect thickness or thinness of sauce. In fact, as a teenager enjoying ice cream in Friendly's with my high school pals, I would send back milk-shakes that were too thin!!
Anyway, we were enjoying our deliciously chilled pear cider served in Champagne flutes, when our server brought out the wrong sorbet flavors.
My life flashed before my eyes.
Okay, not my whole life, just the last two times I had been out to eat and the server had not brought me exactly what I had asked for. Both of those times the server had come out with a smile and left our table crestfallen, because I had pointed out his or her mistake and expressed my dissatisfaction.
As his arm lowered our desert bowl to the table in slow motion worthy of a Hollywood movie, a light bulb went off in my head. I had the brilliant idea to practice my Praise Sandwich. Actually, after noticing the second sad server leave my table a couple of weeks ago, I had given my actions some thought and was determined to express myself differently next time. I had been waiting for this very moment to redeem myself and try something new.
Mama Gena calls it "man-training cycle" in her book "Mama Gena's Owner's and Operator's Guide to Men". Drs. Steve and Vera Bodansky call "the sandwich technique" in their book "The Illustrated Guide to the Extended Massive Orgasm" I call it the "praise sandwich". And, it can be used in any situation where you want something specific from someone is trying to serve you.
So, I set my hand gently on his arm as he lowered the plate to our table. I looked softly into his eyes. And, I cooed, "This is beautiful. We ordered two scoops of coconut and one scoop of mango. We'd like coconut and mango instead of this." With a smile he whisked the bowl away. In less than two minutes he returned with another filled with not three, but four scoops - two coconut and two mango!
The glimmer in his eyes and the smile on his face was filled with all the love and pride of a pre-schooler bringing his mama a homemade mud pie. Beautiful!!!
Treated so fabulously, we felt like the Goddesses that we are.
Given a problem to solve, sandwiched in between sincere praise, he was inspired to bring us something bigger than we had desired, something more than we had requested, something totally perfect for the moment.
Mmmm, that's how delicious it is to be served!!! And, that's how much fun it is to serve up the praise sandwich, even in a fancy restaurant like Can Can!!
Thank you Goddess, I'll take more please!!
Love and Pleasure, Always!
Sister Goddess Elli