Page 48 of Good Vibes Only
“Yeah, sure, but I’m not asking about everyone else,” he said, cutting to the heart of the matter. “I’m asking, what didyouthink?”
Argh.I bit my lip. He seemed personally invested in this, probably because he was taking me there to lunch, and he’d expected me to be impressed. I hated that I couldn’t give him what he wanted.
“It was okay,” I admitted at last. “I only ate there once.”
“So you never went back?”
I nodded. “Just that once. But who knows? Maybe the kitchen had an off-night. I’m open to giving them another try.”
Brett’s brow furrowed. “You thought it was that bad?”
“I wouldn’t say it wasbad,necessarily.Just not the best restaurant I’ve ever eaten at.”
“What was wrong with it? Be honest.Brutallyhonest.”
If he wanted brutal honesty, I’d give it to him.
“Okay. I got thepenne alla vodka. The pasta was beyond overcooked, and the sauce tasted like it came straight out of a can. When you’re paying forty bucks for a simple pasta dish, I’m sorry, that’s inexcusable. The appetizer we ordered wasn’t any better.” I paused. “In short? I’d say it was unremarkable, overrated, and overpriced.”
The steering wheel creaked beneath Brett’s grip. “That’s … not good.”
But Brett had wound me up, and I couldn’t stop. “And what’s with the name? Eight-fifteen?Really?”
“It’s their address,” he muttered.
“I know. And I know it’s supposed to be meta or pithy or something like that. But it just feels lazy to me. It makes me think they couldn’t come up with a good name, so they just slapped the address on some signage and called it good.”
He nodded. “You’re right. It does.”
I realized I might have gone aweebit too far with that whole brutally honest thing.
“Um, sorry if I totally destroyed your lunch choice,” I mumbled.
He waved a hand through the air. “It’s okay.”
“Have youeaten there?” I asked, shifting gears as gracefully as someone driving a manual for the very first time.
“Yeah. We’ve had team dinner there a few times.”
“And what’d you think?”
“Just like you said. I’ve always come away unimpressed.” He shook his head. “But see, I thought it was just me, because everyoneelseseems to love that place. I just don’t get it.”
I laughed, amused. “So why in the world did you want to take me there for lunch?!”
“Because the head chef from 815 is designing my menu.”
My hand met my forehead. “Ohhhhhh nooooo …” I grumbled.
“Yup,” he said, his teeth gritted in pain.
“Brett! Why would you hire that guy if you didn’t like his food?!”
He sighed. “Long story.”
“Well, I’m not going anywhere,” I said, buildings and cars flying hurtling past as we flew down the highway. “Just 815, apparently.”
“Ugh.” Brett laughed and groaned equally. “Alright, so the idea for this whole BarDown Brewery project all started because my money guy talked to me about diversifying my income stream.”
