Donald Burns talks about a dinner at Restaurant Eve in Alexandria where a mysterious dessert preparation captivated him despite his food science background. What stuck wasn't the dishes themselves but the feeling of being completely relaxed and cared for.
What would you say is, like, the best meal or the best guest experience you've ever had?
I've had some good ones. That's one of my, I guess, guilty pleasures of things I like to do. I really. I really enjoy nice dining. This restaurant's not open anymore. I don't think it was in Alexandria, Virginia.
Okay.
Called Restaurant Eve. And my brother got. Was getting married. He was. He's in the Navy, and he's getting married in the Navy with the Navy are. And people living in Virginia. And we. I went with my parent, my wife and my parents to restaurant, Restaurant E. And it was just like, perfect. The food was great. Some of the stuff. I didn't even know what it was that I would be.
I love those places, man. I usually, like, when I go to those restaurants, I just tell. He goes, what do you want? Serve it up, man.
Yeah, just. Just. Just work it out. And. And I just remember that meal because there was one dish that they had. It was a dessert. I had no idea what it was or how they made it or anything. With being a semi chef myself, it's kind of like I study food science, and it's like, I have no idea what that is. I couldn't beat to tell you it was delicious.
What it was. It was amazing. So here's the question, though. So, I mean, the food was. The food was on spot. Everything. When you think back to that experience, how did it make you feel?
It's just one of those things where there's any stress, any problems. No problems, no issues. You know, if there was, I don't even remember them because we were having such a good time that everything was taken care of. Right? Like, you can just sit there, you can relax. You're in the hands of this restaurant, just enjoying the experience that they're giving you. Right? Like. Like, it's something different. It's something unique. And, you know, I was trying to think about a while back some of the best meals that I had. And most of them, I don't even really remember what the food was that I ate. I just remember the way I felt at the restaurant.
Yeah, yeah.
If your restaurant only works because you work 80 hours a week, it doesn't work.
