I don't go to this cafe very often. I believe the reason for this lack on my part is because this particular establishment contains approximately 80.572 million possible bad--err, I mean lovely, sweet--choices for me. Plus, I usually don't have the extra money for gargantuan slices of sweets.
On the plus side are these several bonuses:
-There are 80.572 million possible lovely, sweet choices for me.
-They have at least two fresh and delicious choices of tea for me to consume whilst I am enjoying one of the aforementioned lovely, sweet choices.
-They almost always seem to have an adorable male counter-worker who flirts with me. What IS it with this place!?! My "old" woman ego really enjoys this particular aspect of Rao's.
-The atmosphere is calm and relaxing.
-It has an Italian theme which I enjoy cos I have a certain affinity for all things Italian, along with--as you will find out later in this blog--an affinity for all things British. Perhaps I have an affinity for all thing All Things, yeah? ;-P
-There are always interesting people there. And I do not count the flirting counter-men in that number. They are above and beyond the number of regular, normal, every day interesting people.
For example, just yesterday, there was a Daddy and his blonde, frizzy-headed, 7-year-old girl. For those of you who have seen the "Jessica's daily affirmation" video on Youtube.com, think of her and you'll have a fairly accurate picture of what the young lady looked like. Daddy was a dark hair, super-bulky body builder type whose shirt barely stretched across his torso. They were just sitting down when I looked over to where they were planning to sit. The little gal had chosen a seat on the bench part of the table. Daddy presumed he was meant to sit on the chair portion of the table. However, he soon found himself to be in the wrong. An "AHEM"--which seemed way too loud for such a small body--came out of her mouth. She put that certain look on her face and pointed to the bench beside her. Of course, Daddy got up from his chair and immediately went 'round to the bench beside his daughter. I couldn't help but laugh. He looked up at me, grinning.
"Her little finger is wrapped with you, isn't it?" He laughed and nodded his assent.
I tried to read my TIME Magazine while I was there, but this happy little couple kept getting my attention. She insisted that he sit there with his arm around her shoulder, even though both of them were trying to eat the delicious Italian Ice Cream the cafe serves. It was funny to see the Daddy try to reach around her to scoop up some ice cream, all the while endeavoring to disturb her as little as possible. Later on, she had crawled up and was standing practically on top of him giving him a very big Bear Hug. I almost began to be worried for him--Could he breathe? However, in the end, he seemed to extricate himself from her loving embrace and get back to his ice cream. Those two were still sitting there--participating in their own personal meeting of the mutual admiration society when I left. When I said my goodbyes, she lifted her head up from her Daddy's shoulder and gave me a very shy, little girl smile and wave. What a cute little duo they were!
There was another interesting group there at the same time--a quartet this time. They all had at least 10 years on me, prolly more. I'm usually pretty bad at guessing ages, however, so don't go by what I say. When I went to fill and refill my iced tea, I would pass their table. They were enjoying a conversation as old friends do--all of them jumping in and adding this comment or adding that anecdote. I don't know if it is like this for other Americans, but I think the British accent is just lovely. They always sound as if they are reciting poetry or singing a beautiful song. I could just listen all day long. I've joked with my friends many a time about bringing me home from the grocery store a 6'3" red-headed husband with a British accent, but I wonder if that would actually be a wise choice on their part. I might be so caught up in his accent that I never actually listen to a word he says. That wouldn't be good for a spousal relationship would it--the wife never listening?
Okay, I guess I got off track here. Needless to say, I love me some Rao's. If you're interested in checking it out, click here. You'll find menus for the bakery's history, catering offerings, locations (there are three in Beaumont, one in Spring, and one in Nederland) and contact information, and a menu of its slightly less than 80.572 lovely, sweet choices. Hope y'all enjoy!
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