Garbage

Matthew turned 31 today!

I had a bunch of different ideas of what to get him for his birthday, but I knew that the best way to melt his heart would be to get him the printer he's always wanted. Matthew is all about practical gifts and he has been wanting a new printer for a couple of years now and has even gone several months without one at all. I even have to admit it was getting old having to go to the school to print anything off.

I wanted to present him the gift by hiding it in the baby stroller box and asking him to clean it all up, but it was too heavy for me to carry up 2 flights of stairs in my current condition so I told Matthew that his gift was in the back of the car. He was pretty happy about the gift I think.

Then I got to thinking, "I love this guy so much that a printer isn't enough. I think I should buy him a new sectional couch!" Okay that's not really what happened, but everything we bought on Matthew's birthday he considered a gift, including the baby items we bought. When we moved to Rochester we gave away/got rid of a bunch of our stuff, including most furniture items and we have yet to buy replacements for these items. We have spent that last 5 months using our futon as a couch and it is getting quite uncomfortable. Matthew demanded that we get a couch before Baby comes, so we got one!

We have a tradition of going out to dinner on our birthday and Matthew has really been wanting to try a local classic dish called the "Garbage Plate." I have insisted that we must do this with friends, but the timing hasn't worked out recently. When the topic of where to go for his birthday dinner came up, I was inspired to suggest going to Nick Tahou's which is the restaurant that started the legacy of the garbage plate and Matthew was all in! We invited a couple of couples along to join in the festivities and it was a great time.

What is a garbage plate? That was my first question when I heard about them. RocWiki, "The People's Guide to Rochester" defines the garbage plate as "a true Rochester delicacy. It is a disorganized combination of either cheeseburger, hamburger, Italian sausages, steak, chicken, white or red hots, a grilled cheese sandwich, fried fish, or eggs, served on top of one or two of the following: home fries, fries, beans, and mac salad. A plate is always made to order. Then, the plate is adorned with optional mustard, onions and Rochester's version of hot sauce."

I have to be honest, when I first heard of this I was not impressed. I thought what is so great about piling your burger(or other entree choice) on top of your sides? Can't you do that anywhere? What makes this so special? After trying it though, I have to say I was impressed and wanted more. I would also add that I think what makes the garbage plate special is the sauce they put on top. Matthew and I definitely plan to bring any friends and family that visit us out to get a garbage plate!