Joe Z ... The Quintessential Waiter

After a painful 30 minute drive to Bridgepointe shopping center in San Mateo due to M's fussing the entire way (she absolutely hates the car seat), we managed to do a little shopping while M fidgeted & kicked in her Baby Bjorn. We picked up a bath toy for her, hoping that this will distract her enough to make it through her bath without getting too cranky.

We stopped by our favorite restaurant at Bridgepointe, Mimi's Cafe. There's enough stuff on the walls to keep M occupied while we hold her, and there's enough background noise for her to doze off if. This visit had to be the best ever...

We managed to get a roomy U shaped booth in the corner of the back room next to the emergency exit which provided extra room to park the stroller and not get in anyone's way. Our waiter, Joe Z, promptly showed up soon after we were seated to take our drink order (2 Iced Teas) and came back with 3 glasses. He was cool about giving us time to peruse the menu, and came back at the right time to take our order. DH ordered the Slow Roasted Turkey Breast dinner with the soup of the day, I ordered the French Quarter with cole slaw. Our waiter came back with DH's soup, plus an extra cup of soup for me. We got a huge basket of bread. M fell asleep on DH's shoulder, perfect timing, so he placed her in the stroller to take a nap. He came back at the right moment to refill our glasses of Iced Tea. That's always a plus; I've gone to so many places where they take forever to refill drinks or they forget entirely. The entrees arrived, yum! When we were finished, the waiter materialized with a box, some more Iced Tea, and the check. And before we could ask, he immediately noticed that we needed more boxes and mentioned that he would return with them. Every restaurant should clone this guy!!! He excelled at anticipating our needs and meeting them before we could ask; we never had to wait long for anything, never had to search for & flag him down. He was personable and efficient. I wonder if we'll get this guy the next time we dine here. It was the perfect dining experience. And to top off the visit, M woke up from her nap just before we were about ready to leave. Perfect timing.

The things you notice after having baby... during my last visit to the restroom at Mimi's Cafe, the door to the handicap stall was wide open and I noticed that there was a baby changing station mounted on the wall inside. Cool. That's always good to know. :-)

I'm also noticing handicap-friendly curbs and doors too. I find it amusing looking at the Macy's doors at the local mall. There are three sets of double doors; the center set has a handicap sticker on it. The only difference is that the door handle is lower, the handle on the left & right set of doors are higher. The "handicap" doors aren't automatic. I don't see how anyone in a wheelchair can get through these doors cuz they are heavy! And there is another set of doors to traverse through 10 feet past the outer set. Good thing the main mall entrance has one of those automatic doors, and so does the Nordstrom at the other end of the mall.

I see lots of people pushing their strollers up and down the escalators at the mall. It looks rather dangerous to me. I don't see myself doing that. Knowing my luck, the stroller will slip, falling down & hitting other people like bowling pins, and baby would scream her head off about the rough ride. I'm becoming better acquainted with the location of elevators at the local mall. Sure it takes longer, but I'd rather be safe than sorry.

M is still riding around in her infant carrier which attaches to her stroller. She hates the infant carrier, I think she is starting to find it a bit too snug. Of course her favorite place is in my arms. :-) She's still a little small for sitting directly on the stroller.


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