When you top a drink with a burger (and why I miss Canada)

I have really missed Canada. There are so many significant reasons why this is true but this past weekend really pointed out to me that it might be the small ones that matter to me most. I spent a few days in Edmonton with Tara and little dog Lilly before and after speaking in Red Deer.  I had a bit of an airplane mishap that brought back all the many botched flights I had during my Starkey days (this I do not miss) but in this case we had the hydraulics go out.  This proved to carve a large amount of time off the trip as an emergency landing back in San Diego meant I got in Friday night at 1 a.m.  Yet during the remaining time in Edmonton I was reminded of how wonderful fall is in Canada-the trees are truing color and people are gearing up for Canadian Thanksgiving.  I remembered why I love talking politics with the Canadians-they are more informed than the average American, see all the US coverage and are able to really look at things from a non-partisan view. It is a pleasure to be among them.  I also miss the Maple Leaf Lounge at the airports. The years of traveling have left me a Star Alliance Gold member meaning that I can enter w/o purchasing a membership.  I have spent many an hour at the Maple Leaf Lounge and it holds a special place in my heart as only an airport lounge can do.  I miss that some things are predictable-you can always talk hockey down to the fine detail of who was traded to whom and who is Canadian on an American team, etc. At any restaurant you can find French onion soup, bruschetta and Caesar salad on almost every menu.  They also have a drink, much like a bloody Mary that they call a Caesar.  The main difference between a Bloody Mary and Bloody Caesar is that the Canadian version included clamato which is much like bloody Mary mix with clam broth in it. It is, definitively, not fishy in any way. Over the years I have had a few funny experiences in Canada with the word Caesar.  One of the first was on one of my first trips to Newfoundland with the Starkey rep at the time, Michael.  He ordered a Caesar at a restaurant (meaning salad) but got the drink. He agreed to drink the drink but asked for the salad version and was told they didn’t have lettuce.  Michael who was a health food guy looked at them in disbelief and asked what kind of restaurant didn’t have lettuce and he was told that one didn’t. I am pretty sure the waitress spit in our food that day.  He then broke down and ordered a dozen escargot for us to share.  A nearby table of three British Airman (there is a Canadian airbase in Gander and often there are British pilots who visit the base)  did the same and each ordered a dozen escargot.  Ours arrived and you could hear the airman discussing the fact that it looked like snails but they were sure they weren’t. When they had all three dozen of their snails delivered, they all looked green and proceeded to bring the plates to us to ask if we would like them. Michael and I did our best to consume what was then 4 dozen escargot. I didn’t eat snails again for years.  Too much of a good thing. I do digress from the Caesar story of yesterday….  Tara had told me we would go to a place called Cilantro and Chive in Lacombe, Alberta that was known for putting a burger on a Caesar.  I figured this must mean salad because who puts a burger on a drink?  Actually, Cilantro and Chive does. It does make a striking presentation.  Want to make a Caesar?  Many recipes abound just like for a Bloody Mary.  Want to put a burger on top? It looks great.

Oh, and I really miss Canada….