Chips with everything

Yesterday I was talking to my youngest grandson, Mr Cheeky aged 4, on the telephone and we were arranging the menu for when he comes to tea next week with his brother, Handsome. He had decided on sausages so I asked him whether he wanted mashed potatoes, chips or waffles with them. “Yes” he replied and was quite disappointed when it was pointed out that it was meant to be a choice!

It reminded me of a friend in London who took his small daughter to a rather posh restaurant for lunch as a holiday treat. She studied the menu carefully and eventually turned to the rather formal head waiter and declared, “I’ll have a baked potato please.”

Without batting an eyelid the waiter asked, “And would madam require chips with that?”  

She did, and went home a very happy young lady and is now a successful business lady and regularly dines on far more sophisticated cuisine.

On the other side of the coin I was once entertaining a 7 year old boy whose father was a chef at another well known London eating house, so was used to all kinds of exotic food. I, rather nervously, asked what he would like to eat. “Absolutely anything?” he asked. “Yes” I replied, and crossed my fingers that I would know how to cook it. He took a deep breath and said, “Egg and chips and then cold rice pudding out of a tin!” Another satisfied customer and one very relieved “Aunty”