Goddess Sophia is tired of restaurateuring, but we were able to get in one last masterpiece of a meal to take home ("surprise us"), and to take some pictures before her annual trip to Greece for recipes, which will be followed by the closing of the restaurant (building is sold). She's working on opening a retreat center in Greece, too, ever the multi-tasker.

Fortunately for all who admire her, she will still do catering after her return from Greece, until she has rested up from the daily grind of managing tables. I am sure she will once again want a restaurant, but in the meantime she'll personalize her ministry to the human palate.

When we stopped in last week, she was eager to tell me with her usual failed attempt at self-deprecation, that she had, unfortunately and unsuccessfully, shrunken her new, rain-wetted shoes in the oven. She'd shrunk what she had thought were going to be her new favorite shoes! We laughed and laughed, and then I suggested she re-wet them, put them on to stretch them back out, and let them air dry before rubbing in a pound of saddle soap.

She then proceeded to turn out a heavenly meal-to-go. "Come back in 2 hours," she'd said as I sat over tea while Hardi ran errands. Yet when Hardi stopped back in to pick me up, "It's just about done, you might as well wait." Redolent bags began to pile up on the table where I sat over tea. Before we left she was still tucking in: "Oh, I want you to have one more thing." She asked me if I knew how to heat up spanakopitas. I quipped back, "Of course! You lay them on your heart and drink 3 glasses of wine with your sweetheart. When you are hungry for spana's, they are just right!" And of course she was not totally sure she could trust us to heat it all back up properly at home an hour later, and so had written instructions on each bag. I (mock-)scolded her that she had a lot of nerve advising me on spana's, after the way she treated her poor shoes... she immediately shot back, scandalized: "But they're not FOOD!" Laughing?!? Oh my.

Her wonderful mother had stopped in, so we also were fortunate to meet and swap stories with her (turned out that we know people in common, back home).

The dinner was perfect of course, with one entree very rich and creamy, and one tart. We split it all and had a fine time toasting Sophia-- for ALL we have learned from her generous self.

She does Greek tours, too. That makes her easily the Seamus Kenndy of Greece. :~)

~Susan