i am officially employed now.

yes, it's another restaurant... yes, i'm tired of restaurant crap... yes, i would rather have another job.

but, the coral room is just about exactly what i would ask for in a restaurant employment situation.

first of all, it's totally relaxed. it's the complete opposite of il palio. i don't have to worry about "proper" service. for instance, if someone drops a fork on the ground, i can just go get a fork and hand it to them. no silverware plate. no napkin.

it's so nice to not have to deal with that kind of shit.

the owner is also a really cool guy. he's a young guy who never went to culinary school. he was just fortunate to have worked for some great chefs who were willing to teach him.

he's also a really chill. i mean, compare this guy to the owner of il palio, who was a maniacal, racist, sexist, homophobic, egotistic, cheating, lying, french asshole.

where do you think i'd rather work?

at il palio, i got yelled at a couple of times because after i was done with work and changed into my normal clothes, i was wearing a skull cap. the owner didn't like the skull cap so i couldn't wear it. if he didn't like the shirt i was wearing i couldn't drink at the bar like everyone else. he was constantly getting on my case about cutting my hair. he'd tell you to do something a certain way and then the next day he'd get pissed at you for doing it the way he told you.

at the coral room, i can wear whatever the hell i want, style my hair however the hell i want, and i'm not going to get yelled at for "improper coffee service."

suck my balls, il palio.

and the funny thing is, the "perks" that i got working for il palio, i still get at the coral room.

i get a staff meal, but this time it's at the end of the shift, when i'd much rather have it... i still get a free shift drink... i still don't have to work too late...

i feel like i'm in restaurant heaven.

even better, i'm working with people my age and waiting on people of all ages and types (as opposed to older people and businessmen).

it's hardly an ideal situation, because no matter how you slice it, it's still a restaurant. but i can't remember the last time i was happy to go into work. kind of scary, really.

oh, and it doesn't hurt that the owner is also a die-hard yankees fan.

anyway, moving on...

today's pictures are from brussels, belgium.

i don't care what anyone tells you, if you go to europe, spend a few days in brussels. it fucking rocks, man. i had so many people tell me they didn't like it and they thought it was boring. i don't know what city they were in but it sure as hell wasn't brussels. it's a must-see.




this is grand place, or grote markt, or market square, or anything else you feel like calling it.


for some reason, i was always in this square at dusk during a rainstorm. hence the not so great pictures.


this square has been called the most beautiful in the world by many people. i may have to agree.


i wish it wasn't raining in all these pictures. i got much better at taking pics as the trip went on...


just a little black & white photo.


this is the town hall. kinda shitty for a building that's only 600 years old, huh?


er, yeah. it's a peeing boy statue, or the Mannequin Pis if you wanna get all technical about it. this is apparently a big deal. people will even go so far as to make costumes for it (which are all on display at a nearby museum).


no, it's not a giant replica of anal beads gone horribly awry. it's the Atomium.


close up!


what trip to brussels would be complete without eating mussels?


of course, the beer is the main attraction. seriously. you've never been to a country that loves its beer until you've been to belgium.


see, i kinda was so ready to dig into this that i forgot to take a picture of it until i was like halfway through. what was it? it used to be a cute old furry bunny rabbit. i know... awwwwwww, poor bunny. hey, it's not my fault they're delicious. it's flanked by frites, and the king of all belgian beers. of course, if you can't make it to belgium, you can try the next best thing the next time you're in philly.