Hey, you! 😊
We just got back from our evening out and I couldn't be any more excited to write about it here.
I wasn't so sure until like two days ago, but I decided to organise a dinner with friends at a restaurant to celebrate my birthday / Christmas. I was so excited that most of my closest friends could come, except for one who recently gave birth (click here for the post) and another one who unfortunately didn't receive her PCR test result on time. She didn't want to take any risks and I completely understand.
Dinner was schedule at 8pm but we decided to leave home a little bit earlier to hang out at the Christmas market first. It's not so far from the restaurant, so I thought it would be the perfect opportunity because I haven't been to the Christmas Market yet.
Finding a parking spot was a bit long, but that was kinda expected on a Saturday afternoon. By the way, did you know that the Christmas Market in Metz was voted 3rd Best Christmas Market in Europe? What an accomplishment! We live in a medium-sized city, but our city has the most beautiful train station in France and one of the Europe's best Christmas Market!
Due to Covid, there wasn't any Christmas Market last year. This year, we were lucky that the market was organised, but it is mandatory to present a pass sanitaire or health pass and to wear a mask. I've heard a lot of people wondering about wearing a mask in an open space, but it does get pretty crowded and I'm not sure there's any way for the security guards to count the people going in and out.
The Christmas Market was pretty much the same as in past years. We were only at the one in Place Saint Louis. I say this because there are at least 4 other Christmas Market spots in the city. I loved seeing the familiar Canadian chalet, the sandwich chalet, my favorite tea place, the food, the decorations for sale, and did I already mention the food? It was so hard to resist especially with the smells surrounding us, but we were ready to have dinner in one of my favorite restaurants in town so no can do.
Chok Die Thai is one of my favorite restaurants in town and my favorite Asian restaurant here. A lot of Asian restaurants in Metz are buffet-style or eat-all-you-can type. These are neither of very good quality nor authentic. Chok Die Thai is owned by a super nice couple. The chef is the wife. She is Thai and is an amazing cook. The husband is French and takes care of the dining hall. He is very friendly. I called several times in regards to our reservation and they proved to be very accommodating each time.
Seeing our friends and sharing a meal with them was wonderful. We talked about everything and anything. Each one of them is different from one another, but each one of them is a source of comfort to me. With age, I don't need any drama in my friendships. Ten years ago, I might have been able to deal with high-maintenance people, but I'm over it now. I need to know that my friends are ok with me not being constantly there all the time. But that they also know that anytime they need me, I'm there. Anyways, I'm so bummed that we completely forgot to take a group photo. Too much eating, too much talking. 😅😅
The food was soooo delicious (as always). Chok Die Thai offers excellent Thai cuisine. We had Fried Spring Rolls for starters and the restaurant offered us an order of Fried Ravioli. Both starters were so yummmm! I was most excited for what came next though - Fried Whole Fish. They have 2 choices - one with garlic and the other one with red chili. I chose the Garlic Fried Whole Fish and oh my gosh! Yesss!!! 🤤
The others ordered Green Curry, Pad Thai, Fried Noodles, and other dishes and I didn't hear anyone complain. I swear the food is really good here.
For dessert, I decided to make yet again another Ferrero Rocher Chocolatey Cake (click here to see the first one) and bring it with us to the restaurant. The design has slightly improved but it isn't quite there yet. Hahaha. The restaurant was ok with us bringing a cake but there was a corkage fee of 1.50€ per person to pay, which I find is totally normal. I don't usually bring cakes to restaurants, but there wasn't anything made of chocolate on their dessert menu and I really wanted a Chocolate Birthday Cake. I'm a spoiled 36-year-old woman. 😂 And I really did get spoiled by the restaurant. Not only did they offer us Fried Ravioli as I mentioned earlier, but we also each got a glass of free champagne. Weeee!!!!
Without a doubt, I feel so blessed. Thank you Lord for all of this. Unfortunately, back home in the Philippines, it is sadly a little bit complicated currently. I'll write a post all about it tomorrow.