The waitress asked, “Are you ready to order?”
“Very much so. I’ll have the salad plate, the dish of the day, the seared chicken livers with sautéed potatoes, the braised veal, the stir-fried beef, beef casserole, chicken à la king, lobster bordelaise, roast turkey with all the trimmings, beef and lamb en brochette, the deep-fried onion rings, a bowl of tomato soup—”
“Can I borrow a pen, please?”
He took a pen from his pocket.
“I’ll have the seafood platter served on a bed of lettuce; the tagliatelle tossed with guanciale, red onion, olives, and pickled peppers; the sun-dried-tomato-and-mozzarella arancini served with salad; the white pizza topped with rosemary, garlic, anchovies, and black olives; the roast duck with jalapeño jelly; the crab and avocado salad; the grilled fish; chicken cacciatore; chicken dhansak; chicken marsala; chicken piccata; chicken supreme; the vegetable soup—”
“You have to try the chicken and ham croquetas—”
“Very good. Oh, I’ve lost my place.” He paused in perplexity.
“The vegetable soup . . .”
“Ah! The vegetable soup, a bunch of bananas, a cheese-and-pickle sandwich, a loaf of bread, a bowl of cereal, a dish of oysters, tuna sashimi, clam chowder, jugged hare, spit-roasted lamb, pickled onions, baked apples, stewed apples, candied yams, creamed turnips, jellied eels, brined anchovies, dry-roasted peanuts, baby carrots, new potatoes, cocktail sausages, raw eggs, deviled eggs, chocolate eggs, tortilla chips dipped in salsa, a shake and a regular fries, an apple dipped in caramel, lashings of cream, the blackberry-and-apricot parfait, the finest cheese in all the land, all of the cake, steamed milk with a shot of espresso, some digestive mints, and a strawberry margarita, but hold the tequila. I like my steak medium rare, and I like lamb well done.”
“Is that all?”
“Is there a doctor in the house?”
“Five ambulances are on standby.”
“Very good.”
Sources: New Oxford American Dictionary, Collins COBUILD Primary Learner’s Dictionary, Collins English Dictionary, Macquarie Dictionary, The American Heritage Dictionary, Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary