Porterhouse Pete
Copyright© 2020 by TonySpencer
Chapter 10: Summer
Pete enjoyed those stand-in nights, he always said those nights reminded him of his teenage years in his dad’s restaurant as well as the evening meals he prepared for long term residents at his mum’s lodging house in his twenties.
As Alice Dunlough predicted, Craig and Rebecca hit it off together romantically and Pete considered moving out of Porter House, especially after the rapidly recovering Ann and her mother Sheila moved in, but Rebecca insisted on him staying at least while they had the room before considering starting a family of their own. Besides, Rebecca (often with Craig visiting) baby-sat Annie on the two nights a week that both Pete and Tracie were working together at the restaurant.
April Dunlough heard the news from her mother Alice that Pete had opened the steak restaurant with Tracie as a business partner and later that summer she booked a table for one for 10pm when the very last orders are taken for the kitchen.
“Hello, April,” Tracie said, welcoming the actress as 10pm approached, “I wasn’t expecting ‘table for one or possibly two for a Miss Smith’ to be you, but you are very welcome here, I’ll tell Pete —”
“No, don’t tell Pete, not yet. Tell me, Tracie, are your porterhouse steaks big enough for two?”
“Yes, they are traditionally larger than T-bone steaks, at least 6mm thicker and we find that they are often shared by two diners together.”
“And do you have those baby turnips that Pete used to love to cook as a kid?”
“At this time of the year, baby turnips cooked in garlic butter are virtually standard fare in this steakhouse,” Tracie laughed.
“In that case, I would order the porterhouse, well seared outside but bright pink in the middle, with turnips and veg in season, plated up for two, and I would request that the chef join me in a ... yes, join me in a celebration. Could you do that for me, Tracie?”