The adventure begins

Well, I’m on my way. This morning at 11:45 I set out with Kathy and the kids for brunch at Dakotas in Avon. For those not familiar with the more exotic locales in the our little Valley, Avon in a pleasant little town of leafy green streets, comfortable houses and pleasant, authentic 20^th century strip malls with such typical American retailers as the GAP, Starbucks and, of course, Sharper Image. The residents are a cheerful bunch, many engage in traditional upper middle class American pursuits, like lawyering and dentistry. They tend to be wary of strangers, but once you get to know them and show shared interests they may happily invite you into their homes for a typical meal of Domino’s pizza (delivered to the door in 30 minutes or less!) , or – more likely – they will just invite you to go %$&^ yourself.

Of course I’m being somewhat tongue in cheek, but I am raising some important questions: What does it mean to take a voyage? When does the trip begin, or does it ever really begin? Can’t our full lives be truly called a walkabout? Why do we build walls between our real life and adventure, and why must adventure be confined to a few short weeks a year (or a few months, if one is fortunate enough to be strategically canned)? And – perhaps most crucially – does Walkabout Dave intend to fill up this blog with pedantic and labored philosophic musings like this?

Of all these questions, only the last can be answered with any assurance. Yes, most definitely, it is my blog and I’ll write whatever I want. You are welcome to cancel your subscription. (Which reminds me, first you are invited to subscribe to this blog – there should be a link below. This will give you automatic email notifications of updates, and entitle you to priority consideration for special offers – like the above invitation to cancel your subscription if you don’t understand the MY blog concept.)

The Dakotas brunch was in the nature of a bon voyage meal. It was also a continuation of a family tradition – Great Brunches of the Farmington Valley. Over the past several years we have tried all of the perhaps eight local restaurants that offer Sunday buffets and have become something of an authority on this narrow topic. To rate a few in descending order, here goes:

Avon Old Farms Hotel – Seasons Restaurant. The top of the heap, number one brunch experience. With great omelets, nicely prepared pastries, good fish platter, tasty home fries, interesting entrees, mimosa, and all the other high carb, cholestral dripping delicacies one looks for in a brunch, Seasons scores well on the food front. But what puts it over the top is lovely ambience -- sunny room, live piano player, fresh flowers, and so on – just get a window-side table. It would have scored a perfect 10 except limited topping choices are offered for the waffles – a sorry but costly omission.

Dakotas. The number two experience. Loses points on atmosphere – noisy and institutional, but top dog on the food – they have it all. Not just chocolate chips for the waffles, but strawberries, blueberries, walnuts, and sliced almonds. Some of our evaluating committee thought they should lose points for having the horseradish sauce for the prime rib confusingly close to the whip cream for the waffles – leading to potentially horrifying mishaps. But the bottom line is that if you are careful with your condiments you can have an unequaled stuff your face experience here.

Hopbrook Restaurant. This was a definite contender, marvelous atmosphere set in a 17^th century mill overlooking a waterfall, with a limited but decent food selection (in contrast to the regular menu, which was extensive but indecent). Alas, it is at present closed, but here’s hoping it will return.

Apricots. Included here for historic reasons. It no longer offers a buffet brunch, but back in the day it was to die for.

Simsbury Inn. Overprice and decorated like the ladies room in Bonwit Teller. (How do I know? Ah, there’s a story for another day.) Give it a pass.

Avon Old Farms Inn. Across the street from the Avon Hotel Seasons restaurant. More historic but less pleasant. The only reason to come here is if you tried for the Seasons and book it by mistake.

Anyhow, enough with the restaurant criticism. The point I’m trying to make is that there are wonders to be found without leaving your own backyard. Ain’t this an awesome blog. First I show you that adventure is really just a state of mind. Then I give you a nice little listing so that you can go off and have your own adventures. Of course, while you will be exploring how many sausage links you can stuff down your craw, I will be hiking the Inca trail to Machu Pichu. And while you will be undertaking a voyage of discovery to find your car, buried under a snow drift, I will be scuba diving off Fiji. Just because your adventures suck, doesn’t mean they aren’t adventures. And if that isn’t enough, I give you permission to live vicariously through me and this blog. Just don’t get icky about it.

Your faithful correspondent,

Walkabout Dave