I tried to book a 9:30 p.m. reservation at a Montreal restaurant on purpose. The time of this dinner is not because I was trying to secure the last seat somewhere trendy with a six-week waitlist, but because I enjoy a decent restaurant at a later hour where I can sit down, order up, and have a conversation that wouldn't feel like it was being timed by a parking meter.
I pulled up booking at a few places, and more often than not, the last available slot would be at 8 p.m. Another place was 8:30. Another, the kitchen closed orders at 9 p.m. A short supply.
Felt like I was trying to buy drugs, not dinner, and that I needed to know someone who knew someone who could get me into the back room where they still serve food around what would be bedtime for others.
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