BY DON NAPIER
Crossville Life Magazine
On Saturday, Dec. 14, which was my daughter Laura Li’s 16th birthday, we ventured out of the house for something fun to do. Since the my daughters are now driving, I decided to show them around the Glade, as they are unfamiliar with that part of the county. We drove up and down Catoosa, across the Dartmoor dam, past Heatherhurst and back up the CMC Wellness Clinic area. They were really surprised about how big and spread out the community is.
We decided to walk through the mall, and took note of the Villa Pizza menu on their door, but since Lyndi and I don’t eat white flour or gluten, we didn’t stop. We looked at all the stores and I commented on how much it had changed since I had been there. We looked around the corner and saw La Costa Mexican Restaurant and decided that this would be the place for our birthday lunch for Laura.
There were people at two other tables including a couple I seemed to know. You know how it is. I have been in business in Fairfield Glade for years, founded and owned the Glade Vista years ago, worked as an independent contractor for FGCC in their marketing department, and had an office on Peavine Road. I know the faces of hundreds of people in the Glade but not always their names. We just nodded at each other and smiled.
We ordered our lunch and the food was delivered very promptly. Then in a few minutes, they brought another dish and reported that they had mistakenly brought the wrong order for Laura. You know how it is with Mexican food, it all looks alike and she did not notice. Laura told them she was fine with the entree she had already started eating, but they insisted we take the plate.
Later I told them we would pay for the 4th plate, but they would not hear of it. We ordered a Flan dessert for Laura and I told them it was Laura’s birthday. Laura texted her mother, Natalie, and told her how good her birthday flan was. So Natalie, who has always loved Flan, asked us to bring her one.
When we checked out, I tried again to pay for the 4th plate, but it was not on the ticket, and neither was Laura’s Flan. They gave it to her because it was her birthday.
This is pretty unlikely in my dining experiences at any kind of restaurant. These people, who did not know us, and this being our first visit to their restaurant, gave us the 4th entree and Laura’s Flan. The rest of the food was very reasonably priced. All in all it was one of those very pleasant experiences that we will not soon forget.
We left there really happy, having had a good experience, with a chimichanga to go! The girls have already suggested we go back for a return engagement.
