Thanksgiving Day Tradition

One of the biggest and most important event in the US is Thanksgiving Day. It beats any other holiday, including Christmas Day, hands down. For those of us who have adopted this land as our second home away from home, we have adapted to the local practice and tradition. We, too, celebrate Thanksgiving Day, sometimes, in our own way.

For the past few years, we have created our little tradition around Thanksgiving. Since we do not have family close by, this day was celebrated among the three of us, with lunch at Maggiano's in Santana Row. For other folks who would rather go out to eat than cook at home, reservations have to be made well in advance to ensure you of a spot at this popular dining place.

Our day started with a mass at St, Joseph (I read, too). Surprisingly, there weren't too many people. But the ceremony remained solemn -- an opportune time to be thankful for all the blessings received. Right after mass, we headed back home to freshen up a little bit, before heading to Santana Row for the 1:15pm reservation.

Pumpkin Praline Cheesecake

Maggiano's was packed, as always, Thanksgiving Day or any other day. We arrived a little bit early hoping that we could get seated sooner. Unfortunately, not. So we waited. After 20 minutes or so, we were ushered to our table. I've learned from past dining experience and brought our own bottle of wine. It was way much cheaper to pay the $15 corkage fee than to pay $65 for a bottle that I could have bought for $20 retail.

If you haven't been to Maggiano's during Thanksgiving, they have a prix-fixe menu, which they serve family style. For starters, they had a variety of bruschetta. Then we had a choice of 2 salads, 2 main entrees, plus 2 side dishes, 2 pastas, and 2 desserts. For the salad, we got the classic ceasar's salad and Maggiano's tossed salad. The main courses were country ham with sweet yam and pan-fried filleted tilapia. The third choice was obviously turkey, but since we were not fans of it, we skipped it altogether. For our pastas, it was rigatoni and spaghetti & meatballs. Our side dishes included a cream of corn and sauteed spinach. And for dessert, it was tiramisu and the ultra rich pumpkin praline cheesecake.

Tiramisu

As in every meal at Maggiano's, there was just way too many food for 3 people. Even if you skipped breakfast or are famished, it was just impossible to finish all the food on the table. And if you did, you can ask for more, at no extra cost. No kidding. With all the leftovers packed and the wine bottle empty, the strong, hot house brew was what we needed. Then, it was time go. The wife was so fixated with the pumpkin cheesecake that she bought a whole cake. And it wasn't cheap. But it's the only time of the year that Maggiano's serves it, so why not.

When we got home, we put away all the food we brought, and took a little siesta. It was one of those days that you didn't care about errands to run or chores to do. It was a perfect time for a nap.

After about a couple of hours, it was time to head off to our godchildren's, as we had been invited for Thanksgiving dinner. Food served were not your traditional Thanksgiving fare. Instead, they were Filipino favorites, which included grilled salmon head, grilled pork belly, mini fish fritters, banana heart (or bud or blossom) cooked in coconut milk, crabs, and fried & grilled eggplant. And desserts were a variety of pumpkin delights, mini fruit tarts, creme puffs, and macaroons. To say we weren't stuffed was lying.

With or without a turkey, it was another day to be thankful for.

Note:  Author wishes to acknowledge Yelp for the use of the photographs in this post.