Mrs. O and I went out earlier this month to the restaurant we visited on our first date, ten years ago.
The original Italian restaurant, the pasta and vino side, has been joined by a sports bar, the pizza and brew side. We stop in there infrequently any more, but it is a nice place to visit when our wedded appetites have gone eclectic, as we can sit on the bar side yet order from either menu. So we often go share a spinach salad then mix and match for the rest.
We’ve seen employees come and go in that time – a few lasting for a number of years but only one of them whom we suspected had been there the whole time. I wasn’t sure if she was a manager or an owner. As it happened, later on I bumped into her in the hallway connecting both sides, and I asked her (manager) then mentioned our reminiscence, and our first date ten years ago.
She congratulated me, and I didn’t think about it again until we were paying our bill and stowing our leftovers (while no longer shoveled into doggy bags, the term would be appropriate, as our hounds Ernie and Edie are part of the plan, especially for French fries). Another employee, a young woman, came to “help” me, although it felt a bit like a bum’s rush, which was off-putting at first. Until the table was cleared and they served: the cake. For our anniversary!
Which blew both the missus and I away – we totally weren’t expecting that. The young woman and I shared a laugh, as I realized why she was trying to clear room, and it was a much appreciated gesture, making a special occasion just a little more special.
So we’ve been together ten years, and married nine of them! Here’s hoping for many more.
OmbudsBen 
Congratulations! What a wonderful story. I have a feeling you two are going to have many, many more. 🙂
GET OUT!!! You and Mrs. O were married on my birthday!!!
Happy Anniversary to you and the missus, my friend.
Many congratulations on your 10th anniversary – what a great story to mark that special day!
Happy Anniversary to you and Mrs. O! 🙂
That is a wonderful story and let me offer my hearty congratulations, too! I looked over their website and menu and I must say it looks like a great place.
I love that you celebrate by going to the restaurant where you had your first date. 🙂 Really sweet. And wonderful that they brought you cake!
Very cool. Congratulations on 10 years together, 9 years of marriage, and a lifetime ahead.
Thanks, all! Jules, the actual date of our anniversary was a couple weeks earlier, so I think we’re close to your birthday but unless it’s the 7th (when we first dated) or the 6th (almost a year later, when we wed), we’re a few days off.
Yes, we still go to Linguini’s every so often, and enjoy the diverse menu. Plus, I can have a beer and watch a ballgame on the tube — mindful to still converse with my wife, of course!