Thoughts on Afternoon Applebee's, Quotes, & Babies

Though any 'Bee's is a hoppin' place around dinnertime and Happy Hour, there's something more magical about a late lunch or an early dinner at the Neighborhood.  There's no line, no putting your name on a list, no fighting for a seat in the lobby while your stomach growls for half-prince appetizers.  The waiters and waitresses are all standing around the hostess, who grins and leads you, immediately, to one of the booths near the window.  Ah, the good life.  You get drinks, appetizer, meal, desserts, in rapid succession.  Maybe the waitstaff isn't as peppy and, maybe, the atmosphere loses a little something without a rowdy crowd of sports fans seated around the bar.  But seeing the place so quiet is both unsettling and wonderful.  Every person, place, and thing has an undercurrent they don't show the world; every side has two stories.  And the story of Applebee's in the late afternoon includes eavesdropping, laughing, and eating as much as you can in as little time as it takes to do so.

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