Yummy Treats
“Shuttt Uppp! Did you say CHOCOLATE Pizza? Cool!
Cuz that weird fish pizza we had last week had an aftertaste!” blurted ten-year-old Sammy, wriggling like an anchovy that had escaped a fisherman’s net. His dad was trying to make up for his unpopular choice the week prior when he had ordered anchovy pizza for the family.
But today, Sammy wore a perma-grin. His parents had told him that they were taking him for a surprise treat on the way home from the hospital, but this was over-the-top! Or maybe it was the pain killers which made it seem so amazing. Either way, the promise of a pizza drenched in chocolate made him feel as if he was having a decadent dream.
But the moment he got out of the car and began hobbling towards the family restaurant called The West Palm Beach Brewery And Wine Vault on his broken leg, even though he possessed an agility with crutches, his mood plummeted. Even the name of the place annoyed him because his fractured limb reminded him of his wasted dream to spend the coming summer working at his uncle’s vineyard in Italy. His parents had taken him to visit every few years and he had fallen in love with the endless rows of green vines, the beautiful language and the fresh bread and cheese.
During the school year, he used his spare time googling different types of wines. He was currently focused on learning about varietals which only used a single type of grape. Sammy had decided that by the time he would legally be allowed to consume wine, he would be an expert and maybe his cousin Vincente would consider making him a manager.
He parked his crutches against the wall, motored over to the table, and settled onto the chair. Huffing, he got busy looking at his phone.
His parents were undeterred. They smiled at each other with confidence. They knew the power which the upcoming treat possessed since they had recently shared it on a date night.
A few moments later, the adorable waitress Danella brought the chocolate pizza to their table.
“Woah! Woah! Woah!” yelped Sammy delightedly. Once again, he wasn’t sure if it was the meds or his imagination but he heard angels singing. And then he wrapped his mouth around the first whipped cream smothered chocolate sauce raspberry bite of dough-from-heaven morsel!
“Have to compliment the chef right now!” he mumbled, coming to stand while simultaneously inhaling the rest of the slice, causing his parents to giggle.
Sammy tottered on his crutches towards the open kitchen at the back of the restaurant where Chef Castardi was twirling pizza dough.
“So, what happened to you?” asked the friendly Chef eyeing Sammy leg.
“Stupid bike accident! Hit a rock and went flying on my ass and…” Then Sammy shared how he had totally screwed up his summer plans to stomp on grapes with his Italian relatives.
Chef Andrew Castardi had always been a doer. When something got him down, he found a task to take care of which instantly elevated his mood, at least a notch.
“Well your arms ain’t broke are they?” quipped the Chef. “Get your ass over here and let’s roll us some dough!”
The dough was supple and light, and kneading it lifted Sammy’s funk. Chef automatically began speaking to Sammy in Italian, explaining that it was made from a unique European flour. Ten minutes passed quickly.
Sammy’s father came to look for him. But when he spotted him laughing and talking animatedly with the chef, he decided not to interrupt.
When Sammy returned to the table, he informed his parents that the Chef had offered him a job making pizzas. By the end of the summer he would be a master. He had already decided that when he graduated in seven years, he was going to go to culinary school and then open up a gourmet pizza parlor. In addition to vineyards, Sammy had spent his downtime watching the Food Network. He loved to cook!
“Okay, I already know a few different kinds I’m gonna serve in my restaurant,” he bubbled. “Okay; white chocolate and bacon, Sicilian olives and dark chocolate, goat cheese and blueberries.”
“Wow! Those sound ridiculously good! And filling. I’m perfectly full.” Smiled his mother patting her tummy. “But, what about your dream to run the vineyard?”
“Fuhgheddabouuddit!” responded her husband and son in unison, smirking contentedly, shoveling the last two whip-creamy slices towards their beaming chocolate-covered faces.
West Palm Beach Brewery And Wine Vault
332 Evernia St., West Palm Beach, Fl 3340
T: (561) 619-8813
We are pleased to have Real-Life married sweethearts Frannie and Dani, who are also Dessert Critics appropriately called ‘The Sweethearts’, add a little sweetness to Around Wellington with their playful, yummy weekly 3-5 minute dessert video reviews.
Their online dessert critiques have been transformed into a Reality Food Show/Sitcom called ‘SWEETHEARTS’, now in development with 2-A-Listers attached. More info viewable at https://www.franniesheridan.com/ Frannie and Dani can currently be seen in several TV commercials in which they play themselves as Dessert Critics for Aztil air conditioning.
