(August 24, 2019)

Last summer, 2018, I had just finished a volunteer shift at the USO in Arlington, and really wanted to check out a new restaurant in the area for Summer DMV Restaurant Week. Everything about Baba – food, drinks, atmosphere – caught my eye, so I booked a rsvp for 1 through Open Table. I’d just celebrated my first year here the month before, and didn’t know a lot of people yet, but was never shy to dine solo!

It was a Sunday night, and like a good solo diner, I booked the earliest rsvp to avoid their dinner rush. But while I did that for their benefit, I was the one who benefited! Before the dinner rush started to arrive, I was able to chat one-on-one with several of the staff. Our conversations were great, and at one point I expressed to a waiter my hidden resentment for my family abandoning their languages when they immigrated. He taught me to say thank you in his language – hvala. That kind of interaction really leaves a lasting impact, sometimes even moreso than the food!