Who knew Fridays could be so much fun?!

For years, Patrick worked a night shift. He now works days Monday through Thursday and gets off at 10 p.m. on Friday. It may seem late, but it's been a wonderful change. I can't believe I've been deprived of Friday night outings for most of our past ten years.

This week, we took advantage of downtown Detroit's Winter Blast event, which includes bands, a snow slide, discounts at a bunch of restaurants and more.

Our first stop was Small Plates, a tapas-style restaurant across from the Detroit Opera House where all the food is served in mini portions. I had a petite tenderloin with gorgonzola cream sauce (yum!) while Patrick had some baby crab cakes. We split some lettuce wraps.

I also downed a Banfi Chianti Classico Riserva, which was fruity and smooth, if just a teeny bit dry. Bonus: We got a 15 percent discount for our meal with a Winter Blast coupon.


Afterward, we zipped next door to Detroit Beer Company.

What joy! Turns out that pints of beer are just $2 after 10 p.m. I had a pumpkin spice beer but coveted Patrick's delicious India Pale Ale. (I like to be adventurous, but sometimes "tried and true" is where it's at!)

Side note: We met a strange little Canadian fellow named Wade who was silly-drunk. After chatting with us about hockey and Canada, he practically forced me off my seat and hassled me to go talk to his friend/love interest, Monica. I did, mostly because he was spitting a bit when he talked and I didn't mind getting away.

Well, Monica was quite obliterated, too, but explained the merits of moving from the suburbs to downtown Detroit. At one point, she asked me how I knew Wade, and I said, "I don't. He forced me off my chair and made me come talk to you."

Wide-eyed, she shook her head and slurred, "That's bad!" Well, I soon left Monica, and Wade soon left Patrick. He returned later and tried for about eight minutes to pay his tab, never getting the attention of a waitress. During that time, drunken Monica bolted out the door and Wade said, "I'm a good boy (i.e. I usually pay my tab), but I have to watch over her."

And he dashed, too.

I watched in awe as the waitress (who had seen me talking to Monica) noticed they split without paying. There was a flurry of action to run after them, but they were gone. I waited for the waitress to come over and say we owed $26 for our friends who split without paying. Thankfully, it never happened.

What a night! We may return to Winter Blast today. Hopefully, Wade and Monica will be too hung over to join us.