Charles Grodin, is a bail jumper being brought across country by Robert De Niro, a bounty hunter working for a bail bondsman. They stop at a diner in the Southwest someplace, waiting for the Western Union office to open up. They have no money, but the waitress tells them about their breakfast special. Chorizo and eggs.
That's what Grodin wants, but they have no money yet. De Niro tells him when they get their money can have whatever he wants. He wants chorizo and eggs. But the way he says it is hysterical. And real. Alas, he never gets them due to the ensuing wackiness.
That scene has always stuck with me, and others too based upon how often I use the phrase "chorizo and eggs". People always seem to remember that scene, in particular, from the film. Maybe because it was something we could all relate to. How often have you seen a dish served on a television program or read a recipe in a magazine and become obsessed by it?
Happens to me all the time.
It happened to me last year. I was reading a review of a new restaurant in NYC that served a dish for brunch with cheesy polenta, crispy pancetta and eggs served sunnyside up (or poached) over the top of them. It sounded delicious, and it soon became all I wanted when it came to breakfast. But I lost the review and I forgot which restaurant served the dish. Crap!So every time we went to breakfast, I started acting like Charles Grodin in Midnight Run. "Cheesy polenta, crispy pancetta and eggs sunnyside up" is what I wanted. I became semi-obsessed with it. I say "semi" because if I really wanted it, all I would have to do is google the recipe (here with poached eggs), and I could have definitely found a restaurant that served a variation. But it was almost always more fun to just say "cheesy polenta, crispy pancetta and eggs sunnyside up" whenever we went out for breakfast as I savored in the disappointment that came with seeing that it wasn't on the menu. Yeah...that was more fun.
Guess what I had on Sunday?
That's right. Cheesy polenta, crispy pancetta and eggs sunnyside up. As a birthday present, Gia's sister (an awesome chef) made it for the entire family for brunch. And it was everything I hoped it would be and more!
So maybe Grodin's character eventually had his chorizo and eggs. I dunno. I can only hope so.
Because some things in life are certainly worth waiting for.
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Note: Remember to play the Bug-Eyed Trivia Challenge every day. All the cool kids are doing it.
