04 Apr Please The Palate Pick of the Week: Celebrating A Birthday In the Time of Coronavirus

While we are relegated to our homes, we are separated from our friends and family. But even though we are home, time continues on and birthdays and other celebrations take place. This past week my father had his birthday. And while my brother and I could not go out to eat with him, as we would normally do, we were able celebrate thanks to the restaurants offering prepared meals to-go and that is why Celebrating A Birthday With Food Delivery and Virtual Time is the Please The Palate Pick of the Week. So many restaurants are offering pick-up and delivery options but on the website Tock, restaurants are offering full menus for a set price for parties of 2 or more under Tock To-Go. The restaurants on Tock are some of the higher end restaurants in Los Angeles that can cost a lot to dine at, if you are even able to get a reservation! One of the restaurants is Ray Garcia’s Broken Spanish in downtown LA. Broken Spanish is offering a family style menu that can be picked up curbside. The menu included hand-made tamales, Achiote roasted chicken, pickled cabbage, Brussels sprouts and arroz con leche for dessert. All of this food was available for under $50 per person. I drove downtown and pulled up in front on Broken Spanish. A window was open and I gave my name. I saw the team spread out working, wearing gloves and masks. My food was packaged and ready to go. I also stopped by Butter Cake Shoppe in Los Feliz to pick up some mini-cupcakes. The bakery was fantastic, taking my order over the phone the day before and have the box ready to hand me through the door. My dad had no idea that we were surprising him with dinner and opened the door to see my brother and me socially-distanced from the door. We left the food for my parents to enjoy and after they finished dinner, we had a family Zoom call to sing happy birthday and enjoy cupcakes all together. Even if we are unable to celebrate in person, we are able to still celebrate with our friends and family. Thanks to Tock, Broken Spanish and Butter Cake Shoppe, my dad had a wonderful birthday!