Every few months my mom and dad visit and we head to an old restaurant with a 4:30 pm early bird special. When we arrive the tables around us are usually filled with an older crowd, but honestly I’m not certain if that’s due to the style of the restaurant or the time of day we’re eating. Last night I was watching an old episode of Seinfeld that cracked me up. I could totally see my husband having this conversation with my parents.
Here’s the script from that episode:
HELEN: Oh, right, let’s go. Jerry, let’s go, it’s time to eat. We’re going to dinner.
JERRY: (confused) Dinner? W..What time is it?
HELEN: (pulling on a coat) It’s four-thirty.
JERRY: (bewildered) Four-thirty? Who eats dinner at four-thirty?
MORTY: By the time we sit down, it’ll be quarter to five.
JERRY: I don’t understand why we have to eat now.
HELEN: We gotta catch the early-bird. It’s only between four-thirty and six.
MORTY: Yeah. They give you a tenderloin, a salad and a baked potato, for four-ninety-five. You know what that cost you after six?
JERRY: Can’t we eat at a decent hour? I’ll treat, okay?
HELEN: You’re not buying us dinner.
JERRY: (emphatic) I’m not force-feeding myself a steak at four-thirty to save a coupla bucks, I’ll tell you that!
HELEN: Alright, (sitting on the couch) we’ll wait. (pointedly) But it’s unheard of.