Sensory overload wets my palate
Creamy Roquefort on a wedge salad
Red fish covered with lush shrimp
Napkins folded I dare not skimp
Chestnuts and asparagus spears delight
It’s Bistro 829 tonight

The wine steward delivers like an automaton
Recommends Pinot Noir’s Echelon
From California’s gold coast valley
Complex and fruity from the galley
Sip with friends, laughter abounds
Hearty cheers for all around

Special occasions repeated forever
Time defined by toasts quite clever
Marriage partners sit at head tables
Speeches uttered by the willing and able
Kodak moments ingrained in memory
Two lives captured in perfect symmetry

But time is cruel for those who believe
Warps the past and attempts to deceive
Chilled glasses now collect dust
Friends now gone it’s only us
Raise our glasses once again
That love lasts forever—let’s pretend