Salzy and Jamie had previously discussed what was on the menu and decided to order a multitude of dishes to be served family style, so everyone could help themselves to whatever they wanted.
“Oh, and can we get a few pitchers of margaritas?”Jamie asked after Salzy had ordered all the food.
“Voy a tomar una cerveza, por favor,” Salzy said, looking at Jamie.“I told you I wasn’t drinking tequila.I’m having beer.”
While the place was busy, it wasn’t exactly full.Jamie noticed that most of the patrons were Hispanic.
The group were chatting away, smiling and enjoying themselves.
“I like Mexican food too,” Mike said as he leaned over towards Jamie, having seated himself right next to him.“I’ve not been here before or even knew it was here.”
Jamie nodded towards Salzy.“Salzy turned me on to it.It’s some of the best I’ve ever had.”
“I’m looking forward to it.”
A server, whom Jamie suspected was the bartender, brought over two pitchers of margaritas and a single beer.A robust woman brought out baskets of tortilla chips and multiple bowls of salsa and salsa verde.
“Oh my god.”Joesph, who was sitting on the other side of Jamie.“This is the best salsa I’ve ever had, and this margarita isdivine.”
Jamie took a long sip of his, licking salt from the rim.“Yep, just as good as last time.”
“What type of renovations are you doing?”Mike asked.
Joesph leaned over to look across Jamie.“The whole thing.I’ve got it all laid out, except for the kitchen, which will be Jamie’s department.Although it will be slightly reconfigured because of the new window I want to put into the dining room.”
“It isn’t going to change too much, is it?”Mike had a concerned look on his face.“I mean, it would be a shame to lose the feel of the place.”
“Don’t you worry, honey.It will be the same but newer and I hope better.”Joesph popped a tortilla chip into his mouth as punctuation.
“Feel free to ask me to help out.I am an engineer after all.”Mike was also leaning across and Jamie could feel his breath on his forearm.
“Oh, really?”Joesph’s eyes brightened.“That may come in handy.I’m not sure if that wall between the dining room and the kitchen is load bearing or not.”
“I can almost guarantee you it is.”
Jamie started to feel like he was watching a tennis match, his head swivelling back and forth between the two.
“Sooo, how do I make that window bigger?Will it need a steel beam?”
“I think that would be the way to go, just to make sure it’s structurally sound.”Mike pulled a paper napkin from the dispenser in the center of the table.He had a pen in his hand and began to draw.“The best way would be to insert a steel beam all the way across the existing wall.”
“Oh crap,” Jamie said, as he rubbed his eyes with both hands.“This is going to cost a fortune.”
“Not necessarily.”Mike drew out all the kitchen equipment, from memory, which was almost like looking at a photograph.“There has to be a lot of reinforcement in the ceiling just to keep that big exhaust unit in place.And if you plan on expanding that window, you’re going to have to move that monster and then reinforce it all over again.And trust me, when you start opening up that can of worms, there is no telling what you’re going to find.”
“I thought the same thing,” Joesph said, nodding in agreement.He looked at Jamie.“Does that thing need to be so big?”
Jamie batted his eyes and took a long drink of the margarita, which was starting to water down.He reached for the pitcher.“To answer your question, no.I can’t believe I’m even saying this, but I think it should be replaced.There are much better versions out now that are better and not as loud.”
“I’ve not priced that option,” Joesph said, thinking out loud.“I do have a pretty good idea as to an approximate cost.I’ll go over it tomorrow.”
“I’mnotlooking forward to that.”Jamie let his head fall back.
