Thanks, everyone. All excellent ideas and have been filed away as I often find myself in this situation with fish (and other things). Much appreciated!

Ah, the old fish and cheese no-no. To hell with it. One of the regulars at my watering hole always orders fried haddock with cheese on top on Fridays. I used to turn my nose up to it until he had me try it. It was actually delicious.

Actually, this looks right up my alley as it's easy and I have all of the ingredients on hand. Thanks!

A little more work than I care to do at the moment, but that recipe has definitely been bookmarked! I love Creole food.

That sounds fantastic to me as well, as it's not much warmer in these parts!

Interesting, what type of marinade did you use?

Actually, that could work if I add in a bit of other seafood. I could always get just a bit of shrimp or scallops from my fish monger.

That's an interesting way of thinking. I have to remember that as there's just the two of us and I often wind up in the situations you mention above.

I guess I could poach it, and then serve with some type of dipping sauce as an app.

Hmmm...trout cakes. Not a bad idea.

Always a glass of wine in hand. I'm also a clean as you go, for the most part. Really dislike having anyone else in the kitchen. My mother was cooking with me yesterday and I swear I wanted to beat her with a wooden stick, but decided to keep my mouth shut.

Usually listen to NPR if there's something good on. Otherwise, Pandora to whatever musical mood I'm in at that time.

Cornbread and Butter Beans by the Carolina Chocolate Drops.

Church is a hilarious song!

How to Cook Everything is my go to book for gift giving. I love how he always starts with a very basic recipe, and then gives you multiple options for modifying.

I can be daft, but I'm confused by this. If they bring the check to you, it needs to be paid. If you are paying with a credit card, they need to take the check while you are still there so that they can process it and bring it back to you to sign. Even if you pay cash, you may need change back. Like I said, I'm sure I'm just missing something.

Yum. That'll be in my slow cooker soon! Thank you.

Damn, bionda! I forgot about that. Well, the salad idea might still work.

All American Flame Grilled Bocas are my favorite.

Gluten free pasta with marinara sauce (vegan)? If you can expand a bit, you could always add a side dish of meatballs for meat lovers, and cheese for vegetarians.

Then again, if you go that route you can do so with a lot of other options as well. Taco bar, salad bar, etc.

I guess the only single universally accepted beverage would probably be water. Or maybe sparkling water.

Thanks, Linda and tcamp!

I find that in the States, Indian buffets are generally much better than the Chinese ones.

Syracuse, NY. We have a flower lady and a flower man. However, they don't go into restaurants, only bars.

I think my chives are going on their sixth year. They are near impossible to kill!

I'm hopping in the car with you!

Not Phreddy, but I do a very similar prep with clams, so it should totally work.

Apparently ketchup was the gateway sauce for my hubby. That's what he used to put on everything as a kid, but he's moved on to the heavier stuff now. And yes, he puts maple syrup and bbq sauce on his breakfast sausage sandwiches too.

Hey, nothing wrong with tuna noodle casserole. It's one of my ultimate comfort foods and I've learned to slim it down as well.

Oh man, that sounds amazing. Crawfish tails packed in their own fat? Goodness!