Meatballs, North and South

Following zaf's earlier ode to Ikea Swedish meatballs, I must add my own feelings on Ikea food, and another version of the meatball, from further South.

I had to go to Ikea the other day, as part of The Move. I made the mistake of deciding to brave the emporium of Unböring alone, and was overwhelmed after only an hour or so. I needed relief. Luckily, there was the Ikea Cafe. The first surprise was that the steamed broccoli was nearly perfect. Unlike every other cafeteria version I've ever had, it was neither overcooked nor soaked in
butter. So that made me happy. The meatballs were very tasty, and not as greasy as I expected. I've never had Swedish meatballs before, so I have no idea if these are good ones, but they did taste good.

Further South, geographically and philosophically, I went to dinner at Anna Maria's in Dupont Circle with the dear Mistress Frenchie. Anna Maria's will always have a special place in my heart, not only because it used to be a brothel, but because it is one of the most reliably good, cheap basic Italian places in the city. Don't expect fancy here, the menu is a collection of things any five-year-old will easily identify as Proper Italian Food: spaghetti, lasagna, chicken Parmesan, ravioli, etc. I had the meat lasagna, which came with a very large, very tasty meatball. Spicy and sweet, it was lovely.

In the end, Swedish and Italian meatballs are very different beasts, but I love them both!