Sebastian is my eleven-year-old and he says some of the funniest things–we have no idea where he gets his material since his mother and I are rather boring, serious people. 

As I assume is true with many during this pandemic, I have been attempting to hone my culinary skills. My latest goal? Perfect the béarnaise sauce. The first attempt a few weeks prior went painfully awry (I’d rather not talk about it), and the second attempt was also a disaster, but I managed to rescue it at the last moment (thank you Google).

I grilled some salmon and asparagus and drizzled the béarnaise over both.

So I asked the boys what they thought…

Nathan (as he stuffed another huge piece of salmon into is seemingly already full mouth): “Mmmphfmm!” (Followed by a thumbs-up.)

Seba (who is no fan of sauces that are not served as an accompaniment to chicken nuggets): “It was OK.”

Me (while I was not expecting a ringing endorsement, I expected him to at least, well, lie): “Only ‘OK’?”

Seba (somewhat sheepishly): “Yeah. ‘OK’.”

Me (somewhat frustrated with the amount of work that went into the sauce only to receive an ‘OK‘): “Philistine.”

Seba: “Philip Stein? Who’s that?”