From the 2006 Volume 13 Issue No. 3 of the Masters Miata Club newsletter, The Driver:
13th Anniversary Dinner
Date: Saturday, February 11th
Time: 6:00 PM
Place: La Maison
Attending: Bill & Bonnie Baugh, Brian & Donna Bogardus, Gail & Miller Butler, Carol & John Haff, John & Jackie Nicholls, Cindy & Stacey Timmerman, Bobbie, & Dave Winkler and Anita Wylds.
La Maison is rated as one of the top 10 restaurants in Augusta and is housed in a renovated 1850s house on Telfair Street. We were given a nice room on the second floor that was just the right size for our group. There was a fireplace along one wall, and we asked our waiter if he could light us a fire to take the chill off the room. He told us it wasn’t a working fireplace; sure enough, there was a tapestry covering the opening, but he would bump the thermostat up a notch or two.
Water, tea, and coffee were included in the meal price, but everything else was cash bar. When the waiter asked if we wanted tap or bottled water, we opted for the latter, so everyone got bottled water. Little did we know, until the check came, that the fancy bottled H?O from Germany or wherever was five bucks a pop.
Of the three entrée choices, most opted for the fish or the steak. We only had one taker on the chicken dish; probably everyone else was scared off by the “stuffed with goat cheese” line, but Gail said it was great. Everyone said their food was great. The only complaints were that the food could have been hotter (probably more a function of trying to serve 15 people at the same time than waiter incompetence) and the chocolate mouse dessert was a little dry.
Partway through the meal, the tapestry covering the fireplace opening flopped to the floor, and a small furry creature was stirring in the corner of the fireplace. It must have been a mouse moving around that knocked the cover loose. Someone jumped up and recovered the opening, and just to be sure, we placed Denny Smith’s empty chair up against the tapestry. Needless to say, our mouse floor show was the talk of the rest of the evening.
After the meal Brian went over and pried back the top of the cover, figuring a nice mouse picture would make a good web gallery entry. Turns out it wasn’t one mouse, but two baby bats. He quickly closed the opening back up. Imagine if those little things had come flying out of there during dinner!