Booking at Per Se

8pm our time? Hello, it was 2am in New Zealand that the Per Se reservation line opened.


Per Se only accept reservations for exactly one calendar month in advance, so in order to book a table, you have to call or book through Open Table on say, the 18th of July, for a table on the 18th of August. You can see how this is a pressure driven experience....its hard to get a table at New York's Restaurant of the Year 2011.


So when Open Table failed miserably (why no, even though its one second past 12, we appear to have no bookings available between 5pm and 10pm), it became apparent someone would have to call the restaurant exactly when the reservation line opened at 10am NYC time.
Melanie and I bantered briefly via text as to whom would have to wake up/stay awake until 2am.


First off, its probably good to know about me that I love my sleep. As in, don't mess with me when I am sleepy, tired, wanting to go to sleep or half asleep.


If there is one person who is even less tolerant than me regarding sleep, it is Melanie. 
And she is not to be trifled with.


When we were teenagers, we would call Melanie's house - always after 10am at the extreme earliest.
Salve, her lovely Italian Dad, would answer the phone and reply that Melanie was still asleep, but that he would wake her up.
"No, no, that's ok, we'll call back!" the unfortunate person would reply, knowing what was coming.
But Salve had selective hearing, and the bravery of a true innocent.
You'd hear him knock on Melanie's door, and say that someone was on the phone.


The banshee screams that came in reply were indescribable. Like some sort of hell.
It was the oral version of Dante's Inferno.


Usually I would hang up at this stage, as the rudeness was preferable to having to listen to the sounds of hell and then eventually face Melanie as being the monster that disturbed her sleep. 


But I digress.


Luckily, neither of us had to disturb our beauty sleep as Sam agreed to staying up until 2am to try and make the booking.
My husband is a wise man.


After being on hold for half an hour, success!


So after hearing for years about Thomas Keller and The French Laundry, we are going to be enjoying his signature Oysters & Pearls (look it up), in the best company, at NYC's best restaurant, on a Saturday Night no less. 
I feel so incredibly lucky.