When I was a kid, my parents used to take me to this restaurant called Bonanza. I used to love that place - it was one of those buffet-style places where you would grab an orange plastic tray and slide it along those metal tubes, picking out what you were going to eat as you went along. There were never any promises about what they would have available from time to time - sometimes they would have specials, other times some things would be fresher than others, but something would always look appetizing among the shelves of food; something would just be begging to jump off of the racks onto your tray.
I would get excited just knowing I was going there - two constants were a nice tall root beer with shaved ice (in those yellow-ish plastic cups) and of course, from the chilled dessert rack, a styrofoam bowl of wonderously jiggly lime jell-o.
I loved everything about that place - the dark lighting, the sliced meats, the mashed potatoes, even the plastic western-style tablecloths - I always felt right at home at the Bonanza. We'd bring our trays to our table, sit down, and I would enjoy just being there - filling my belly with the warm, comforting food. I'd keep my eye on the lime jell-o, trying to save it for last while I was enjoying every part of the meal - but sometimes I'd sneak in a bite when my parents weren't looking - not able to wait until my vegetables were finished to partake in that sweet, slithery goodness.
It wasn't too long after going there the first time that every time my parents would ask me where I wanted to go to eat, I would immediately respond with "Bonanza!". It was, hands down, my favorite restaurant.
Bonanza is since closed, and I miss it. I miss the warmth, the comfort food, the root beer, and especially the lime jell-o. I would go back there in a heartbeat if it re-opened. It has spoiled me for other restaurants. Even though I'm not a kid any longer, if it was there again and open for business and you asked me where I wanted to go out to dinner, I would shout, "Bonanza"!
