Balance. It’s one of those things we like to talk about. Not only here at Balanced Dividends. But elsewhere in various areas of our lives.

From work-life balance and offense & defense, to stocks & bonds and exercise & beer, balance is often mentioned. There’s also the topic of finding balance and also keeping balance. Both are important. I believe it’s never-ending.

Mrs BD and I also just realized this as well: one person’s balance may positively or negatively impact the balance of another person.

Background

As shared in our history, we moved from New York City to Chicago in mid-2015. While performing her random gravity checks and battling with curbs, as she continues to do so today, Mrs. BD broke her ankle on my 31st birthday.

Four hours later, we’re still in the ER and the doctor walks in. She asks a bunch of questions, like if we’d been drinking. Mrs BD, who is brutally honest and blunt, says “no, but we were trying to – do you have anything we can take now?” What an awesome wife and birthday. The doctor just chuckled and started going over the x-rays and treatment steps.

In a sincere, heart-felt way, Mrs. BD really did feel bad about my birthday. To make up for it, which she did not have to but she did because she is that great, Mrs. BD found us a new restaurant in our new town for us to try. The night after she broke herself.

Good Food, Good People, Good times

Located on the north side of Chicago, Knife and Tine (K&T) serves what I would describe as really, really damn good food at not too expensive prices. Alas, to give it a formal introduction, as stated on their website:

Knife & Tine, located in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood, serves a menu of New American cuisine. The knowledgeable staff, finely curated wine program, and comfortable setting allows guests a fun and approachable dining experience.

I certainly agree. Here are four reasons why.

(1) Our First Time

No not that. Our first time at K&T on the day after my birthday. We remember the food being really good. But we remember the people even more. The lady who greeted and seated us at the front door when we arrived also floated around the various tables.

Upon striking up a conversation with Mrs. BD about her massive leg cast and crutches, we learned she was one of the owners. Throughout the rest of the night, she’d stop by to talk. At the end of the evening, she provided us what we now refer to as “the list” – 3 random note pages of hand-written recommendations of other places to try for dinners, drinks, or special occasions.

It’s still on our refrigerator, as we slowly make our way through it 3 years later.

(2) Mrs. BD and Her Mom

Mrs. BD discovered this wine for the first time at the restaurant. On one of many occasions at the restaurant, Mrs. BD’s mother has stated she’d like to have…this wine…with her daughter.

It is pretty good actually. Usually referred to by the first word in the name, it can be quite humorous when we see it at other restaurants – especially when the in-laws are with us!

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(3) Strollers & Hangovers

For New Years in 2016, we had some close friends from O.H.I.O! visiting for the weekend. After an initially extremely disappointing New Years Eve experience that ended up actually turning into an unforgettable small after-party at home, we visited K&T on New Years Day.

We had also reached out to other friends to join us and had made a reservation for maybe 8 of us. That number nearly doubled as a couple of others joined us – including a number of little ones. Despite being packed, K&T had no problems working to accommodate us.

It was a good time. I also remember the bacon and my pancakes at nearly 1:00 in the afternoon tasting so amazing. They also helped get rid of my awful feelings from the night before.

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(4) Family & Friend Dinners

Whether we’ve had family in-town visiting from out-of-state or getting together with the local crowd, we’ve opted for K&T multiple times. There is also a nice “backroom” right off to the edge of the bar. I think we’ve spent at least half a dozen times in 3 years with family in friends at this table for special occasions.

The owners and staff of K&T have always been quite accommodating and patient. Especially with all the picky eaters on both sides of the family. (I’d like X, Y, and Z, but please no Y and Z; I’ll have B and C instead.)

The What The Hell!? Moment

Mrs. BD has been working quite a lot for her job the last several weeks. It’s primary event season for her organization, and she has been traveling extensively and working on weekends. She is a super star; she keeps at it with such energy and enthusiasm.

While in St. Louis last week, Mrs. BD sent me a link to this article after seeing something on social media about the restaurant. I then saw this:

Our Last Meal

We had an 8:00 pm reservation on Friday night yesterday. The restaurant was very busy when we arrived. Never full, though busy, K&T usually had enough activity to keep things both lively and comfortable. Tonight you could feel both of those things, but also a little bit of anxiety. Regulars were coming in one last time, while newer patrons were quite surprised to learn the place would be closing in less than 48 hours.

Speaking with the owners throughout the night, a few things they said resonated with me:

We’re Tired – in addition to K&T, they own a bar down the block called The Arrogant Frog. We knew this, but the comment from one of the owners that he’d be mopping floors at 3:00 am and then coming back to K&T hours later to prep for brunch made me realize how much time and effort they put in.

We’re Growing – they also own an event space and just nearly doubled their capacity and bookings. We knew of the separate business but didn’t know its scope and the recent pace of growth. It was fantastic to hear.

We’re Learning – they tried different things over the last ~4 years when K&T was open; they’ve experimented and found things that worked and didn’t work. Both mistakes and successes were made, with adjustments made along the way.

Saying Goodbye

It took about 20 minutes to say goodbye. And I’m glad it did. We talked to two of the owners that we’d become close with since first coming. They gave us their numbers, and they asked Mrs. BD to text them today to make plans to go out together to create a “new list”, referring to the original one we received on our first visit nearly 3 years ago.

Did we cry? No, not at all. It just reminded me that nothing remains constant. Things change. We need to enjoy what we have when we have it and appreciate what we do have in our lives.

Looking Back and – More Importantly – Ahead

It’s just a restaurant. I get it. But the food, atmosphere, and people at K&T, as well as the memories that accompanied it, helped us find balance as we transitioned to a new chapter of our lives. We’re sad that K&T will be closing. But we know the people will continue to succeed in their other endeavors. And it only provides another opportunity to find our next favorite place and additional great people. It’s never-ending.

Readers, do you have a place and/or person that helps you find balance? What do you consider doing when things change? How do you try to find and keep balance?

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