A Sump's Worth of Paella

One or two regular(ish) readers have mentioned that if they ever want to know what I've been eating, they simply log onto these pages - filled as they are with pearls of wisdom (oh yes they are!) and descriptions of yummity grub.

On Saturday evening just past, Mrs The Millbrooker and I were invited to Sump Towers deep in the middle of Millbrook to sample The Sump's almost legendary paella. It's been a while since we spent much time in The Sump and La Sumpetta's company and the invitation was doubly welcome as an opportunity catch up on a summer's worth of familial gossip.

There was an eightsome including mine hosts: Comb-Over and Liability, Jane and Mark (new to these pages), Sump and Sumpetta and us two.

Somehow, over the course of the evening we managed to miss taking a photo featuring Jane. The same omission was made with The Sump himself. So your delight in images of those two paella participants will have to await another opportunity.

After aperitifs, we gathered at the altar of conSumption, the dining room table (L-R below: yours truly, a bit of Mark, Comb-Over, Liability and La Sumpetta)...

The paella was a yummy mix of traditional throw-together fare; rice, mussels, chicken, bunny rabbit. For the vegetarian amongst us and for the one who can't eat seafood despite liking it there was risotto-stuffed marrow.

Needless to say, this being a Sump hosted event, there was no shortage of liquid refreshment either. Towards the end of the evening (or shortly before I was taken home to be looked after by an understanding and very patient wife as I hiccoughed and bottom-burped my way through the night), the bottle count began to look quite impressive. A bit like Mark as he took on lounging-on-the-floor duties.

Thanks are due in very large quantities (a bit like the port and whisky at the evening's end) to The Sump and La Sumpetta for hosting us so generously.

One more piece of news - it was democratically voted upon at the table by three of the four couples involved with such things that Safari Suppers be recommenced after the coming festive season - huzzah!

Dong and Shazzerooneypoos (the fourth twosome who played a role in safariing around the village) weren't in attendance, but we reckoned we were quorate and so it shall come to pass that in the new year a small party of Millbrook glitterati will once again wobble and stumble from house to house in search of sustenance...