London's theatre district

We first stopped into La Maison Bertaux because the guidebook described it as having, "a faithful clientele, who love its delicious coffee and heavenly cakes." It's a tiny little room behind a window filled with pastries. John definitely found his cake heavenly, because he quickly gobbled it all up without leaving a bite for me. On our way out, John read the guidebook snippet to the owners, and jokingly put in that free cakes were given to Americans who visited on Mondays. They laughed and then handed us a pain au chocolat. We happily munched our way through the pain in the cloister of Westminster Abbey.

So the next morning for breakfast, obviously, we went back to Maison Bertaux. Only the blond owner was there, and she was busily running about the small room occassionally sitting with "faithful clientele" and/or talking on the phone. We happily ate the pastries she recommended and read our books.

But then, while the blond owner was sitting next to a tall man, the phone rang, a piercing, annoying shrill. Everyone looked up, looked at the blond and looked at the phone. She glumly said that it was just work, and she didn't want to answer it, immediately transforming a room of strangers into a cohesive group that just wanted the blond to answer the phone. Finally, at the encouragement of the tall man, she got up to answer, but of course the caller was already gone.

A few people took their leave at this point, including the tall man, leaving only John and I in the little room, and so the blond owner turned her conversation on us. Apparently the tall man was Gary, a producer in Soho, and Gary used to be in love with the blond. She, feeling only friendship for Gary, finally decided to set him up with a friend to get him off her back. Although, from the story, it wasn't clear if she specifically set Gary up, or if she just showed up with a bunch of her friends one night who all immediately fell for Gary, and the "set up" was actually just the woman that actually got him. Anyway, Reina, the one who ended up with Gary, is apparently now a bitch according to the blond, and never calls her.

Now the story takes a turn, and the blond owner tells us about Larry. Larry used to live in a three-story house with his daughter living on the 2nd floor, and he and his wife on the 3rd. One evening while the couple is having an argument, the wife falls out the 3rd-floor window to her death. Unfortunately this is witnessed by the daughter as the body falls past her 2nd-floor window. Larry is accussed of murder, but later acquitted. Apparently Larry had a hard time pulling himself together after all that, and the blond helped him by hiring him as a builder.

While John and I marvel at the horror of this story and wonder why the blond is telling us this, she wraps it back to Gary. Reina and Gary bought a flat together, and the blond recommended Larry as a builder. Reina hasn't called the blond since the set up, but she does finally call to talk about what a terrible job Larry is doing, and says, "I'm just telling you this since Larry is your friend," which enrages the blond, because Larry, "is just her f***ing builder."

We get a few more stories of Reina's awfulness, and I'm beginning to feel very badly for this Gary guy. But then the blond tells us that once Gary went to Hawaii and brought her back a sarong. She was offended by the purchase because she can't stand sarongs, and in front of Gary she took the sarong, opened a drawer, threw it in, and slammed the drawer. Okay, Gary is a glutton for punishment.

I walk out of Maison Bertaux a bit shell shocked, but John, who was not surprised by any of it, points out that this is the theatre district and suddenly all the drama makes sense. So go to Maison Bertaux for the pastry, but if you can, try to get a good story as well.