The other day, a friend and I went to eat at Al Bawadi, a Mediterranean restaurant in Bridgeview, IL. The restaurant is located along a busy road, lined by an endless stretch of strip malls.

Our favorite place to share good food with friends is Rocco’s Little Italy. Each table has the olive oil and parmesan cheese for dipping the basket of bread while sipping a fragrant merlot.

I still think about the goat cheese spinach dip. The fish tacos haunt my dreams. I pine for the three-layer chocolate cake with the longing of an addict. If I would’ve known that was to be my last meal out in a restaurant, I would have slowly savored every bite.