You are learning time clauses with perfect tenses: you will read the scene it happens in, learn 10 words and phrases, take apart the pattern behind them (time clauses: before, after, once, by the time, as soon as, until), hear them in a conversation, rehearse them, and finish by saying one thing out loud to be graded.
Gramercy Tavern, Flatiron District, weeknight dinner
Once you step inside Gramercy Tavern, you feel it immediately: warmth. The dining room is all dark wood and candlelight. It's the kind of place where, before you even sit down, you already feel at home.
As soon as the bread basket arrived, I knew we were in good hands. The bread was warm, freshly baked, with salted butter from a local farm. Before I even looked at the menu, I had eaten two pieces.
The seasonal menu changes constantly. Our waiter told us that by the time autumn arrived, the kitchen would have introduced an entirely new set of dishes. 'Once the squash comes in from upstate, everything shifts,' he said.
We stayed for hours. After we had finished the main course, we ordered the cheese plate. After the cheese, we had coffee. Before we knew it, it was nearly midnight. The restaurant had started to wind down around us. As soon as we stepped back onto the street, I turned to my friend and said, 'Once you've eaten at Gramercy Tavern, every other restaurant feels different.' She nodded. She already understood.