Hangry

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HANGRY


If the answer sashays in on a silver 

platter, tidy as an hors d'oeuvres


served in a little crinkled cup 

and garnished with a sprig of rosemary


or a strawberry slice, nice,

though it’s a safe bet that 


the question isn’t getting at 

the meat of the matter, which 


even now is being prepared behind 

those heavy, swinging doors


for those with a reservation,

or—funny enough—without


reservation enough to demand

what's really going on back there


this many-an-hour, declining 

the establishment's arsenal of black-


tied offers of a little something

to dull the edge and placate the growl.


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