Due to diverging holiday plans, we were unable to spend this most special of all meals together. Instead, we spend a few minutes comparing our two meals when we got back.

AMBIENCE:

Sonfields': I received a surprisingly warm welcome from the Sonfield family upon arrival. Even the dog gave me a kiss; not your typical restaurant for sure. In fact, that would be in violation of most states' health codes. The decor is a subtle but elegant Tutoresque style, with wooden floors and furniture. The Liberty pewter collection, ethnic rugs, and the Southwestern pottery add an eclectic but tasteful touch.

DC-10: I don't really feel like describing something that most of you should know. The noise, the lines, the crying babies, the saccharine smiles on the cabin crew's faces, that annoying Rhapsody in Blue tune being cranked out, the thought of how a hunk of metal like this can ever get off the ground and stay there for hours on end--basically, a rather nauseating feeling that makes one wonder why life must be so bad just to get somewhere.

BEVERAGES:

Sonfields': Water, wine (from a good year), iced tea, orange juice, milk, coffee, herbal tea.

DC-10: Coke, Sprite, ginger ale, tomato juice, orange juice, apple juice, lemonade, diet Coke, diet Sprite, orange soda, milk, tea, coffee, decaf, root beer, club soda, mineral water, ice water.

And, for a small fee: red wine, white wine (cheapo California vintages), domestic beer, imported beer, vodka, gin, rum, Bailey's, Kahlua, Tequila, whiskey, bourbon, cognac, brandy.

APPETIZERS:

Sonfields': Flat bread with assorted cheeses named after quaint little villages in Europe, red grapes, and a pureed broccoli soup with a touch of apple (quite light, to whet the appetite).

DC-10: United's exclusive label of honey-roasted peanuts. You can even ask for seconds!

MAIN COURSE:

Sonfields': Turkey of course. A seventeen pounder, roasted to a perfect tenderness with a ton of dark meat; the chef's assistant was amazed at how easily he carved the bird. And more than enough for left-overs. Too bad turkey is so dull. But it made a good curry and a good Monte Cristo sandwich the next day.

DC-10: With a choice of either chicken or steak, I was in heaven. However, the steak turned out to be a meatloaf with criss-crossing grill marks on it to make it look like a steak. Unfortunately for United, this seasoned veteran of airplane food was not fooled; I demanded a real steak, and asked the captain to turn the plane around just like in that Colombian coffee commercial. For some reason, they thought that was funny.

SIDE DISHES:

Sonfields': Ah, the good stuff! The stuffing was a cornbread base, jazzed up with raisins and sausage; the chef's best ever, even though she burnt it a bit (but the crispy stuff was the best part). The pureed sweet potatoes and asparagus with cheese were impressive variations on the traditional vegetable options. The cranberry bread was a balanced ensemble of sweet and tart. The gravy was a light one, mostly turkey drippings; the stuffing didn't even need it. The cranberry relish was enhanced with pears, but I still hate the stuff. And the chestnuts and prunes were spectacular, as always, but they gave me indigestion for the rest of the weekend.

DC-10: Yellow lettuce salad with creamy Italian sauce in a plastic container, boiled corn and carrot nibblets, plastic-wrapped flat bread with chunks of stale walnuts, stone-hard long grain rice, and barbecue sauce in yet another plastic container. Margarine, salt, and black pepper.

DESSERT:

Sonfields': Pumpkin pie and chocolate cake, but I was too stuffed to have any even two hours after we finished dinner. The pumpkin pie was about as good as it gets (not my speed, though). The chocolate cake was quite fudgy and was topped with a dark chocolate icing, but it reminded the chef and I a bit too much of Betty Crocker's.

DC-10: Walker's English shortbread. 100% butter. Very British. Very proper. Very boring.

AFTER-DINNER ENTERTAINMENT:

Sonfields': Too much card-playing (Spades, even. With a Bridge master in the house!), bad movies on cable and NBC ("Home Alone"--yuck), and stimulating conversations. But my allergies had already started acting up from that dog; shortness of breath is a not an incentive to enjoying an evening. Or the rest of the vacation for that matter...

DC-10: Four dollars to see Harrison Ford running for his life in "The Fugitive" for two hours, or gaze at the heartland of America for free.

OVERVIEW:

Sonfields': A cozy and homey ride through Norman Rockwell Land.

DC-10: I'd rather take the Mayflower next time.