Thank you Yamayouri noodles

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I would like to express my thanks to Yamayouri Noodles, in Dublins South Great Georges Street. Why. Well, Linda and I have been regular lunchtime customers at Yamayouri's who, you may not be surprised to hear, serve Asian food. As a matter of course they provide chopsticks for their customers. and as a consequence we became proficient, if not expert, chopstick users.

This has been a handy skill on our present trip as I would feel a bit silly asking for knives and forks. I am not even sure if most restaurents would be able to provide same.

We were in a Maccu cuisine restaurant in Hong Kong and the only table left was a large one in the middle of the room. We sat here and shortly afterwards a Chinese family asked if they could share the table. We said fine. As we were eating I could see the son, who was in his twenties, nudge his companions pointing at Linda and myself. He seemed to be impressed with my chopstick skills but seemed to be smiling at Lindas. Which was not surprising as she had chosen to tackle a grilled fish for her meal. However, she did have her revenge as he himself later dropped a large piece of food unto his shirtfront. He had the grace to laugh at himself as he saw that Linda had also noticed his chopstick faux paus.

As if eating a fish with chopsticks was not enough of a challenge Linda also tackled crab. It was described as fried crab meat on the menu but when it came it was in a large bowl, complete with shell, claws etc. Linda ate as much of the crab meat as she could find but was then faced with the claws. She valiently attempted to crack them using chopsticks and a spoon which were the only implements provided. I suspect she was secretly contemplating whacking them off the table leg when a waitress noticed this and came over with claw crackers, proceeding to crack the claws in a spray of bone etc.

We have subsequently been told by some ex-pats and orther tourists we have met on our travels that the Chinese have a unique way of eating shellfish. They pop the entire item into their mouth, and then chew it in situ, spitting out the shell etc. One woman observed an entire Shrimp being popped into the mouth this way, and the skelaton etc being pulled out in one piece.

However, chopsticks are not suitable for every situation in the 21st century. We were served lunch on a Chinese flight and knives and forks were provided. As we ate our lunch we hit some turbulence. It was hard enough trying to get rice etc into my mouth using a knife and fork when the food item was alternately accelarating towards and away from my mouth. Using chopsticks would probably have led to the loss of an eye. Progress in action.

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Comments

[Killian]

Nothing has changed
So China is right up your alley. Ye are both giving out the local delicacies the same referance as in the gibblets in Brittany, Ha ,ha. kepp up the journals , they are better reading than a lot of the "paid" comedians these days. Remember your days on Withword road, you are living in luxury now. All's well here.TG. K.