My worst food-travel experience was in Iceland. The PR people hosted me at a resto famous for its authentic cuisine: fermented shark and whale and puffin. I barely got them down my gullet before saying, "they are acquired tastes, too sophisticated for me." To this day, I almost gag thinking about that dinner. And I wrote about it for the Vancouver Sun. Ugh.
I’m not going to say the word ‘curdled’. I like you and don’t want you to die.
I love what you did with this and do agree (also being a picky eater) that no one gets the last word on what makes any experience.
For me, it’s almost never the food.
I once ordered a chicken dish at a restaurant in Kathmandu so spicy that everyone told me not to order that dish. I did. I even encouraged the waitperson to ‘bring on the heat’. When the food came, it was accompanied by the entire kitchen staff who surrounded me to watch me eat it. I can’t imagine what they thought would happen, but it was delicious. Still, not as delicious as having dinner with the entire kitchen staff.
This reminded me that years ago I used to teach high school classes to adults who never graduated. This lovely older man invited me to his house for dinner one night. I didn’t mention I was vegetarian because I figured there’d probably be other things to eat and I didn’t want to make him and his wife nervous. The meal turned out to be one thing only: steak. A slab of steak the size of the entire dinner plate. Nothing else. Not even a baked potato. It was just like your story. I spent a long time cutting it up and moving it around. Fortunately, they had a little dog who kept visiting me from beneath the table. I managed to feed the whole steak to the dog without the couple ever knowing.
Ewww… pineapple! Probably because my dad hated it. Do we we adopt our parents’ dislikes? Someone came to cook in my kitchen and scoffed at my jar of garlic and I didn’t have fresh cloves of garlic.
Another great one, Diana! As you may recall, I am revolted by mayo (I don't even want to type the full word because it makes me cringe, and I know I'm dramatic about it). My grandmother mistook it for a glob of suntan lotion and rubbed it into my arm. Then, I baked in the sun and my arm smelled like garbage for what felt like years. I am a super detector and I resent people who try to slip it by me (for example, by calling aioli). I've always been picky and you're absolutely right; it's great to be an adult and eat/not eat whatever I please.
I hate fish and live in LA, land of sushi. I've had a few times where I got to a dinner and fish was the only thing on the menu (one time when I lived in NYC/knew you and one time at my MOM's, who refuses to remember that I hate fish and I kid you not, served SHARK that night).
Love this, snappy and hilarious, and it really hits home. I was a wanna-be vegetarian, got busted eating a hot dog. Won't even think curdle.
Hahaha, we were opposite kinds of vegetarians.
My worst food-travel experience was in Iceland. The PR people hosted me at a resto famous for its authentic cuisine: fermented shark and whale and puffin. I barely got them down my gullet before saying, "they are acquired tastes, too sophisticated for me." To this day, I almost gag thinking about that dinner. And I wrote about it for the Vancouver Sun. Ugh.
I’m not going to say the word ‘curdled’. I like you and don’t want you to die.
I love what you did with this and do agree (also being a picky eater) that no one gets the last word on what makes any experience.
For me, it’s almost never the food.
I once ordered a chicken dish at a restaurant in Kathmandu so spicy that everyone told me not to order that dish. I did. I even encouraged the waitperson to ‘bring on the heat’. When the food came, it was accompanied by the entire kitchen staff who surrounded me to watch me eat it. I can’t imagine what they thought would happen, but it was delicious. Still, not as delicious as having dinner with the entire kitchen staff.
I would have eaten the spicy food with you! Without fear!
This reminded me that years ago I used to teach high school classes to adults who never graduated. This lovely older man invited me to his house for dinner one night. I didn’t mention I was vegetarian because I figured there’d probably be other things to eat and I didn’t want to make him and his wife nervous. The meal turned out to be one thing only: steak. A slab of steak the size of the entire dinner plate. Nothing else. Not even a baked potato. It was just like your story. I spent a long time cutting it up and moving it around. Fortunately, they had a little dog who kept visiting me from beneath the table. I managed to feed the whole steak to the dog without the couple ever knowing.
Oh, the dog saved the day! This is hilarious. See you in five days!!!!
Ewww… pineapple! Probably because my dad hated it. Do we we adopt our parents’ dislikes? Someone came to cook in my kitchen and scoffed at my jar of garlic and I didn’t have fresh cloves of garlic.
Another great one, Diana! As you may recall, I am revolted by mayo (I don't even want to type the full word because it makes me cringe, and I know I'm dramatic about it). My grandmother mistook it for a glob of suntan lotion and rubbed it into my arm. Then, I baked in the sun and my arm smelled like garbage for what felt like years. I am a super detector and I resent people who try to slip it by me (for example, by calling aioli). I've always been picky and you're absolutely right; it's great to be an adult and eat/not eat whatever I please.
One of my greatest fears is unknowingly consuming raw garlic.
Interesting one! I hope you're feeling better, by the way. xo
I hate fish and live in LA, land of sushi. I've had a few times where I got to a dinner and fish was the only thing on the menu (one time when I lived in NYC/knew you and one time at my MOM's, who refuses to remember that I hate fish and I kid you not, served SHARK that night).
Wait...not shark-fin soup, just...shark??
JUST. SHARK. #moms
LOL
I love you. This one made me laugh so many times.
I miss you! Already getting so excited for Vienna.
Me too!
I dabbled in vegetarianism for a few years. Didn’t care for it much.
I'm planning to convert you.