Published by Swiss James on 21 Nov 2007 at 12:20 pm
What do you eat for your tea James?
Family and friends back home often axe me what I eat for dinner now that I’m living in foreign climes.
“Is it all pigs snouts and dumplings full of ants and that?”
they ask, like fools.
Well, no. It seems difficult to me to order Chinese food for one, and I’m such a busy young go-getter that I’m normally very pushed for time. The last few days I’ve been eating in the food court at the airport- “Rose House” sounds like an English country garden where you sip tea on the lawn, but it’s actually a drafty corridor alongside the Maglev station where people go to drink Soy milk, smoke, and occasionally eat food.
The menu at Rose House is just plates of the food left out to go cold
On the way from Jing-an metro station to my house, I pass by a Muslim restaurant where they have a guy knocking out Chicken kebabs. These things are delicious, even deliciouser than the Old Beijing Chicken Wrap from KFC which was my previous favourite. Fresh coriander and onions beat the Colonel’s best offering and for half the price too.
I keep asking the kebab guy to teach my how to say the name of these things, but it goes in one ear and out the next- so I just tell em
“I’ve got 6RMB. I want a chicken thingy”
Sometimes (OK then, twice) I go to the dark and slightly ominous restaurant on Beijing Xi Lu where they have reasonable (but not in my top 3) Xiao Long Bao. The reason I only go occasionally (OK! OK! Once!) is because they ask you what you want as soon as you walk in the place, and get impatient when it takes you any time at all to decipher the (huge, chinese) menu.
Then they make you wait 15 minutes for the dumplings.
those chicken kebabs (which I thought were actually pork) are quality, is this the one outside Jingan market?
yeah that’s the one- it ain’t pork, the name is something something JI something.
I think it’s because they rub all of the chicken grease on the wrap. That’s the secret to any good sandwich I reckon.
My dad once asked me what I eat for breakfast in Germany and was most disappointed at my answer of Special K. Maybe he was hoping for something more like Schnitzel on toast with a Stein of Pils and a couple of pig’s legs….
You can buy pigs’ knuckles in the supermarkets here, which if you ask me sounds like one of the least tasty and most unappetising foods ever!
Dumplings full of ants however - yum!!
but what did you eat for breakfast whilst living in korea? while i was there it was always soup and rice, with that yummy daikon kimchi. around the 5th day, i would have sold my sister for a couple of good ol’ fashioned scrambled eggs and real breakfast sausage though . . .
Do they put any sauce on those Chicken Kebabs (we call them Shawarma here) They smother it with garlic sauce over here, with tomato, pickles, lettuce and pickled turnips.
Seem to remember eating eggs, cereal or whatever for breakfast in Korea- as long as I wasn’t with my Korean co-workers- then it was kimchi and rice all the way.
Yeah them kebabs are well tasty. They do something similar in Beijing sandwiched with something that’s sort of like a muffin type bread. I’d have them more often if I wasn’t so afraid of sitting on a toilet for the next 3 days.
Sophie - pigs trotters ain’t got nothing on chicken feet in black bean sauce, trust me!
Angie / Missbels - as much as i adore kimchi, not sure it’s my first choice breakfast food.
Hi James, it’s Manda.
You very kindly emailed me shopping advice for my recent Shanghai trip/ holiday/ first foray with my friend Alexia. We had a crazy time but sadly I think just started to discover the real Shanghai when it was time to leave and not knowing a soul we smiled helplessly at any westerner we passed but no one smiled back or helped us when we were lost! Shame we hoped to meet some people there. Anyway very glad have been learning Mandarin for work, came in handy! I wanted to just give a quick plug for a great store for AF stuff in the market below the science & tech centre as the owner Anna was really great, good gear, quality & good prices. B1-44 & 43. She and her sister are ace.
I also have a photo of the scariest soup I have ever experienced in all my many travels & I wanted to email it to you - I took the photo with your blog site in mind (and to show my friends as otherwise they wouldn’t believe me!!!) let me know if this is possible.
I’m back in China in March with work so will continue to be amused and informed by your good online work.
Kind Regards
Manda in SoCo
Cheers Manda- email away! I’m at j_creegan@hotmail.com
Manda don’t waste your time with James, I’ve been here way longer and know many more great places.
I’m also surprised that smiling at westerners on the streets didn’t produce better results. If any girl smiles at me on the streets I immediately offer them the chance to come over to see my spacious and comfy apartment and if the chemistry is right, I ask them to move in.
Don’t listen to silly old WoAi Manda, oh sure he might be fine for telling you where to buy 18th century Harlequin costumes, or Tiffany necklace polish- but for the real nitty-gritty on the mean streets of Shanghers, there’s only one man whose name you need.
Yes, true, James is your man if you want to spend obscene amounts of money on Beaujolais Adidas shoes - I certainly would not have a clue about that!
And who needs Tiffany necklace polish - just bring it in to Tiffany (at Jing An’s Jiu Guang department store) and they’ll polish it for you as often as you like for free.
AF stuff, what’s that then?
Girls smiling at every Westerner and not getting a response - try being a Western male walking down Nanjing Lu on a saturday evening or Tongren Lu on a saturday night and you’ll understand why!
Abercrombie & Fitch?
Arty Farty!
I’ve figured it out now, it’s an Athletes Foot shop, probably all Mycil, cotton socks and stuff, an interesting shopping choice Manda!