liuzhou

Today, I found the first passion fruit of the year (apart from ones which had obviously been in storage since last year), For reasons which escape me they are known in Chinese as 鸡蛋果 (jī dàn guǒ) which literally translates as hen's egg fruit. Also, alongside the usual pomelos, there was a variety I haven't noticed before: Honey pomelos. Regular pomelos Honey pomelos If they are following usual Chinese usage, that probably means that they are a sweeter than normal variety. I didn't buy one. I prefer the acidic citrus taste.

I don't know any restaurants here that have a web presence. Restaurants in China are very secretive about their menus. They don't even post them outside the premises in the UK, most are required to by law) and are very careful that no one steals one. They seem to believe that some competitor will pinch their ideas (despite most menus being very similar, anyway). I agree with you that online menus without prices are very irritating.

One thing that drives me crazy in restaurants here in China is that wait staff pounce on you the minute you sit down, hand you huge menus (or multiple menus) then hover centimetres from your face with pen poised to write down your choice. I tell them to go away and give me time to read the damned thing, but that option has been removed from their DNA. When they get bored of waiting, which takes about 20 seconds, they start making suggestions, pointing at random items on the menu. I'm certain they don't even know what they are pointing at. In fact, I know they don't. One young woman did that, I snapped the menu closed and asked her what she had recommended. She had no idea. I find it highly intimidating, but just part of the culture. Chinese friends don't even notice, or even expect it. Many consider it rude to hand you the menu then go away until you have read it.

Well, I'll confess my total ignorance of Canadian law, but stand by my insanity comment. I know that in the UK all premises licensed to sell alcohol are required by law to provide water on request as are workplaces and schools. Restaurants must supply free water, although they may charge for service including the use of a glass. Few do charge. BBC Link

What? It is illegal to serve unsolicited water, but OK to serve solicited water? If true, (which I doubt) it is insane,

This morning I picked some nice live wild prawns from my seafood gal in the local market. Prawn curry. Rice. Baby bok choy salad.

It is just a variety of Lapsang Souchong.

This morning, I tried to replicate a dish I ate in an Indonesian restaurant about five years ago. Fried rice with foie gras. I didn't quite pull it off but it was close. Ingredients: Rice, foie gras, garlic, chilli, Chinese chives and coriander leaf./cilantro.

I use hard boiled eggs in very few salads. Probably only in Salade Niçoise, in fact.

The most memorable meal I ever ate was free sardines. About 30 years ago, I was in a small town in France on the Mediterranean coast beside the border with Spain. On one of the Christian festivals (Assumption, I think), the local fishermen feed the entire town on a feast of grilled sardines, baguettes and the local wine. I was invited to join them. The festival took place (and maybe still does) in the dock area, the ugliest part of an otherwise beautiful town, and hundreds of people enjoyed the beautiful fresh sardines without a care for the surroundings. I can't remember how many sardines I ate - a lot. Excellent peaches were also provided for dessert. Thinking back, my sardine counting failure may have had something to do with the buckets of wine I also had.

Squid with snow peas - a classic Chinese combination. Also contains garlic, ginger, chilli, soy and oyster sauces. Squid fried for mere seconds until opaque. Melt in the mouth. I've never worked out why, but snow peas are known in Chinese as 荷兰豆 (hé lán dòu) which literally translates as "Holland beans".

Yes, chicken feet and congee. 八宝粥 (bā bǎo zhōu) to be precise. Eight Treasure Porridge - a big favourite. The eight treasures vary from restaurant to restaurant (and may not actually be eight). Jujubes, goji berries, nuts, dried fruit etc. It is nearly always vegetarian. The little pigs are steamed bread. The stuff in the scallion dish is dried tofu skin to be mixed into your porridge should you desire.. The "stir fry" is just a mixed fried noodles - 炒面 chǎo miàn - a popular breakfast dish. Well, popular as a light meal or snack at any time of day, really. The "waterfall" you are seeing is a reflection of the overhead light fitting. Most restaurants in China allow smoking. It used to seem to be compulsory to smoke half way through the meal, but, over the last few years , I have noticed a sharp decline in the number of people smoking in restaurants. Still too many though. I am convinced that it is no accident that the Chinese for "banquet" and "cigarette ash" are both 'yanhui'. Only the tones are different. Banquet: 宴会 yàn huì Cigarette ash: 烟灰 yān huī

Cheese n Crackers. Black Pepper.

Yum Cha . (饮茶 Mandarin: yǐn chá) literally "Drink Tea" aka 早茶 zǎo chá, Morning Tea.

I an also unable to reach it now, but as I recall, it suggested that Hello Fresh is working on a 2% margin - before including the cost of marketing and that without marketing their trade would decline rapidly in the face of competition from other food providers including traditional suppliers and newer rivals such as Amazon. . It didn't suggest a specific break even price.

Odd. It is behind a paywall, now. But I read it just before I posted it and it was accessible. I do not have a subscription. It was just saying that as a business model, it is financially non-viable. It demonstrated that the cost does not cover the contents, packaging, delivery and necessary marketing.

Interesting view from the Financial Times.

I had no idea who you were all talking about until you mentioned "How To Cook Everything". He is pretty much unknown outside the US, so far as I can tell. Anyway, a friend (American) sent me the ebook version and it lingered on my Kindle unread for months, but one day I decided to consult it to find out how to cook something. It wasn't in the book! Everything? Not by long shot. What an arrogant title! Then I flicked electronically through it and found some statement to the effect that bacon isn't bacon if it isn't smoked. At that point I threw the Kindle across the room doing it major damage. That's why I can't look up the precise quote! Most bacon in the world is unsmoked. It is bovine excrement to suggest otherwise. Generally, I found him incredibly parochial, but I guess he knows his market. It just doesn't include me.

Today a roadside plate of fried rice, somewhere in south China. Fried rice is most usually eaten as a quick lunch or snack, rather than to accompany other dishes as it often is in western Chinese restaurants. This was advertised as 扬州炒饭 yáng zhōu chǎo fàn, but it isn't really. Real Yanggzhou Fried Rice is a much more luxurious version. Note the lack of egg. Fried rice in China sometimes has egg, but usually not. Anyway, It was fine and at ¥7 (USD $1; £0.70) a large plate, who can complain?

Got home late (again) and threw this together to fill the hole. Penne with pork, shiitake and tomato. Spiced with dried chilli and black pepper.

Grrrrrrrrrrrr! Which part of don't you understand? You have been offering suggestions left, right and centre. @Anna N has already told you we don't want to know!

Ah. Good. But does it have any legal standing? Does it prevent anyone making a beer, selling it as craft beer but not meeting the criteria and so using the ugly seal?

A nose?

Same with me. Fish cakes just happened to be on my mind and are a favourite - especially Thai style. Mine are Trashcan style.

Thank you. Managed to download the 2nd, despite China thinking it will overthrow the natural order! Will listen tomorrow.