Pan

What's that?

Jaymes, enjoy yourself in Juneau. That's great writing. It should be a promotional brochure for Alaska because it's hard for me to imagine how anyone could sell Alaska better.

I don't think I was wandering over to any tables uninvited. I like to walk a little, and a favorite place to go was the fish tanks in Chinese restaurants.

How old are the kids you're talking about? My folks did let me walk around restaurants, always keeping a close eye on me and never letting me wander out of their eyesight. The restaurant staff and patrons were very nice to me most of the time, and I don't ever remember getting into any trouble or creating any kind of problem. The only way I created problems that I can remember is when I got cranky (tired, bored), and then I would whine to my parents, whereupon they would solve the problem by either getting me to be quiet or leaving. They'd tell you, though, that I was a pretty easygoing kid.

Good thing indeed! But I'm not sure you did anything wrong. Only your dinner companions could judge that.

Welcome to eGullet, mamacooksyummy! Where are you living and which part of China is your mother living in?

Thanks, Stone. I'm not sure if I agree with your father that food can never be worth that amount of money, but I do fully understand why you'd be hesitant to spend that much money on a meal at FL again if you're not finding the place essentially flawless and sublime. I do believe in a sliding scale in judging restaurants, and at that end of the spectrum, it had better be unbelievable. That said, you made your mother's day, and that has to count for a lot.

jo-mel, was the sweet melon nan gua?

I think that happens everywhere. I do think that plenty of visitors from out of town come there. Well, perhaps there are fewer now than a year or two ago; I really wouldn't know, as I myself visit much less frequently than I used to.

What was the "white line"?

Of course your not in Cal., but I thought that you might be a frequent visitor. My brother lives in SF, but the last time I was there was over 2 years ago.

Stone, would it be rude for me to ask what the total bill was? Thanks for such a detailed and well-written report!

Ellen, I want to hear about your encounters with Maoists. Evidently, you survived them uninjured. Did you encounter armed guerrillas?

I get specials occasionally. The most common reason for me to get a special is that the ingredients sound special. If they don't, I won't pay a surcharge. And yes, I generally find like others who've posted to this thread that in New York, specials cost significantly more than the average dish on the menu. For example, if mains hover around $13-17, specials are likely to run around $20. And I always ask what something will cost if I don't know. The exceptions were at two Chinese restaurants in Malaysia last summer, where I ordered fish and they served me their good fish that I would and did like, knowing that it would cost a lot for a Malaysian, but being mindful of the highly advantageous exchange rate of dollars to ringgit. My last dinner in Malaysia was very expensive for a Malaysian, but still cost under $20 and was fabulous.

[message deleted after I realized Herb was asking about Chonqing being an independent municipality, not the wartime capital of China]

New York Noodletown bypassed by most? I definitely wouldn't say so! Also, while I do go there for some comforting soup and such from time to time, I definitely feel it's slipped in the last couple of years.

Joe, I'm not in California, but I saw it all over the place when I was in the Bay Area.

Your answer before suggested to me that you had thoughts of spreading the misery. You don't like paying a lot for health insurance. But as long as there's no national health plan, it will remain the case that unions will pressure employers to provide and maintain health insurance, whereas freelancers and other people who don't get their health paid for them will have to pay a lot of money in places where doctors' costs are high or/and there is a local monopoly/oligopoly of medical insurance. Sure some Canadians come here. And many more Americans buy prescription medicine in Canada. And then there are people like my Canadian ex-girlfriend, who finds it cheaper to pay for a round-trip airfare from New York to Toronto and see her doctor there than merely get prescription medicine (let alone pay for an office or hospital visit), when she's between jobs as a permanent resident of the U.S. For people with a lot of money, the U.S. medical system is great. They have no problem to solve. For people who have no medical insurance in the U.S. and also lack great wealth, the medical systems in places like France - and I daresay, Canada - are better. But getting back to the topic at hand, I don't see where you have any grievance against workers who are trying to get their employers to pay (or keep paying) for medical insurance in the absence of a national medical plan that you disapprove of. Is it that you'd rather their pay and benefits were less, so that your food costs could be lower? That would be a selfish thought, right? So why criticize them for negotiating for what's best for them?

How expensive is it?

[deleted for lack of pertinence]

With all due respect (i.e., nothing personal), why not support a national health plan to solve the problem for both them and you, instead of being like the dog in the manger in Aesop's fable? A national health plan is the real solution because it is indeed wrong to have the current patchwork; moreover, it's inefficient.

Don't have to, though. Wild fennel grows in great profusion throughout the Bay Area. Ironically, unless something's changed in the last few years, few people seem to be using it. Sort of like dandelions being expensive when it's growing as a weed everywhere.

I remember them too. It couldn't be that long ago, maybe less than 20 years. I normally would never order Chow Mein, but try the Beef and Chinese Broccoli Chow Mein next time you're at Congee Village on Allen St. just south of Delancey in Manhattan. It's a genuine Chinese dish and quite good. The Chow Mein is a layer of crispy thin noodles, and the beef and Chinese broccoli are on top of it. On the bottom of the bowl is a nice brown sauce.

Wow, that's quite a spread there!

What's a "mitthai"?