On Vox: In which I eat out (multiple times) and celebrate several birthdays
I eat out an extraordinarily large percentage of the time for someone who no longer has an income. Before you start grinding down on me and declaring me an undisciplined yuppie or idiotic student who just likes to spend money as if it were water, please try to understand that much of it is unintentional. Let me explain why.
First off, I will be moving from the Washington, DC, Metropolitan area to downtown San Francisco, CA, within the next month to begin my studies as a law student. I probably will not have a chance to return to the area until after my semester is over, and for someone who has not left the DMV (DC/MD/VA) area for any extended period of time before, it is slightly traumatizing to be away from kith and kin for so long. I want to meet with all my friends before I leave, and that means dinners out with them (unfortunately for all of us, they have to work and earn a living, therefore lunches are a little difficult sometimes, although not totally impossible).
Secondly, several of my good friends have birthdays in July, all strategically placed so that it’s possible to go out to eat once every few days or so…
In other words, my wallet has felt a little beat up the past month…
->Birthday Celebrations
Nava Thai
Our first celebration was at a hole-in-the-wall restaurant for my friend, Caroline. Nava Thai is extremely small, and during our forty minute wait for a table, my friends and I explored the Asian supermarket that is attached (literally, there is a door directly into the restaurant). The service is good, although the English level of this family-run business is a bit shoddy. But their lack of English is totally made up for by the quality of their food; I ended up with a version of a noodle dish that should have had liquid, but mind somehow didn’t have broth (I don’t remember what it is anymore, although all the dishes are good, so it doesn’t really matter what you order there).
Navathai
Just a note to all of you who like Thai food but don’t like it too spicy- if you’re unable to take the heat, like I am, then please remember to tell them to keep the spice down! Otherwise you’ll be in for a hot treat~!
Penang
For the combined birthday celebrations of my friends Debby and Caroline, we hit up Malaysian food. But the weird thing is that the waitress kept talking to us in Cantonese, despite our consistent responses in English. Luckily, Debby speaks Cantonese and translated for the rest of us clueless ones.
Penang - Noodle Soup
I had a very light noodle soup… It kind of reminded me of Taiwanese styled noodles, but I guess… Malaysian food in my area is a combination of most Asiatic foods?
Penang - Chicken Curry
Anna got a chicken curry. Not bad, not bad.
Penang - Fried Ice Cream
Fried ice cream on the menu… who can resist? Not my friends, definitely. Unfortunately, it was drizzled with chocolate syrup, which meant I couldn’t eat it… At least I could watch them enjoy it while I ate this…
Penang - Black Rice in Coconut milk
Black rice in coconut milk. Not the most appetizing-sounding dessert, but yummy nonetheless. It’s not too sweet, which is nice.
Amina Thai
I didn’t know that there were such things as Muslim Thai food, but apparently there is. And it’s good, too. (I swear, I seriously eat Thai whenever I’m out with my friends… what’s up with that?)
In this case, it was to celebrate the long delayed birthday of my friend, Sandra. Her boss recommended the place, and I can safely say that her boss has awesome taste in restaurants. It was a bit difficult to find, but after several many U-turns and frantic phone calls to Sandra, I finally found the place and settled down to eat. I rarely notice the clientele in a restaurant, but living in a place rife with Asians, it was a bit unsettling at first to notice that none of the patrons were Eastern Asian. I hate profiling a restaurant like this, but usually the authenticity of a restaurant’s food can be seen by the people eating there. If a Chinese restaurant is filled with mainly Chinese people, then it only makes sense that the food is probably catered to Chinese tastes, as opposed to places like Panda Express which makes “Americanized” Chinese food…
But if this was the exception to the rule, I don’t mind. The food was delicious.
Amina Thai - Mussamun Curry
Mussamun Curry… Yummy and not as spicy as I thought it would be, thankfully. I really liked this one. it was savory and a bit sweet, and I absolutely adore onions, so it was perfect.
Amina Thai - Pad Kee Mao
The Pad Kee Mao noodle dish that we chose was also very good. Savory with just enough of a spice kick to make things interesting…
Amina Thai - Fried Banana
And, of course, dessert. Fried banana wrapped in phyllo and then drizzled with a generous portion of honey. Not their forte, I suppose, although it wasn’t bad. After all, it was deep fried. How could it possibly be bad? :D
->Rehoboth Beach
Rehoboth Party
In an effort to make the most of my summer, my friends and I went to Rehoboth Beach in Delaware a couple of weeks ago. We enjoyed a day of fun in the sun, and it was good times… until I got caught in a tussle with the ocean… and lost. Haha. I basically slipped in the water and ended up being swept back on the beach on my behind. My legs and arms are now scratched up as souvenirs.
For lunch, my friend and I decided to try this interesting side street restaurant:
Go Fish
Rehoboth - Go Fish
I decided to have fish’n'chips, except instead of just the fish by itself, I opted for it in a wrap (which somehow made it cheaper than actual fish’n'chips… strange)
Rehoboth - Go fish cod wrap and chips
The wrap was yummy and absolutely huge. I couldn’t finish it. The chips left something to be desired though…
For dinner, we went to…
Crabby Dick’s
Crabby Dick’s is an awesome restaurant.
Crabby Dick's - Claws
They have some absolutely hilarious merchandise for sale (a t-shirt that says Anita Dick? :D), and the food is terrific.
Crabby Dick's - Salad
I got a simple salad that had crab and shrimp and chhese and pepperoni and egg and… okay, so it wasn’t so simple. But it was tasty!
Crabby Dick's - Soft Shell Crab Sandwich
My friend, Nguyen, had this for his dinner… I’ve never seen a soft shell crab eaten this way, but… Haha, it was too interesting not to take a picture of!
Crabby Dick's - Strawberry Shortcake
And here is Nguyen and Debby’s strawberry shortcake dessert. Cute.
As a side note, I find it immensely amusing that whenever my friends and I travel outside of Maryland and see “Chesapeake Crabs” on the menu, we inevitably refuse to order it, saying that we can get the same thing anytime we’re at home… and yet, I never eat crab at home… Strange? I think so.
-> College Park
Marathon Deli
One of my absolute favorite places to eat is Marathon Deli. A small, family-owned Greek restaurant, they have gyros that can rival anyone else’s, hands down. It was a staple in college, and recently, a couple of my friends an I decided to make a trip out to College Park in order to enjoy one last meal there before we all moved to the West coast (I’m not the only one making the hop, apparently).
Marathon Deli - Value Meal Gyro
And their fries are amazing as well. I don’t know what they put on it, but I am in love.
Rita's - Peachy
Afterwards, we tried to beat the heat by going down the street to get some Rita’s custard and ice. It hit the spot, really. 95 degrees F is just painful unless you cool yourself down with treats like this.
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And that concludes today’s post. Whew, that was tiring!!
Originally posted on shippouchan.vox.com