Adventures in a Foreign Land - Poutine

What is poutine? Poutine is a French Canadian dish, made with french fries (chips), topped with brown gravy and curd cheese. Sometimes additional ingredients are added e.g. beef, pork, lamb, lobster, shrimp, caviar (I do have a story on "my first caviar", but this is getting too food related), but basically it's french fries, gravy and cheese. Does sound kinda yucky huh? (yeah, that was my first thought when I heard what went into it). This is what poutine looks like.

Poutine - looks yummy?

I remember there was this time I went out with a friend, I ordered a burger and he ordered poutine. I just kept looking (more like staring) at him as he ate and I actually asked if he was enjoying what he was eating. He just gave me this totally incredulous look and was like "of course".

Sometime after that, some Ghanaian friends invited myself and my Gh work colleague out to lunch (of course this time we went very prepared to pay even though they are guys and Ghanaian). We get to the restaurant, look through the menu and we both order poutine while the guys ordered something that sounded familiar (I think one got french fries and lamb or something and the other got rice). I really would have ordered a burger but I wanted to know what poutine tasted like. The food arrives and guess what? I couldn't eat it (neither could my Gh friend). Eventually, she gave up and joined the guys to eat their "familiar" food, but I was determined to eat what I had ordered (and all I kept saying to myself was "where's the MEAT?").

At the end, the guys paid for lunch, I dint enjoy my lunch and I so wished I'd just ordered something else.

Moral: (is there even a moral to this? yeah, I think I can find one) it's good to try out new stuff but you won't always enjoy all the new stuff you try (condition your mind to that) & don't try out new food on an empty stomach (you just might end up regretting big time and just eating what's in front of you just cos it's food) plus it doesn't hurt to give up (sometimes). I seriously wished I'd given up and joined the others to eat the "familiar" food (the guys would have understood. they really dint get why we ordered what we did and they kept trying to get us to change our minds. I'm sure in their heads it was all "I told you so", but they were nice enough not to voice that out). Matter of fact, I dint join them cos I was just fronting (acting all like I was enjoying it when I wasn't). It doesn't hurt to admit when you are wrong (afterall, you human).

I hear poutine is actually real good depending on where you get it at. It might have tasted better if I'd got it at say Burger King or A&W (I had it at a university restaurant).

Adventures in a Foreign Land - The Sushi Date

Where I’m from (at least what I’m used to where I’m from), usually, when someone invites you out to lunch or dinner (basically to do something that involves the spending of money), unless otherwise stated, the person (or people) that did the inviting pay for that something.

I’d never had sushi (the thought of raw fish still sends something up and down my spine) before so of course I was curious about it. Imagine my excitement (ummmmm... I think) when two of my work colleagues invited myself and another Gh gal out for lunch, and we were gon have sushi (Yay!). This invitation came a week before the lunch date (I guess you could call it that) so we had a whole week to contemplate how this date was gon go. I was of the opinion that we should go prepared to pay for our food especially since the invitation came from females (besides I’d heard that even with guys over there, you’d still have to settle your own bill). My Gh work colleague however was of the opinion that since we were “sitting our somewhere”, and these ladies felt we should try sushi (it is after all more than just raw fish. I always thought it was all about fish that was raw), then they would have to pay (I really don't know where this idea came from ooo... it was more of gals gals going to get lunch or something. why did we expect them to pay for us?). Of course you can’t blame her cos we were barely surviving on the money we made plus jeez! just about all of it went into paying bills (yuck!). We dint exactly have enough to spare on food we’d never tasted before and we weren’t even sure if we’d have to go look for some fufu to swallow afterwards in order for this sushi to digest. Besides, we always brought lunch from home (much cheaper).

Ok, so it was the day of the date (really, I don’t know what else to call it), one of the ladies drove us to the sushi bar and we left the “inviters” (doubt if that’s a word) to order. Oh my goodness! The food was actually really good. I loved it (at least I loved their selection). Of course I dint waste time trying to use the chop sticks (why bother when there was a fork?) And yeah, I did stink at using chop sticks (why would anyone want to eat with sticks anyways? that of course is a topic for another day).

Sushi done, waitress brings the bill and these ladies take out their cell phones to do the math :o Yep, they split the bill four ways L (these people paa... If I'd known, I'd have eaten more. the food was served on a tray and everyone just ate as much as they could).

Me, I came prepared papa. Matter of fact, I came over-prepared. I paid for myself and even had enough left to sort my Gh friend out (obviously, the money she had on her couldn't cater for her portion of the bill).

Moral of the story: there's nothing like over-preparation (seriously), your assumptions aren't always the truth (when in doubt, seek clarification) and it doesn't really hurt to try new stuff regardless of how weird they seem (who would have thought raw fish tasted good? some of it dint taste so hot though. with those ones, I dint eat too much, but if I'd known I was paying for them, I'd have eaten more papa). And finally, your friends don't always have the best advice (I have another story to illustrate this point. imagine if I'd also showed up with little or no cash).

P.S. my next adventure also has to do with food but it so does not mean I'm all about food (just a coincidence).
P.S.S. I tried Thai food some time eeeh and it was nice papa. This one I dint pay for. Was brought in for lunch during a board meeting at work (how I ate). There's this one with coconut juice in it... mmmmhmmm...