Food hangups

I'm truly fortunate to grow up in Singapore. Because of her location's integral ties to maritime activity, historical and present, we have the luxury of influences from all over the world, including our gastronomy. That said, it is of little wonder that most Singaporeans are inclined to try almost any food once.

Sure, there are some items I will never voluntarily eat again. But let it not be said I never gave it a shot. Tripe, chitlins, chicken feet, Beijing street food, to name a few.

So, it was with great delight a friend gave me some bacon-flavored toothpicks and bacon mints the other day. I admit it's certainly not an appetizing concept, but it's fun. I doubt I'll be finishing up the mints anytime soon. But I at least I gave it a shot. It wasn't bad, you can actually taste the slight hint of mint after the coating of 
bacon flavor wears off.



I offered it to colleagues the other day. One I simply told him what it was, and he instantly turned his nose up. The other one, I opened up the can, revealing the white mint contents, and offered her the mint, not telling her it's bacon-flavored. Only when she popped it in her mouth, I asked if she tasted something different about it. Aha. She stopped sucking and with it still lying on her tongue, asked what it was. When she learned it was bacon mint, she spat it out right away.

Now, if something tastes good or even all right, why the hangup when you know what you're eating? If it's poison (and even if I truly detest you, I doubt I'll be feeding you that), such action will be understandable. But why not give everything a shot?

In every instance, if it had been told to me what it was, I would actually tasted it more discerningly, and determine the results.

Same thing with chitlins. I had known for a long time what it was and though, curious, never wanted to attend a darn festival celebrating it. Then a roommate brought it home, and it smelled horrible. But I thought I'd give it a shot. The instant it touched my tongue, the flavor was so rancid I should've spat it out. Instead, I bit down on it, and the juices of whatever just oozed into my mouth. Never in my life had I spat and gagged at the same time. It was truly repulsive.

But hey, to each his own, and don't let ME influence you all THAT much if you had to try it or not. With chitlins, liver, tripe, chicken feet, or even bacon mints.

New Addiction

I have since succumbed to yet another type of blog -- that of restaurant reviews.
Honestly, I have nothing exciting on the job search front, and I'd rather be positive than negative, so I haven't posted anything on myspace in a while.

But check out this fun site where I get to perform a public service to all mankind. I think it's more productive and also helps me stay connected in some social aspect.

For those of you in bigger cities, it's worth checking out your area of town. For those who remain in relatively smaller ones, start your own. And let's kick the useful albeit subscription-based Angie's list to the curb.
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Patrick: That's terrific. We have a very active Yelp scene in NYC too. I haven't gone out to many restaurants or bars here in Connecticut (being broke will do that), but I intend to get more involved with it when I move back to the city.

Where to eat?!

OK, I'm at a loss. I'm headed to Vegas in three weeks, and I need some more suggestions on where to graze.

We'll be there, officially, for 2 days, so that's at least 4 meals. Am considering dinner at Tom Colicchio (Top Chef judge) craftsteak $$$$. Ouch! But I adore Colicchio and since we aren't springing for the hotel (but bear in mind also I've plenty of expenses coming up, living in Chicago, and living off one income), that maybe we can afford to splurge at one nice restaurant.

There's also the off-the-strip Thai place - Lotus of Siam $. I've read in various forums that the Parisian buffet is better than the Wynn's and Bellagio's. The latter 2 tend to be costly and overrated.

So what other good, cheap eats are there?

The quest for cheap tuna

This story, my friend, is a glimpse of what's to come when you are watching every penny, and very possibly when we all hit that senior citizen stage.

Explainer: To my non-newspaper bloggees, an insert is that piece of advertisement that comes with the daily newspaper, most notably, the supermarket ones that show up either on Mondays and/or Wednesdays, primo placement days for food ads.

Anyway, I didn't know what possessed me to STUDY the Albertson's insert Monday. And boy, am I glad I did. There is an 8-hour sale from 3 to 11 today on tuna fish, mayo, Miracle Whip, diapers, toilet papers, water etc. What caught my interest was the StarKist tuna in water going for 29 cents (if you have your preferred card, dear customer). Wow, can you beat that! This is no generic brand. But each customer is limited to six cans per visit.

Before you deem me pathetic, let me explain the importance of canned tuna fish a la chicken of the sea to this family of 4 (2 adults and 2 pets). Two cans of tuna go a long way for us. Drain the juice (we get the ones in water. Oil is too messy) and Bubba gets a condiment bowl-ful of pure bliss. Scrape the drained tuna into a bowl, Mark and I get fixin's for a tuna salad. The scraps that cling to the inner rim and lid? That's Bentley's little taste of heaven. I have to add that our usually sedate cat gets extremely excitable when he has a whiff of that tuna. Makes you feel like you've done your job as a parent, y'know.

So, what would you do for 29-cent tuna? Well, if you were me, you rushed to the store in the morning, loaded up the basket and be informed that the sale begins at 3 p.m., oh, a mere 6 hours away. Drats.

Luckily, the day passed by quite quickly, and before I know it, I was hitting the first Albertson's. This is where I thought I ended up in a retirement home. All around me, a mass of energetic silver-haired seniors were loading up their carts, inserts in hand, making sure they didn't miss out on any deals. That explains why all the carts were gone. No matter, I only wanted one Miracle Whip and 6 cans of tuna.

The popularity of this sale was phenomenal. Rules were pushed to the wayside as the self-checkout counters and minimum-items counters were jam packed with shoppers, some of whom had never used the new technology in their lives. But never mind that, even the self-checkout lanes were staffed. That's service and great foresight, my friends.

Finally, I managed to leave with my goods. I would go back and get more tuna but the thought of waiting in line for another 6 cans is quite daunting. I decided to hit the second Albertson's.

Yes, I was desperate for a good deal. But I'm living on one income and I have an obligation to seize a deal when there's one. And this is too good to pass up. The second location is just as packed. Thankfully, I was directed to the customer service counter as I had only my limited 6 cans of tuna. That, again, was great customer service. There were only three of us in line. I wondered if I dared ask the cashier if I could return with another 6 after my purchase. I would have to see if she's pleasant. She was wonderful and told me I could return as often as I wanted.

Now, there comes a point when even desperation can seem well, desperate. I returned just once more, making out with a total of 12 cans (i.e. 2 trips) in the end, and happily loaded up my car and drove home.

I will be back later tonight for a few more. Afterall, I have till 11 p.m. One can never have too many tuna.