Tuesday, May 06, 2008

The End of the Affair?

So, very excited, at lunch I drove across the Bridge to my old favorite grocery to acquire Chinese ingredients to make some dishes from Cecilia Chiang's The Seventh Daughter.

I took a photograph before I went in. Isn't she lovely?

Unfortunately, she was looking very shabby inside. All was not as I remembered. Either that, or my enthusiasm has been (properly) dampened by the (hideous) reports on (nonexistent) food safety standards in China. (Yes, I do know this is a Chinese-American market, but many of the products come from China, and I just have this feeling. . . ) I saw packets of fresh noodles already dotted with mold, dented cans of coconut milk, rusting jars of bamboo shoots. Charnel house atmosphere over at the butcher counter.

I did not let it deter me. I loaded up -- on pork belly, lotus seeds, gingko nuts, won ton skins, and so on -- but not with the giddy high spirits of yore. Sad.

6 comments:

  1. Loved the phrase "charnel house" applied to the butcher's, also "isn't she lovely" tag on the photo. In fact loved the whole piece. Was surprised that you went ahead and purchased items, after your litany of less-than-appealing products and atmosphere. Nice twist. Haven't read your other entries yet, but I suspect that I will become a devoted reader. PGM

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