But now that the weather's heating up again, so are the comments. So now I'm calling out another hater from the blog, hoping to prove her very, very, very wrong.
Over the weekend, I posted my wrap-up of comments responding to my 1st Annual Cafe Society Poll about Food and Chefs and Stuff. Or so I thought. But then, as I was innocently scrolling through the comments, I ran across this one from Jackie:
It is true, and very very unfortunate, that the majority of Denver eaters are very uneducated and unadventurous about what they eat. They really don't get it and won't step out of their comfort zone to try something new. Well, what can you expect if 70% of Americans don't even have passports(maybe more have it now since you need a passport to cross over to Canada these days) and have not traveled overseas. Watching Anthony Bourdain eat the stuff he eats is one thing, trying it yourself is another. Unfortunately, majority of Denverites have no guts or sense of adventure when it comes to food. The most daring (and apparently, 'ethnic') foods that this city eats are hamburgers, hot dogs, burritos and westernized version of Kung Pao chicken. Woohoo... how exciting. Until Denverites stop being such wusses and support the new, the weird, the real food folks who are bringing in their beautiful ethnic food, the food scene here will continue to be what it is - boring and pathetic.
It is true, and very very unfortunate, that the majority of Denver
eaters are very uneducated and unadventurous about what they eat. They
really don't get it and won't step out of their comfort zone to try
something new. Well, what can you expect if 70% of Americans don't even
have passports(maybe more have it now since you need a passport to
cross over to Canada these days) and have not traveled overseas.
Watching Anthony Bourdain eat the stuff he eats is one thing, trying it
yourself is another. Unfortunately, majority of Denverites have no guts
or sense of adventure when it comes to food. The most daring (and
apparently, 'ethnic') foods that this city eats are hamburgers, hot
dogs, burritos and westernized version of Kung Pao chicken. Woohoo...
how exciting. Until Denverites stop being such wusses and support the
new, the weird, the real food folks who are bringing in their beautiful
ethnic food, the food scene here will continue to be what it is -
boring and pathetic.
Really,
Jackie? Hamburgers, burritos and Kung Pao? That's the most daring
stuff we have here? I am truly at a loss for words...
Oh, wait. No, I'm not. I've got about a million of them, all nicely archived here at westword.com,
detailing seven years' worth of adventures through Denver's stranger
quarters. More to the point, I've got a nice gang of friends (and
enemies) here online who, I am sure, would be happy to school you about
their favorite (and completely un-Bourdainian) adventures through
Denver's ethnic neighborhoods, closed communities and immigrant
enclaves.
So this week's mission is a simple one: Name the best
so-called "weird" food you've had recently and where you got it (in
order that we might help Jackie to discover the best Denver has to
offer), and then name the one thing you'd like to try that you can't
(yet) get here.
I'll go first: Not long ago, I found myself with a big crowd at China Jade in Aurora. These were all fairly adventurous eaters -- guys and girls who love
finding the new, the weird and the real wherever it might be hiding. And while we had a fine time going through the special
Tianjin-inflected Northern Chinese menu (full of kidneys and eel, tripe
wontons and hot pots), what we really wanted was something special. That was when one of our number hit on the idea of simply pointing to
one of the Chinese signs hung near the counter and asking to have
some -- no matter what it was. What we got was a delicious casserole of
fish in chile oil, dressed in a thick sauce flecked with bits of hot
pepper, served in a portion large enough for ten. It wasn't something
that was on the regular menu, wasn't even a plate that'd made the real
Chinese menu. It was just something the kitchen had thrown together as
a special for the immigrant clientele, but they were proud as hell to
be serving it to us as well.
And the thing I want to try that I can't get here? Chevaline. Yes, horse meat. I've been curious for a long time.
Now
it's your turn. Comments below, and don't be shy. Oh, and Jackie?
Just for the record, I don't have a passport right now either...
