my cutie

my nephew (and his parents) returned from calgary this afternoon. they've been away for 3 long weeks. so, we did the usual for our family when someone travels: we have a meal together right away.

we ate at the always reliably delicious Crab House Restaurant which is right behind the original Canadian Tire on #3 road in richmond. my dad had a fever so he didn't have dinner with us but here's what we had:
> fried pork chops with salted spice
> beef, ginger and green onion hotpot
> chinese water lettuce
> beef and bitter melon

but enough about us.

let me tell you about the other table where a chinese young woman dressed stylishly conservative ate with a young caucasian man in a suit. they sat across from each other on a rather small table that wasn't more that 3 feet square.

here's what they ordered:
> crab cooked in cream sauce with efu noodle (look behind ethan's head in the top photo)
> beef and broccoli
> full order of crispy chicken

as we walked towards the bubble tea place in the same strip mall, the four of us decided that the dinner was an attempt by the chinese girl to impress her new boss. we believe this solely because of the unusual pairing of the dishes.

it's like this: if you're a lover of crab in cream sauce with efu noodle, it's highly unlikely you're gonna want to order crispy chicken because these are two dishes that are typically 'heavy.' it's just not generally done.

also, beef and broccoli. who orders beef and broccoli? okay, yes, even chinese people order this dish or else why would they have it on the menu.

it's just that the selection of the 3 dishes didn't seem balanced and, to us, revealed an attempt to impress somebody.

look at my nephew's expression, even he wasn't impressed.