Thread 21698223

I need to preface my story with some info about the time it's set in. I grew up in the 80's in the Midwest. This is back when America was a very white country, especially in the Midwest.

One day my mom told us she and my stepdad were going to take us to a restaurant downtown that served Japanese food, and most importantly they cooked it right in front of you.

I was super excited because to me, a little kid from the Midwest, Japan was this mythical place with ninjas and an alien culture totally foreign to me.

We got all dressed up and we drove to the restaurant. It was a warm summer evening, and the restaurant was in a lovely little Mid Century style building located behind the governors mansion.

We were sat down around a huge hibachi grill. Mom let us kids order kiddie cocktails. They came out with slices of oranges and cherries skewered by a little umbrella.

Mom ordered for us. Then the chef came out pushing the ingredients for our dinner. I had never really seen an Asian person up close before, so this too was a new experience.

He started off the show with an onion volcano, then went into showing off his skills handling the cooking utensils. He flicked shrimp to us, but I missed mine.

I don't even remember what all we ate but it was delicious. We didn't get any sushi or anything like that. This was back when sushi was something eaten by weirdos on the west coast and unheard of in the Midwest.

Finally the time to leave came and I was sad, but also a much wiser and experienced 8 year old. I couldn't wait to tell my friends about the experience the next day.

I was introduced to Indian food in the late '90s at this restaurant in Moline, Illinois. At the time it was called India House.

They had a daily buffet and I had my first taste of chicken tikka masala, mattar paneer, naan, etc. Amazing. I gorged myself here regularly until I left for college in Iowa City. Then I'd occasionally meet up with friends when I came home for the holidays.

They shut down a few years ago.

I’m old enough to remember when chips and salsa were seen as new.

>>21698230
Holy shit is that in an old Taco Bell?
The Indian restaurant in my town is in an old Taco Bell too

>>21698238
Huh, all these years I never made that connection but I think you're right. It would be funny if it went back to being a Taco Bell after 30 years or whatever.

>help wanted
>also need someone who speaks english
Imagine the endless pussy. Place would be packed night after night as word spreads of the 9" gaijin.
Then you get gutted in an alley.
I guess I deserve this is all you can think as the light goes dim.

>>21698235
When did that happen? Around 97? Seems to coincide with Frito Lays destroying Hostess.

>>21698240
seems to be the same building

>>21698235
you must be ancient

>>21698249
You have building blindness.

ITT: millennials who grew up in the midwest

>>21698247
Nah earlier than that. I remember growing up eating chips with huge jars of pace chunky style salsa in the very early 90's.

>>21698275
For me it was the generic Mexican Sauce.

>>21698223 (OP)
I only went to a hibachi grill once, at a birthday party, around 12/13 years old. The chef was good, flicked food at me 2-3 times, and I caught them each time. Chef then loudly compared me to a big mouthed bass, which- to an awkward and incredibly self conscious lad such as I-was devastating.

>>21698223 (OP)
Holy reddit spacing. Why did you format your post like this you, fucking freak

>>21698223 (OP)
I was alone in Rome when I was 19. Wandered into a quiet restaurant off the beaten path. I didn’t know what anything on the menu was, so I picked something random. The guy says “hmm maybe”, asks the cook something, then comes back and says “ok we can do it”. Turns out it was a dish with fresh clams, which was a hard no for me, but of course I had to eat it now. It was very good.

>>21698223 (OP)
My friends introduced me to a little Korean bar that made soju cocktails and served them along with Korean bar snacks. It was the first time I ever had a giblet, it was fun and crunchy, not something I would go seeking in my own time but when in Rome it is a bit of fun. It was a lot of fun getting sloshed there with my mates.

>>21698223 (OP)
if they can't speak english then who wrote the sign?

>>21699550
Guarantees replies.

>>21699564
If you have not yet, try deep fried chicken gizzards and livers.

>>21698223 (OP)
Why is language still a barrier when we live in an age where we all have Star Trek-level communicators in our back pockets?

>>21700975
Laziness, pride, and malice.

>>21700975
Because you can have whimsical misunderstandings like asking the waitress for a titfuck when you really mean ashtray and it's just this sort of social lubrication that leads to people crossing barriers and god forbid getting their dick wet and people like you want to take all that away for some reason.