Well, it's Monday, and you all know what that means! I'll tell you, nothing gets me more excited on a Monday than my trip to Little Tokyo. To be honest folks, my fascination with this fine establishment began when I would get to work Monday morning, act all down and depressed about my lot in life, and ultimately decide that nothing could cheer me up more than a plate of steaming sesame chicken and some yakisoba noodles. Before I knew it, a tradition was born, and I was using Little Tokyo to lift my spirits each dark and dreary Monday!
Today I had a surprise waiting for me when, just as I was about to clock out for lunch, my next cube neighbor, Joe, asked if I was headed off to Little Tokyo. Am I that transparent? I thought. Unable to hide my intentions, I admitted to Joe that Little Tokyo was indeed my destination. To my utter astonishment, Joe told me that he was feeling a craving for some fried rice and had been planning all morning to hit up the Toke (this being my affectionate slang term for Little Tokyo). He even offered to drive! And when we found a primo parking spot near the Eden Prairie Center, I began to think my day's luck was beginning to change.
We marched into the Eden Prairie Center's food court discussing the drudge of our day's work, when suddenly Joe made the brash move of stepping into line at LeeAnn Chin, Little Tokyo's main competitor for asian cuisine. I barely had time to process Joe's contemptuous maneuver before I found myself standing before a banner at Little Tokyo, presumably written by those same angels that had brought me my previous day's good fortune: 'Any Two Entrees for $5.99'. (!!!)
What had I done to deserve this? I began to think of situations where I might have helped an old lady cross a road, or saved a kitten from certain despair. Being unable to think of any such situation, I thought maybe this was some sort of future investment or an incentive to become a better person, to give back to a society that has done so much for me. As I pondered these loaded thoughts, I saw George piling a shit-ton of fried rice onto a plate.
'Um--actually, I was taking it to-go today...' I uttered. You see, on almost every occasion, I eat at the food court, away from the desk, in order to remind myself to make sure I relish each opportunity away from the cube. Today, however, was an exception -- Joe does not relish these opportunities, and unfortunately I was at his mercy.
So George dumped the rice into a to-go box, and started naming off the entrees I was going to get. It was almost cute how he said 'spicy teriyaki' instead of 'original teriyaki', which I was sure he knew I always ordered, but being that I already corrected him today, I took the spicy teriyaki and some sesame chicken. Just as I was about to tell him I'd also be going without a soda today, I found there was already a cup overflowing with delicious Cherry Coke sitting beside my to-go box. Once again, being that I'd dared the gods enough today despite their investment in me, I happily paid for my meal and soda and left.
As Joe and I departed, he with his LeeAnn Chin and I with my 'spicy' teriyaki, I told Joe he'd better be careful, since I thought I'd seen George glaring over at him in the LeeAnn Chin order line. Joe laughed it off, declaring 'It's a free country!'
And somewhere off in the distance, I heard a distant rumbling of thunder. The gods were angry...
Monday, April 26, 2010
Friday, April 23, 2010
The Cherry Coke Incident
Yes, my little clucking chicks, mother is here with some worms to stave your appetite until this coming Monday. As a first-day-of-blogging treat, I've decided to dig up one of my past adventures -- a story I've determined is the reason that I even started writing a blog about eating at an asian fast food restaurant in a suburban mall food court.
A little backstory: By the time this story takes place, I'd been a regular patron of the Little Tokyo in the Eden Prairie Center in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. I was only slightly aware that I was a recognizable face, not really realizing it until one day the manager (who is actually going to be a major player in many stories to come) started dishing up my regular entrees and pouring my regular soda before I even had a chance to ask.
So, on this particular day, I was hardly at the counter when the manager, we'll call him George (I still haven't asked his name) began pouring my Cherry Coke. I was getting loaded up on some teriyaki chicken, with extra teriyaki sauce of course, and thinking to myself that maybe I should be the one to take the next step in my relationship with George -- but how? I thought of how our budding camaraderie was basically initiated the day he began pouring my soda without waiting for me to order. Slowly, almost organically, the idea came to me to play a light-hearted joke, one I thought would be the start of a fond and meaningful friendship.
'Actually,' I said, then paused to smirk. A styrofoam plate of saucy noodles and chicken was placed on a tray before me. Then, slowly, I said 'I wanted the Barq's today.'
Without warning, George flipped the overfilled cup of Cherry Coke into the drain and began pouring in the Barq's. He had totally missed the joke -- had he not seen my devilish grin?
I could have let it go. I should have let it go...but of course, hindsight is always 20/20. So instead, I sheepishly stuttered 'No-no, it's...it's okay, I-I-I was only joking...ummm....'
George stood idle, his hand shaking, almost ready to pour out the Barq's and start again. He wore a blank stare, despite the fact that I could feel an almost guarded hatred that stemmed somewhere deep down inside. I finally decided to cut my losses, take the root beer (which I actually almost like more than Cherry Coke, and would drink more of if it weren't for my wife's utter disgust for it) and pay for my meal, which I could only halfheartedly enjoy by this point.
This incident led to my first of a few hiatuses (hiatii?) from the Little Tokyo, located in the Eden Prairie Center in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. I just couldn't bear to even think of looking George in the eye after such an utter failure at trying to form a lasting bond. It was the first time in a while that I experienced the whole 'one step forward, two steps backward' cliche, and it wouldn't be the last time in my whirlwind relationship with George from Little Tokyo.
There is a happy ending to this story: a long two weeks later, George would see me emerge from the masses to approach the Little Tokyo counter. Sure enough, by the time I reached the end of the serving line I found a smile, and a Cherry Coke, waiting patiently for me.
A little backstory: By the time this story takes place, I'd been a regular patron of the Little Tokyo in the Eden Prairie Center in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. I was only slightly aware that I was a recognizable face, not really realizing it until one day the manager (who is actually going to be a major player in many stories to come) started dishing up my regular entrees and pouring my regular soda before I even had a chance to ask.
So, on this particular day, I was hardly at the counter when the manager, we'll call him George (I still haven't asked his name) began pouring my Cherry Coke. I was getting loaded up on some teriyaki chicken, with extra teriyaki sauce of course, and thinking to myself that maybe I should be the one to take the next step in my relationship with George -- but how? I thought of how our budding camaraderie was basically initiated the day he began pouring my soda without waiting for me to order. Slowly, almost organically, the idea came to me to play a light-hearted joke, one I thought would be the start of a fond and meaningful friendship.
'Actually,' I said, then paused to smirk. A styrofoam plate of saucy noodles and chicken was placed on a tray before me. Then, slowly, I said 'I wanted the Barq's today.'
Without warning, George flipped the overfilled cup of Cherry Coke into the drain and began pouring in the Barq's. He had totally missed the joke -- had he not seen my devilish grin?
I could have let it go. I should have let it go...but of course, hindsight is always 20/20. So instead, I sheepishly stuttered 'No-no, it's...it's okay, I-I-I was only joking...ummm....'
George stood idle, his hand shaking, almost ready to pour out the Barq's and start again. He wore a blank stare, despite the fact that I could feel an almost guarded hatred that stemmed somewhere deep down inside. I finally decided to cut my losses, take the root beer (which I actually almost like more than Cherry Coke, and would drink more of if it weren't for my wife's utter disgust for it) and pay for my meal, which I could only halfheartedly enjoy by this point.
This incident led to my first of a few hiatuses (hiatii?) from the Little Tokyo, located in the Eden Prairie Center in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. I just couldn't bear to even think of looking George in the eye after such an utter failure at trying to form a lasting bond. It was the first time in a while that I experienced the whole 'one step forward, two steps backward' cliche, and it wouldn't be the last time in my whirlwind relationship with George from Little Tokyo.
There is a happy ending to this story: a long two weeks later, George would see me emerge from the masses to approach the Little Tokyo counter. Sure enough, by the time I reached the end of the serving line I found a smile, and a Cherry Coke, waiting patiently for me.
Introduction
Konichiwa! Moshi Moshi! (This means 'Welcome to my blog!' in Japanese!)
Allow me just a moment so that I can set up a mental picture for you. Right now I want you to focus on your lower back and legs. Imagine that these areas of your body are in scorching pain from an entire morning of shopping at your favorite mall. You see an RCC Western store off in the distance, but it's just too much for you to bear to try on another pair of ill-fitting jeans. The only thing your mind can focus on is grabbing a quick lunch at your mall's convenient food court.
This is the setting I want you to find yourself in right now. Imagine you are standing at the threshold of your favorite mall's food court. It could be one of the dozen eateries located in the Mall of America, or it could be a small town mall where everything is closed down outside of a sad, smelly pet store and an exotic foods market. Your senses are overcoming you. First, you notice the mixture of smells -- you've got good ol' American home cookin' at Arby's and McDonald's, fancy Italian dining at the Sbarro's, zesty Mexican over at the Taco Bell, and lastly the pungent aroma of orange chicken at the generic asian eatery. Next, you see all the neon signs, and your sense of sight threatens to cause a brief seizure. Lastly, your sense of sounds picks up the shouts of joy and laughter from all those children spared another lunch of lettuce sandwiches and Goldfish crackers.
First, you think 'Well, I could have McDonald's or Arby's any time I want, especially since there's three restaurants within spitting distance of my house,' so your mind crosses over to Sbarro's. Then you remember what happened the last time you ate there -- so your next option is Taco Bell. 'Shit, will you look at that line?!' you say to yourself, causing a mother and her three children to move away from you. So there you are, left with the quaint little asian place.
In your mental image, you may see a neon sign that reads 'King's Wok' or 'China Palace' or maybe even 'You Want Some, Come Get Dim Sum'. In my mind, I see 'Little Tokyo', a small, unremarkable restaurant located in the Eden Prairie Center in Eden Prairie, Minnesota (famous for being the filming location of Mallrats, for all you mall-trivia junkies out there!).
After a few visits to the Little Tokyo, located in the Eden Prairie Center in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, I decided to make it my regular lunching venue every Monday that I worked, for three reasons. Reason one: it's about a two minute drive from my job. Reason two: they have the friendliest staff and tastiest food of any restaurant in the Eden Prairie Center food court, and that's saying something! As an added bonus, every once in a while they'll have amazing deals. Just last November 2009, they had $1-off coupons with the purchase of one entree and a drink! When I saw that, I said 'Are ya' shittin' me?!', much to the chagrin of a mother and her three children standing next to me. And reason three: Every visit is an adventure!
This long-winded introduction has now led me to explain my true purpose for this blog -- to document my weekly trip to the Little Tokyo, located in the Eden Prairie Center in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. I've been going for a few months now, and I've got a backlog of stories that I just can't let die in my memory without some sense of remorse. So for a few weeks, I will be posting past adventures, along with any new ones that I might meet along the way.
So close your eyes, take my hand, and picture yourself in the greatest food court in the world. By the time you're done reading this blog, you will see Little Tokyo, located in the Eden Prairie Center in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, in the center of that most glorious of all food courts!!
Allow me just a moment so that I can set up a mental picture for you. Right now I want you to focus on your lower back and legs. Imagine that these areas of your body are in scorching pain from an entire morning of shopping at your favorite mall. You see an RCC Western store off in the distance, but it's just too much for you to bear to try on another pair of ill-fitting jeans. The only thing your mind can focus on is grabbing a quick lunch at your mall's convenient food court.
This is the setting I want you to find yourself in right now. Imagine you are standing at the threshold of your favorite mall's food court. It could be one of the dozen eateries located in the Mall of America, or it could be a small town mall where everything is closed down outside of a sad, smelly pet store and an exotic foods market. Your senses are overcoming you. First, you notice the mixture of smells -- you've got good ol' American home cookin' at Arby's and McDonald's, fancy Italian dining at the Sbarro's, zesty Mexican over at the Taco Bell, and lastly the pungent aroma of orange chicken at the generic asian eatery. Next, you see all the neon signs, and your sense of sight threatens to cause a brief seizure. Lastly, your sense of sounds picks up the shouts of joy and laughter from all those children spared another lunch of lettuce sandwiches and Goldfish crackers.
First, you think 'Well, I could have McDonald's or Arby's any time I want, especially since there's three restaurants within spitting distance of my house,' so your mind crosses over to Sbarro's. Then you remember what happened the last time you ate there -- so your next option is Taco Bell. 'Shit, will you look at that line?!' you say to yourself, causing a mother and her three children to move away from you. So there you are, left with the quaint little asian place.
In your mental image, you may see a neon sign that reads 'King's Wok' or 'China Palace' or maybe even 'You Want Some, Come Get Dim Sum'. In my mind, I see 'Little Tokyo', a small, unremarkable restaurant located in the Eden Prairie Center in Eden Prairie, Minnesota (famous for being the filming location of Mallrats, for all you mall-trivia junkies out there!).
After a few visits to the Little Tokyo, located in the Eden Prairie Center in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, I decided to make it my regular lunching venue every Monday that I worked, for three reasons. Reason one: it's about a two minute drive from my job. Reason two: they have the friendliest staff and tastiest food of any restaurant in the Eden Prairie Center food court, and that's saying something! As an added bonus, every once in a while they'll have amazing deals. Just last November 2009, they had $1-off coupons with the purchase of one entree and a drink! When I saw that, I said 'Are ya' shittin' me?!', much to the chagrin of a mother and her three children standing next to me. And reason three: Every visit is an adventure!
This long-winded introduction has now led me to explain my true purpose for this blog -- to document my weekly trip to the Little Tokyo, located in the Eden Prairie Center in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. I've been going for a few months now, and I've got a backlog of stories that I just can't let die in my memory without some sense of remorse. So for a few weeks, I will be posting past adventures, along with any new ones that I might meet along the way.
So close your eyes, take my hand, and picture yourself in the greatest food court in the world. By the time you're done reading this blog, you will see Little Tokyo, located in the Eden Prairie Center in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, in the center of that most glorious of all food courts!!
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