Rough Diamonds
July 9th 2008 04:27
A rough wooden table with a comfortable, though motley group of chairs splayed around; perhaps a quick walk down a wooden hallway to get to the restaurant proper. Maybe pop music plays softly as the chef bounces to and fro discretely, or maybe the clatter and commotion of the kitchen suffices for the background ambience. The food is a gamble, but more often than not, if one chooses wisely; it comes out a flavourful treat. These are the places: the places we talk about with our friends, bragging about our local knowledge and alleged friendship with the chefs. I can think of a local Thai place in my area, plain, slightly greasy interior. But the chef is a bowling ball of energy, a short man usually clad in a blue apron. Bobbing up and down in the behind-the-counter kitchen, he mixed prepared pots of sauces, throws in the right vegetables; never wasting time searching for anything. Some of the best Thai food I’ve had. I’m sure all of you know such places, it might be a small store on a large strip of restaurants. Maybe it is surrounded by dozens of similar looking restaurants, but none with its own culinary achievements. Underappreciated and work-worn, the local chefs flip pizzas and stir woks with a smile, happy to serve the loyal set and perhaps a few stragglers who wander in.
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