Four Day Adventure, Part 1

Note: ME, KC and I just finished a four day weekend, so I thought I’d break it down into smaller parts. Here’s the first:

“Yoshi, you can pick me one dish, any dish, and I will eat it.”

It was Wednesday night, the beginning of our four day weekend, and ME, KC, I were waiting for a table at a 100 yen sushi restaurant with our friend Yoshi, a Japanese lifeguard from work.

“Really?”

“Yes, really. Any dish. And I will eat it.”

The four of us found a spot, and I semi-nervously watched the plates travel around on the little conveyor belt, knowing that one of those unrecognizable seaweed-wrapped dishes would soon be in my mouth (and hopefully remain there.) With an evil little grin on his face, Yoshi handed me a plate.

“Here.”

“Don’t tell me what it is. I want to eat it, and then tell me.”

I picked up the first roll like the professional chopstick user that I am, and bit off half the roll, chewing it slowly while trying to decide what it was.

Bite 1: Not too bad, but not exactly great. Sort of earthy.

Bite 2: Same as the first, but leaning more towards the “not exactly great” side.

“It’s nato.”

NATO. That stinky, sticky bean the Japanese lifeguards had told us about. The one that 99% of Americans can’t handle because it (quite literally) tastes and smells like…crap.

Bite 3: GAG REFLEX IN ACTION.

I thought I could eat both rolls. I’m sorry to say I admitted defeat after the first one.

I think I’ll stick to desserts in my adventures with Japanese food. I haven’t gone wrong yet in that arena. :)

PS: To anyone who knew me as a child: yes, I really did tell someone to feed me any Japanese food they wanted. Miracle much?