Here is a poem I wrote, for a contest, unfortunately I am not 5000 dollars richer
I Like Food
I wake up thinking of the georgeous day
When I see the face of she that i liked the most.
I couldn't think of anything I liked better in any way,
When i sink my teeth into that delicous roast.
Like a wonderful combination of texture and style,
She moves like she knows that she's hot.
I'd go anywhere to be with her, any distance of miles.
It's hard to imagine that you could ever rot.
Now come to me you beefy delight,
I plan on enjoying you all through the night,
I'll think of you even when I'm a ghost,
I love you, I love you, you delcious roast.
Paul Teiji Haneishi
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Delightful Italian food
So for true, wonderful italian food, I challenge the dining population of the United States, at least southern california to go out and search for true Italian cuisinee. I want all of you to stop eating at Olive Garden, I want you to stop going to pizza shops and thinking it's fine Italian cuisine. Pasta is not the only thing Italians have for dinner.
Food in America is prepared with a quickiness, and it is consumed with a quickness. I have here the classic Italian meal structure. It is set up this way so that the food can be truly enjoyed by relaxing and eating at a slow pace. with this in mind, please go out, spend 4-5 hours eating your dinner. Don't go by yourself, bring your family or your friends that you love.
Go out seach for it, because the restaurants are there, and one of the finest is found in beverly hills enoteca drago. I'll fornaio found in orange county and Los Angeles, may not be one of the finest but it is pretty good so go check it out. In Pasadena, there is Trattoria Tre Venezie and in downtown you can go to patino. One of my wine instructors works at vallentinos and he is a master sommelier so you know your pairing will be amazing!!!!
If you haven't had it before go out and enjoy some osso bucco, it's a fabulous dish when prepared correctly, and if you don't have anyone else to go out with feel free to get a hold of me, I'm willing to have a great dinner with you!
Aperitivo
Appertif usually enjoyed as an appetizer before a large meal. I think Proseco goes great for this, but of course it is dependent on the meal.
The meal usually starts with an amuse busch, which is a french thing, but many Italian chefs feature it. It is used to amuse our pallet and get something tasty to prepare us for a wonderful meal.
Antipasto
literally "before (the) meal", Not Salad!!! It is usually a hot or cold appetizer.
Primo
"first course", usually consists of a hot dish like pasta, yes, pasta, only one part of a huge italian dinner, haveing pasta for dinner and nothing else does not constitue a true italian meal. risotto which is amazing with italian hite truffles is another dish. Gnocchi is a great potato dumpling that is incredible witha good balsamic vinegar. Primo also features great polenta and soups
Secondo
"second course", the main dish, usually fish or meat. Traditionally veal, pork and chicken are the most commonly used meat. Northern Italy is full of farms and beef is becoming very popular in those regions. Wild game is very popular, particularly in Tuscany and other areas where it is available. Fish are those which are caught locally.
Contorno
"side dish", Salads and cooked veggies. These will accompany the main course
Formaggio e frutta
'cheese and fruits", the first dessert.
Local Cheeses may also be part of the Antipasto or Contorno as well.
Parmigiano Reggiano is the most popluar cheese in Italy and one of my favorites, but Italy has many different cheeses so it helps to find out what each region offes.
Dolce
"dessert", such as cakes and cookies like Tiramasu or biscottie
Caffè
coffee
Digestivo
"digestives", liquors/liqueurs (grappa, amarro, limoncello,sambuca, nocino) sometimes referred to as ammazzacaffe ("coffee killer")
Now go out and enjoy great Italian food
Food in America is prepared with a quickiness, and it is consumed with a quickness. I have here the classic Italian meal structure. It is set up this way so that the food can be truly enjoyed by relaxing and eating at a slow pace. with this in mind, please go out, spend 4-5 hours eating your dinner. Don't go by yourself, bring your family or your friends that you love.
Go out seach for it, because the restaurants are there, and one of the finest is found in beverly hills enoteca drago. I'll fornaio found in orange county and Los Angeles, may not be one of the finest but it is pretty good so go check it out. In Pasadena, there is Trattoria Tre Venezie and in downtown you can go to patino. One of my wine instructors works at vallentinos and he is a master sommelier so you know your pairing will be amazing!!!!
If you haven't had it before go out and enjoy some osso bucco, it's a fabulous dish when prepared correctly, and if you don't have anyone else to go out with feel free to get a hold of me, I'm willing to have a great dinner with you!
Aperitivo
Appertif usually enjoyed as an appetizer before a large meal. I think Proseco goes great for this, but of course it is dependent on the meal.
The meal usually starts with an amuse busch, which is a french thing, but many Italian chefs feature it. It is used to amuse our pallet and get something tasty to prepare us for a wonderful meal.
Antipasto
literally "before (the) meal", Not Salad!!! It is usually a hot or cold appetizer.
Primo
"first course", usually consists of a hot dish like pasta, yes, pasta, only one part of a huge italian dinner, haveing pasta for dinner and nothing else does not constitue a true italian meal. risotto which is amazing with italian hite truffles is another dish. Gnocchi is a great potato dumpling that is incredible witha good balsamic vinegar. Primo also features great polenta and soups
Secondo
"second course", the main dish, usually fish or meat. Traditionally veal, pork and chicken are the most commonly used meat. Northern Italy is full of farms and beef is becoming very popular in those regions. Wild game is very popular, particularly in Tuscany and other areas where it is available. Fish are those which are caught locally.
Contorno
"side dish", Salads and cooked veggies. These will accompany the main course
Formaggio e frutta
'cheese and fruits", the first dessert.
Local Cheeses may also be part of the Antipasto or Contorno as well.
Parmigiano Reggiano is the most popluar cheese in Italy and one of my favorites, but Italy has many different cheeses so it helps to find out what each region offes.
Dolce
"dessert", such as cakes and cookies like Tiramasu or biscottie
Caffè
coffee
Digestivo
"digestives", liquors/liqueurs (grappa, amarro, limoncello,sambuca, nocino) sometimes referred to as ammazzacaffe ("coffee killer")
Now go out and enjoy great Italian food
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
so the last one was cheesy
So here I go on another journey of exploration through my mind. I thought Id share my view on religion. I have turned away from christianity mostly because of the restictions it puts on your mind. We are the only creatures on the planet that have the ability to reaso, and evolve with out minds. For people that feel we haven't evolved over the years they are wrong. Our physical bodies may be the exact same as the were 2000 years ago but our minds our brains contain far more information. The quest for truth has made huge scientific progress and beleiving that when anything happens out of the ordinary is an act of god is ignorance.
It is our responsibility as human beings to realize that any afterlife, salvation whatever you want to beleive, our fate lies not in person that died 2000 years ago but how we lived for however many years. I don't want to convert anyone to a non-beleiving point of view, but I want people to understand that the greatest sin in the world is not disbeleiving the man that died 2000 years ago is divine, it is closing your own my mind and shutting out the ideas that come to you.
Explore your mind, because that is where the truth of the world lies, in adavanced thinking and learning. Everything that happens in the world,the why, who, how, when and what's happening is within us.
It is our responsibility as human beings to realize that any afterlife, salvation whatever you want to beleive, our fate lies not in person that died 2000 years ago but how we lived for however many years. I don't want to convert anyone to a non-beleiving point of view, but I want people to understand that the greatest sin in the world is not disbeleiving the man that died 2000 years ago is divine, it is closing your own my mind and shutting out the ideas that come to you.
Explore your mind, because that is where the truth of the world lies, in adavanced thinking and learning. Everything that happens in the world,the why, who, how, when and what's happening is within us.
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Interesting concoction
Incredibly unhealthy but i have discovred something that has blown my mind. For some reason I have never done this before, but I'm certain somebody does this somewhere.
I was at carl's jr. (yes yes my eating habits need work) and I noticed a chili cheese burger. My friends and I were reminicisng and the feature of hour high school lunch was a bag of frito's filled with chili and cheese. I started thinking of my sister and how when she was in elementary school she was addicted to del taco's chili cheese fries. So chili, has been on my mind.
So hungrily looking for something simple and fast to prepare for myself I look in my pantry andsee a can of chilli, next to a bottle tostitos nachos cheese, and in the shelf underneath a large bag of the grocery store brand tortilla a chips I'm sure where you can see where this is going.
I want you all to try it, simple snack put it all together, maybe add some jalapenos, this is a very special dish that will not get me very far as a professional chef, but I think even Thomas Keller would enjoye the wonderful combination of chilli cheese nachos.
I was at carl's jr. (yes yes my eating habits need work) and I noticed a chili cheese burger. My friends and I were reminicisng and the feature of hour high school lunch was a bag of frito's filled with chili and cheese. I started thinking of my sister and how when she was in elementary school she was addicted to del taco's chili cheese fries. So chili, has been on my mind.
So hungrily looking for something simple and fast to prepare for myself I look in my pantry andsee a can of chilli, next to a bottle tostitos nachos cheese, and in the shelf underneath a large bag of the grocery store brand tortilla a chips I'm sure where you can see where this is going.
I want you all to try it, simple snack put it all together, maybe add some jalapenos, this is a very special dish that will not get me very far as a professional chef, but I think even Thomas Keller would enjoye the wonderful combination of chilli cheese nachos.
So cal Ramen
I reviewd ramen maniacs list again, as I've been travling throughout orange county and Los Angeles learning about ramen shops. My father joined me on some of my trips and after a lot of ramen consuption we have made our conclusions.
To begin with so you know what I'm talking about, my rating system is different that the sites. Certain things I find more important and others less important. For instance, i don't care about the ambiance, I could care less if it's a picture of mt fuji or some crazy guy puts up a picture of hiroki tojo. If the Ramen is good, the ramen shop is good.
My list is as follows;
Soup-this is huge, this is the bread and butter of the ramen maker. Does he make his own soup? How long does he simmer his stock? 1 day? 3 days?? It has to have good consistency, it has to be a the point, where if you add just a little bit of anything it really affects the soup. Miso or kara miso curry and flavors like that do not get sampled when I eat ramen. the flavor is so strong that you cant screw it up. Do not talk to me about good soup if you're eating miso ramen.
Noodles- These things need to have some kick. They will always absorb the flavor of the soup but they should have some texture themselves. Old style ramen is when an extra egg is used to make the noodles richer. Modern ramen tends to change and modify the noodle for a certain desired affect. Here in california the water thats typically used is not as available, however, the noodles should still be as the italians say 'el dente' to the tooth. It should not be soggy, it should not be to fat, but it should have body.
Chashu- This topic I'm putting in here, because time and time again my ramen experiece is ruined by bad pieces of chashu. This will ruin the entire bowl of ramen. Char siu is a chinese blend of spices that is used to cure pork. Japanese (with most things) took this recipe and changed it. They took out the spice kept the flavor and put it in their ramen. Chashu pork, should fall apart as soon as you pick it up with your chopsticks. It should have a small bit of fat on it and it should melt in your mouth because it's so soft. It's such a simple ingrrew edient in the ramen but it makes the biggest impact.
The rest of the ingredients- its hard to screw these up, you add them at the end make sure they're cooked thoroughly. Simple right? You'd be suprised how many places screw this up
Gyoza- This kind of goes hand and hand with good ramen. The great ramen shops typically make great ramen. I don't want a nub, it needs to be big, it needs to be full of flavor it needs to be unique. So far none of the ramen shops can do it, dim sum places have the best gyoza. It makes me want to cry cus gyoza goes so well with great ramen.
With all that being said, between my father and i visiting 6 out of the 10 best ramen shops in southern california, with intent to visit the last 4, We both think ramen in southern calfiornia is not great, it's not special its lacking. Thats right, I said it, the Japanese ex-pat's agree, the nissei, the sansei, or anyone else that came to america to make ramen have not done a good job. I guess that if you're making great ramen in Japan, you don't have a reason to bring that trade to america. I'd very much like to see it change, I hope you enjoy the southern california ramen, because ramen is good, esepcially when it's not make made out of a package, but if you want great ramen you have to go to Japan.
To begin with so you know what I'm talking about, my rating system is different that the sites. Certain things I find more important and others less important. For instance, i don't care about the ambiance, I could care less if it's a picture of mt fuji or some crazy guy puts up a picture of hiroki tojo. If the Ramen is good, the ramen shop is good.
My list is as follows;
Soup-this is huge, this is the bread and butter of the ramen maker. Does he make his own soup? How long does he simmer his stock? 1 day? 3 days?? It has to have good consistency, it has to be a the point, where if you add just a little bit of anything it really affects the soup. Miso or kara miso curry and flavors like that do not get sampled when I eat ramen. the flavor is so strong that you cant screw it up. Do not talk to me about good soup if you're eating miso ramen.
Noodles- These things need to have some kick. They will always absorb the flavor of the soup but they should have some texture themselves. Old style ramen is when an extra egg is used to make the noodles richer. Modern ramen tends to change and modify the noodle for a certain desired affect. Here in california the water thats typically used is not as available, however, the noodles should still be as the italians say 'el dente' to the tooth. It should not be soggy, it should not be to fat, but it should have body.
Chashu- This topic I'm putting in here, because time and time again my ramen experiece is ruined by bad pieces of chashu. This will ruin the entire bowl of ramen. Char siu is a chinese blend of spices that is used to cure pork. Japanese (with most things) took this recipe and changed it. They took out the spice kept the flavor and put it in their ramen. Chashu pork, should fall apart as soon as you pick it up with your chopsticks. It should have a small bit of fat on it and it should melt in your mouth because it's so soft. It's such a simple ingrrew edient in the ramen but it makes the biggest impact.
The rest of the ingredients- its hard to screw these up, you add them at the end make sure they're cooked thoroughly. Simple right? You'd be suprised how many places screw this up
Gyoza- This kind of goes hand and hand with good ramen. The great ramen shops typically make great ramen. I don't want a nub, it needs to be big, it needs to be full of flavor it needs to be unique. So far none of the ramen shops can do it, dim sum places have the best gyoza. It makes me want to cry cus gyoza goes so well with great ramen.
With all that being said, between my father and i visiting 6 out of the 10 best ramen shops in southern california, with intent to visit the last 4, We both think ramen in southern calfiornia is not great, it's not special its lacking. Thats right, I said it, the Japanese ex-pat's agree, the nissei, the sansei, or anyone else that came to america to make ramen have not done a good job. I guess that if you're making great ramen in Japan, you don't have a reason to bring that trade to america. I'd very much like to see it change, I hope you enjoy the southern california ramen, because ramen is good, esepcially when it's not make made out of a package, but if you want great ramen you have to go to Japan.
Thinking of What tomorrow might bring.
The talking combo meal known as the aqua teen is flashing on my television as I sit and attempt to explore my mind and find an answer to everything that drives me crazy. Unfortunately, like so many times before I find myself even more confused than I started. I wonder what goes through someone's mind as they say, "I bet we can create an amazing television show featuring French fries, a milk shake, and a piece of meat working as retired detectives. " Yet as outrageous as this idea may be, it is an amazing show. So I am attempting to answer 'how I leave my mark and contribute to society.' It is my life long dream and everything I have done so far has been to accomplish a lasting mark that benefits our world.
Was it serving in the military, maybe it was when I picked up a water bottle that someone thought to leave on the ground. Maybe it's an exploration with my friends trying and experimenting with new things. Sadly I haven't found the answer. I do beleive I've made considerable progress.
At the end we will all move on, and maybe we left a legacy behind, but our souls have moved on and our bodies will turn to dust. Yet there is something special that we do while we are here. Saying hello as we walk by someone on the street. Inquiring about someone's day finding out if things went well and attempting to bring a smile to that person's face is far more significant then we realize.
We are all connected and we are reliant on each other to live a fulfilling life. I realize that as I sit here and think, listen to music, read articles, watch television, I will never find any answers on my own, and I will never find them without interacting with ohters. No one else knows the answers, but I beleive we can discover them together.. Through our experiences and instead of worrying about the bills, the relationships, the obstacles of tomorrow, I think we should remember the times we had with others, remember how they felt, and what they said instead of how we felt and what we said.
How do you leave your mark on society, and fulfill your purporse of being here? It's simple, make the most of the time you have, and do it with the ones you love.
Was it serving in the military, maybe it was when I picked up a water bottle that someone thought to leave on the ground. Maybe it's an exploration with my friends trying and experimenting with new things. Sadly I haven't found the answer. I do beleive I've made considerable progress.
At the end we will all move on, and maybe we left a legacy behind, but our souls have moved on and our bodies will turn to dust. Yet there is something special that we do while we are here. Saying hello as we walk by someone on the street. Inquiring about someone's day finding out if things went well and attempting to bring a smile to that person's face is far more significant then we realize.
We are all connected and we are reliant on each other to live a fulfilling life. I realize that as I sit here and think, listen to music, read articles, watch television, I will never find any answers on my own, and I will never find them without interacting with ohters. No one else knows the answers, but I beleive we can discover them together.. Through our experiences and instead of worrying about the bills, the relationships, the obstacles of tomorrow, I think we should remember the times we had with others, remember how they felt, and what they said instead of how we felt and what we said.
How do you leave your mark on society, and fulfill your purporse of being here? It's simple, make the most of the time you have, and do it with the ones you love.
The Best Part of Misery
My name is Paul Haneishi, I am aspiring chef. I grew up in tokyo and my personality, hobbies, and preferences in life are greatly influenced by those early experiences. I am currently living in Orange County, California but I am constantly on the move, so i may be somewhere else in the world when you read this. This is my first piece of culinary writing. I'm planning on more. Opinions are wonderful. I'd love to hear what you think.
The Best part of Misery
My brother and I used to be very close. We would play basketball, we would wrestle, and we would swing like pirates in playgrounds together. We were booger and snot, inseparable.
When we were in elementary school we joined the swim team. Since I have always been a little plump, I had a tendency to sink while my brother would dart through the pool like a hungry shark. Despite that, we still had a lot of fun together.When we were finished with practice my mother would take us to eat ramen at a shop near where we used to live. The ramen there was more than just something we ate, it was something that lifted our spirits and filled our souls. After eating this ramen, anything was possible. Everyone that ever ate it thought so after eating it too. The shop was called Gokuni.
I grew up in Tokyo, so finding a little shop that sold ramen wasn't difficult. Every corner in Tokyo has one. The one on the corner by my old house was special. Nearly all ramen shops in Japan sell gyoza, or pot stickers, with the ramen. Some ramen shops serve excellent ramen and lousy gyoza, lousy ramen and excellent gyoza at others. It wasn't too often that you find one with both. I truly believe that there is not a single place on this planet that has better ramen or better gyoza than Gokuni. The smell alone was enough to excite anyone. As you would walk towards the shop the rich smell of delicious ramen would fill your nostrils. On the door was a picture of a bear eating the ramen. No creature on this planet could eat the ramen and not enjoy it.
The gyoza always started us off. None of use knew exactly what the ingredients were, but none of use cared as long as we could always eat it. The skin was gray on the tips and a perfect oval of brown, delightful caramelization covered the center of it. The gyoza was made of pork, but the other ingredients brought together incredible bursting flavors. The ramen was served in huge ceramic bowls with a rustic wooden spoon. The oil could be seen in the soup, little bubbles from the melted butter and sesame chili oil floated on the top of it, and the soup had the perfect flavor. The butter and chili oil balanced out perfectly with the homemade base. The soup was one of the many things that made it so good. Tender slices of cured pork floated beside them, occasionally venturing over to visit the other ingredients. The soft corn, the bright seaweed and the sweet bean sprouts huddled in the middle together, never moving. The rice cakes would travel like the pork but were never caught anywhere near the middle as if they despised the colorfulvegetables in the middle. Underneath all of them swam the noodles. The warm, sun colored noodles just stayed underneath, knowing that no mater how many ingredients were above it, itwould never be forgotten. The lack of black ugly caramelization hid the fact that it was fried, but the fatty, rich flavor made it obvious that it was. Nothing compared to that wonderful assembly of happy ingredients.
We used to call the shop Suzuki-san's, because that was the name of the owner. He would come over on Christmas and bring our family gyoza. He would tell jokes to my brother and me. My mother loved listening to his advice on raising troublesome children. Even to this day when I visit, I don't even need to say a word. He recognizes me instantly and pours me a beer. Every time I visit Japan I visit Gokuni. The connection it has with my family will always be there and I will never forget the memories I had there.Everyone in my family holds that ramen shop very dear, but to me there is definitely something deeper. My brother and I never had a falling apart. We still talk and hang out from time to time but there was a time when we were even closer. Growing up we were always together, and I don't think I have ever been so close to someone in my life. We had many adventures together, but I remember the ramen shop times like it was yesterday. The most memorable was on a cold rainy night.
Swimming practice ended late, for me at least. Our coach ordered us to swim five hundred meters that night, and for an overweight second grader this was no easy task. It took me forever but the coach made me stay in the water until I was finished. I couldn't lift my arms when I finished. But as usual my brother was there to pick me up. He put his arm around my shoulder and helped me walk to the locker room. It took me about 30 minutes to change, which was unusual because knowing I was about to go eat ramen it usually took me 30 seconds. I came out of the locker room, still on my brother's arm, to see coach lecturing my mother. He told her it was disgraceful to have a son as big as me, that no child should ever be as fat as I was. That was both my brother's and my last night on the swim team.I'm not sure if that was the first time I felt my self –esteem drop, but I will never forget that moment. I swore to myself I would never embarrass my mother again. I started to cry. I felt very low. My brother held my a little tighter and told me that I didn't need to worry about what the coach said. I did though. He told me that I would never be a disgrace in my mother's eyes. I felt like differently.
What was normally a loud an obnoxious car ride to the ramen shop for my mother that night, instead it was a very quiet one. We arrived at Gokuni and Suzuki-san smiled. I looked up and did my best attempt at one. My mother was speechless. She looked at me and didn't know what to say. She saw how hurt I was and wantedto fix it. I saw that in the way she looked at me. Suzuki-san could feel that tension so he attempted one of his classic jokes to bring laughter to my face. Suddenly, my mother smirked and Suzuki-san burst withlaughter. My older brother was sitting there inhaling the noodles through his nose. It took only moments, but watching my brother inhale all the noodles looked like it took forever. My brother's eyes became wider then I have ever seen them he screamed it pain. "HOT!" I burst out laughing as my brother sat there choking. He than turned his head upside down and poured water down his nose. This made me fall off my chair. No one in that restaurant could stop laughing. I can't remember the last time I laughed as hard.
My brother will always be there for me, and I will always remember when I felt lower than dirt and higher than a mountain in the same day. Every time I eat ramen I think of my brother with noodles hanging out of his nose, and how important my brother was, and is to me.
The Best part of Misery
My brother and I used to be very close. We would play basketball, we would wrestle, and we would swing like pirates in playgrounds together. We were booger and snot, inseparable.
When we were in elementary school we joined the swim team. Since I have always been a little plump, I had a tendency to sink while my brother would dart through the pool like a hungry shark. Despite that, we still had a lot of fun together.When we were finished with practice my mother would take us to eat ramen at a shop near where we used to live. The ramen there was more than just something we ate, it was something that lifted our spirits and filled our souls. After eating this ramen, anything was possible. Everyone that ever ate it thought so after eating it too. The shop was called Gokuni.
I grew up in Tokyo, so finding a little shop that sold ramen wasn't difficult. Every corner in Tokyo has one. The one on the corner by my old house was special. Nearly all ramen shops in Japan sell gyoza, or pot stickers, with the ramen. Some ramen shops serve excellent ramen and lousy gyoza, lousy ramen and excellent gyoza at others. It wasn't too often that you find one with both. I truly believe that there is not a single place on this planet that has better ramen or better gyoza than Gokuni. The smell alone was enough to excite anyone. As you would walk towards the shop the rich smell of delicious ramen would fill your nostrils. On the door was a picture of a bear eating the ramen. No creature on this planet could eat the ramen and not enjoy it.
The gyoza always started us off. None of use knew exactly what the ingredients were, but none of use cared as long as we could always eat it. The skin was gray on the tips and a perfect oval of brown, delightful caramelization covered the center of it. The gyoza was made of pork, but the other ingredients brought together incredible bursting flavors. The ramen was served in huge ceramic bowls with a rustic wooden spoon. The oil could be seen in the soup, little bubbles from the melted butter and sesame chili oil floated on the top of it, and the soup had the perfect flavor. The butter and chili oil balanced out perfectly with the homemade base. The soup was one of the many things that made it so good. Tender slices of cured pork floated beside them, occasionally venturing over to visit the other ingredients. The soft corn, the bright seaweed and the sweet bean sprouts huddled in the middle together, never moving. The rice cakes would travel like the pork but were never caught anywhere near the middle as if they despised the colorfulvegetables in the middle. Underneath all of them swam the noodles. The warm, sun colored noodles just stayed underneath, knowing that no mater how many ingredients were above it, itwould never be forgotten. The lack of black ugly caramelization hid the fact that it was fried, but the fatty, rich flavor made it obvious that it was. Nothing compared to that wonderful assembly of happy ingredients.
We used to call the shop Suzuki-san's, because that was the name of the owner. He would come over on Christmas and bring our family gyoza. He would tell jokes to my brother and me. My mother loved listening to his advice on raising troublesome children. Even to this day when I visit, I don't even need to say a word. He recognizes me instantly and pours me a beer. Every time I visit Japan I visit Gokuni. The connection it has with my family will always be there and I will never forget the memories I had there.Everyone in my family holds that ramen shop very dear, but to me there is definitely something deeper. My brother and I never had a falling apart. We still talk and hang out from time to time but there was a time when we were even closer. Growing up we were always together, and I don't think I have ever been so close to someone in my life. We had many adventures together, but I remember the ramen shop times like it was yesterday. The most memorable was on a cold rainy night.
Swimming practice ended late, for me at least. Our coach ordered us to swim five hundred meters that night, and for an overweight second grader this was no easy task. It took me forever but the coach made me stay in the water until I was finished. I couldn't lift my arms when I finished. But as usual my brother was there to pick me up. He put his arm around my shoulder and helped me walk to the locker room. It took me about 30 minutes to change, which was unusual because knowing I was about to go eat ramen it usually took me 30 seconds. I came out of the locker room, still on my brother's arm, to see coach lecturing my mother. He told her it was disgraceful to have a son as big as me, that no child should ever be as fat as I was. That was both my brother's and my last night on the swim team.I'm not sure if that was the first time I felt my self –esteem drop, but I will never forget that moment. I swore to myself I would never embarrass my mother again. I started to cry. I felt very low. My brother held my a little tighter and told me that I didn't need to worry about what the coach said. I did though. He told me that I would never be a disgrace in my mother's eyes. I felt like differently.
What was normally a loud an obnoxious car ride to the ramen shop for my mother that night, instead it was a very quiet one. We arrived at Gokuni and Suzuki-san smiled. I looked up and did my best attempt at one. My mother was speechless. She looked at me and didn't know what to say. She saw how hurt I was and wantedto fix it. I saw that in the way she looked at me. Suzuki-san could feel that tension so he attempted one of his classic jokes to bring laughter to my face. Suddenly, my mother smirked and Suzuki-san burst withlaughter. My older brother was sitting there inhaling the noodles through his nose. It took only moments, but watching my brother inhale all the noodles looked like it took forever. My brother's eyes became wider then I have ever seen them he screamed it pain. "HOT!" I burst out laughing as my brother sat there choking. He than turned his head upside down and poured water down his nose. This made me fall off my chair. No one in that restaurant could stop laughing. I can't remember the last time I laughed as hard.
My brother will always be there for me, and I will always remember when I felt lower than dirt and higher than a mountain in the same day. Every time I eat ramen I think of my brother with noodles hanging out of his nose, and how important my brother was, and is to me.
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