The 24 Hours of Chris (Part 1)

It was time. I have been in China for almost two months now, and I really haven't had a whole lot of time to myself. I decided last week that on my next day off I was going to dedicate my entire day to me, myself, and I. Thus, The 24 Hours of Chris......

Monday, August 11th, 2008

6:00 pm- Dinner at Haiku

There is one sushi restaurant in all of Beijing that is said to be THE place to go for fresh seafood, innovative maki rolls, and friendly service. And Haiku was the place. So I strapped on my messenger bag; loaded with my Ipod, camera, the latest edition of the Beijinger magazine, a travel guide book, the directions to the Chaoyang Park area, and loads of yuan (money). If this was truly going to be a night for Chris, I wasn't going to skimp on any expense, as you will fully understand later on in this post.

I arrived at the restaurant, and after being patted down, and my bag inspected (which is normal lately), I was seated directly at the sushi bar where I was able to watch the masters at work. The menu was full of sushi, sashimi, yakitori, udon noodle pots, you name it. There were a few items that I knew I couldn't pass up....

First course was a seared scallop salad. The salad consisted of fresh mixed greens, slice cherry tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, seared scallops, and the traditional Japanese ginger, carrot salad dressing. I was a little disappointed when the salad came out (I was expecting all scallop and no greens), but one bite and I changed my mind completely. It was outrageous....

Second course was called. a live unagi (barbecued eel) hand roll. This roll left something to be desired. The flavors didn't "pop" like I was hoping.

Third course was the Haiku roll, which included spicy tuna, soft-shell crab, asparagus, and avocado on the inside, with spicy mayonnaise, and flying fish roe on the outside. I have eaten alot of maki in a lot of places, but nothing has EVER compared to this particular roll. If you are ever in Beijing you need to try this roll :). Needless to say, I devoured this in about four seconds flat. I ate like a pig. No, I ate more like a duck, pigs tend to chew.

Next came the one dish that I have never seen anywhere else...... EVER. It consisted of two of my favorite ingredients ever, and on one plate! Heaven is the only word that came to mind when I took my first bite. Never again will I be able to find this combination of ingredients, so I savored this dish as much as I could. It took me about five seconds to finish this one!

As I finished up my fourth Tsingtao of the evening, patiently awaiting for my check to arrive, the sushi chef behind the counter graciously offered me a complimentary final course. It was four crispy wonton chips piled with some of the best red snapper ceviche I have ever tasted! It was a great way to finish off a great meal. As I left for the evening, I stood up and it felt as though I was walking on air! It may have been the beer, but I think alot had to do with the fact that I just had a fabulous meal, and had a little bit of (much needed) time to myself. There was a smile on my face.

9:00- A walk through the Solana

The neighborhood that I had dinner in is supposed to be the hip spot to hang out at night. It is filled with bars, clubs, restaurants, and stores, and it surrounds the Central Park of Beijing. There was a definite buzz in the air, so I decided to make my way through the Solana, and tried to find a bar that I had heard about that just opened. It is a 24-hour sports bar, with 65 huge plasma television, said to carry American sports around the clock. It is called All-Star, and it is where I will be on August 31st, at 3:30 in the morning, watching RichRod and the Wolverines kick some Ute butt!!! It was my luck, the bar was closed for training. I was able to speak with the owner (who happened to be from L.A.), and he guaranteed me that they would be playing college football that night. Sweet!

A little disappointed (I wanted to have a beer and watch some Olympics), I decided to call it a night and walk toward the main street to hail a cab. As I walked out of All-Star, I turned the corner, and something caught my eye. It was a large lit-up sign that read Tsingtao. "Hey, they must serve Tsingtao", I thought to myself. And boy was I right. It happened to be the Tsingtao Beer Palace, where they brew the stuff! And they had the Olympics on!! So of course I popped a squat and ordered the biggest beer that they served. And it was big....

After my 32 oz. beer, I was feeling pretty nice, and decided to get my bill. Just as I looked up to find the waitress, there she was with ANOTHER 32 oz. beer!! It turns out they have a BOGO on all their beers. And who am I to turn down a free beer! So I sat with my new American buddies, shot the s*it, and enjoyed my last tasty beverage of the evening.

After that beer, it was almost midnight (way past my bedtime), and I knew that if I didn't call it a night T-Rex might have made his first appearance in China. Only in China it wouldn't be T-Rex, it would be GODZIRRAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!

12:30- Sleeping with my shoes on.

As I mentioned before, there was a dish that took two individually fantastic ingredients, and combined them into one of the tastiest morsels I have ever eaten. Below is another picture of this dish. I would like all of you guess what this dish was. And the first person to correctly guess the two main components of this dish will receive a special gift from me upon my arrival in the States. Oh ya, Dad, you are not allowed to vote. It's too easy for you....

To Be Continued....