by Mike Filigenzi » Mon Apr 20, 2015 9:17 am
I was driving back to Sacramento from Tucson this past Friday, and spent the night in Barstow, California. Barstow's a decent-sized and bleak desert town that was on the old Route 66 (as mentioned in the song). I ended up going for supper to an allegedly Italian restaurant that was done up in a firehouse theme, with lots of firefighter memorabilia and plenty of families enjoying burgers, pizza, and pasta. I tend to eat lightly when on the road and ordered a chicken Caeser salad. Something of an abomination, but it's usually a safe combination of romaine, grilled chicken, and creamy dressing. When the waitress brought the salad, the first thing I noticed was a bunch of what looked like dark french fries on top. They were quite hot, and it became clear when I tasted one that these were not fries. They had a firm but somewhat pliant texture and were a clean white inside. There was no flavor whatsoever other than the fried outside (which could have been fried anything). I decided that they must be some sort of cheese sticks made of a new industrial mozzarella that doesn't ooze and pushed them aside. As I started on the rest of the salad, I realized that there didn't seem to be any chicken in it. I figured that the server made a mistake and that I'd only say something if they charged me for the chicken version. I was halfway through the salad before I realized (as you probably already have) that the french fry things were actually the chicken. I've never seen anything like them before and I hope I never do again.
"People who love to eat are always the best people"
- Julia Child
