i am a late-20s white guy who was born and raised in California (SD and bay area). one of my best friends, whom i have known since i was 12, is first-generation chinese (his parents are from Taiwan). i also have tastebuds. because of these things, i not infrequently get a craving for chinese food.
today was one of those days. days of turkey and potatoes, while delicious, left me with a craving for some fried rice. unfortunately, i live in Las Vegas and have yet to find a particularly good chinese restaraunt[**]. a series of misadventures (apparently it's ok to just close between 2pm and 5pm on a saturday when i'm hungry and out driving around) led me to Sam Woo BBQ in scenic Chinatown.
i was seated at a table. the place setting contained a plate, an upside-down tea cup, a napkin, and a pair of plastic chopsticks. a waiter appeared in the form of a brusque middle-aged chinese guy. he was kind of balding up front but his hair was kinda long -- not the best look. anyway, i told him i wanted chicken fried rice and a glass of water. he mumbled and disappeared.
he returned a few moments later with a glass of water and a fork, which he set down on my plate.
now i am quite competent with chopsticks. i don't have the fine motor control to qualify as an expert, nor can i catch flies from mid-air, but i'm still no slouch. i can cut tofu into quarters for the table, and i have twice eaten birthday cake with chopsticks when the hostess ran out of forks.
obviously, the waiter has no way to know this; he just sees a scruffy/dorky looking white dude, eating alone at Sam Woo BBQ in Las Vegas with a book. still, whenever this happens, i find it kinda funny, and appreciate that i am smart enough to know the difference between benevolent efficiency and racism.
so here are some talking points:
I. first of all, am i weird for eating fried rice with chopsticks? i feel like i've seen asian people eating fried rice with a fork, but maybe those were flilpinos (in which case all bets are off anyway).
II. are you adept with chopsticks but prefer a fork for handling fried rice? let's chat!
III. are you a white person who enjoys asian cuisine and is often offered an unrequested fork? how do you handle it? how does it make you feel? are you preparing a motion with the ACLU?
IV. have you ever heard of an asian person being offered chopsticks while eating a meal from a fork-based society? that would be weird.
[**] recommendations are heartily appreciated, btw.
here is one resource:
http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/showfl...part=4&vc=1
here is something that is sort of a resource, but sometimes awesomely bad instead because vegas is populated by stupid, stupid people:
http://www.reviewjournal.com/bestoflv/
the people's choice for Best Chinese Food is (drum roll) P.F. Chang's.
the editor's choice, however, was Sam Woo BBQ, which turned out to be helpful.