There's always something to look forward to when you choose Asian cuisine for lunch. It's especially true at one of my favorite restaurants in Provo, Saigon Cafe. I went there after a successful finish to a school presentation. I was able to get my car's safety passed across the street as I ate. It really was a wonderful afternoon. The restaurant just added to the joy.
Without fail (I lied, one time they forgot), the meal starts with this amazing appetizer of fried won-ton skins for dipping in this mystery sauce that makes my tongue dance. I've wondered if there's addictive substances in it, it's that good. I've tried to guess what it could be: maraschino cherry juice and bits mixed with pineapple juice and bits. . .and something else. Lemon or orange? It's so good.
The $5 plate comes with a small cup of soup. I always choose hot and sour over the egg drop. Both are good, but the hot and sour is everything your tongue could dream of. To mine at least. Even the spoon is fun, all long and shallow, like a little shoe with a handle.
The plate comes out with two days worth of meat/whatever you ordered, ham fried rice and an egg roll complete with dipping sauce. General Tso's chicken is a long time favorite. Each bite is, how can I say? Like making every green light.
And of course the fortune cookie comes at the end. I always break it in half, pull one half from the other so the fortune sticks out of the end I don't eat. I eat the paper-free half before I read my fortune. I'm always amazed at the taste of those cookies. No two are the same. Seriously. Anyway, this time around it was kinda gross, so I didn't eat the other half. My fortune said, "You discover treasures where others see nothing unusual," which is fortunately true.
After a few glasses of water, I needed to use their restroom; I needed a rest.... It smelled remarkably like baking cake. That was intriguing. When I went to wash my hands, the soap dispenser had two options: soap, or jabón. I'd never tried jabón before. It lathered a lot like soap...
The check came to only $9.56 (I'd ordered the daily special that made my $5 plate only $3.95). Robbery. We left thirteen dollars, all in ones I believe. The bird toothpick dispenser bid us farewell as we grabbed a complimentary mint and shuffled belly first across the street to my waiting, safe automobile.
