Can I have your chicken?

I almost forgotten to blog this rather funny incident, so here goes.
The opening of this true story goes like this.
"What would you do if someone from the next table ask to sample your food ?"

That was exactly what had happened to me and my friend when we were having dinner in a Japanese diner - Sushi Suma in Sydney...

It was actually my first visit and my girlfriend suggested to share as the set serving can be rather substantial (for asian tummy). So we went ahead with Fried Chicken cutlet and my god, it was really huge! Served piping hot, while it isnt gourmet Japanese food, it was still rather good.
It is definitely value for money, if and only if you do not mind the small selection of food there. My gf told me there is usually a long Q but we were lucky that night to be only 3rd in line.

As we reached the limits of our tummy, we decided to just pack back the remaining portions but we carried on chatting. That was when the funny thing happened. The Australian bloke sitting next to me interrupted us politely.

Once he got our full attention and his mates at his table snickering away, the chap sheepishly requested "I was wondering if you mind doing a chicken swop. U see, your fried chicken looked really tempting and I just wanted to know how it tasted. I would swop a piece of our chicken with yours."

I thought it was really funny. My gf and I looked at each other and laughed, and told him that he should feel free to help himself. We told him that we are too full to take another chicken but he can have a piece of ours. The guy hesitated. His expression was funny because he looked so torn about the fact that it wont be a swop and he probably didnt want to come across as if he was sponging on us. He kept offering his chicken and we kept saying no. He still didnt make a move. Sensing his "awkward" sentiment, I took a piece of our chicken and place it on his plate and told him to "just eat it..really!" He grinned and asked "Really?!! Thanks!" and took a big bite.

My gf and I continued our conversation and the guys next to us started laughing. We turn round and the chap declared: "That was the best fried chicken ever! Even better than KFC!!" We all laughed. He jokingly asked if he could have another piece which he quickly decline when we took him seriously and offered the remaining portion. So the conclusion was that our fried chicken dish was a much better choice than theirs ( i think its teriyaki or something).

After they left, and just when we though things had resumed to normal. Something even more biazzare continued. Out of nowhere, one of the Japanese staff handed me a cordless phone. "Your call" he said in halting English. I was like "Huh?!!! My call in a restaurant" I looked at him with a HUGE question mark hanging over my head, but the Jap waiter simply nod and usher me to take the call.

I gingerly took the call and my gf who was equally surprised by the turn of the event speechlessly stared on. When I said "Hello", I was greeted by a woman and she started a series of questions in mandarin with the first question "I like your chair, can you tell me where I can get the same chair?" Alittle stunned, I asked her back in Mandarin "You know this is a Japanese restaurant right? This is NOT a furniture shop."

The woman then started her elaborate story about how she ate at the diner the day below and she loved the chair. I was like looking at the chair and thinking to myself, its just a normal plain wooden chair for god sake. By now, the local diners around us are staring at me strangely and my gf was grining away at my "plight".

After I have ascertain the fact that she wasnt a nutter and she genuinely wanted the chair, I had to scan the restaurant for the same waiter who had gone off to do his job. He came back and I explained the situation to him and without a word, he grabbed a spare chair from another table, inverted it and plonked it on my lap. So there i was, head between 4 legs, bending over trying to read the tiny supplier label pasted at the base of the chair seat. Ok, this is a really biazzare sight and by now, I literally have the attention from ALL the diners in the restaurant as I was reading the email address of the supplier to the woman on the line. Someone must have been too curious and I overheard my girlfriend explaining the "request" on line, and then laughters followed

When the call ended, I handed the phone back to the waiter. He thanked me profusely and explain he had no idea what the woman was saying. So seeing that I was chinese and the only 2 in the whole place, I guess he presume I can handle the call for him rather than just hanging up. Interesting thought process....

So the night ended with the 2 of us laughing away at the whole night. What are the odds of having someone from next table asking for a piece of your chicken, and then have the waiter shove a phone to you and finally finding yourself with a big heavy wooden chair sitting upsidedown on your lap? Reality is stranger than friction at times but it was hilarious and memorable i guess. I wonder if I am a magnet for all the odd things in the world, or do other people have similar story to share? Hmmmm....

Quote of the Day:
"Some cause happiness wherever they go; others, whenever they go."
- Oscar Wilde (1854-1900)