Nothin' Like a Good Meal...

I'm in Shanghai for a few days on a business trip. It's an amazing city - the new york of Asia, you could say. But for somebody who's on halal only, it's a pretty tough place to be in from a gourmet perspective.

As an illustration of this, I was discussing my food situation with a co-worker yesterday. He asked, "Can you eat beef or pork?" I shook my head. "Lamb?" Shook my head. "Chicken?" Shook the ol' noodle. "Eggs?" He asked, but he was smiling. I nodded happily, and he started laughing. "It seems your choices are a bit limited!"

So imagine my wonder when I walked into my hotel lobby, and by the entrance of the restaurant, saw what appeared to be an Indian wearing a chef's hat.

Just so I wasn't clear, he was a) Indian and b) wearing a chef's hat.

Well, that was it then. I literally ran up to this guy like a desert-blinded fool chasing an oasis. Felt around his face to make sure he was real. Felt his hat to make sure it really was a chef's hat and not some sick halloween costume. (And all this while he looked on patiently with a Colonel Sanders' smile).

He was real all right. And an awesome guy too. We chatted for a bit, shooting up the ol' desi breeze. He called me Wasim Akram.

And I had amazing Shrimp masala, dal makhani, vegetable curry, naan and rice for dinner.

Needless to say...BOOYA!