It was a rather enjoyable day today, and as you can guess from the title of this post, today I had the annual reunion dinner with my father's side of the family. That's why it's called Reunion Dinner ONE. I'm expecting a second one next week.

My father's side of the family are devout vegetarians, so unsurprisingly, with the recent economic downturn and all, we went for a vegetarian buffet! Now you may be wondering, if the daily queue at the vegetarian store in school is anything to go by, WHO in the right frame of mind would go for a vegetarian buffet? Well, it was with trepidation that I stepped into the restaurant, although my impressions would soon change, as you can find out later =D



A picture of the facade of the restaurant. It was actually quite pleasant, and I think that assuaged the culture shock I got at the idea of a vegetarian buffet.

When I went in, I was actually very surprised at the number of people seated comfortably, and I was soon to discover for myself the reason. When I was at the buffet table, I was instantly surprised at the large variety of dishes that they served, and some of them looked just as tasty, or even more appetizing then their meaty counterparts. For example, the Siew Mai(A yellow dumpling) was very juicy, and the difference in taste was very subtle. There was also a very aromatic Chicken rice, various dumplings, a pot pie, and other exciting dishes.



As you know, it's quite awkward to be standing in the middle of a crowd and trying to snap a few photographs with everyone bustling around you trying to pick the choicest food. So I apologize if any of the photos are substandard( excuses, excuses =D)

So anyway, I found myself having a whole different idea of vegetarian food. Actually the chief dislike I have of vegetarian food is the concept of mock meat. I honestly feel that vegetarian food is actually quite well off without the gluten mockery of meat. Back to the topic, as you probably can tell from this paragraph, I'm quite an avid fan of meat, but in the comfortable settings and wide variety of food, I felt equally at home as I would have felt at any other buffet.

Oh, did I mention that I had this gigantic ulcer? Well of course those who've had ulcers at some point in their lives(I think everyone would have at least one) would know how unbearable the pain can be at times, especially when you have one located right at your gums and your teeth grind against the ulcer all the time when you're chewing. As you can probably tell, it hurt a lot. Surprisingly though, the food was actually good enough to make me forget the ulcer. For which the food would have to be IMMENSLY tasty in order to achieve that.

Of course, all this talk might make me sound gluttony, after all, the real point of the reunion dinner is to catch up with family. My uncle was also very animated when he saw us coming up with unusual combinations of food, such as putting ice cream into a cup of coke to get Do-It-Yourself coke float! Everyone was also laughing heartily at each other's jokes and enjoying the food, and so with everyone else in the restaurant doing the same, it was a great place to be in with the lively atmosphere. So yeah, I caught up with some cousins of mine, said hi to my grandmother, and best of all, received my red packets xD Only joking, I'm not that much of a money face.

Back to buffet, it was actually quite crowded, so I regularly had people bumping into me as they tried to get to their seats with their plates full of food. Of course, no one in their right minds would actually volunteer to get blessed with plates full of sauce and noodles and God knows what else, so I respectfully gave way, although sometimes my courtesy was returned with people stepping on my foot as they walked past. I was actually quite tempted to comment on their bodily proportions, but then I decided, well, maybe not. After all, I didn't want the mood to get spoilt.

One of the more interesting highlights was the spoon which I got for my ice cream. It was bent and it was actually quite funny trying to eat ice cream with a L-shaped spoon.



The meal was actually quite filling, as you know gluten is very filling, so after about an hour or so of eating we were quite ready to go.

And so the reunion dinner was actually quite an exposure. It was also a great time to meet up with family. I mean, isn't the family spirit one of the intrinsic aspects of a celebration? Maybe I wasn't able to highlight the family spirit so much, I mean it's something you can only really experience for yourself, don't you agree? Of course, I've tried to the best of my ability, so let's just all soak in the experience of the new year and get into the festive mood(and food!).

One thing I'm sure of, I'm joining the vegetarian queue =D I'm still a carnivore though, so don't worry!

Labels: chinese new year, Reunion dinner

It was a rather enjoyable day today, and as you can guess from the title of this post, today I had the annual reunion dinner with my father's side of the family. That's why it's called Reunion Dinner ONE. I'm expecting a second one next week.

My father's side of the family are devout vegetarians, so unsurprisingly, with the recent economic downturn and all, we went for a vegetarian buffet! Now you may be wondering, if the daily queue at the vegetarian store in school is anything to go by, WHO in the right frame of mind would go for a vegetarian buffet? Well, it was with trepidation that I stepped into the restaurant, although my impressions would soon change, as you can find out later =D



A picture of the facade of the restaurant. It was actually quite pleasant, and I think that assuaged the culture shock I got at the idea of a vegetarian buffet.

When I went in, I was actually very surprised at the number of people seated comfortably, and I was soon to discover for myself the reason. When I was at the buffet table, I was instantly surprised at the large variety of dishes that they served, and some of them looked just as tasty, or even more appetizing then their meaty counterparts. For example, the Siew Mai(A yellow dumpling) was very juicy, and the difference in taste was very subtle. There was also a very aromatic Chicken rice, various dumplings, a pot pie, and other exciting dishes.



As you know, it's quite awkward to be standing in the middle of a crowd and trying to snap a few photographs with everyone bustling around you trying to pick the choicest food. So I apologize if any of the photos are substandard( excuses, excuses =D)

So anyway, I found myself having a whole different idea of vegetarian food. Actually the chief dislike I have of vegetarian food is the concept of mock meat. I honestly feel that vegetarian food is actually quite well off without the gluten mockery of meat. Back to the topic, as you probably can tell from this paragraph, I'm quite an avid fan of meat, but in the comfortable settings and wide variety of food, I felt equally at home as I would have felt at any other buffet.

Oh, did I mention that I had this gigantic ulcer? Well of course those who've had ulcers at some point in their lives(I think everyone would have at least one) would know how unbearable the pain can be at times, especially when you have one located right at your gums and your teeth grind against the ulcer all the time when you're chewing. As you can probably tell, it hurt a lot. Surprisingly though, the food was actually good enough to make me forget the ulcer. For which the food would have to be IMMENSLY tasty in order to achieve that.

Of course, all this talk might make me sound gluttony, after all, the real point of the reunion dinner is to catch up with family. My uncle was also very animated when he saw us coming up with unusual combinations of food, such as putting ice cream into a cup of coke to get Do-It-Yourself coke float! Everyone was also laughing heartily at each other's jokes and enjoying the food, and so with everyone else in the restaurant doing the same, it was a great place to be in with the lively atmosphere. So yeah, I caught up with some cousins of mine, said hi to my grandmother, and best of all, received my red packets xD Only joking, I'm not that much of a money face.

Back to buffet, it was actually quite crowded, so I regularly had people bumping into me as they tried to get to their seats with their plates full of food. Of course, no one in their right minds would actually volunteer to get blessed with plates full of sauce and noodles and God knows what else, so I respectfully gave way, although sometimes my courtesy was returned with people stepping on my foot as they walked past. I was actually quite tempted to comment on their bodily proportions, but then I decided, well, maybe not. After all, I didn't want the mood to get spoilt.

One of the more interesting highlights was the spoon which I got for my ice cream. It was bent and it was actually quite funny trying to eat ice cream with a L-shaped spoon.



The meal was actually quite filling, as you know gluten is very filling, so after about an hour or so of eating we were quite ready to go.

And so the reunion dinner was actually quite an exposure. It was also a great time to meet up with family. I mean, isn't the family spirit one of the intrinsic aspects of a celebration? Maybe I wasn't able to highlight the family spirit so much, I mean it's something you can only really experience for yourself, don't you agree? Of course, I've tried to the best of my ability, so let's just all soak in the experience of the new year and get into the festive mood(and food!).

One thing I'm sure of, I'm joining the vegetarian queue =D I'm still a carnivore though, so don't worry!

Labels: chinese new year, Reunion dinner

Francis
14
Victorian :D
Arrow Scout :)
VSPB
TGS-ian Xp
Aut Viam Inveniam Aut Faciam - Hannibal.

WISHES

Improve chinese. [ ]
Lose the fats. [ ]
Maintain level position. [ ]
Maintain a good study-life balance.[ ]
Be less vulgar.(How did I become vulgar in the first place) [ ]
2.4km <14 [X]


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