Saturday Golf And Dim Sum Lunch
Labels: asian food, Beijing, eating out, home life
Monday, March 02, 2009
Of late, our Saturday afternoons have been taken up by golf lessons. By 'our', I collectively mean all three of us. Sonny-boy gets his own golf teacher and goes off for his private lesson while Hubs and I share another instructor. All this is conducted indoors at Central Golf Beijing. When Sonny-boy heard we would be taught by professional golfers from the PGA, his face lit up and asked if Tiger Woods would be one of them.
Uh huh.
Hubs does not need the lessons as much as he needs some brushing up tips. I'm the one who's the (severe) work in progress. I am told my grip and posture is good, but there is much to be desired in my swing. Truth be told, I'm not too passionate about golf in the first place but Hubs is and this is something we can do as a couple or family. I think he appreciates me making the effort since I'm none too sporty. Why would I want to hit a ball, chase after it, hit it again till it lands in some hole? All this in the scorching sun too! But like I said, if learning to play will increase our couple time, then I'm all for it. The other saving grace I suppose is the cute clothing and accessories I may need to get when I start to play properly on the green.
Sonny-boy on the other hand, has taken to it like fish to water. Sure he has to work on his technique and swing but the feel is there. It is with both pride and embarrassment I say he hits the balls better than me. It's a good thing too because on a whim last year, Hubs bought a complete set of kids' clubs for him. Now Sonny-boy is able to use them as the manufacturer intended and not let it sit in a corner and collect dust.
*****
Last Saturday, after said golf lesson, we went off in search of some lunch. We decided to stay around the massive shopping mall the school was situated in and eventually found ourselves outside a Shanghainese restaurant. It looked rather posh and inviting so we all trundled in. And posh it was. The tables were set with contrasting damask tablecloths, bone china for plates and spoons and two pairs of silver tipped chopsticks (a pair in black and the other white) on a silver holder. It takes three staff (kitchen help to waitress, waitress to head waiter) to play Pass The Food and Beverage before it gets onto the table. And every time my tea cup was empty, a waitress would miraculously appear by my side and refill it. I could have done it myself seeing as how the tea pot was next to the cup but i) it's nice to be pampered and ii) the waitress was faster than an Iron Chef contestant. The two men didn't get such luck - they ordered a draft beer and coke.
The menu read like a who's who in Chinese delicacies and the greedy monster in me wanted to order all sorts of wonderful dishes but common sense gave me a slap on the face to remind me it was lunch, not dinner we're at. Instead, we looked at the dim sum menu for lighter fare. We were not disappointed either, no feeling of consolation prizes because the Big One got away. For starters we ordered a big plate of sashimi with all the trimmings followed by warm dishes of xiao long bao, pot stickers, dumplings, stuffed steamed buns and soupy pulled noodles. To end it all off, I had glutinous rice balls in lotus and osmanthus flower syrup. It was super!
This restaurant is a keeper and perhaps the next time, we are there, I will try and make the effort to remember the name. I was too distracted and dazzled that day to see past my silver tipped chopsticks.
The Dutchess of Cookalot whipped this up at 8:03 pm
