Chivalry is not dead

I may not have seen men open doors for their ladies or pull out their chairs, but I have seen one trend among young Romeos -- carrying his Juliet's purse. Here's photographic evidence that chivalry in China is not dead:

Fatty Tuesday: Homemade Enchiladas

We've been dying for good Mexican food. Yes, you can find Mexican in Shanghai, but it's fancy Mexican, in restaurants with nice tables and chairs, made by Chinese cooks. It's not good, dirty Mexican (and I mean that in the best possible way). I've been spoiled with authentic burritos and tacos and quesadillas for most of my life -- what can I say?      

So we took it upon ourselves to make enchiladas at home one evening. The challenge, yet again, was finding all of the ingredients. Here's where we went:

• Yasmin's, the butcher, for chicken (as close to organic/grain-fed/cage-free as we're going to get here)
• Avocado Lady for veggies, a jar of jalapenos, sour cream and corn tortillas (we had to buy a pack of about 50 and freeze what we didn't use)
• Enchilada sauce from City Shop for almost $4/can (there'd be outrage at home for that kind of price for a canned good!)    
• Cheese at Pines, the slightly cheaper City Shop (aka, foreigner-friendly market)

The result was so tasty, we made them again the following week.     

Zhoumo kuaile!

Before I pass out on the couch after a long week of work and a sore throat/stuffy nose/hacking cough, I wanted to wish you all a happy weekend. After a good night's sleep, I'm hoping I'll still be up for this tomorrow -- 

Spring has not yet sprung

On Saturday, I was riding my bike in shorts and a tank top; last night, I had to bring the scarf and the gloves back out. Spring has not yet sprung (and I have a cold to show for it). So I thought I'd share a few more winter Shanghai Street Style pics.  

Remember how I mentioned that UGGs (or some form of them) was all the trend, mostly among young women?  Key word: mostly... 

And then there are these:

Fatty Tuesday: Sichuan Citizen

Remember my initial restaurant observations? 

• Most restaurant menus in Shanghai are ten to 20 pages long. 
• Thankfully, almost all of them have pictures; some of them have funny translations. 
• It's no wonder that they may be out of what you order (out of 100+ options, they have to run out of a few items on some nights). 
• Food comes out almost instantly. "How is this possible," you ask? I think I'd prefer not to know. Let's move on.  

After sifting through the book-sized menu at Sichuan Citizen, we decided on fish, bok choy, kung pao jiding (you know what that is, right?) and honey walnut shrimp -- which is somewhat amusing since most of these dishes are considered very American Chinese food. (And here I was, proud of myself for finally dedicating a Fatty Tuesday to Chinese food.)   

The star of the show was the fish.  But be forewarned -- for those of you who require clean filets, boned and skinned, don't order fish in China, because this is what you'll get, eyeballs and all:

At fancy restaurants in China, waiters bring the fish you ordered to your table alive and in a bucket as proof of freshness. Sichuan Citizen was not fancy -- no show of squirming fish -- but it was good. Next time we go, though, I'd probably order other dishes since there isn't a shortage of choices.