So, I live in Skagit County, WA. Not exactly a hotbed of culture or cuisine. But, two weeks ago, a new place opened up called "Asia 1". The day it opened, my sister found it; she said it "looked like a good place to eat." Later that week, last Friday, she took me to eat there saying it was the best Asian food in the area. Outside, it was very unimpressive; but then we went inside and ate. She wasn't kidding. It reminded me of when we discovered Porto, a European restaurant hidden in a small house that had been rezoned.
The thing is, my family of ancient, culture soaked, traveling foodies, can sniff out the best food in an area just by looking at a map and 'reading the terrain.' I once freaked the b'jeezus out of some cow irkers I worked with in the forest service. Having bragged about my travels and food experience, they elect me to choose where to have lunch. We walk right past the 'tourist traps' to the deliberately unattractive building at the end of the street; it looked like an abandoned house overlooking the marina. They started to turn back when I opened the door. It was the best clam chowder I've had since that lovely little B&B in Maine.
Some background
When I was four years old, my mom and dad moved my little sis (the one mentioned above) and I to the island of Guam, because we're Chamorro, the indigenous people of the Marianas. Guam is the Gateway to the US; the very next stop is Hawaii. Anyone living south of Japan has to go through Guam to get to the Americas. Also, the island is home to the largest permanent US military presence outside the US. The result is a melting pot of world culture, with all of Asia represented.
Then there's my mom's family, Italian and Swede. She, and every last one of her siblings has worked in the fine foods industry. From four and five star restaurants to my uncle's job making oak barrels for the wine industry in Calastoga California. Then, most of my cousins on that side of the family, myself included, followed this path. I even had formal training to work in the kind of establishments where you could get fired for making less than $300/night in tips.
So then, I know food. I know Asian food. I may not be very good at making it - yet - but I know it. And this place was off-the-charts- good. I normally cringe at the sight of curry on the menu because I have had curry made by a chef who'd worked for Indian nobility and was descendants of the same due to the caste system they had there at one time. Since then, anything less than REAL, hand made, passion filled and obsessively perfect curry actually hurts my tongue; I have tried on several occasions and failed. And here it was; the best yellow curry I'd had in over ten years. Hidden behind a Chevron and a Taco Hell/Pizza the Hutt. Tonight, I had the Roast Duck; it was also amazingly good.
The Taitanos come though once again. I love this family.
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