For Kira

I just want it to be known, I was not hungry. But food has a nostalgic power, and if there's any food in the world that brings back memories for me, it's a bowl of soup and noodles at Wagamama. Wagamama is the restaurant that my best friend, Kira, and I went to in the 8th grade when we both lived in London. It's the kind of restaurant that puts all its emphasis on the food: the tables are just long wooden strips, where you have to sit next to whomever they put you next to. Your orders are just numbers that the waiters write down on your placemat so you can't forget. It comes when it's ready, not necessarily in order.

And it's good. It's so good that I went soooo far out of my way to sit by myself at those long tables, to stuff my poor hungover stomach with spices, and to enjoy every bite.

The specialties are noodle and rice dishes, specifically noodle-soup bowls of yum. When I was in 8th grade, I always ordered chicken ramen. But now, due to a more sophisticated palette, I decided to up the ante. I ordered the "chicken kore lomen"
The coconut soup was stained red from all the chili paste. The chili paste that made my nose run and got all over my face. The chili paste that was so worth it. The rest of the dish was ramen noodles, grilled chicken, bean sprouts, cucumber and lots of coriander, ginger and galangal. The whole thing was an explosion of flavor, and I could never decide which bites I liked best. I think the chicken was the most perfect part, but I also heaped myself spoonfulls of just bean sprouts sometimes. That's when you know a good meal- when everything is good on its own and as a complement to the rest.

To add insult to injury, I ordered the "ebi gyoza" shrimp dumplings. Sometimes I pretend that I like steamed gyoza, but really, I like my dumplings FRIED. Fried Fried Fried. Fried so the first bite crunches and the middle oozes. Fried so that the sauce seeps in to the shell and softens the whole bite. Fried so that you know you're killing your body for the love of food.

These fried babies were filled with black tiger prawns, water chestnuts and spinach. And the sauce was citrus ponzu sauce. I didn't want them to end.
So, in conclusion, after paying 30 dollars for a sheer indulgence... Kira, when can we go back?