Our "Muslim Noodle" Restaurant in Beibei, Chongqing

你们好!

Actually, there are dozens of "Muslim Noodle" restaurants in Beibei, but this specific one has an indescribable charm. DeCaprio (his spelling), who I write about often (running friend; we travelled to Beijing and ran on the Great Wall), and his girlfriend, Mary, also a senior English major at Southwest University, introduced Devon (My lovely first-year sitemate) and I to this small, cubby-hole-of-a-place during my first semester teaching in Beibei. Before I say anymore, take a look at this place, and then I'll tell you just a few reasons why this is "My Favorite Restaurant in...China." Enjoy!



I mentioned in the introduction that one of my favorite characteristics about this restaurant is the "diverse" crowd. I (try to) teach world citizenry in my classes, which is difficult when China, for the most part, is a homogeneous society (Chinese will quickly disagree and claim they have 55 minorities and blah blah blah, but the truth is, more than 90% of Chinese are of the Han majority, and "minorities" seem token and exploited in the tourism industry). However, Southwest University is a blessing due to it's sheer magnitude; it has a large(r in comparison to other Chinese universities) population of foreign students, coming from as close as Thailand to as far away as the U.S., Africa, and the Middle East. This restaurant, garnished with pictures of Mecca and whose cooks and waitresses kneel and pray on stray mats, sometimes amid the chaos of lunch hour, does not serve any pork dishes (the staple meat of most Chinese food) and prohibits alcohol. It's food and environment caters to a demographic of SWU students who come from western provinces (Xinjiang Province most notably) and countries that share China's Western border. In the video there is a cameo from one of my friends, Kunduz, who is a foreign student from Kirghistan, sitting at a table with other foreign students from, I was told, Pakistan and other Central Asian countries. Though Chinese is the most widely spoken language inside, local dialects and heavily-accented English swirl through the air. Think The Tower of Babel without the chaos, add great food! It's quite an experience, and I always learn more and more about the world and its people every time I order my fanqie rousi gai jiao fan, jia yige jidan!
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The family that runs the restaurant still presents many mysteries to me. I have learned a few details about them from DeCaprio (Mongol minority) and Mary (Hui Muslim minority), as well as from random English tutors and friends, but as for their real life story, I feel it will always be lost due to their private disposition. The lone waitress, a young girl about 13 years old, works everyday, all day, and she is so sweet and speaks really slooow Mandarin to me - "Chi Shenme?" - and then repeats my order back to me with a smile. The Laoban (boss), complete with his Muslim hat and long black beard, chuckles when I ask him, "Duo Shao Qian? 多少钱?" (How much?) and we have a friendly tradition of shaking hands every time money is exchanged. He has two little children, a boy and a girl, who can't be much older than 6. They play all day while their mother works in the kitchen, and have confessed that they aren't upset about not going to school - tragedy for me as a teacher - and I can't help but guess that they will do the same job as their older sister - bringing dishes from the kitchen and taking orders - when they grow up. Enjoy your youth while you have it! A small part of heart breaks every time I see them playin' around the restaurant with big, curious smiles, and then their older sister, sweating and carrying big plates of chopped chicken and potatoes, exits from the kitchen. It reminds me of what I have had, continue to have...and will have. And how fortunte I am.
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I hope you can experience this scene, or something like it, in your life. Life lessons and delicious food is a lovely combination...
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Finally, please click this link to learn about and possible donate to PCV Val's secondary project in Guizhou Province! She is the ultimate do-gooder and deserves all the support she needs! The task that lies before her is very arduous, and every US Dollar YOU donate will be used to change the lives of a few (many!) Chinese children who have not been blessed with the fortune YOU (unknowingly) possess! Check it out!
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I love and miss you all,
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Phil
蓝麦飞