2015-03-01

【Aiden in English】

        Today I just went to a piano audition for the Golden Key Music Festival of USA in Princeton, NJ and played Sonata in G Major, Op. 49 No. 2 1st Movement by Beethoven. I didn’t write about it because there wasn’t much to mention about. Sure I was nervous, and my judge took forever to write her comments about the previous performance. But I don’t want to talk about it, in case of jinxing me.

        After a one on one, face to face encounter with a professional judge and performing to her, I felt good. Not that I played well. No, I would never say that because Karma certainly bites back sometimes. I felt good because I was still alive and didn’t mess up. A burden that had tormented me for the past two hours were gone, replaced by excitement, for mom was taking me to a dim sum restaurant called Shanghai Park. 

        On the first impression outside, I’d say it was an amazing restaurant. The restaurant took up a lot of space, and pillars stood in front for decoration to help up an overhead roof. Mom and I walked inside and were taken to a cozy table by a waiter. The restaurant was well lit with beautiful chandeliers that I couldn’t find, and also each divider between booths had carvings of dragons. The ceiling was sort of concave, with the sides decorated with recessed lights. The waiter led us to a corner booth where we found menus already sitting there, waiting to be read and considered.

        As usual, mom just had the dumb person on the side that said “yes” to about everything. “Aiden, do you want noodles?” “Yes.” “How about some tofu?” “Yes.” “With hot sauce?” “Yes.” “Aiden, did you forget to brush your teeth again?” “Yes.” Something of sorts. What we ended up ordering was Cruller; Shanghai-style Noodles; Uncongealed Tofu in Salty Sauce; two different types of stuffed buns: Pan-seared Pork Bun and Crab Meat with Pork Steamed Juicy Bun; two various breads: Crispy-fried Scallion Pancakes and Leavened Flatbreads; Braised Pig's Knuckle in Brown Sauce; and Marsha Taro with Dried Fruits. 

        The cruller looked really simple and was roasted to crisply golden brown. No wonder why it was also literally called deep-fried dough sticks.

        The Shanghai Noodles were bolded and stirred with the marinated pork and spinach in soy sauce. Mom was so crazy about it and always ate this staple of Shanghai cuisine. It tasted so authentic that I quickly finished all. 

        Mom passed me the Crab Meat with Pork Steamed Juicy Bun, and juice squirted out like a water gun when I took a chomp. The inside was warm, filling me like the morning sun. Not that we had any morning sun because it was snowing 24/7 these days. 

        The Crispy-fried Scallion Pancakes tasted good, mostly due to the greasiness. If Chinese food had pizza, this would come pretty close. However, Lai Lai Garden in PA had made the one with multiple delicate layers and made its flavor much tastier. The Leavened Flatbreads also became my favorite because of its saltiness.

        I slowly sipped Uncongealed Tofu in Salty Sauce which looked like a soup and didn’t really have much flavor. However, mom loved its texture and flavor. It reminded her of lovely memories when she lived in China 25 years ago.  

        Mom carefully gave me a large piece of Braised Pig's Knuckle in Brown Sauce The sauce was not only dark and brownish, but also dominated the flavor. Sweet tanginess and salty garlic combined was already as big as Santa’s. I took a bite, then moved on so I could grab a bit of everything.

        Among nine dishes today, the Marsha Taro with Dried Fruits was the only one still intact. The taro was meshed with red beans and sugar. Mom and I fixed it by grabbing the spoon that arrived with the dish and breaking off a piece. It felt fluffy as I was eating a cloud of sweetness. This delicacy gave us nutty flavor enhancing ingredient and became mom’s favorite desert in particular. When we left, the sweet sensation was still tingling at the tip of our tongues. 

        The weather may be bad. When you walk into Shanghai Park, however, have a bite and the day will suddenly seem a lot brighter than usual.

【红霞译文】

        今天我去新泽西州普林斯顿参加全美金钥匙音乐节钢琴视听表演，弹了《贝多芬·G大调奏鸣曲作品第四十九号第二首第一乐章》，暂时不想挥墨渲染海选比赛，确实没啥好说。我心情紧张再所难免，尤其碰到这么一位评委慢条斯理，好半天才把上一位参赛者的评语打发完毕。算了，话多必有失，咱暂且在这儿打住，以免克星缠身。

        经过一对一面对面给专业评委表演之后，我感觉良好，当然并非意味着本人发挥出色，况且咱一向不敢妄自胡言，否则当心报应。之所以说感觉良好，是因为我庆幸自己大难不死，而且在表演中能够保持阵脚不乱，历经折磨的两个钟头好不容易熬了过来，取而代之的是无言的快乐，因为终于轮到妈妈带我去“大千美食林”享用上海风味午茶。

        从外表乍看上去，“大千美食林”气场诱人，占地面积挺大，门柱顶天立地。我和妈妈走进餐厅，服务生径直带位到舒适的桌前。只见室内华彩齐放灯火通明，隔间内外雕梁画栋甚为养眼，天花板凹凸起伏壁灯高吊。待我们坐定，菜单早已摆在面前。

        犹如老调重弹，妈妈开始向我这个对什么都张口闭口称“是”的木头人发问，“儿歌，吃面条吗？”“吃。”“豆腐呢？”“好。”“带辣味的？”“成。”“儿歌，早起忘了刷牙了吧？”“对。”诸如此类炒蹦豆的话题你问我答。不大工夫，油条、上海炒面、咸豆腐脑、两种包子：生煎包及蟹黄猪肉小笼包、两种面饼：葱油饼和发面饼、走油元蹄、麻沙芋头果脯糕等各种风味小吃一一呈上桌面。

        油条看起来非常简单，两根面筋被炸得酥脆金黄，是名副其实的油煎馃子。

        上海炒面无非就是粗面条与红烧猪肉和新鲜菠菜烹烩一气，可妈妈爱的就是这口，每逢下上海馆子，肯定忘不了来碗正宗粗炒面。这里做的确实不错，我风卷残云，很快吃得干干净净。

        妈妈递上蟹黄猪肉小笼包，我大口一咬，包子里面的汤汁像水枪似的朝我猛射，肉馅热乎乎的，宛若初生的朝阳。如今宾州一周七天每天廿四小时皑皑白雪，满世界看不见太阳的影子。

        葱油饼不错，主要归功于油煎深炸带来的香味，假如中餐菜肴里有比萨一说，葱油饼肯定是首选对象。不过宾州“来来花园”酒家做的葱油饼略胜一筹，饼薄层多，更加可口耐吃。我也非常喜欢这里的发面饼，因为比较咸，啃上去有滋有味。

        我慢慢品尝咸豆腐脑，说实在的它看上去更像一碗汤，没什么味道。不过妈妈却非常欣赏这道家乡美馔，细嫩而不松、卤清而不淡、油香而不腻、肉鲜而不腥、辛辣而不呛，禁不住回想起廿五年前在中国生活的甜美时光。

        妈妈小心给我夹来一块走油元蹄，调料黑乎乎油腻腻，但口感不错。特别添加的甜咸蒜味大大提高了这道上海菜肴的品味，而肥嘟嘟的外表甭提有多像圣诞老人。我小试大厨的烹调手艺，情愿留点胃口好吃下面其它东西。

        在今天九道食谱中，麻沙芋头果脯糕依然保存完好。它由芋头与红豆沙和糖搅拌在一起，我和妈妈用调羹大勺蒯进嘴里，质地蓬松，像吃了棉花糖似的，甜丝丝软绵绵香喷喷，尤其让妈妈爱不释口，直到我们开拔之际，残留在唇齿之间舌尖之上的甘醇余香久久未消。

        也许天公不作美，但只要跨进大千美食林吃上爽口热乎的家乡饭，准保叫你心情敞亮开来。