(I will readily admit I am behind in my blogs. The following event happened in September and it’s early January.) We celebrated Aubrie’s birthday – and our newfound luxury of quick home delivery of food – with a delivery dinner feast. The birthday girl herself orchestrated it, placing orders at a few restaurants. I was excited to not cook on either of our two stove top burners. We didn’t have an oven at that time, so no homemade birthday cake was in the works. We were free to choose from any of the local dining establishments, free to sit back and relax as we waited for delivery.
Why did the chicken cross the road?
Probably because we ordered it from Aysh. The first bag through our front door came courtesy of Aysh, located in the mall across the street from our apartment. In a land bubbling over with food we hardly recognize, Aysh is a godsend, serving up whole rotisserie-style chicken and French fries. We know exactly where the bones are. And we’re pretty sure it’s chicken. And the fries come with the best honey mustard we’ve ever had. I was not surprised to see that Aubs had ordered this as part of her birthday dinner.
What came next?
You may recognize the angry dumpling man from a previous post. Aubs ordered sushi from Yuanqi. While it was delicious straight out of the delivery bag, it lacked the charm of puttering its way to me on the restaurant conveyor belt.
Millions and millions served…worldwide!
The next doorbell brought a familiar bag. although its one we could probably do without. The good ol’ double arches are everywhere over here, along with KFC and Pizza Hut. The Chinese are really warming up to some of the least healthy Western foods and Aubrie was certainly relieved to find the closest McDonald’s so she could order herself a birthday chicken nugget Happy Meal. As I’ve said before, we know where the bones are…we’re pretty sure it’s chicken… .
Did someone say Pizza Hut?
For the grand finale, Aubs came through with our – her and my – favorite pizza combination, Hawaiian! And you can see, Luigi from the Happy Meal is interested in it as well.
China has been the first place I’ve seen tomatoes added onto a Hawaiian pizza. I’m not complaining because I love tomatoes. Kim and Aubrie always fling theirs onto my plate when they come unexpectedly, but to have them added to my favorite pizza is just the best thing ever. And you know I ate half this pizza plus all four tomato pieces. It was like it was my birthday too.
The aftermath, and the after-aftermath
It’s nice to be surprised by your birthday cake and I also think it’s nice to pick it out yourself. Aubrie flexed her takeout muscle and ordered this light and fruity cake. The cake itself had an angel food-like consistency but was a little less sweet. The cream and fruits complimented it well, making it like a strawberry and five-blueberry shortcake.
Overall, our at-home birthday buffet was a success! We celebrated Aubrie, we lounged, we indulged and we enjoyed one of the luxuries of Chinese living: efficient takeout!