When you don't have a steady income or a boyfriend, it's hard to get either (the good sex or the good food!) so I haven't been out to eat for dinner for a long time. I remember to keep dancing, one way or another, but if I ever splurge on food it's for take out, and I end up sitting alone in a similar fashion as when I cook at home. AKA staring at the TV for company.
So when I got a particularly intense craving to make love to some Pho from Pho Cafe on Sunset tonight, I couldn't resist dining in. I had been on a long walk around Silver Lake reservoir with it's grey and slightly pink, cold and foggy sky, and sitting in that bright, long, savory cafe with a hot steaming bowl of Pho beneath me was exactly what I wanted.
I took a shower, turned it to cold for a brief minute before getting out and drove down sunset with a warm/cold tingle all over my skin and a faint rumble in my stomach. Miraculously, I got a parking spot in the lot. Having been used to writing in cafes lately as well as being self-conscious about being alone, I brought a notebook along just in case I wanted to work. Or...ahem, look like someone who didn't have a hard time finding a dinner date. But as soon as I sat down and tunnel-visioned myself into that menu, I knew my work wouldn't have much of a chance. And I realized there is nothing quite as nice as being 33 with a hungry stomach and a warm sweater and not giving a damn that you're alone because you are sitting in a bright, welcoming restaurant about to remember how to live your life.
Eggs rolls with mung beans, good-oily and warm with piles of lettuce, mint, lemon grass and... other green leaves, unidentified, I ate merrily like a starving orphan child. I had decided to spend $20 maximum and you can easily spend less than that at Pho Cafe and get a wonderfully hearty and soothing meal. So that exciting pre-dinner indulgence was also excitingly practical!
Shortly after the glorious appetizer arrived came my #13; Free range chicken and ginger and noodle soup. In a big, white, steaming bowl waiting just for me. "Yes, my pretty, I see you there, I will get to you soon" *munch, crunch, shlerp, scrumnch" on the egg rolls and "lickety smack" on my fingers. My notebook sat idling underneath utensils and extra dishes for dipping sauce. Then I brought the big bowl of Pho towards my body slowly and started in on that. With all the multitasking I do in a day, even if it's just staring at the computer and getting lost in pseudo-important emails, I had forgotten how enjoyable, sexy and lovable it is to just EAT. Not at home, but SOMEWHERE. Around HUMAN BEINGS. Like it mattered. Like I was a part of the world. This is what happens when you spend too much time on a computer and come up for air. It was divine.
I tore off pieces of basil leaf from the stem and sprinkled them over the broth, calm and serene like a Panda Bear, waiting for the Pho to cool down. Bean sprouts, hoisin sauce, too, and a squeeze of lime thank you very much. I had all the time in the world. The photo doesn't do it justice since it was taken with my little flip phone, but maybe it imparts what all the color and warmth a simple meal can bring you when you focus on eating because you're hungry, and nothing else. Mmm I could eat it all over again.
There may not be anyone in my bed at the moment, but my heart certainly feels a bit more relaxed tonight after having this meal. Oh how I underestimated you, Food! How could I have forgotten!?
If you're single or you're stressed and spending lots of time at home lately, don't let yourself forget how to enjoy a good meal. Turn off the phone, take a deep breath, look down at what your eating, and get back in the game. That's the secret to good sex and Love I think, and as it turns out, of course, good food too.
2841 Sunset Blvd.
Los Angeles, 90026
(213) 413-0888
CASH ONLY! :D
1 comment:
welcome back sexyfoodblog! I'm not even hungry but reading this about Pho made me crave for a bowl of warm and soothing yumminess. :)
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