Transcontinental Fusion

I’ve gone to my favorite restaurant the past few days, but last night I was craving something a little different, a small taste of home.

Paprika Restaurant, one of the many local eateries.

The local food delivery service is called Talabat. It’s extremely convenient. I tap a few buttons and 30 minutes later food shows up outside my apartment. I’ve found two favorite restaurants since I’ve been here. One is an arabic restaurant with lots of specialties and one is basically a mom and pop shawarma restaurant. I’ve become very fond of chicken shawarma.

It’s literally right across the street. I walk out of the complex, cross the street and 10 minutes later I have some delicious chicken shawarma. Unfortunately, that restaurant has been closed for the past week or so. I’ve gone to my favorite restaurant the past few days, but last night I was craving something a little different, a small taste of home.

I’ve made it a point to avoid U.S. restaurants since I’ve been here. I’ve made one exception during Ramadan. With the local restaurants closed during the day, I broke down and ordered a large pizza from Papa Johns. Anyway, last night I opened the Talabat app and found an Italian restaurant. Needing a break from shawarma, I gave it a shot.

I ordered a pasta dish from Paprika, and it was pretty tasty. The portion was a decent size too. It was more than enough for one meal, but not quite enough for two. I do have a fridge in the apartment, but I try not to let leftovers sit in there for too long. Well, I try not to have leftovers, but when I do, I usually eat them fairly quickly.

I knew I had part of my dinner for tonight, but not enough for an entire meal. Fortunately, today was Taco Tuesday at the DFAC, complete with chips and guacamole. So I filled up my boxes for lunch and brought the extra home with me. So tonight’s dinner is a transcontinental fusion meal of chicken penne past with white sauce, tortilla chips and guacamole.

Or as any normal person would say….leftovers…