Japanese Dinner Trial

Well, tonight was the weirdest dinner we've had to date. Things started out pretty normal when, on the way home, I suggested Japanese for the ethnic food of the day. Everyone agreed and it was decided we'd try one over near where our apartments will be. We got cleaned up, caught a cab and managed to get him to drive right to the restaurant. Looked nice from the outside and sign said "Japanese Restaurant". We were met by smiling young ladies who led us across rock entry way on stepping stones to our table. The brought us our menus and it went downhill from there. They were all in Chinese with Japanese subtitles with nothing in English available. Not to be denied, we looked at the pictures and started to pick out what we wanted. I think we got the most gesture/pointing challenged waitress in all of China! We're trying to get pork ordered as when Pucca eats beef, she has bad dreams about her grandfather (don't ask, just order pork or chicken when you share). I had my Point & Grunt book with all the pictures that has worked in all parts of the world and pointed to the pig and then at one of the dishes. Insert blank stare here. Pucca pushed up her nose and made pig noises (pig noises in Thai are a little different than it English) but still no recognition. We'll try to make this easier, point at the pig, point at the menu, point at the pig point at the menu. We still couldn't get what we wanted across to her. I finally got up and took her over to another table where people were eating, pointed at what they were having and then went back to our table and pointed there. Pointed at their table, pointed at our table, pointed at their table, pointed at out table. Her eyes finally light up and she brought us a pot of tea. Back we go to their table, pointed at each one of the dishes and the grill that they were cooking it on, then pointed back at our table. Ah, this time she got it. Sure enough they brought out the sashimi dish and then removed the cover from the grill in the middle of the table. Things were looking up until they took the grill out and replaced it with a stand. Next comes a pot with some stock and couple of scrawny onion rings in it. Sets the pot on the stand on the grill and lights a fire under it. Now, I may not speak Chinese, but I know the difference between the sizzling meat that was on the grill at the table next to us and a pot of stock. We definitely did not have a grill. So we kind of looked around and decided maybe this was the soup dish. We started to dish some out and she got a horrified look on her face. Guess it wasn't the soup. Then she brought out some thin slices of what appeared to be beef. Back out with Point & Grunt. Point to the meat, point to the cow in the book, point to the meat, point to the cow in the book. Finally she starts to nod. PROGRESS!!! Then I point to the pig and back to plate that the meat was on. Back to blank looks. OK we'll go with the beef & Pucca can pick around it. Into the stock with the beef, but it really didn't look like twelve, 3" X 8" paper thin slices of beef was going to feed four adults, even was one is a 90-pound Thai girl. Then came out a bowl of veggies, mushrooms and tofu, so we dumped this into the pot and it looked better for not walking away starving. We ask for Cokes, saying very plainly C O C A C O L A. She got that one. Off she sprints to bring a Coke. When she gets back we told her "ir Coca Cola" and "ie Coca Cola jhen-yhee" (which is suppose to mean two Coca Cola's and one Coca Cola Diet according to the English speaking Chinese waitress at the Drunken Chef where we had Thanksgiving dinner last night). Apparently we didn't had exactly the right inflection on one of the syllables, because she didn't have a clue. I pointed to the red can, then the white table cloth then back to the red can. This trick has worked in at least three other restaurants, but not here. Finally, Brian called John, who is a Chinese national that works for GE with us at the plant and ask him to talk to the waitress to get pork and rice. When handed the phone to the waitress, she just stood looking like some standing there with a rat in her hand. Finally I took the phone, told John to start talking and then held it up to here ear. They converse for a short while and then she hands the phone to the waiter and he talks for a while. A short time later we get a plate of thinly sliced pork and Pucca is now a happy camper. We had just about finished our soup and realized that we had not gotten the rice that John ordered for us. Out came the P&G book again, and I point to the bowl of rice. SHE GOT IT!!! Back to the kitchen and out comes a second plate of pork. She didn't get it. Pucca has had her first two Chinese lessons and tried to say rice in Chinese, along with point at the bowl of rice in the book. At last we got our rice. Rice for desert. Cool rice for desert. Oh well, at least we didn't have to go to bed hungry.