Dinner and A Show

One of my aunt's gave me two tickets to a Broadway play for my birthday. I invited my friend A and we headed into the city on a nice spring evening. The show we had tickets for was "The 39 Steps," which is a play that is based on a Alfred Hitchcock film and some book. I'm not sure exactly, but it beats the musicals I normally go to.

What to say about this play... it was okay. The first act was kind of ho hum, but the second act was good. A hated the play, and it didn't help that the person sitting next to her had a habit of snort laughing. To the point where it was starting to bother me and give me that puke feeling.

The play was over by 10, so we decided to hit up Chinatown for a late dinner. A had never been to Hop Kee, so we went there. Did you know they changed the parking situation on Mott St? Instead of the old parking meters, they have some parking machine and you print out a ticket for your dashboard.

I have been going to Hop Kee for... ever. When I was six, lunch at Hop Kee was a treat after ballet practice. Almost everyone knows about this place, heck... Anthony Bourdain covered this famous restaurant in one of his recent episodes.

Because it was late, we chose to split an order of beef lo mein and green beans sauteed in oyster sauce. I never understood why they would serve a bowl of rice with any vegetable. And yes, I mixed my rice in with the lo mein. It's my thing... and it helps sop up the oil on the noodles. A really liked the food and has plans to take her boyfriend there to eat when he comes up this summer.

As usual, I ordered the Cantonese style snails for take out. It's so tasty, and I cook it at home whenever I get the chance. It's very easy to duplicate, too. One pound of snails, black bean sauce, and either bell or hot pepper. That's it. It's salty and spicy, and the sauce is good over rice. Eating the snails is fun too- don't forget the tooth picks to handle the meat that won't come out.