Thank You.

Here’s another of my funny little stories, on my incoming flight to Guyana, Delta gave me a wad of silly putty, which they called a turkey wrap. On my flight out, I was determined to find any alternative, so I went into one of the little shacks, that the president plans to break down, and ordered 6 egg balls and one eddoe leaf with beef and roti.

My wife was mad by the time I got back, since I left her to struggle with all the suitcases, I pleaded that I now have real food in my possession, she bluntly said she is not interested in my food, and placed me in the dog house.

So on the flight, they started serving their snacks, my wife got another wad of silly putty, which they now called a turkey, crossaunt sandwitch. Well your truly took out his container of 3 goldenbrown egg balls, and gingerly bit into one of them, my wife looked at her silly putty then at my snack, then she sheepishly said, “Joe can I please have an eggball”

Now do you know that food tasted like home, I do not know if it’s the water, the oil or method of cooking, just looking at the expression on my wife’s face as she bit into that eggball, I knew instantly that I was forgiven and out of the dog house.

This is a real story,my friends, I did not make it up, and just to prove it true, I have the shopkeepers name. It is Deneta Prowell and her shop is crack#5 (as in crack in the wall). I suggested that she should change the name, since it might attract the wrong customers, she laughed.

Readers might recall that the government was bulldozing these honest hardworking folks from the area, I say they should advise and assist them to set up more trendy shops, and allow Deneta to continue doing what she knows best,

That is cooking local foods that tastes like home, so the next time your are flying out, please support this good sister, my friends.

Joe.

Let me direct you to my past column on mauby which you can find at this link: http://www.stabroeknews.com/the-scene/tastes-like-home-19/

Also if you follow this link to my blog, you will see the mauby recipe handed down to me through generations, it has never failed to me my standard of an ice-cold glass of mauby and it’s a recipe that my mom has been making for ages that used to sell like wild fire at the fairs at Sacred Heart Church: http://www.tasteslikehome.org/2007/01/mauby-bark-drink.html

They served me glass after glass of sweetened bitter swill, that is not mauby period. A friend told me that they also lost the toddy formula, you remember that frothy milky drink that they sold in the market place.

They also lost the original, far east / National restaurant low mein formula, not only in Guyana but in America and Canada. Whatever they are selling us as lowmein is anything else but.

I will have to reintroduce the authentic Low Mein formula back into the culture. The mauby and toddy is out of my league, so that is where you come in, you need to launch an immediate investigation, to find the culprits who lost these ancient formulas and drag them into the courts of culinary justice.

We have also lost another important culinary institution and that is the cookup rice stand under the tree at the market place. We also need to the cook to be preferably male and gay ( I am being politically correct here)

All my friends were anxious to take me to the latest food import eateries. I said no, I want to go eat a real old fashioned cookup under the tree at the market place. I was really saddened when told that they exist no more.

Joe.