We didn’t tell the hotel it was for Thanksgiving. Explaining to a country that lives with thousands of years of its own history everyday that it was a big deal meal about some guy ‘discovering’ America a couple of hundred years ago felt silly. We simply asked if they could recommend a very typically Wenzhouian restaurant. They knew just the place, scribbled out something on a ‘take me to…’ taxi card and sent us off.
The restaurant (we don’t know what it was called – we only ever saw the Chinese characters) was across town, above the Playboy home furnishings store (?).
We walked in, up the grand staircase, to tanks of fish, crabs, and snails, as well as plates and plates of examples in cases and behind a big glass wall along the kitchen.
Then were descended upon China style by a half dozen young waiters and waitresses who soon enough figured out we spoke no Chinese. They escorted us back into our own little room and giggled as they tried to explain to us how it worked. Apparently we were supposed to go up and point at what we wanted to eat. Cool.
We were eventually led back up to the front of the restaurant, to the fish swimming and those on ice, where we, luckily, met the best English speaking Chinese of the trip yet.
He asked what we wanted and we asked what he recommended. He showed us the fish we wanted (said it was from deep and made good flavor), recommended the mystery dumplings (again? Really?) with some salty sour mushrooms, and for the veggie course said the seaweed/algae plate was the way to go. He also suggested Heineken. The only time we questioned his advice. We chose the Tru-Chill Double Deer instead, a beer made right here in Wenzhou.
Whole deep-sea fish, seaweed, and dumplings…Thanksgiving, China style, and as authentic as we could have expected to find.