Noms.

2. Food

When my now boss flew me down here for my 'in person' interview, he took me to some food places.  I knew they'd probably be good because when you try to get someone to go across the world, you show them the best of the best, right?  Well, he did.

He took me to lunch at a restaurant and told me, 'you have to try this gumbo!'  It was duck and andouille sausage.   I was skeptical about it for two reasons.  One; I had never had gumbo.  Two; it had duck. DUCK!  But, there I was, sitting next to my future boss and who am I to say no?  So I got it.....

It changed my life.

When I say it was delicious, that hardly sums it up.  That gumbo was magnificent.  I had never had such a thing!  And weirder still.... THERE WAS RICE IN IT!  RICE!  At first I was confused by the pile of rice in the middle of my gumbo bowl, but once I started digging in... that rice man.... it was just what I needed!

And then I came down here and was all like, 'the food can't all be that good.  He just took me to the best place to eat.'  No.  Let me tell you something yankees.... you have not eaten a good meal until you've eaten my roommate's hamburger steak.  Until you've eaten at a sushi joint called 'Tsunami (no, I don't eat the sushi).'  Until you've eaten the cupcakes...

Where I am, there are more restaurants per capita than anywhere in the United States and guess what, there is NO Red Lobster.  NO TGIFridays.  None of that garbage!  It's all delicious, awesome, hole in the wall restaurants that are all glorious.

And let me tell you about their plate lunches.  For lunch down here you can go to a variety of places that aren't your standard burger joints and get delicious, tastes homemade food.  The plate lunches MOUND on the food.... the rice, the gravy, the smothered green beans and stuffed turkey wings.  Yea.... Amazing....  Hauntingly amazing.

My friends.  Pierogies are awful.  Shoo Fly pie should be fed to the flies.  All the Northern, no taste food needs to get a splash of Tony Chacheres every time.  Put it on Mac N Cheese.  Fiance puts it on his eggs.  Put it on your hamburger.  Just do it.

But I guess I do miss some food in PA.  Five Guys (but they are building here soon, so not for long) and great pizza/ Italian food.  These people have no idea how to do Italian food.  Everything else though, the South has on lock down.

And don't worry, I haven't gained weight here.  As I write this I am making my dinner which consists of.... rice.  All this amazing food and I eat plain wild rice.  Now that's a shame.