plenty of things have made 2020 kind of shitty for everyone, but still there is a lot to be thankful for. after watching the dog show, i ended up going to raleigh to visit chan. we drove on 49 to 64, which was surprisingly quicker than the highway and definitely more scenic. seeing as everything was last minute, we searched for something to eat. we drove to taipei 101. they were open, but were doing takeout only. we wanted to sit down, so i quickly googled asian spots open on thanksgiving. i came across a place called harvest garden. the photos looked tasty, so we decided to give it a shot. i called them and they said they were open for dine-in until 10:30pm.
as soon as we walk in, it’s mainly empty as expected, but the aroma was just *chefs kiss*. it smelled of authentic and fresh asian ingredients. we sat down, and there was a grill in the middle of the table. despite finding harvest garden, i was confused by this so i turned to chan. once the menu was passed out, he explained how we were at a hotpot place. i thought hotpot was make your own soup, but really, it’s finger tasting with homemade sauces. chan cooked spicy chicken and said it was hella hot. i didn’t pay any mind because i don’t eat spicy food. but at the end of the night, i grabbed the tongs to eat my noodles (because i still cannot use chopsticks smh) and the remnants of the spicy chicken hit me like a ton of bricks. it caught me way off guard. as that was happening, two asian guys who walked out of the vip room were walking past our table and slipped. clearly they were drunk, but i wasn’t judging because everyone at harvest garden tonight was here trying to have a good time, enjoying company with the people they love.
pretty solid thanksgiving if you ask me.
-ratha, 11:24pm, 11.26.20