"Jimmy, Where's My Chicken Wings?" by Ray Shay

"Jimmy, Where's My Chicken Wings?"

By Ray Shay

9.16.14

Jimmy Mok

I feel lucky to say, "I love my father in law, Jimmy." I feel like he is my own little Chinese Teddy Bear.  Sometimes, I just want to pick him up and give him a big fat squeeze.  Like any teddy bear companion, we have been hanging around each other for a long time.

I still recall that sunny fall morning in Parsippany, New Jersey, when Jimmy shook my hand for the very first time.  He smiled and said, "how you?"  I have learned he frequently leaves out the "are" but regularly

follows up with his trademark laugh.  

Jimmy and Helen

Jimmy's family is everything to him. Witnessing his love for Theresa's mom, "Helen" was something to see.  They were married for over fifty years and he cared for her the best he possibly could as she suffered and ultimately passed from ALS.  It gave me a private peek into his soul. Jimmy is a good man.
Jimmy would frequently suggest to Helen and all of us that he wanted to open a Chinese restaurant. Helen would of course smile, laugh and then shake her head side to side and say, "no." We all knew each time Jimmy tried to run that idea up the flagpole it would never reach the top.    


In the past  few weeks, Jimmy's dream to own a Chinese restaurant became a reality. He and his business partner Joanna Huang opened Quality Taste Chinese restaurant at 9225 Mira Mesa Blvd, suite #110.  It is located at the southwest corner of Black Mtn. Road and Mira Mesa Blvd, behind Wells Fargo Bank. 

Quality Taste Restaurant

Another secret about Jimmy is he loves fried chicken wings.   Their restaurant has awesome Chinese food, all types of "Hot Pots" (including vegetarian) that you can cook right at your own table and of course, chicken wings.

Let me tell you how over the next few weeks any of our eWeekly readers can get a FREE order of fried chicken wings served with a smile, a laugh, and maybe even a "how you?"

  

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Chicken Wings!

The secret is simple.  You don't need to print out a coupon or sign up for an email VIP program.  After you order your entree at lunch or dinner look around for Jimmy or Joanna.  Then extend your arms to each side with the your palms up like the server forgot something and holler out nice and loud, "Jimmy, where's my chicken wings?"
 
It will be so funny. I wish I could be there to hear so many of you hollering it out and other patrons staring at you.  Don't be shy.  It will get Jimmy laughing and the sound of his laughter is like music from above.
 
What you will see is a broad smile from Jimmy.   He will then jump up from his sitting position (near the Karl Strauss keg) and will shuffle to the door of the kitchen and yell, "another order of wings."  It will likely be in Chinese.  There will be no charge for the chicken wings.  They are on the house as they say
 

Jimmy and Joanna

Quality Taste Restaurant has delicious food.  One of my favorites is the spicy red fish plate from Northern China.  He also has our local brewery, Karl Strauss beer on tap.  Something about the hot food and cold beer is a great combination.
 
When Jimmy brings the chicken wings to your table be sure to ask, "how you Jimmy?" You will probably get the "how you" back with that smile and again the laugh.  I really don't mind sharing my little teddy bear with our two thousand or so readers.

 It's been his life long dream and at seventy-nine years old it finally happened.  Hey, more power to you Jimmy.  I hope at seventy-nine I keep pursuing my dreams.     

Somewhere in my heart, I feel if someone can share a dream that adds to our sense of community it will help enrich all of us. So, when it cools down a bit, get on down and tell Jimmy, "Where's my chicken wings?"  
    
  

Have a great week,

  

  

Copyrighted - All Rights Reserved - Shay Realtors 2014 

Viking Sanwiches

Viking Sandwiches

by Ray Shay

5.6.14

    

As I swam lap after lap in the pre-sunrise darkness at Del Norte High School's amazing swimming pool, my mind drifted to memories of my mom. I don't recall if it was the upcoming Mother's Day this Sunday that triggered thoughts of her, or my private agreement with myself that whenever I swim in the ocean or enter a large body of water, I always think of her.

I usually make a point of saying, "hello." The type of hello that is off the cuff, almost as if I just walked into her busy kitchen, so many years ago.   Sometimes I can even hear the sounds of my  "hey mom" leaving my lips, while usually it's only a slight whisper in the deep recesses of my constantly busy brain.

The ocean connection with my mom comes from the lyrics one of my favorite Jimmy Buffet songs, A Pirate Looks at Forty...

Mother, mother ocean, I have heard you call,

Wanted to sail upon your waters

since I was three feet tall.

You've seen it all, you've seen it all.

My mom certainly did see it all. As for my dad, the same thing occurs when I see stars in the night sky or a Navy fighter jet fly by.

He was a Naval Aviator and for some reason he was also infatuated with Stephen Hawkins and his study of black holes in deep outer space.  Kind of funny the things you remember about your parents. Both flying and the outer reaches of the galaxy are way above my pay grade.

As I swam, I thought of my mom and of course her, "Viking Sandwiches." The swimmer in the adjoining lane is a long time family friend named "Judy" who has amazingly beautiful dark brown almond shape eyes and a smile and laugh that always puts people immediately at ease. Since Judy had the swimming cap on her head her eyes were like black diamonds sparkling away, as they reflected off the immense surface of water.

I asked Judy about her daughter who is about to graduate from DNHS. Judy said her daughter had recently told her how much she was going to miss her mom's spaghetti. Judy laughed as she explained her daughter had exclaimed, "no one makes spaghetti like you mom."  Then came the smile and that amazing laugh again. I love Judy.

I thought how freaky it was that somehow in that vast pool of chlorinated water, both Judy and I were thinking about cooking and how food makes an indelible connection between parents and their children. 
As I began swimming the remainder of my workout, I thought of my mom's own laugh and her darn "Viking" cheese sandwiches. They were legendary and not because they were perfect sandwiches, but rather because they were perfectly, imperfect.

There really was nothing quite like em. First you have to understand with seven kids to feed our mom did everything fast, so her margin of error was pretty wide. I can still see her breaking out the whole square slab of American cheese and a loaf of white bread. As she talked away she would start slicing the cheese, but it was not like a normal person. She chopped it up like a Viking Sushi Chef on crack cocaine.

She would swing the large knife down on the soft yellow block and what would result is not slices but a series of "V" shaped pieces of cheese.  My mom never stopped talking as she asked about us our day, our sports, our lives, or telling us how much she loved being a mom.  She then buttered the bread, tossed the cheese on them and grilled them up.

Oh boy, it was an adventure to eat them. Some brown and some slightly burnt. It would drive any Qualcomm engineer absolutely crazy as the tip of the V was like hot lava while the other end was still ice cold.   You had to be careful because the cold part of the cheese may stick to your teeth while the narrow part seared the roof of your mouth or your lips as you suppressed a, "$%&^ that's hot!"

With my mouth half full of cheese and the toasted buttery bread, I would often tell my mom she was like a Viking. Of course she would laugh and then be off doing a variety of chores because there was certainly no housekeeper or helper in our home.

When I was a bachelor living in San Diego my dad sent me a Joy of Cooking cook book and wrote me a little note. You can see what he wrote above.

Mom and Dad

With both my parents passing within a few months of each other, I feel so fortunate to have these memories.  It reminds me to continue building great memories with our children.  As I continued my swim and saw the yellow sun beginning to peak over the eastern mountains, I felt a sense of good fortune. 

We were lucky to have such amazing parents and that they had such a "Live On" attitude.  They would not want any of us to mourn for them.

As I hurried to finish my workout, I could only think about Judy's delicious spaghetti. I hope she reads this story one day and brings me a plate.  I bet her daughter is right. There is only one spaghetti like Judy's and I suspect her smile and laugh are a few of the essential elements that make it so amazing.


Happy Mother's Day Mom, ,


Ray

 

Copyright Shay Realtors 2014 All Rights Reserved.