I’m in Chongqing. It’s a metropolis of 30 million people located smack dab in the center of China. For a young American guy, there aren’t many places farther from home. Here, it’s normal to eat spicy food for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I love the food and rarely get tired of it.
But my Chongqingese (Chongqingian?) friends worry about me. They realize I miss home and can’t eat spicy food all the time.
One day, a friend decided to take me out to eat American food. He knew just the place: Manhattan Steakhouse. I didn’t know Manhattan was known for its steak, but once we arrived, I knew I was in for a treat.
Surrounded by 30-story tenements from the 90’s, Manhattan Steakhouse felt a bit out of place. The building looked like it was taken straight out of Gotham City: Granite from top to bottom, with a gold-plated revolving doorway hidden behind enormous gray pillars. All it needed was a few gargoyles.
Once inside, we were ushered through a gloomy, green-rugged dining room to our table underneath an unlit chandelier (presumably to save electricity). We took a look at the menu. Everything was portioned into set meals that included a big slab of meat, a fried egg, rice or pasta, and mixed vegetables.
One item caught my eye right away: American Style Boston Butt. The Chinese name literally translates to “American-style Plum Sauce Pork Chop,” which seems easy enough to translate. I immediately realized someone had to think a while in order to arrive at Boston Butt. I imagined they were trying to express something more than a literal translation could ever provide. The creativity and gumption it took is nothing short of inspirational. I had to try it.
After chatting with my friend a while, our meals arrived. They came on sizzling black skillets that sputtered for the better portion of our meal. It was far from anything I would call “American food”. I’ve never had fried egg and pork chop in plum sauce at the same time before. I’ve also never eaten pasta off a skillet.
My friend and I talked while we ate. We rambled about Chinese politics, American politics, life, work, and family. I told him what I thought. He told me what he thought. We disagreed at points, even on some important things.
Bits and pieces were definitely lost in translation. But when it all came together, something magical happened. It was Chinese. It was American. It was delicious.
我现在在重庆。这是一个位于中国中央地区的大都会，人口大约有三千万。对于一个年轻的美国人来说，这实在是一个离家十分遥远的地方。在这里，人们往往习惯早餐、午餐和晚餐都吃辣的。我很喜爱食物，对食物乐此不疲。
但是我的重庆朋友有点担心我。他们发现我想家，而且也不能一直吃辛辣食物。
有一天，一个朋友决定带我去吃美国食物。他知道一个非常合适的地方：曼哈顿牛排馆。我并不知道曼哈顿的牛排很有名，但是我一到了那边就知道我来对了地方。
这家餐馆被90年代三十几层的楼房环绕着，看似跟周围的环境有些格格不入。这栋建筑看起来像是直接从哥谭市搬过来的。从上到下全部是用大理石建筑而成，而且，在巨大的灰色梁柱后面，更藏着镀金的旋转门。这栋建筑只是缺少几尊石像。进去之后，有人带我们走过一个黯淡的铺着绿色地毯的餐厅来到我们的位子。位子上方有一盏关闭的水晶灯（大概应该是为了省电）。我们看了一下菜单，所有的食物都是套餐，包括一大块肉、煎蛋、饭或意大利面和混合蔬菜。
一道菜特别引起我的注意：美式Boston Butt。中文直接翻译为“美式梅子酱猪排”，并不怎么难翻译。我马上发现，要想到Boston Butt这个名字其实要花不少时间。但是我想他们想表达的意思不是直接的翻译就能表达出来的。他们的创意和勇气实在很有启发性。我决定点这一道菜。
在跟我朋友聊了一阵子之后，我们的菜来了。食物放在发烫的铁板上，很长时间后仍吱吱作响。这跟“美国食物”差太多了。我从来没有同时吃过煎蛋、猪排和梅子酱。我也没有吃过铁板上的义大利面。
我跟我朋友边吃边谈，从中国政治、美国政治，谈到生活工作和家庭。我告诉他我的想法，他也告诉我他的观点。我们有时候在一些事情上产生歧义，甚至是一些大事上面，我们也会有不同的意见。有时候翻译会使我们忽略掉一些东西。
但是当所有事情变得明朗之后，神奇的事情发生了。是中国，是美国，是人间美味。