The Toilet Bowl

Let us now head to Taipei, Taiwan, where we can grab a meal at a local favorite: The Toilet Bowl. That's right, a potty-themed restaurant where you can "rest" while eating. The first thing that came to mind was: WHY?

I guess these children seem to be enjoying themselves. But I can't think of any reason, other than sheer gimmick, why I would want to eat in a restaurant filled with old crappers.


Wait. There was this Chinese place downtown in which I did get some pretty freakin' bad food poisoning. I guess that place could've used seats made out of toilets. Then I wouldn't have had to leave the table when I shat acid violently out of my burning ass and vomited for 36 hours until my lungs came out of my mouth with bits and pieces of my ruptured bowels.

That wasn't fun.

But I still don't really understand why you would want to eat at The Toilet Bowl in Taiwan. I guess people have their reasons.

I just don't get it. Can you help me translate?

From Odd Culture.

Casa Bonita

Our next journey takes us to the heart of old Mexico - to one of the finest Mexican restaurants in the world - Casa Bonita.

Ok. It's in the middle of Denver, Colorado, and the food is just mediocre. My family and I just happened to grab some dinner and entertainment there this evening.

You may remember Casa Bonita from a little show called South Park:

The similarity is striking. It's almost as if Matt Stone and Trey Parker have actually been to the restaurant. Several times. Many times, in fact. Here's the scene from this evening (Nikon D70s):

And here's the scene with Cartman (and follow link to hear Cartman):

Uncanny.

Also, it looks like Cartman ordered the same thing I did : the beef deluxe dinner - all you can eat, baby! Can you guess how many tacos I ate?

But what's the point of this post? It's obviously not just going to be a shameless endorsement for the restaurant. I can't argue, Babygirl Translator and Girl Translator both love it. But that's not what this blog is about. I want to get down to the nitty gritty about the cultural phenomena that make us unique.

So, what's unique about Casa Bonita?

We ate in a cave tonight. That's unique.

And we ate food that came out of a can - with lettuce and cheese on top. The point is, you could serve yesterday's monkey shit from the zoo and kids would still flock to Casa Bonita, pulling their parents (and their wallets) behind them. It's not about the food - it's about the waterfall, the cave, and the...the...guy in a monkey suit always threatening to jump from the shadows.

The Waterfall (from whence Cartman lunged)

The point of all this, is that some time in our life we switch from an emphasis on entertainment to an emphasis on culinary perfection. We no longer need monkeys singing and dancing...we just need a nice glass of wine and a thick juicy steak. I'm not saying that I don't enjoy some dining fun with the kids, every once in a while. I'm just not sure when (or why) the culinary growing-up-switch is activated.

I just don't get it. Can you help me translate?

Howard's Translation: "Only go if you have kids. They are the only ones who understand the appeal, but prepare to roll your eyes. A lot."

Sapheyerblu's translation: "If we keep their attention placed on the divers, they won't notice how nasty the food is".