is real food the road to happiness?

i'd forgotten my roots. growing up as "atif's daughter" eating in the best restaurants and trying exotic and different dishes--appreciating food in quantity (of love and portion) from my teita and in quality of delicate tastes from my dad's art. i'd let all that go, and i realized this when someone asked... whats really good food to get around here. and i didn't know any more. most of what came to mind were chains...and while decent--they weren't that fantastic.

most people, when they think of eating your way out of sadness think of a table filled with cheetos, doritos, gallons of ice cream and fudge, cookies, take-out, mcdonalds, and anything else processed and unknown to your biology as something that should be taken in. the truth is, if you want to eat your way through sadness... you have to find the real foods. foods that bring life out. that smell of chili and chocolate in "woman on top" that would drift through the streets. unadulterated, raw flavor, and beautiful.

elaine and i ate at a place called noodles in vegas--while no one expects much from a place called noodles... this was the one place where i ordered pork off the waitresses recommendation (where even elaine turned to me right after and reminded me "you don't like pork--you SURE?") and my eyes glittered when i had my first bite. and elaine turned into a 7 year old when she tasted the chicken in her noodle soup that tasted JUST like my mother's chicken did when she would pick it off and elaine and i would sit like birds waiting for her to give us little hot pieces. not pieces of meat covered in fat, or so much sauce you can't taste the flavor of the meat.

so i'm back on a mission, to find all those places that may not look like much (or they might look fantastic from the outside) that truly take pride in each dish they create - and love food. i want to eat at places where the chef LIKES going to work every day to create what he can. let me know of any places i need to be visiting... and if you'd like to come along... JUST TELL ME! but beware...unless the circumstances are dire and the food is too perfect to give up. i wont eat after dark. i find that even the dishes that are worse for you aren't as bad if you eat them earlier rather than later. so splurge a bit and make yourself happy!