Dad and Elaine had just arrived in Baoji (宝鸡, Bǎojī) from Xianyang by train.

Our homestay owner had recommended a nearby noodle shop, so we went there for lunch.

Elaine ordered at the counter, paid with her phone and came back to the table.

Then she saw this bowl.

Elaine: “Dad, what is that?”

Dad: “Don’t know.”

Dad: “Soup? Or water for us to wash our utensils?”

In China, sometimes hot water is provided for diners to rinse their chopsticks, spoons, bowls or cups before eating.

Dad: “You go ask the shop owner.”

Elaine went over to ask.

She came back.

Elaine: “It’s miàntāng.”

Dad: “?”

Elaine: “It’s like soup. Drink it after we eat the noodles.”

Elaine: “The shop owner says it helps digest the noodles better.”

Dad: “Oh…”

🥚 彩蛋

It was 面汤 (miàntāng) — the warm, cloudy water from cooking the noodles.

Something neither of us would have understood if Elaine hadn’t simply walked over and asked.

And that little bowl turned out to be just one part of a much bigger lunch story — including Elaine ordering entirely by herself, Dad discovering why there was raw garlic on every table, and our first bowl of 扯面 (chěmiàn) in Baoji.

Want the whole story?

Read: Our First Lunch in Baoji 宝鸡 — Dad Made Elaine Do the Ordering
https://chinatravelbug.com/our-first-lunch-in-baoji-宝鸡-dad-made-elaine-do-the-ordering/

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