Significant Dumplings

Imagine this:

You have been shrunk by an evil professor, and are now only 12 inches tall.
The professor is subsequently arrested, but his laboratory equipment is destroyed in the struggle, and there is no way for you to return to normal size.

Are you following me so far?



You must adapt to daily life at such a tiny stature. Most things are fine; you are able to purchase miniature versions of electrical appliances on the internet, and many brands of action-figure offer stylish clothing in your precise measurements. The one thing that seems to bug you the most however, is eating.

You must break everything down into little bite-size pieces. You are unable to chomp on anything as a whole, sitting it atop your tongue and chewing through it's constituant parts. Sure, a friend will be happy to thinly slice little slivers of his chicken-wings down for you to share, but you don't get to sink your teeth into the crispy skin and bite down against the bone. M & M's aren't nearly as much fun when held like a bagel, and slowly gnawed through. In fact, once you have eliminated the colourful sugar-shell, the rest of it is kind of samey.



The thing you miss most of all (or at least I would, if this far-fetched scenario were to ever come to pass) are the Pork Gyoza Dumplings from Brighton's E-Kagen on Sydney Street, that you can see pictured at the top of this post.



DINNERGEDDON fans, we proudly present to you, what are without a doubt, the greatest gyoza we have ever had. If you were in fact 12 inches in height, you would simply not be able to enjoy them on the same level, as the crux of their magic; the warm, loving heart at the centre of this dumpling-creature, is the sensation of them bursting in your mouth while eaten whole. You must be large enough to encompass them fully, if they are to win you over. The reason for this, I think, is that they are greater than the sum of their parts.



That's not to imply E-Kagen only know dumplings... The salmon roe sushi you see above is stunningly beautiful; elegantly constructed, and crazy fresh. These work on a similar principle to the gyoza, as the tiny orange orbs explode with a deeply satisfying feeling akin to Pop-Rocks (remember them?), you'll almost want to hold off swallowing, just to keep the tongue-party rocking. (PS: Perhaps do not use the term "tongue-party" whilst on a dinner-date.)



Look at this guy's face as he eats. Doesn't he look happy? Also, slightly aroused...



That's the lesson to be gleaned from E-Kagen. Food is not just about taste, or aroma; just important as both of those factors is texture, and the tactile pleasure of biting.

OM. NOM. NOM.