Nom Nom Noodle

Seeing as I can count the number of things that I won't eat on one hand, I gave the reception food-choosing responsibility to the pickier-eater in the household: Sak. All I asked was that he make sure to include my beloved whole roast piggy, which he lovingly did.

Well, everyone's got a favorite food, right? Well, Sak's happens to be noodles. No joke, we probably eat some kind of pasta-esque dish at least three nights out of each week. Spaghetti, pho, yakisoba, ramen, pancit, chow mein/fun, ravioli - you name it, we eat it. Someone once tried to convince us that the waxy starches in noodles build up in your stomach and slowly kill you, but I'm not buying it. Pasta for life!

(source) Hello, summer noodle lover.

So I guess I shouldn't have been too surprised to see this:


Apparently he's signed us up for a noodle bar!

Well, if it makes him happy, I'm happy. And I'm also happy he didn't circle the super-expensive personal sushi chef. A noodle bar is much more affordable.

Thus, compliments of Sak, we will be having a pre-dinner noodle bar with:

Somen, a wheat flour noodle.

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Zaru Soba, a buckwheat flour noodle (and one of my favorites!).

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and udon, a thick wheat flour noodle.

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I believe these will all be served cold (perfect for the hot summer!), with a variety of dipping sauces and garnishes. I'm not exactly sure, since I've never seen a noodle bar before (nor have I had cold udon before), but I'm sure Sak's got it covered. And if you've never had cold Japanese noodles before, you really have to give them a try - they are so refreshing and delicious!

Overall, I think it'll be a fun alternative to traditional appetizers or pupus, and Sak seems pretty excited about it. Although I don't think he realizes that we won't really be there during the appetizer time (pictures, yeah?). I imagine he'd get pretty upset if he doesn't get to try out his noodle bar, so we'll have to delegate someone to save him a sampler plate.

The only downside I can see to this plan is that noodles are very, very filling. I hope guests leave some room, because Sak's dinner-picks are pretty drool-inducing as well!

Are you doing appetizers? What's your favorite noodle dish?