Monday, February 19, 2024
Holiday. Medium bowl of oatmeal with milk, cacao nibs, toasted sliced almonds, toasted shaved coconut, blueberries, diced half banana; hot water. Patrick and I rode Muni to Civic Center Station then walked to and visited the Asian Art Museum. We saw Taihu Rock—East Wind II; Into View: New Voices, New Stories; Japanese Tastes in Chinese Ceramics; Japanese Ink Paintings; Deities, Paragons, and Legends: Storytelling in Chinese Pictorial Arts. RAD (Research And Development) and East West Bank Art Terrace were closed. Afterwards we rode Muni underground to Powell Street Station then transferred to the T line to Chinatown and walked to Hang Ah Tea Room (1 Pagoda Place), the oldest dim sum restaurant in America. Just before we arrived we saw a large group of women dressed as beauty contestants leaving. While waiting in line we saw employees removing tables from a configuration for a large group which was probably the women we passed. We also saw people at tables who had finished their meals and were clearly waiting for their checks. Some had to get up to ask a server for their checks. Our wait was about 15 minutes. We shared combination A and combination B and an order of sticky rice with pork and chicken. Patrick wanted hot milk tea, but they said they were out. We both had hot jasmine tea. One of the employees took his lunch break at one of the tables. One of our combos was missing an egg roll. We pointed out the error to one of the servers, and it was quickly resolved. A 15% service charge is included in the check. The food is reasonably good, a bit on the greasy side. We ordered slightly too much for two persons; it would have been perfect for three. We ordered the combos because that gave us more variety than if we hadn't ordered them. One of the servers mistakenly delivered our order to the wrong table before delivering it to us. In the restroom the paper towel dispenser was empty and there was no easily available backup; I had to wipe my clean, wet hands on my pants in order to exit. I reported the problem, and the person I reported the problem to resolved it within a few minutes. The food was good as I said, but nothing stood out. The walls and the television included various objectifications of women, and on one hand you could say that this ought to be removed, but on the other hand you could also say that it's important to not erase it and that seeing it in its original context is instructional. It reminded me of the beauty pageant contestants who likely sat here moments before, and I imagined that the group of 20 or so shared only one combination A and maybe some tea. It's worth dining at once just so you could say you did, but otherwise it's not particularly special. We walked in Chinatown a bit before riding Muni home. I napped then rested awake. Patrick prepared dinner: bucatini with asparagus and parmesan, water. Afterwards we watched Oh, Hello on Broadway | Nick Kroll, John Mulaney + More | Talks at Google and David Tennant's HILARIOUS Opening Sketch 🐶 | BAFTA Film Awards 2024 - BBC on YouTube. Patrick went to bed. I watched various YouTube videos and then Apple Trailers.