Page 9 - Life's Outtakes 8
P. 9

something they were more sure about, and I couldn’t
blame them. I had had a bad experience once ordering
tuna and asking for it to be served on bread with
mayonnaise, only to find out tuna was the fruit of a
cactus.

      But, finally, the moment arrived. The fries were
there. They were just a potato cut into strips and
cooked in an oven. They might have been the slightest
bit brown, definitely not fries by American standards.

      But the hamburger was even more interesting.
There was a hamburger patty with cheese melting on it,
but there was no bun. The “side salad” was a nice stack
of lettuce, a big slice of tomato, and a few pickles —
basically all the fixings for a hamburger, but without
the bun. And, of course, beside them was an order of
beans.

      When I asked the waiter about the bun, he looked
confused. “Wait minute,” he said, disappearing into the
kitchen. When he came back he said, “Cook say,
American side order of decorative roll is extra.”

      I realized that when the cook had gone to
America, he had misunderstood what the bun was for.
In Peru, bread is served before the meal as a precursor
to the main dish. Then, as the meal comes, the waiter

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