As I take my first bite of my fried chicken or ramen with a poached egg, I swell with happiness.
As I listened, I picked at my food warily after the first bite of a fried dumpling was marred by a large knot of gristle.
I was determined to give myself the full Wok n' Roll experience, which is to say a pile of General Tso's the size of a supermarket turkey, with the light sweetness of fresh fish swapped in for the traditional chicken, under a sauce that just coats the meat, soft as a caress, not too cloying, countered by the sourness of vinegar, the bite of stir-fried hot pepper.
But that's not the initial message as Mr. Emanuel's Web site captures his every bite of waffle or fried chicken.
Bite into a piece of fried milk, and you'll first notice the crunch of the breaded shell, then the contrast of a soft, velvety center that sometimes oozes into your mouth.
Tyro keftedes, small pungent balls of fried cheese, one bite each, are perfect between sips of ouzo.
I ate a lot of fried food.
Me: Bored of fried scallops.
Another treat is the appetizer of fried chili peppers stuffed with cottage cheese and chopped carrots, cauliflower and broccoli that start mild at the tip and turn hotter with every bite.
The calamari, commingled with fried jalapeño, is the Dick Weber of fried squid.
