Countries in south east asia are relatively small share many common boarders, so it goes without saying that there’s a lot of mingling and sharing of cuisines. Some countries may borrow or appropriate elements from a neighbouring country’s cuisine and incorporate it in their own; unlike how my mother strangely develops a Jamaican accent when she comes home after talking to our new neighbours for a while. I mean subtle similarities, I’m not talking spring roll pho or crispy fried bbq pork noodle dumplings (but oh my God, how awesome would that be though?!).
What is MSG and why am I supposed to hate it? Ever walk past a Chinese restaurant with a “NO MSG” sign hanging on the window and wondered what it meant? Is this mom and pop shop so picky about people using their phones at the table that their strict rules manifest themselves as delicious Engrish signage? Or do they hate the Montreal Society of Geologist so much that they refuse to serve them? Today, I’m going to give you the straight up about Monosodium Glutamate and tell you why you should love it.
There are a few famous Montreal icons that are synonymous with our great city. For example; smoked meat sandwiches, Caleche rides in Old Montreal, the Spoon Man in front of Olgilvy’s, our vibrant night and cultural scene, summer festivals, eclectic neighborhoods, and full contact titty bars. Then there are the not so glamorous things that lend themselves to Montreal’s notoriety but we take credit for and are just as proud of; the deteriorating eyesore of an Olympic stadium, corruption, collusion and the revolving door at city hall (Toronto has nothing on us, in the time their mayoral drug tape tried to surface, the GMA has gone through three mayors and a city bankruptcy; T dot, step your game up), failing infrastructure, and when Celine Dion curls her lips and pounds her chest in a dramatic and cheesy gesture during a crescendo of an adult contemporary pop ballad.