When I was growing up in the 1970s my mum didn’t speak to me in French, her language of origin. She’d had a bit of a journey to the UK, growing up in Egypt and then living in France before she married my dad. My father always said that the reason she didn’t teach us French was because she was eager to “assimilate”. She ended up with a better turn of English phrase than anyone I know.
By the time Yeshi joined me in the UK in 2011, assimilation had become a requirement to some extent: he had to pass multiple English exams, and then – in order to secure British citizenship – the Life in the UK Test.
The Life in the UK Test covers various aspects of British life, including food: here was Yeshi’s first brush with a Hobnob.
But supermarket biscuits have not become a tea-time staple in our house. In fact, Yeshi rarely partakes, dismissing them all as “too sweet”. Come 4 o’clock, he’s more likely to be found snacking on dried fruits or nuts.
Yeshi has failed at “assimilating” to the British diet. Quite the opposite: he consciously uses food to retain his Tibetan identity. So far so obvious: we’ve built a life around the celebration of Tibetan food and culture.
But at home he works in more subtle ways. Tsampa (pictured) was our son’s first food, and almost our daughter’s (it would have been, but she looked so keen on my banana one day when Yeshi wasn’t around that I just let her come in for the kill).
Yeshi enjoys warm tsampa every morning, and he uses breakfast as a daily opportunity to evaluate the kids’ Tibetanness. If they join him in tsampa, love and approval naturally follow. But if they go for marmite on toast, well that’s minus points.
Quantity is also important: whether it’s tsampa or another Tibetan staple such as wood ear mushroom, the children are subliminally tested on how much of dad’s food they can consume. There’s nothing makes Yeshi happier than the kids polishing off a big bowlful of something their friends would struggle to identify.
I wonder if my mum would have come at things differently if my father hadn’t enrolled her in the Cordon Bleu Culinary School early in her marriage (French food was all the rage back then). She cooked a mean boeuf bourguignon, but I couldn’t tell you what were her favourite childhood dishes.
The restaurant is open all the usual hours this week, as follows:
Weds – Fri: 5-9.30pm (dinner only)
Saturday: 12-3 / 5-9.30pm
Sunday: 12-3 / 5-9pm
This week’s menu is up on the website – check it. Drop by for dine in, take away or a wide range of freezer food. Also, we cooked up a huge stash of chilli oil last week. We’re not shipping this out at the moment, so if you’re looking for a hot gift or you’re running low, please pop in to the restaurant.
Newsletter subscribers: are you looking to restock your freezer? We have good news! Beef momos are on special offer this week. Click here to receive weekly deals straight into your inbox.
Looking forward to seeing you soon.
Julie and Yeshi
Opening hours this week:
Weds – Fri: 5-9.30pm
Saturday: 12-3pm 🥢 5-9.30pm
Sunday: 12-3pm 🥢 5-9pm
☏ 01865 499318
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