Frituur

Cherry

By Ed Crane

Sun, 18 Aug 2013
  • 1856 reads
9 comments
 

FRITUUR

 

Escaping from the frozen street

into, Het Tip Zak, I’m greeted with

heat, the smell of frying lard and

laughter and join a ragged queue

to survey raw and processed meats

displayed under spotless fridged glass.

 

My turn is noted. Recognition a look

over his glasses, unsmiling but not

unfriendly. I ask a kleintje en a saté.

As he collects the skewered meat ready

for the boiling fat, I beg a flesje Jupiler.

 

Handing me an opened bottle and an

open palm, I pay and take my place

against the wall to neck my beer with

chatty waiting clients and watch the heap

of par-fried chips reduce slightly as

a delicious greasy gaggle is plunged

into scalding fat to fulfil awaiting orders.

 

She the wife, Mevrouw, packs my frits,

tossed free of fat, and points at the row

of sauce dispensers. I decline mayonnaise,

andalouse, and curry opting just for salt.

My deep fried saté sitting in a cardboard

coffin joins the chips inside a paper tent

and a perforated plastic carry-home bag.

 

Leaving with my prize I head back under

cold sodium yellow with warmth and

comfort in my hand and reflect how close

this is to the chippies I left behind twenty

years ago, just as warming and welcoming

except here they sell beer instead of Cod.

Certificate U
Poem
Autobiography

Comments

Submitted by Bee on

Great atmosphere! Really enjoyed this.

Bee

Submitted by rjnewlyn on

Yes, very good - evocative of elsewhere.

Rob

 

 

Submitted by scratch on

Sounds like Belgium.  My preference is for Leffe blonde (spelling?) Those frituur's are wonderful places and you have captured the atmosphere perfectly in this poem ed. Congratulations on the cherry pick too.  Well deserved.

 

Submitted by Ed Crane on

Hello Bee, rijnewlyn and scratch,

Thanks very much for reading this and the positive comments. Sorry for the delay in replying, I've been pretty busy the last couple of weeks.

Also, scratch, yes it's Belgium. My local frituur. I love it when you can get a beer when you go for chips or a McDonalds. Civilised living I reckon (perhaps that's why I stayed here so long).

Trappist La Roche is my favorite beer, but sadly they have problems at the moment with their neighbours -- a quarry who is spoiling the well water they use for the brew. Back to drinking Westmalle I guess. I'm not keen on Leffe it's OK but if I can get something better I will. Also the fact it's made by the company who owns Budweiser kind of puts me off.

 

 

 

Submitted by scratch on

I stayed in a monastery when I was at a conference and they actually made their own beer there, although I believe that is still quite common.  It was in a place called Corsendonk I think.  It was delicious but also bloody powerful stuff.

 

Submitted by Ed Crane on

Yes plenty of trappist monks breweries. Corsendonk is a very well known (and nice) beer. The most well known ones are available in the UK but a bit expensive. Westmalle and Chimay are the ones I've often seen when I go 'home' usually  in pubs and restaurants and some big supermarkets.

Trappist beers are usually about 6.5% ABV for the dark ones and 8% for the blonde ones. But some go up in degrees and can be 9, 10 even 12% There's a trappist type blonde beer fron Gent called "Delirium Tremmens'" 9.5%ABV. The label has pink elephants on it.

The pubs usually serve the beer in specialist glasses and  some use really expensive ones. There's a pub in Gent where you have to put one of your shoes in a bucket which is winched to the ceiling. You get it back when you return the glass, it's a big joke - especially after a couple of glasses of the beer.

 

Submitted by Ed Crane on

Thanks for the Cherries Eds

 

Submitted by denni1 on

Ed. I thought this was incredible, and l really had to think all the way through the read. Very clever. And it's just aboot a bag o' chips!!

Submitted by Ed Crane on

Thanks Denni. The chips are great, but the best thing is you can get a beer with your chips. Very civilisedcheeky