For instance, the menu for Matilda Mandiles, a small restaurant adjacent to our apartments, includes English translations of their Spanish dishes. As explained to me by Keith Howard, who teaches Spanish literature, while the “bravas” in “patatas bravas” on the menu could be literally translated as “brave,” it is more like “angry potatoes” as in spicy.
So, for those of you back in Panama City eating hot wings, in Spanish terms, you are having “angry chicken” (“pollos bravas”).
We haven’t tried the “war” strudel yet or the tumaca bread “with pajamas,” and I will probably skip the “gag” of Burgos – I am sure it means something else, but “gag” is not a word I would use on a menu.
— Mike Wallace
Four Crossed Logs advisor
Hilarious! When I was in Beijing last October, a big menu item was fungus. And even with pictures of mushrooms cooked in several different ways, my husband and I could not stomach eating anything anyone deems "fungus." You'd be surprised that I did settle for the century-year-old egg drop soup! It was aromatic, to say the least.
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