This is a sponsored post for EatNow
“Number 737??! Number 737!” the militant voice screams into the microphone.
People pull out their tickets with desperate hope, only to have it snatched away and replaced with disappointment.
Quickly, we dive to the front of the queue and accompanied to our table through the war zone.
Trolleys of food crashing into each other. The maitre d’ yelling at those driving them.
Dirty plates are cleared, thrown recklessly into a big plastic tub.
A new clean white tablecloth flung across with swiftness, clean plates tossed around the table like frisbees.
Finally we sit down for some delectable Yum Cha.
For all of its crazy chaos, it’s our favourite Sunday pastime.
Well, mine actually.
For Mr Surfer, it’s been an acquired taste.
One of the first meetings with my family happened over Yum Cha.
Much to his horror, he found himself with an Asian family that ate chicken feet.
Right then, I knew he was a keeper.
The other thing that bugs him about Yum Cha is the use of chopsticks. It’s definitely not his thang.
There’s a Chinese saying:
“Every grain of rice in your bowl is won by the sweat of the brow”
Great.
But what if it takes every sweat of your husband’s brow to pick up that grain of rice?
The twinions on the other hand are starting to build an interest.
Here are some tips I thought I’d share as the twinions are discovering the art of using chopsticks:
Watching Kung-Fu Panda:
Encouraging chopstick use is probably not one of the main messages of this movie but all I can say is, it’s worked for the twinions.
Haiiiiii-yah!
Let them see you use them:
Pretty self-explanatory, however, I warn you there will be a long period there they will just want to use them as drum sticks.
Keep watchful eye on tea cups, bowls, plates, glasses and keep sanity in tact.
Get through that phase and you’re on a winning streak.
Accept that things will get messy:
This is why Chinese restaurants are great! While many of them aren’t so hot on customer service, they are kid-friendly. You can leave behind the biggest World War 3 without an inkling of guilt.
Ordering takeaway is just as good, even better when it comes to convenience.
All the more awesome if your local has delicious noodles dishes and there’s only one way to find out.
EatNow is one of Australia’s leading online food delivery services and operates in over 4,400 restaurants Australia wide. In part of its success for being reliable and easy to use, EatNow was also awarded by Deloitte in 2014 as the 9th fastest growing technology company.
(No) Method to the Madness:
Nunu keeps asking me how to hold chopsticks and it’s like teaching him how to use a pen but not really…
It’s one of those things you just have to figure out for yourself.
The added bonus is that he’s working on his fine motor skills.
Cut the food up:
Just like teaching children how to use a knife and a fork, it helps if we cut up the food for them.
We noticed a couple sitting next to our table with their toddler, cutting up her noodles with special food scissors. Genius!
Ever since, that’s how we prepare our noodles as well as spaghetti.
Getting hungry??
I have a $50 EatNow voucher to giveaway!!!
All you have to do is leave a comment on this post telling me:
What’s your favourite takeaway dish/es to order?
Entries open to Australian Residents.
Competition closes Monday, 20th of April 11:59pm EST
I love love love….. Chicken Katsu Don from this tiny hole in the wall Japanese place at Bondi Junction. YUM!! It has the perfect mix of flavour, texture and all round yumminess. Also it costs just over $10 which is even better. Oh boy am I hungry now.
I love my pasta and pizza from up the road. On Mondays they have $10 pasta, which is perfect because who can be bothered to cook after the weekend!
Our favourite dish is Indian, every time we eat out this is what we get, I’m a med-hot korma gal and hubby is a vindaloo almost ALWAYS! Wish we could have it every night xx
Emily @ Have A Laugh On Me recently posted..What will be the strangest thing you do today?
We tend have an around the world adventure when we splurge and order take away as each person in our family of five has different tastes. Mexican, Indian, Japanese, Thai and Italian. The one thing we can all agree on is chocolate and cheesecake.
Raych aka Mystery Case recently posted..My Prerogative | Doing my own thing since 1970
That has made me hungry! I love Yum Cha!
Kaz @ Melting Moments recently posted..WWU – Birthdays and stuff…
Grace, that was me!! My first meal with John’s family was Yum Cha, and chicken feet were plentiful!
It’s one of our favourite things to do a s a family, and our table absolutely looks like a war zone when we leave. I always think that’s a sign that we enjoyed ourselves lots 🙂
For takeaway the favourite here is Pad Thai and Yellow Curry.
Your boys make me smile xx
Lisa@RandomActsOfZen recently posted..“Juicy” on Pinterest
My daughter loves to use chopsticks.
My friend bought her some with a cute little girl on the top.
Sadly, I’m hopeless with chopsticks but I always give it a red hot go. Love a good Yum Cha but haven’t been in way too long. How gorgeous are your twins – beautiful!
We all love ordering Thai Green Chicken Curry, it’s fantastic!!
I love simple ROAST CHICKEN… EXCEPT our chicken shop does the BEST juiciest, charcoal chicken with a secret spicy rub plus garlicky scalloped potatoes and homemade tabouli.
I just can’t match it as well (or as fast) at home.
Anything Asian! Chinese, Vietnamese, Indian, Malaysian, Thai… whatever it is, so long as it involves soy and ginger and garlic, I’m happy!
My wife hates Greek food so she never cooks it, so whenever I’m ordering home delivery I always order moussaka and it is sooo good! I should learn to cook it myself I guess.
I love ordering Special Fried Rice with prawns… I have never worked out how to cook it as good as the restaurant does so I just order home delivery now and don’t feel guilty about it.
San choy bow from our local Chinese restaurant, because they’re the one thing I can’t make at home to taste exactly as delicious as the ones we get from there.
Pizza from my favourite FAVOURITE favourite pizza restaurant a few suburbs away. I get so excited dialing the number because they really are that yummy.
Fish and chips favourite to order by phone. Then I can walk through the crowd, pick it up and leave without having to sit there for ages with all the ferals waiting for their food (always young kids talking rot or people who haven’t heard what deodorant is for)
You can’t go past pizza because if the pizza is screwed up then you can always put it in the oven and whack some ham on it.
Pizza, because everybody has different favourites, and it keeps everyone happy and fed without any fuss!
I’m going to hire Kung Fu Panda. Chopstick use seems so far away right now, but I’d love it to happen sometime in the not so distant future. I always have to order something different, except when it comes to pizza. We always order a capriciosa x
Bele @ BlahBlah recently posted..A chrysanthemum body scrub for Mother’s Day
I love Thai Fried Rice, Lemongrass Beef, Sweet and Sour Pork and Mongolian Beef. Love my Asian food!
Nothing beats this amazing Thai place just down the road, delicious!
Favourite takeaway is pizza and chips, even though my mrs says it goes straight to my hips, so makes me want to do some sport, to eat more junk food before i get caught!
Always always my pick is duck risotto, though the only place to do it round here isn’t open for lunch, which is when I most feel like it, doh!
Our local Thai does a great Roti with Satay Sauce and a Stirf-Fried Calamari – my favourites.
I LOVE Zambrero burritos! Not only is it the best Mexican food out, but their Plate 4 Plate incentive helps feed others in need around the world. Makes you feel better about eating out knowing it’s making a difference to other people’s lives also!
Thai me up baby. Love the mixture of lemongrass, coriander and chilly. When the 6 of us dine out, all I can say is sorry before we even order.
natalie @ Our Parallel Connection recently posted..8 tips to building a stronger relationship with your family
|Thai food for sure.
AND I use chopsticks. Wouldn’t be Thai without them.
L
We hardly ever get take away, but when we do, it is usually pizza or fish and chips. Both equally delicious (and fatty!!)
We love curry!!! The hotter the better 🙂
As for the chopsticks situation, my two kiddies just use one chopstick each and stab their food – very effective!!!
Mumma McD recently posted..How to get out the door with 2 kids in 30 easy steps
Our family loves ordering takeaway sushi platters. There’s always something on it for everyone!
My husband is a pro at using chopsticks! I try, and then ten minutes in I call the waiter ground, look down at the ground and mumble, “Can I please have a fork please?”
I love Thai – my fave dish is a wide noodle/beef/soy/chilli concoction that I could happily eat every day for the rest of my life.
Thanks for hosting the giveaway.
Emily recently posted..Sugarlump and the Unicorn – Julia Donaldson and Lydia Monks (book review)
Lately, I am loving this cool little baked potatoes place down the road, called The People’s Potatoes. Spicy pulled pork, black beans, salsa and coriander, or ocean trout with dill, or the French Lentils. You can see that it’s always a dilemma what to order!
Having no Asian role models, when I first tried chopsticks, I held one in each hand. Astoundly difficult to get anything into your mouth!
Dani @ sand has no home recently posted..Liberate Your Art Part II
There’s nothing like a hot pizza on a Friday night after a hard week at work to cheer you up.
I’m going to admit that I have had take-out almost every day this week with the justification that it was my first week back at work after my staycation. These days I flip between Thai Green Curry (eaten with a fork) from Stir Crazy in Kirribilli and square pizza… I admit partly because it is square but also delish.
Fluffy recently posted..From The Fringes of This War
I have recently got a new favourite food: congee! I don’t know how to make it but I do know how to eat it and lately I’ve been ordering it at least twice a week (hurting my budget, for sure!).
Mongolian Lamb or Char Sui Pork. There’s just something about meat in a sweet sauce that hits the spot! I would never order pizza – for me, takeaway/home delivery is all about Asian food!
Pizza is my absolute favourite takeaway. I love those deep pan pizzas, smothered with cheese and wicked toppings like pepperoni.
Anything that can be delivered to home! Pizza, Pasta or Chinese
I’m currently in love with banh mi, the Vietnamese sandwiches on french bread – unfortunately this requires at least a thirty minute drive from my house, but when in Sydney or Melbourne they are everywhere, sometimes I have two a day LOL!!
Those noodles look sooo yummy!!!! Our favourite takeaway dish is a lovely yellow dal from our local Indian takeaway shop… it is so delicious, filling and warming and pretty healthy as far as takeaway food goes. And best of all, one large container lasts us for another meal – we just cook the rice and reheat it, and it’s even better the second time around!
Indian dishes, Vindaloo and it has to be spicy to enjoy the great taste
I live in Glebe surrounded my amazing and unique little restaurants and cafes…but I can’t stop ordering the mango chicken from the food court in Broadway shopping centre!
I LOVE Thai food especially Pad Thai yummy. I also love chilli chicken and boiled rice. Now I am really hungry
i love ordering in a Thai green curry its the best especially on a cold night warms you right up
My favourite is chicken and avocado pizza with honey mustard sauce! yum!
I order anything that looks delicious,
with hearty ingredients that are nutritious,
and most importantly requires absolutely NO DISHES.
These are my EatNow takeaway wishes!
The best takeway is pizza, there is always something that everyone can agree on in a big family