Cuisine de Guerre (sic)

Chow, "rats", whatever you want to call it, Eating in a war zone is an interesting experience. Kind of. Remember when you were in grade school, and you sat in the cafeteria at those long tables with a bunch of kids that you didnt know, and the kid who eats paste ALWAYS sat by you and picked his nose while you were eating your pudding cup? Well, it's sort of like that, but with adults. The "DFAC" or "Dining Facility" (yes, they really do have acronyms for everything) is arranged somewhat like a cafeteria with several lines in which you can go and grab food of your choiced, Well sort of. It's kind of like this

Line 1: "Short Order" Line: mini pizzas, wings, corn dogs, french fries, onion rings, and for some reason, various kinds of pie reside in this line.

Line 2. "Main Line" Usually some kind of "meat", a vegetable medley and there is always, always, always mashed potatos and rice. Oh? you want Lasagna? Would you like a side of mashed potatoes to go with that? Meatloaf, Turkey cutlets, corn, broccoli, collard greens.. I have occasionally seen a chicken cordon bleu in this line.

Line 3 and 4 Specialty Line(s) which are a different food each day of the week, which is what I actually wrote this article for to begin with. Behold, my friends, the foods from around the world that make up our speciality lines!

Monday-Mongolian BBQ- this is popular, and has a strange about of vegetables and shredded lettuce for bbq

Tuesday- I am off on Tuesday, so I really have no idea.

Wednesday Surf and Turf- which sounds good, but really isnt. They serve prime rib but cook it waaaaaaaaay too much and the "surf" always feels like it has beeb marinating in the sun in toilet water for three weeks. I hate seafood as it stands, but the smell of this seafood makes me want to gag.

Thursday Italian Food Usually consists of spagetti with meat sauce or marinara and meat balls, egg noodles with alfredo sauce, eggplant lasagna and vegetable lasagna. Why is there no meat lasagna? I don't know. But the same thing happens every week. One of my co-workers walks up behind me in line, looks to see if there is meat lasagna, and proceeds to get pissed because there isn't. I mean, you think he would learn after the first few times. But alas, I digress...

Friday Indian Food. This is the night we wait for all week. The Indian food night is the best food here, by far. I have noticed Chicken and Beef Curry (ill get to that in a second) Biranyi Rice, Bhruna Beef (sic) and fresh, handmade parathas (yum!)
Now, the Indian food is extremely good, lots of flavor, they always use just the right amount of spices and the smell is wonderful. BUT, this Indian food is made by INDIANS. From INDIA. Like, India. The country. Not Patel's Indian restauraunt up the block. No. India, friends. So the food is very, very, VERY spicy. Every single week when I eat the Indian food, I immediately feel like someone dropped a stack of hot coals in my stomach. Hot coals that are now being digested by my stomach acid. EVERY single week without fail, I say "I am never eating the Indian food ever ever again!" Then I go back for more sweet, sweet torture the next week. Why do I do it? Because the food is bitchin', that's why.

Saturday- Filipino Food I had the filipino food once, I wasnt that impressed, so I have nothing to say about it at this time. They have lumpias, which are pretty good.

After writing this, I realized that I should have just wrote the whole article about the Indian food. Oh well. But anyway, there is a "taste" of what it's like to eat here in on Joint Base Balad.