I consider myself an adventurous eater. I'll eat oysters (not truly so adventurous, I know), I'm not shy when it comes to sweetbreads (slightly more adventurous) and I've even been known to eat a tongue every now and then (pretty adventurous, I'd like to think).
So a couple of weeks ago, when my husband and I stepped into the tiny, relatively new location of Xi'an Famous Foods on East Broadway, I thought nothing of ordering Spicy & Tingly Lamb's Face Salad along with our Spicy & Sour Hand-Pulled Soup Noodles, Stewed Pork Burger and Savory Cumin Lamb Burger. Admittedly, I was slightly taken aback by Jeremy's confident ordering of said Lamb's Face Salad, but he assured me it came recommended by the trusted New York Times food critic, Sam Sifton.
The burgers were ready first. They were tasty and, being hungry, we ate them down to the paper. The salad was passed over the counter and, when we placed it down on the counter in front of us, I must say that my first reaction was one of true excitement and anticipation: it looked fresh and crisp; a welcome contrast to the remnants of stewed pork meat still lingering on my palate.
Mmmm, cucumbers! Mmmm, cumin! Mmmm....huh?
We both noticed them at the same time. Are those what I THINK those are? Yes....yes....yes, indeed....teeth. Little tiny teeth. Little tiny teeth that had clearly been extracted from the mouth of this lamb all in one piece - roots still intact - kind of like mini, extremely complete dentures.
I know what you're thinking: what did you expect when you ordered lamb's face, Tara? Well, yes, you're right, but in my own defense I must say that I really was not expecting the inedible bits would be included along with the edible ones.
As we ate our noodle dish, the lamb's teeth still commanded our attention. It seemed to me that the folks at Xi'an were simply reminding us that the food on our plate came from a mammal and that mammal had teeth that it used to eat food (irony, yes) until we decided to eat it. Clearly we need to get back to the farm.
