Last weekend's date night definitely qualified as a "great" one. Not only did we feast on sushi (my favorite) I got to eat a few things that might make others gag. As weird as it sounds, one of the items on my Ultimate To DO list is try 25 things that fit that description.
We started our meal at OYSY's (50 E Grand Ave, River North) with a bright, refreshing, tentacle loaded octopus salad. As a huge fan of octopus, I appreciated that it wasn't overworked. It was lightly marinated, combined with some pretty veggies and dressed in a fresh lime dressing.
But really, octopus is pretty pedestrian compared to what came next.
Deep fried shrimp head.
And I ate it. The whole thing - antennae and legs and eye balls.
Before I dug in, I verified with the waitress that it was intended to be eaten. The last thing I wanted to do was eat a "decorative" element. The waitress explained that she has never tried one, but fried shrimp heads are something her father really loves. She reassured me it was on the plate to be eaten.
I mean, she practically dared me.
I asked her if I should just eat it whole and she explained that I could do that or crack it open and eat the "insides." The thought of that was too much for me, so I took the easy route. I ate it all in a few bites. And until I got to the legs, it was delicious. It was like a dumpling with filling that I prefer not to identify.
But the legs and antennae were a bit much for me. They aren't something I'd revisit. They were flavorless, unpleasantly crunchy and they got stuck in my teeth. Not ideal.
Next time, I'll stop a bite before the legs.
I believe the tastiness of the shrimp head is further proof that you can fry just about anything and it will taste pretty dang good.
What the strangest fried food you've ever enjoyed?
