The 'Supper' Man!

I was watching TV this evening, well more like late evening and all of a sudden I had this urge to eat something. More specifically I had cravings for some mee goreng (fried noodles). I normally get cravings like these from time to time.

There is a restaurant nearby but I was too lazy to get up and drive all the way there just to buy a packet of mee goreng to satisfy my cravings. When I have cravings like these I expect the food to magically appear in front of me.

It was exactly at this precise moment when I begin to wonder what happened to the old mee goreng seller that used to ride along on this motorcycle with a side car that had this mobile stove with his ingredients to fry the mee goreng for you right smack in front of your house.

I remember back in my youth, which by the way was a very long time ago, we had this guy who would drive along our road at nights with his mobile mee goreng stall, honking his horn and offering his mee goreng frying services to hungry people like me in need of some supper.

I was a a glutton back then and would be perpetually hungry even after having a hearty dinner. Whenever I heard his honking in the distance, my face would instantly light up and I'd run into  the kitchen and grab a big plate and rush outside to stop the fellow and get him to whip up a healthy serving of fried noodles.

Back then people were more environmentally friendly and would bring their own plates for him to dish out the noodled into frying them right there in front of your doorstep. I can still remember standing there waiting eagerly and watching him fry the noodles. The air would be smoke filled with the lovely scent of fried noodles being fried and I'd always ask him to add more pork lard or more onions, etc, etc ... I was never satisfied with just the regular menu he had.

I wasn't the only one, most of the neighbours would be stopping him as he passes along their houses and by the time he finished with our road the entire stretch would smell of fried noodles in the air. Back then people tended to stay home more and the restaurants came to you instead of the other way round.

The fried noodle man wasn't the only mobile food fellow around. There would be the pau (dumpling) man also with a motorbike and sidecar and the chee cheong fun (rice noodle roll) man who would also make their rounds nightly. And they would always turn up without fail which would assure you of some late supper coming right to your doorstep should you be in the mood.

But these mobile door to door 'supper' men are a thing of the past. I don't see them anymore these days. In fact these days even the 'roti' (bread) man is a thing of the past. If I get the cravings for some supper now, I'd have to dress up, drive out to some restaurant or roadside stall to satisfy my need which is something I'm too lazy to do.

Call me old school but I sure do miss the old mobile 'supper' men where all you did was wait longingly outside your gate holding on to your biggest plate listening for that distant honking. In fact I'm in need of some sinfully mouth watering mee goreng right this very minute. I can even hear my stomach growl!

Wait, do I hear a honking in the distance? But alas, it's only my childhood imagination playing tricks on me. I guess I'm going to have to settle for a slice of bread with butter to stop that growl I hear coming from my tummy. No character and how boring!

Oh, how I long for the old days ...
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