Flourless

My girlfriends and I went to the Deutsches Bierhaus in town for dinner today (I mean yesterday, since it's past midnight now). Must say that their pork ribs and specialty pork knuckles were commendable. Thumbs up! Warning: Small eaters won't be able to finish that single platter. After dinner, we thought that the dessert menu wasn't very appetising and so, we walked over to TGI Friday's across the road.

Everyone went for their fav mudpie (Turquoise had a sundae) and something new on the menu caught my attention: Flourless Chocolate Cake with Raspberry Sauce. Yum, raspberry...but how can a cake be flourless? We looked at each other and smiled, eyes glinting.

P: Primrose
W: Waiter
T: Turquoise

P: I'll have this one please. *points at the menu*
W: Flawless Chocolate Cake
T: It's flourless
W: Yes, flawless
P: Flaa-wer-less
W: *silly smile* Same same
P: BTW, what is the cake made of if it's flourless?
W: Oh, we sprinkle some icing on top to make it look like flour

Duh! *eyes rolling*

P: Yeah, but why should it be made to look like flour if it's supposed to be flourless?
W: *eyes squinting hard at the menu, points at the word "Flourless"* Oh, they print this wrongly.

*waiter ran off with our orders*
*laugh*

T: Did you see that? He actually ran off!
P: Yeah, afraid of us now. *giggles*
T: Wow, it's flourless and flawless. Must be a perfect piece of cake!

*laugh again*

After our desserts, we thought we'd try again when the same waiter came round to clear our dessert plates.

P: So, have you found out what is the cake made of if it's flourless?
W: You hold on a second, I go get the recipe for you.

*waiter gone*

T: Is he serious or what? Bring us the recipe???

*laugh, laugh*
*waiter came back, empty-handed*

W: Err, my boss say the cake has no flour, only made of chocolate.
T: Oh, so you can't get us the recipe?
W: Oh, my boss says that it's on the wall and I can't bring it but you can view it on your way to the toilet because it's on that wall.
P: Oh so your boss is the chef?
W: Uhm, many years ago. Now he's manager.

Well, obviously it's pointless to continue but what a laugh! It seemed that we can never figure out how a cake can be flourless now, can we, because obviously, that cake which I ate had flour in it! Only that it looked and tasted more eggless than flourless.



7 flowers for this post
MrsT: Flah. Flower. *shrug* Oh well, as long as we get what we want and others understand us.

Yuen Li: Tell me about old habits. Err, I sometimes still bite my fingernails. *smack smack* Naughty, naughty!

Travel Lurker: *nodding* Yes, I totally agree. And you cheeky little thing to mention "coat". :S

Friend for Life: Yes! I've heard of that before. Me? Mee? Haha! :D
Primrose | Email | Homepage | 17.12.04 - 7:22 pm

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Flourless cakes and biscuits are usually made from nutmeal. Commonly almond meal. Less commonly, more healthily but less tastily, flaxmeal.

Yur story reminds me of the time I went to a restaurant in Malacca and asked the enthusiastic and brightly smiling waitress "What's the hottest, spiciest thing you have here?"

With beaming face, bright eyes and big smile, she cheerfully responded: "Me !"

I was sooo embarassed. I couldn't believe hold bold and forward she was with me....

How was I to know she was talking about noodles?
Friend for Life | 17.12.04 - 12:01 pm

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Other words generally mispronounced by Malaysians :

Abalone
Salmon
Suite

The hotel name Marriott is always mispronounced as MarrioT.

A double storey detached house wrongly termed as a "bangalow".

And ofcourse when they say "coat" they actually meant jacket.
Travel Lurker | 17.12.04 - 1:45 am

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The "correct" pronounciation ("flower") came to my attention when I was 18 or 19. But despite that, a decade later, I still say "flah" whenever I'm home in Malaysia - else people wonder what you're talking about. In the UK, I try to say "flower", but sometimes, habit gets the better of me... Old habits really ARE hard to break.
Yuen Li | Email | Homepage | 16.12.04 - 6:18 am

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Hehehehe!!! too funny..!! i had a good laugh..!! I pronounced it as flah too.. until my spouse and in law kept saying.. flower.. but i'm stubborn..!! hehehe!!
MrsT | Email | 16.12.04 - 2:07 am

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Yuen Li: Well, to be honest, I have been saying "flah" for some time until I read the phonetics in my Little Oxford one day; pronounce "flour" as you would say "sour". And that was confirmed in the audio pronunciation of Merriam-Webster.
Primrose | Email | Homepage | 15.12.04 - 8:19 pm

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Maybe it was a flour substitute.

By the way, do you and your pals pronounce flour as "flah", or "flower"?
Yuen Li | Email | Homepage | 15.12.04 - 2:34 am

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