Eating at Yao's house: Oh so funny!!!

DaFunkyUnit · 04-25-2005, 03:24 PM

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/200...st_person0314/

First Person: Dinner At Yao's
Chowing down with the Rockets' Yao Ming, Dikembe Mutombo and Patrick Ewing

Before and after stuffing themselves in Yao's VIP room, shrimp-loving Ewing (right) and big-sipping Mutombo reclined with their host.

Yao Ming's parents opened the 100-table Yao Restaurant & Bar in a west Houston strip mall late last month. When the Rockets' All-Star treated his backup Dikembe Mutombo and assistant coach and former Knicks big man Patrick Ewing to lunch, SI's Gene Menez was there.

The three enter and are led to Yao's VIP room, which is customized for tall people. (Yao's mother, Fang Feng Di, is 6'3"; his father, Yao Zhi Yuan, is 6'7".) The doorway is nine feet high, the table and chairs are supersized, and large plush recliners sit opposite a 42-inch flat-screen TV.

EWING: What kind of food do they serve here?

MUTOMBO: Chinese.

EWING: I know Chinese. But what kind of Chinese? Snake? 'Cuz I don't eat snake.

YAO: No snake. In China, yes, but you're not in China.

EWING: Well, I don't eat pork, duck or chicken either. Only shrimp and fish [and beef].

MUTOMBO: I eat anything.

EWING: [Browsing through the black leather-bound menu] What's the speciality here?

YAO: Uh. ... [Looks at menu and shrugs.]

Ewing, Mutombo and Yao order coconut curry prawn, General Tso's chicken, fried rice with shrimp, Mongolian beef, garlic basil prawn, Szechuan prawn and white rice.

MUTOMBO: [Sipping a virgin strawberry daiquiri] I like your restaurant, Yao. It's made for 7-footers and guys like Patrick Ewing, who is really 6'9". [Ewing has always been listed as 7 feet.]

EWING: Hey, I may be 6'9", but I'm a bad 6'9". And what about you? When I first met you, you told me you were from Zaire.

MUTOMBO: No, Congo. [Zaire was renamed the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1997.]

EWING: How many languages do you speak, seven?

MUTOMBO: I speak Ebonics now, so eight. Yao, do you speak Ebonics? [Yao shrugs.]

Mutombo's cellphone rings. The ring tone is 50 Cent's In Da Club. He answers and starts speaking one of his eight languages -- not English.

EWING: Man, every time I go over to Dikembe's, he's on the phone. [Ewing picks up his cellphone and starts mocking Mutombo.] 'Doobleedoo doobloodoo doobleedoo. ...' I'm like, 'What the hell is he saying?'

The food comes, and the three dig in.

MUTOMBO: That's what I'm talking about. Yao, next week I'm bringing my wife and kids, and we're going to eat like this.

YAO: How many will you be?

MUTOMBO: Me, my wife, my kids, my cousins ... about 10.

YAO: Just let me know.

EWING: [To Mutombo] Can you pass me that beef?

MUTOMBO: Sure. [Before passing it, Mutombo takes his own spoon and scoops four pieces onto his plate.]

EWING: Man, I don't want that now. You put your spoon in the plate. [Ewing nonetheless takes the plate from Mutombo.] Jeez, man.

MUTOMBO: Oh, come on. I didn't even touch the beef on your side of the plate. You can eat that. [Ewing reluctantly scoops three pieces onto his plate. He doesn't say a word.]

MUTOMBO: How long have we known each other, 18 years? I've been dealing with this same crap for 18 years.

EWING: Let's see if the curry shrimp tastes like Jamaican curry shrimp.

MUTOMBO: Yao, you know there's a lot of Chinese in Jamaica [where Ewing was born].

YAO: You sure they were not Vietnamese or Japanese or Korean?

MUTOMBO: Of course.

EWING: You may have cousins down there, Yao. You may have family in my country!

MUTOMBO: All the food's good. The chicken is the bomb. The coconut prawns, too. The Mongolian beef is my favorite. Tell your mommy everything is good. [Mutombo flashes two thumbs-up.]

MUTOMBO: [To Ewing] I'm sorry you don't eat chicken. I feel very sorry for you.

EWING: [His mouth full of shrimp] Don't feel sorry for me. The shrimp is very good.

Yao leaves the table and sits in a recliner.

EWING: You finished already?

YAO: Yeah, I can eat this every day if I want. At home. Here.

EWING: [Rubbing belly] I gotta go work out tonight. I'm full. You got a treadmill for me?

YAO: Leave your car keys here and run home. I'll give you the keys tomorrow.

MUTOMBO: I'm so full too. Somebody may have to drive me home.

YAO: Keep eating. You can stay here all night.

The waiter enters and asks if they need anything.

EWING: I need a take-out menu.

MUTOMBO: Look at this motherf-----. [Laughter]

EWING: I'm not going to order anything now, but one night, if I'm hungry, I'll call and order and say, 'Put it on Yao's bill.'

YAO: All right. Of course.

EWING: How much is the bill?

YAO: I got it.

EWING: You got it?

YAO: Yeah. [He slides a $100 bill under a tea cup on the table as a tip.]

MUTOMBO: You're a great man, Yao. When you come to Africa, I'm going to take you to a great African restaurant.

Issue date: March 14, 2005

gear02 · 04-25-2005, 03:55 PM

hehe...that's kinda cool...

Showtime · 04-25-2005, 03:57 PM

And in 2 years they will be able to open another one in Los Angeles.

-j

Freelance Superhero · 04-25-2005, 04:10 PM

forgive my ignorance, but did this really happen? or is it meant to be a humore piece? (i didn't read it all the way thru)

Showtime · 04-25-2005, 04:20 PM

More funny stuff. Yao and Van Gundy visited China last year....
http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/sports/2845216

-j

Jane83 · 04-25-2005, 04:52 PM

i like yao

bachviet · 04-25-2005, 05:08 PM

I ought to visit Yao restaurant if I ever visit Houston.

gear02 · 04-25-2005, 05:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by the jello is jigglin

And in 2 years they will be able to open another one in Los Angeles.

-j

dream on bub...

DarkFury · 04-25-2005, 08:02 PM

Heh.... nice piece.

Dayuuum... now I want some "General Tso's Chicken".

gear02 · 04-25-2005, 08:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DarkFury

Heh.... nice piece.

Dayuuum... now I want some "General Tso's Chicken".

heh, after reading it I went to get some shrimp

Too bad it wasn't as good as the one they had in the article

GraingerGuy · 04-25-2005, 09:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Freelance Superhero

forgive my ignorance, but did this really happen? or is it meant to be a humore piece? (i didn't read it all the way thru)

It really happened. In SI, there were many pictures and stuff showing them eating and whatnot.

cheapchinese · 04-25-2005, 10:42 PM

Yao is god in china
He's in the same level as MJ

StonedWheat · 04-29-2005, 01:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cheapchinese

Yao is god in china
He's in the same level as MJ

That's funny cus here MJ is a freak. Wait, you must mean the other MJ.

04-25-2005, 03:24 PM	#1
DaFunkyUnit Rear Admiral Upper Half Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: the peanut gallery Posts: 3,909	Eating at Yao's house: Oh so funny!!! http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/200...st_person0314/ First Person: Dinner At Yao's Chowing down with the Rockets' Yao Ming, Dikembe Mutombo and Patrick Ewing Before and after stuffing themselves in Yao's VIP room, shrimp-loving Ewing (right) and big-sipping Mutombo reclined with their host. Yao Ming's parents opened the 100-table Yao Restaurant & Bar in a west Houston strip mall late last month. When the Rockets' All-Star treated his backup Dikembe Mutombo and assistant coach and former Knicks big man Patrick Ewing to lunch, SI's Gene Menez was there. The three enter and are led to Yao's VIP room, which is customized for tall people. (Yao's mother, Fang Feng Di, is 6'3"; his father, Yao Zhi Yuan, is 6'7".) The doorway is nine feet high, the table and chairs are supersized, and large plush recliners sit opposite a 42-inch flat-screen TV. EWING: What kind of food do they serve here? MUTOMBO: Chinese. EWING: I know Chinese. But what kind of Chinese? Snake? 'Cuz I don't eat snake. YAO: No snake. In China, yes, but you're not in China. EWING: Well, I don't eat pork, duck or chicken either. Only shrimp and fish [and beef]. MUTOMBO: I eat anything. EWING: [Browsing through the black leather-bound menu] What's the speciality here? YAO: Uh. ... [Looks at menu and shrugs.] Ewing, Mutombo and Yao order coconut curry prawn, General Tso's chicken, fried rice with shrimp, Mongolian beef, garlic basil prawn, Szechuan prawn and white rice. MUTOMBO: [Sipping a virgin strawberry daiquiri] I like your restaurant, Yao. It's made for 7-footers and guys like Patrick Ewing, who is really 6'9". [Ewing has always been listed as 7 feet.] EWING: Hey, I may be 6'9", but I'm a bad 6'9". And what about you? When I first met you, you told me you were from Zaire. MUTOMBO: No, Congo. [Zaire was renamed the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1997.] EWING: How many languages do you speak, seven? MUTOMBO: I speak Ebonics now, so eight. Yao, do you speak Ebonics? [Yao shrugs.] Mutombo's cellphone rings. The ring tone is 50 Cent's In Da Club. He answers and starts speaking one of his eight languages -- not English. EWING: Man, every time I go over to Dikembe's, he's on the phone. [Ewing picks up his cellphone and starts mocking Mutombo.] 'Doobleedoo doobloodoo doobleedoo. ...' I'm like, 'What the hell is he saying?' The food comes, and the three dig in. MUTOMBO: That's what I'm talking about. Yao, next week I'm bringing my wife and kids, and we're going to eat like this. YAO: How many will you be? MUTOMBO: Me, my wife, my kids, my cousins ... about 10. YAO: Just let me know. EWING: [To Mutombo] Can you pass me that beef? MUTOMBO: Sure. [Before passing it, Mutombo takes his own spoon and scoops four pieces onto his plate.] EWING: Man, I don't want that now. You put your spoon in the plate. [Ewing nonetheless takes the plate from Mutombo.] Jeez, man. MUTOMBO: Oh, come on. I didn't even touch the beef on your side of the plate. You can eat that. [Ewing reluctantly scoops three pieces onto his plate. He doesn't say a word.] MUTOMBO: How long have we known each other, 18 years? I've been dealing with this same crap for 18 years. EWING: Let's see if the curry shrimp tastes like Jamaican curry shrimp. MUTOMBO: Yao, you know there's a lot of Chinese in Jamaica [where Ewing was born]. YAO: You sure they were not Vietnamese or Japanese or Korean? MUTOMBO: Of course. EWING: You may have cousins down there, Yao. You may have family in my country! MUTOMBO: All the food's good. The chicken is the bomb. The coconut prawns, too. The Mongolian beef is my favorite. Tell your mommy everything is good. [Mutombo flashes two thumbs-up.] MUTOMBO: [To Ewing] I'm sorry you don't eat chicken. I feel very sorry for you. EWING: [His mouth full of shrimp] Don't feel sorry for me. The shrimp is very good. Yao leaves the table and sits in a recliner. EWING: You finished already? YAO: Yeah, I can eat this every day if I want. At home. Here. EWING: [Rubbing belly] I gotta go work out tonight. I'm full. You got a treadmill for me? YAO: Leave your car keys here and run home. I'll give you the keys tomorrow. MUTOMBO: I'm so full too. Somebody may have to drive me home. YAO: Keep eating. You can stay here all night. The waiter enters and asks if they need anything. EWING: I need a take-out menu. MUTOMBO: Look at this motherf-----. [Laughter] EWING: I'm not going to order anything now, but one night, if I'm hungry, I'll call and order and say, 'Put it on Yao's bill.' YAO: All right. Of course. EWING: How much is the bill? YAO: I got it. EWING: You got it? YAO: Yeah. [He slides a $100 bill under a tea cup on the table as a tip.] MUTOMBO: You're a great man, Yao. When you come to Africa, I'm going to take you to a great African restaurant. Issue date: March 14, 2005 __________________

04-25-2005, 03:57 PM	#3
Showtime Lakers fanatic Join Date: Sep 2000 Location: L.A. ->SoCal<- O.C. Posts: 7,338	And in 2 years they will be able to open another one in Los Angeles. -j __________________ NBA REPORT 10-11/ The 3-Peat! 1948 1949 1950 1952 1953 1954 1972 1980 1982 1985 1987 1988 2000 2001 2002 2009 2010 Reigning NBA CHAMPS!

04-25-2005, 04:10 PM	#4
Freelance Superhero Optimus Prime Join Date: May 2002 Location: in bed Posts: 4,116	forgive my ignorance, but did this really happen? or is it meant to be a humore piece? (i didn't read it all the way thru) __________________ "I can't believe you can eat that; it looks like abortion." - Augusta, of the Tard-Blog

04-25-2005, 05:08 PM	#7
bachviet What's Da Pho*? Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: SoCal (714) Posts: 13,296	I ought to visit Yao restaurant if I ever visit Houston. __________________ Dell Dimension 9200 \| Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 (2.4GHz) \| 4x1GB DDR2 \| 256MB nVidia GeForce 8800GT Dell Studio 17 \| Intel Core i7-720QM (1.6GHz) \| 2x2GB DDR3 1066MHz \| 1GHz ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4650 Intel P4-C 3.0GHz \| ECS 865PE-A \| 3x512MB PC3200 \| 128MB PNY GeForce 6600GT

04-25-2005, 08:02 PM	#9
DarkFury Secretary of the Navy Join Date: Feb 2001 Location: Chillin' N Da 'Hood Posts: 34,997	Heh.... nice piece. Dayuuum... now I want some "General Tso's Chicken". __________________ DarkFury's Pimptopia - Don't Hate the Playa, Hate the Game! Home of the Original OG Pimp (accept NO imitations)

04-25-2005, 03:55 PM	#2
gear02 Admiral Join Date: Apr 2000 Location: Seattle, WA Posts: 7,223	hehe...that's kinda cool...

04-25-2005, 04:20 PM	#5
Showtime Lakers fanatic Join Date: Sep 2000 Location: L.A. ->SoCal<- O.C. Posts: 7,338	More funny stuff. Yao and Van Gundy visited China last year.... http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/sports/2845216 -j

04-25-2005, 04:52 PM	#6
Jane83 Commander Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: S. Pasadena Posts: 1,452	i like yao

04-25-2005, 10:42 PM	#12
cheapchinese I love free! Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: LA, California Posts: 2,998	Yao is god in china He's in the same level as MJ

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