Swimming Out of My Comfort Zone

Guys, something big happened last week. 

I ate scallops…and octopus.

ON PURPOSE. AND I LIKED IT.

I was at this unbelievable restaurant called the Llama Inn in Williamsburg with a friend I hadn’t seen in years. The table ordered this octopus ceviche and he made me try some, and honestly, it was wonderful. Then we got a few orders of skewers- one was pork belly, one was purple potato (duh), and one was scallop- and all of them were out of this world. Like seriously, three of the greatest things I’ve ever eaten. I could probably write an article just about these three skewers but we’re talking about the scallops. They were charred and spiced and on a stick which for some reason helped, but I want to talk about the experience of eating something I’ve been saying I hate for basically my whole life. 

Quality Over Everything

Okay, so it’s not a baseless statement- I have developed a pretty strong aversion to shellfish over the years, and not from lack of trying. I grew up in Ohio, which isn’t exactly the seafood capital of well, anywhere, which means I was never truly getting the best quality shellfish. Most of the time, the things I’ve tried have either had that chewy, fishy gummy bear texture, or it’s too slimy and slippery and I freak out. (Just typing that sentence and envisioning it made me shiver.)

However, this was totally different. My friend is from Hawaii where he gets the freshest fish one could ever imagine. He made a point that the quality of the shellfish really makes a difference and that it’s not always dependent on the cooking method. You can take a mediocre scallop and baste it in brown butter and I’ll still probably hate it, simply because it won’t cook properly. But take a super high-quality piece of shellfish and keep it simple, and there’s a chance I’ll enjoy it more. 

I’m not entirely sure why I never thought about this. The same goes for red meat- a cheap cut of beef is going to taste like sh*t no matter how you cook it, but a top-notch filet or sirloin only needs salt and pepper because the quality of the meat is what makes it shine. 

Get Out There and Eat

My actual point to this blog article is the fact that I tried these things. Foods that I have rarely liked, in my 29 years of existence, and consistently feel repulsed by. I took the chance and knew that the worst thing that would happen is I would still hate it, at which point I’d just chase it with wine and forget about it. But then I liked it, and now I want to try again. 

Comfort zones are just that: comfortable. But they keep us from finding out about the world. I almost didn’t try the pork belly either because it’s usually kept fatty and soft, which is similar to that slimy fish texture I mentioned earlier as something I can’t stand. And let me tell you- that pork belly skewer was easily one of the top ten things I’ve ever eaten. 

Yes, I know that’s a big statement. I mean it. 

By telling ourselves we hate certain foods, we’re limiting our world view. Even if you’ve tried something 1000 times and couldn’t stand it, that 1001th (I feel like that’s not the right way to spell that but whatever) time is the one that could change things. I may try more scallops and still hate it but the point is that I’m going to keep trying because this one time might totally change things. 

I think you get my point. Go out into the world, people. Try new stuff. Try things you’ve already had and just see what happens! Try things you know but in a different way. Just see what’s out there and give it all a chance.