I have heard that, if you eat enough spice, allow the heat to overwhelm you, your mouth will actually go numb. You’ll enter a zen-like state of consciousness, hyper-aware but, at the same time, drifting in and out of this state of reality. To ingest enough spice in one sitting brings you close to the divine.
If all of this is true, then a visit to CQ Noodle & Bubble Tea, which opened the previous summer on 104th Street, should be just as much a religious experience as it is a culinary one. The CQ is short for Chongqing, a region of China known for its love of rice noodles served in spicy broth.
It’s noon on a Monday, but the eatery is packed. Every table is spoken for, so I sit by the window. When the hostess brings me the menu, she advises the braised beef noodle bowl, which is “good for first-timers.” Then, she asks me what spice level I’d like. This comes off more like a challenge, like when my grandma, who used to make moonshine in the basement of her home in Rudabánya, Hungary, would have two shots of the stuff ready for me to have before breakfast. How to respond to this question? Answer “light” and I’ve shamed myself. But, I know asking for it extra spicy might be a fatal error. So, I default to the milquetoast response — “average.” Because average doesn’t mean that you stand out, but also that you’re not looking to back down. It’s the acceptable medium of safety.
When the server brings a mug (not a glass) of ice water, I should be putting two and two together.
And then the bowl comes. The bowl is yellow, with Chinese masks bearing angry visages. It is literally scowling at me, measuring me up. Telling me I am weak. That I am not worthy.
Chunks of beef and two to three meals’ worth of rice noodles swim in a deep red broth. Oh, the chili oil is strong. But, heck, I ordered the medium/average spice, right? I’m safe.
I am not safe.
You know how strong flavours and spice can make you feel like you’ve been punched in the mouth. Well, this is like going back in time to George Foreman’s heyday and asking the heavy-fisted champ to lay into you with all he’s got. The flavours are deep and rich, but there is no slow build with the spice. It comes and it comes, the ice water offers a brief respite, but the flavours are addicting so you head back. After a few bites and slurps, I give in. The spice hiccups commence. I allow the spice, the heat, to take control. For a second, I am not in my body. I am floating. And then I don’t feel my mouth at all. The numbness sets in — it’s glorious and powerful. I have allowed the noodles to take control.
Then, I come back to earth. Mortal again. There is still a half-bowl of noodles left, but, as I mentioned, the portions are a little larger than “meal size.”
“Was it too spicy for you?” the server asks.
I smile. “It was fine,” I say. After all, the restaurant is full and I feel like all eyes are on me. It was not the time to confess a religious experience.
CQ Noodle & Bubble Tea
Downtown | 10140 104 St NW, Edmonton | 780.760.9966 | cqnoodlebubbletea.com
