解放碑的酸辣粉

□文/高興明

解放碑的酸辣粉

□文/高興明

很長時間沒有去解放碑了，今天再也按捺不住內心的渴求，吃過午飯我對夫人說，下午去解放碑吧！她說好熱喲，氣象臺預報的今天是高溫40.3C°喲！她見我主意已定，只好陪我冒著高溫酷暑，去了趟解放碑。說是很長時間沒去，其實也就一個來月，這些時間我一直在下鄉或是出差。以前我幾乎是每半個月左右就要去一次的，不為別的，就為吃碗酸辣粉。想想我吃酸辣粉的成本要比別人的花費得多，搭公交車從新牌坊出發至解放碑，來回4元，外加6元酸辣粉錢和5元的鵝肝或是鵝翅膀，等于說我去吃一碗要10幾塊錢。但非去不可，饞啊！只有那里的酸辣粉最對我的口味，最正宗。

外地人來重慶沒有不去解放牌的，去解放牌的沒有不去“好吃街”的。這里有林立的高樓、繁華的街道、穿梭的車輛、擁擠的人群、各式各樣的店鋪，與別的城市的街市似乎并無兩樣。但再往前走幾步，數家店鋪前會聚集爭先恐后的人群。細看，攤位上垂掛的木牌上誘人的名小吃、滴油泛光的鹵味串串、清涼爽口的五色刨冰、口味眾多的奶茶甜品，都暗示了這條街的主題——吃。這兒幾乎每天都是人擠人、人挨人，全奔重慶名小吃而去，簡直就成了解放碑的一道獨特風景。而其中最為壯觀的又要數“好又來”酸辣粉店鋪，這家店鋪就開在好吃街頂頭一點兒，從好吃街開街那一年，就在那兒了，經常是排隊的人甩開去十幾米，蜿蜒如長龍。男女老少中有來自全國各地的，也有不少的外國朋友，端著酸辣粉專用紙盒的人遍布街道兩邊，個個吃得認真投入。賣紙巾的老大娘也趁機穿梭于“吃客”之中，經營起自己的業務。這家店鋪的口碑一直很好、名聲很大。我相信，凡是去過解放牌的人，沒有人沒去吃過；凡是去吃過的人，沒有一個人不說是一絕！

其實，無論是四川也好，或是咱們重慶也罷，酸辣粉并不稀奇，許多商圈、街道、區縣、甚至鄉場都有它的蹤影，并不鮮見。但解放碑“好又來”這家酸辣粉具有鮮明的個性，麻辣擅長、清香并重，讓人感覺麻辣鮮香充滿豪放，麻得到位，辣得徹底，暢快淋漓，堪稱美味中的佳品！去逛解放碑不吃一碗酸辣粉，那就是白去，對本地人是這樣，對外地人更是如此！

每次去解放碑，都會排上好一陣長隊，買上一碗酸辣粉，在接踵摩肩與嘈雜人聲中體味特有的熱鬧與火辣。今天夫人沒吃，去逛商場了。我只身來到“好吃街”，雖然天氣很熱，但“好又來”酸辣粉店鋪前依然還是排著長隊。我排了一會兒，買了張票。排在我前面的一個人緊張地張望前面的人，又看了看表，穿到店鋪前，操著中原口音對服務員說：“麻煩能不能先給我的10碗打個包，我要去坐飛機回河南。”排隊的人都很理解地把他看了看。只見服務員麻利嫻熟地分袋打好包，河南人拿著一邊說謝謝，一邊急匆匆地離去。

終于排到我了，只見打調料的人動作麻利嫻熟，十幾個調料碗、十幾個調料勺，一出手一勾劃，短短幾秒便一氣呵成了。我還是和往常一樣，讓服務員多加了兩小勺子辣椒，端著碗酸辣粉四處找地方，有搶到了石板座椅細嚼慢咽的，有就著花壇站著狼吞虎咽的，有在商店大門的臺階上墊張報紙席地而坐“呼哧呼哧”吃的，光看遍地吃的人，就是一道亮麗的風景啊！我不好容易在空出來的一棵樹腳根下，避著當空40C°的烈日，蹲下開吃。在我旁邊站著的是兩位外國朋友，藍眼睛，高鼻梁，高個兒。只見他們一邊與女翻譯細聲地嘀嘀呱呱說笑，時不時又擦擦汗水，張著嘴，用手往里扇風，接著又吃。雖然我聽不懂，但從他們的笑容和吃的投入上，我分明感覺到他們對重慶酸辣粉獨特風味的驚訝！對中國飲食文化的博大精深的驚嘆！我打望四周，窈窕淑女、西裝紳士，白發老人、天真孩童，甚至還有赤膊壯漢和身穿體恤腳踏拖鞋的新潮美女以及象我一樣獨自在角落里默默享用的，幾乎人手一碗，有的埋頭苦干，有的仰天喝湯，有的細嚼慢品，有的狼吞虎咽，大家都酣暢淋漓。此情此景，純粹的一幅飲食文化的原生態畫卷！

我吃的要比別人的辣，從頭發根冒出的大汗順著額頭和兩頰直往下趟，也沒工夫顧得去擦。吃完了干的，又去旁邊的鹵菜攤兒買了串鵝肝，和著剩下的酸辣粉湯，呼嚕呼嚕幾下子一掃而光。這才慢慢地掏出紙巾，抹去嘴邊的油污，擦去臉上的汗水，點上一支香煙，深吸一口，煙霧經腹腔周游一圈后從鼻子嘴巴噴射出來，那種麻辣鮮香和著淡淡的煙霧，心頭爽極了，精神也為之大振！

解放碑，我難舍難棄的酸辣粉啊！！

I haven't been to Jiefangbei （the Liberation Monument）for a long time. Today I can’t curb my thirst to go there，so after lunch，I said to my wife: “Let’s go to Jiefangbei.” “It’s so hot outside； the weather forecast said the highest temperature today will rocket up to 40.3℃”，answered my wife. But she knew I have made my mind to go there，and then she went with me on such a hot day. Just now I have mentioned that I haven’t gone there for a long time，but it is just about one month when I was on business trips or went to the countryside. I am get used to going there once about half a month，with no other purpose but to eat a bowl of hot and sour rice noodles. To eat this kind of noodle also makes me pay a “high price” and I always spend much more money than other people in eating it，with 4 yuan’s bus fee transportation fee from Xinpaifang to Jiefangbei，6 yuan to buy a bowl of hot and sour rice noodles and another 5 yuan to buy goose liver or wing，almost spend 10 more yuan. But I love the hot and sour rice noodles there the most so I have to buy it no matter how much money it will cost.

There is no visitor that comes to Chongqing but won’t go to Jiefangbei. and when they go there，it’s a must for them to go to the “street of delicious food”，where tall buildingsstand on both sides，vivid images are presented in front of us，vehicles shuffl e back and forth，and all kinds of stores are full of customers，which seems like streets in other cities. But as you move forward，there are many people swarming into stores where all kinds of specialties，tasty food with attracting surface，water ice with several kinds of fruits，all kinds of milky tea and desserts are being presented in front ofeyes. Obviously，the purpose for people to go to this street is to eat. There are so many people who come here just for the special food in Chongqing，which absolutely distinguishes it from other places. and among all these popular stores，a store called “Hao You Lai” （which means that you will come back if you like food）selling hot and sour rice noodles is the most popular. It was set up during the fi rst year when this street was built and you will see it the moment you walk into this street. The people queuing up in front of the store may have several meters long. The old and the young，men and women from all over the world stand on both sides of the street with a bowl made of paper used to fi ll hot and sour rice noodles，eating their delicious noodles with a satisfactory smile in their face. an old woman will come here to sell her napkins in the crowds at this moment. and I always regard this store as the best one in the street. People who go to Jiefangbei will defi nitely go there and I believe they will agree with me.

actually，whether it is in Sichuan or in Chongqing，hot and sour rice noodle is by no means hard to buy. But I have to emphasize that the hot and sour rice noodle of “Hao You Lai”has distinctive features characterized not only by a spicy fl avor but also by a delicate fragrance. It’s so fresh that we can hail it as the most delicious in all kinds of food. For an outsider or a native in Chongqing，he/she simply hasn’t come to Chongqing at all if he/she doesn’t have a taste of hot and sour rice noodles.

Every time when I go to Jiefangbei，I always experience the lively atmosphere while standing in such a noisy crowd. Today my wife goes shopping in the mall，so I come to the “street of delicious food” alone. although it’s so hot outside，there are still so many people queuing up in front of “Hao You Lai”. after a long time，I fi nally got a ticket for the noodles. I noticed the man standing before me was watching the people before him nervously and continuously checking his watch，then suddenly he ran to the waiters and said with an accent of central area of China: “Would you please pack up my 10 bowls of noodles right away，because I will take a plane to go to Henan immediately.”at such an urgent time，everybody queuing up showed their consent to this proposal and the waiter packed up his noodles skillfully one by one. Holding these noodles in his hands，this man said thanks in his mouth and left in a hurry.

Finally it’s my turn. The chef，who takes in charge of seasoning，is skillful and quick in making seasoning，and dozens of bowls and spoons will be used to make seasoning in just a few seconds. as usual，I told the chef to give me two more spoons of pepper sauce. When my noodles are ready. I take it and fi nd a vacant place all around to sit down. There are people either sitting on stone benches or standing beside the fl ower bed to eat quickly，while at the steps in front of the gate of GOME，with a piece of newspaper in the steps，some people sit down to eat their noodles in a noisy way，which is really a unique phenomenon. after a long time，I eventually start to enjoy my noodles by squatting under a tree where a person finished his eating just now in order to avoid the burning sun. Beside me there are two tall but not fat foreigners with blue eyes and a Roman nose. They are talking with a female translator with smile； weeping the sweat in their face and opening their mouth with a hand to bring wind into it，they never stop enjoying their noodles. although I can’t understand what they are talking about because I don’t know any English，I can feel they are surprised at the distinctive fl avor of hot and sour rice noodles in Chongqing from their smiling face and their concentration on the food. They must be marveling at the extensive and profound Chinese cuisine culture. I look around and find that I am just in an original picture scroll of cuisine culture in which all kinds of people，ladies，gentlemen，old men，young children，even barebacked strong men and fashionable girls who wear T-shirts and slippers，and people like me，are squatting at the corner are either lowering their heads eating carefully or raising their heads drinking the soup.

Because I have asked the chef to give me two more spoons of pepper sauce，my noodle is spicier than others'，and thus my cheeks and hair are full of sweat. after eating up the hot and sour rice noodles，I have left some soup in my bowl，and I go to a store beside to buy a bunch of goose liver，eating it up with my soup quickly. Then I will take out a piece of napkin to wipe my face，and I will have a cigarette lighted and take a deep breath，then the smoke will be out of my mouth and nose after circling around in my abdomen. at such a time，I have a refreshing feeling of the mixture of delicate fragrance with light smoke. It’s awesome！

The hot and sour rice noodles in Jiefangbei，you’re my forever love！

Translated by Li Yunbi

Hot and Sour Rice Noodles in Jiefangbei

□Written by Gao Xingming