What are some of the more unusual things that you have eaten?

I was at Wong’s King Seafood on Friday and my friend Kevin and I took it to a new level. First, I must state that Wong’s King is superbly awesome. Hands down the best Chinese food in Portland. Stick with the seafood and vegetables and you will go home with a happy belly. The tag line on their Web site says it all: Joy and Satisfaction are our unseen ingredients.

However.

For those who want to branch out from the standard fare, they have some extremely adventurous possibilities. Goose intestines. Duck beak. Duck tongue.

We couldn’t get past that one, so we ordered up a steaming plate. Each little package was encrusted in a garlic breading and deep fried. The presentation was attractive. Taste wise, it wasn’t bad, but it certainly wasn’t good. If you’ve ever eaten that little nubbin above a roast chicken’s butt that previously boasted its tail feathers, then you’ve had something close to duck tongue. By contrast, duck tongue has much less meat on it, a flat bone or two, and this weird elongated nodule of cartilage that points back at you accusingly after you’ve denuded it.

All of this is wildly confusing to chew around. So of course we ate the whole plate whilst talking about his new business, Planet Mechanics, where he and his friend are installing rain barrels and disconnecting downspouts for the concerned citizens of Stump Town.

As I tell you about this, I’m feeling guilty about having eaten it. A little movie is playing out in my head: The Silence of the Ducks, starring Sir Anthony Quackins. All of the sad, mute, little duckies swimming around the ponds inside perfect rain barrels.