Fabulous
Where do fabulous Minneapolitans go to hobnob with fabulous people and eat fabulous food in a fabulously swanky scene?
AZIA. That's where.
This is Thom. Thom is spelled with an H. Thom is fabulous. Thom came up with the whole concept of fusing fabulous Asian delicacies with Minnesota flair. Okay "Minnesota flair" is a stretch. Many Minnesotans consider ketchup to be a spice. In steps Thom Pham. Thank God. Thom is the bet thing to happen to Minnesota Cuisine since the Scanda-hoovians set up residence here and brought with them lutefisk, Lefsa, and all things edible, white, and bland. Some people live to eat. Some people eat to live. Scandinavians, apparently are of the latter mindset.
Here is an excerpt from an article written about Thom in the City Pages.
Have I mentioned Thom is fabulous?
Tom Pham carries with him a modern Minnesotan story that could easily be turned into a film. Pham, it turns out, is the son of an American GI and a Vietnamese woman, and grew up on a small island in southern Vietnam where the anti-American sentiment was extreme.
"At 14 I still wasn't allowed to go to school, I wasn't allowed to walk on the street with other people, nothing," he says. "By the time I was 14 I was like, 'This isn't working for me.' If my dad was American, why don't I try America?"
In stepped Lutheran Social Services. The next thing you know, Tom is part of a blue-eyed, blond family in south Minneapolis, the Johnsons. "The most wonderful family you can imagine. The next thing you know, we're at my grandparents for Thanksgiving and Christmas, and I'm like, 'I hate cranberry sauce.' Now, I love it, because I found some better things to do with cranberries. But when I was first here, learning English, going to Southwest [High School] taking six hours to translate my homework with a Vietnamese-English dictionary, it seemed strange. I grew up on an island where everything was sea and sand, and now here I was, part of the Johnson family, seeing snow for the first time. Now my grandparents come in all the time, my ninetysomething grandfather, I make cranberry curry for him extra mild, and he loves it."
And so the international circle of Minneapolis Lutheran do-gooding and Vietnamese flair once again improves all our lives!
More reasons why Thom is fabulous: He went to my HIGH SCHOOL! Also, he was very kind and gracious and answered all of my questions late night when I had clearly misjudged my own limitations and grossly over-served myself. Thom is Fabulous.
Here are some more photos from the evening of debauchery. Below, take in the gorgeousness of two of my sisters and my sister-in-law the irrepressible Elaine.
Mollly and I have similar taste in jewelry. We decided that our matching necklaces and rings could be interpreted as committment adornments so we had our own committment ceremony and here is our portrait of committment. To Molly I committed to always be older and and bossier than she, and to never let her forget all the times I was forced to babysit her. Molly committed to me to always be younger, have better hair, be a better dancer, and to always have better skin than me.
And here are some photos of the place we started out the evening, which was nice and all, but not nearly as fabulous as Azia. It lacked a certain, fabulous "Thom" factor.
Betsy had a sore throat but managed to stay out late with us. My daughter is obsessed with Betsy. She picks up the phone, Looks at me with hope in her eyes and asks "Dah-SEE?"
She said "Betsy" before she said "mama". Nice. All I have to say about that is "I HOPE BETSY WRITES YOU INTO HER WILL, BECAUSE ALL YOU ARE GETTING FROM YOUR MOTHER IS BIG FEET!".
Next time you are in Minneapolis, be sure to stop by AZIA. And if you happen to invite me along, please make sure to have me home by 11:00, because the thing about children is they just don't CARE that mommy stayed out until 2:00 a.m. hobnobbing with fabulous people named Thom. Toddlers are very unforgiving that way.
AZIA. That's where.
This is Thom. Thom is spelled with an H. Thom is fabulous. Thom came up with the whole concept of fusing fabulous Asian delicacies with Minnesota flair. Okay "Minnesota flair" is a stretch. Many Minnesotans consider ketchup to be a spice. In steps Thom Pham. Thank God. Thom is the bet thing to happen to Minnesota Cuisine since the Scanda-hoovians set up residence here and brought with them lutefisk, Lefsa, and all things edible, white, and bland. Some people live to eat. Some people eat to live. Scandinavians, apparently are of the latter mindset.
Here is an excerpt from an article written about Thom in the City Pages.
Have I mentioned Thom is fabulous?
Tom Pham carries with him a modern Minnesotan story that could easily be turned into a film. Pham, it turns out, is the son of an American GI and a Vietnamese woman, and grew up on a small island in southern Vietnam where the anti-American sentiment was extreme.
"At 14 I still wasn't allowed to go to school, I wasn't allowed to walk on the street with other people, nothing," he says. "By the time I was 14 I was like, 'This isn't working for me.' If my dad was American, why don't I try America?"
In stepped Lutheran Social Services. The next thing you know, Tom is part of a blue-eyed, blond family in south Minneapolis, the Johnsons. "The most wonderful family you can imagine. The next thing you know, we're at my grandparents for Thanksgiving and Christmas, and I'm like, 'I hate cranberry sauce.' Now, I love it, because I found some better things to do with cranberries. But when I was first here, learning English, going to Southwest [High School] taking six hours to translate my homework with a Vietnamese-English dictionary, it seemed strange. I grew up on an island where everything was sea and sand, and now here I was, part of the Johnson family, seeing snow for the first time. Now my grandparents come in all the time, my ninetysomething grandfather, I make cranberry curry for him extra mild, and he loves it."
And so the international circle of Minneapolis Lutheran do-gooding and Vietnamese flair once again improves all our lives!
More reasons why Thom is fabulous: He went to my HIGH SCHOOL! Also, he was very kind and gracious and answered all of my questions late night when I had clearly misjudged my own limitations and grossly over-served myself. Thom is Fabulous.
Here are some more photos from the evening of debauchery. Below, take in the gorgeousness of two of my sisters and my sister-in-law the irrepressible Elaine.
Mollly and I have similar taste in jewelry. We decided that our matching necklaces and rings could be interpreted as committment adornments so we had our own committment ceremony and here is our portrait of committment. To Molly I committed to always be older and and bossier than she, and to never let her forget all the times I was forced to babysit her. Molly committed to me to always be younger, have better hair, be a better dancer, and to always have better skin than me.
And here are some photos of the place we started out the evening, which was nice and all, but not nearly as fabulous as Azia. It lacked a certain, fabulous "Thom" factor.
Betsy had a sore throat but managed to stay out late with us. My daughter is obsessed with Betsy. She picks up the phone, Looks at me with hope in her eyes and asks "Dah-SEE?"
She said "Betsy" before she said "mama". Nice. All I have to say about that is "I HOPE BETSY WRITES YOU INTO HER WILL, BECAUSE ALL YOU ARE GETTING FROM YOUR MOTHER IS BIG FEET!".
Next time you are in Minneapolis, be sure to stop by AZIA. And if you happen to invite me along, please make sure to have me home by 11:00, because the thing about children is they just don't CARE that mommy stayed out until 2:00 a.m. hobnobbing with fabulous people named Thom. Toddlers are very unforgiving that way.
2 Comments:
I love the pictures. There is definitely a family resemblance. And the committment ceremony with your sis cracked me up.
You and your sisters (and the sister in law, too) are defintely fabulous! Wow, I want to hang out with you four eating and drinking until 2 AM, children be damned. Well done!
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