Civilized

In the past couple of years, I have dined, more than I should have, and/but deliciously, at a Vietnamese family-style Pho restaurant just down the block. In that time, I have graduated from Summer Rolls to Garden Rolls (tofu instead of shrimp and pork), and come generally to appreciate the spicier sorts of curry and rice dishes. The Pho noodle soup remains beyond reproach, but I am still not persuaded that I cannot detect in their beloved fish sauce, garum that it be, the lingering putrescence of rotten fish. I suppose that's 'cause I'm White (but not Italian), and I detest anchovies (from which fish sauce is mostly made).