2022年12月21日 VOA慢速英語(yǔ)：巴基斯坦小餐館供應(yīng)美味、昂貴的食物

 

Baking Virsa, an eatery in Lahore, Pakistan, is sometimes described as the country's costliest place for what it serves: flatbreads and meats.
Baking Virsa 是巴基斯坦拉合爾的一家餐館，有時(shí)被描述為該國(guó)服務(wù)成本最高的地方：扁面包和肉類。
 
The eatery is a small space without windows. Dinners come on plastic plates and diners sit on plastic stools. But Baking Virsa gets visitors from across Pakistan and beyond. Visitors want to learn about the limited offerings, the owner, and the dining experience that sets it apart from other restaurants in the area.
餐廳是一個(gè)沒(méi)有窗戶的小空間。晚餐是用塑料盤(pán)子來(lái)的，用餐者坐在塑料凳子上。但是 Baking Virsa 吸引了來(lái)自巴基斯坦各地及其他地區(qū)的游客。訪客想了解有限的產(chǎn)品、所有者以及使其與該地區(qū)其他餐廳區(qū)分開(kāi)來(lái)的用餐體驗(yàn)。
 
Background
背景
 
The eatery opens out onto Railway Road in Gawalmandi, an area filled with people, vehicles, animals, and food shops.
餐廳通向加瓦爾曼迪 (Gawalmandi) 的鐵路路，那里到處都是人、車輛、動(dòng)物和食品店。
 
Many of Gawalmandi's original communities came from Kashmir and the eastern Punjab area before 1947. That was the year India and Pakistan became independent from the former British Empire. The mix of Hindus, Sikhs and Muslims gave diversity to Gawalmandi's businesses, culture and food.
1947 年之前，加瓦爾曼迪的許多原始社區(qū)來(lái)自克什米爾和旁遮普東部地區(qū)。那一年，印度和巴基斯坦從前大英帝國(guó)中獨(dú)立出來(lái)。印度教徒、錫克教徒和穆斯林的混合為加瓦爾曼迪的商業(yè)、文化和食品帶來(lái)了多樣性。
 
Some in Lahore used to see Gawalmandi as "virtually a no-go area," said Kamran Lashari, the director-general of the Lahore Walled City Authority. But a makeover more than 20 years ago helped bring in more visitors.
拉合爾寨城管理局局長(zhǎng)卡姆蘭·拉沙里 (Kamran Lashari) 說(shuō)，拉合爾的一些人過(guò)去常常將加瓦爾曼迪 (Gawalmandi) 視為“實(shí)際上是禁區(qū)”。但 20 多年前的改造幫助吸引了更多游客。
 
"We had street performers. President Pervez Musharraf sat in the street with people all around him. The prince of Jordan also visited. Indian newspapers reported on Gawalmandi," Lashari said.
“我們有街頭表演者。佩爾韋茲·穆沙拉夫總統(tǒng)坐在街上，周圍都是他的人。約旦王子也來(lái)了。印度報(bào)紙報(bào)道了加瓦爾曼迪，”拉沙里說(shuō)。
 
Costly food
昂貴的食物

Eateries in Gawalmandi are generally not costly.
Gawalmandi 的餐館一般都不貴。
 
But then there is Baking Virsa, where dinner for two can quickly come to $60 without drinks because drinks, even water, are not served.
但還有 Baking Virsa，兩人晚餐不含飲料的價(jià)格很快就會(huì)達(dá)到 60 美元，因?yàn)椴惶峁╋嬃?，甚至不提供水?br />  
By comparison, a basket of naan at the five-star Serena Hotel in the capital, Islamabad, sells for a dollar and a serving of kebabs is $8. In Gawalmandi, one naan usually costs as little as 10 cents.
相比之下，在首都伊斯蘭堡的五星級(jí)塞雷納酒店，一籃印度馕售價(jià) 1 美元，一份烤肉串售價(jià) 8 美元。在 Gawalmandi，一份 naan 通常只需 10 美分。
 
Baking Virsa makes five items: chicken, chops, two kinds of naan, and kebabs. Owner Bilal Sufi also sells bakarkhani – a pastry best enjoyed with a cup of pink Kashmiri chai. But diners must order everything days before arrival.
Baking Virsa 制作五種食物：雞肉、排骨、兩種烤餅和烤肉串。店主 Bilal Sufi 還出售 bakarkhani——一種糕點(diǎn)，搭配一杯粉紅色的 Kashmiri 柴最美味。但用餐者必須在抵達(dá)前幾天訂購(gòu)所有東西。
 
The 34-year-old Sufi tells people that his eatery has been in the same place for 75 years. And he has been serving the same items for many years.
34歲的蘇菲告訴人們，他的餐館已經(jīng)在同一個(gè)地方75年了。而且他多年來(lái)一直服務(wù)于相同的項(xiàng)目。
 
Sufi has run Baking Virsa for more than three years, taking over from his father Sufi Masood Saeed, who ran it before him and his grandfather Sufi Ahmed Saeed before that.
Sufi 經(jīng)營(yíng) Baking Virsa 已經(jīng)三年多了，接替了他的父親 Sufi Masood Saeed 和他的祖父 Sufi Ahmed Saeed。
 
He says he is only doing what his father and grandfather have done. He describes his ingredients, cooking methods, and where and how his meat is raised. His sheep are fed special food such as saffron milk, dates and green bananas.
他說(shuō)他只是在做他父親和祖父做過(guò)的事情。他描述了他的原料、烹飪方法，以及他的肉是在哪里和如何飼養(yǎng)的。他的羊被喂以特殊食物，如藏紅花奶、紅棗和青香蕉。
 
He also tells people how to eat their food. "Pick it up with your hands! Take a big bite! Eat like a beast!" he tells them. A beast is a wild animal that is large or dangerous.
他還告訴人們?nèi)绾纬运麄兊氖澄铩?ldquo;用手撿起來(lái)！咬一大口！像野獸一樣吃！” 他告訴他們。野獸是一種大型或危險(xiǎn)的野生動(dòng)物。
 
There is no salad, no yogurt, and no chutney, he tells a possible diner on the phone. "And if you ask for these you won't get them," he said.
沒(méi)有沙拉，沒(méi)有酸奶，也沒(méi)有酸辣醬，他在電話中告訴一個(gè)可能的用餐者。“如果你要這些，你就得不到，”他說(shuō)。
 
The meal arrives in a special order. First, Sufi presents a whole chicken, for $30, followed by mutton chops at $12.50, then a kebab, which costs $8. Sufi says one kebab is enough for two people.
這頓飯是按特殊順序送達(dá)的。首先，Sufi 提供了一整只雞，30 美元，然后是 12.50 美元的羊排，然后是 8 美元的烤肉串。Sufi 說(shuō)一份烤肉串足夠兩個(gè)人吃。
 
Sufi insists on his diners knowing what they eat, where it comes from, how it is made — and "why it tastes so different." And he has no plan to change anything.
蘇菲堅(jiān)持讓他的食客知道他們吃的是什么、來(lái)自哪里、是如何制作的——以及“為什么味道如此不同”。而且他沒(méi)有改變?nèi)魏问虑榈挠?jì)劃。
 
"Baking Virsa is a legacy," he says. "I'm doing this out of love ... for my father."
蘇菲堅(jiān)持讓他的食客知道他們吃的是什么、來(lái)自哪里、是如何制作的——以及“為什么味道如此不同”。而且他沒(méi)有改變?nèi)魏问虑榈挠?jì)劃。