Burp Bowl
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Eating establishment near Baruch College in New York City:
I'm afraid that my Sinological expertise may not be of much help in explaining this one, but it is a real place.
On the other hand, this may be a thing in New York, since there is a Burp Castle, a beer bar, on the Lower East Side. They describe themselves thus:
Burp Castle NYC is a Belgian beer bar in the East Village of Manhattan. We are the “Temple of Beer Worship". In the 90's the bartenders donned monk's robes and a strict 'no talking policy' was enforced. Although the monks have mostly moved on you can still find a robed barkeep on occasion. In a nod to the Brewist legacy, we still try to keep the bar conversation friendly so don’t take it personally if we “shoosh” you, Burp Castle remains a quiet bar.
Apparently you're not supposed to talk loudly in the Burp Castle, but you're welcome to belch for all you're worth.
[H.t. VS and thanks to DPB]
Vance Koven said,
June 26, 2018 @ 5:59 pm
No, sorry, there is only one "temple of beer worship" in the East Village, and that's McSorley's.
cameron said,
June 26, 2018 @ 6:57 pm
I didn't know Burp Castle was still there. I remember it from the 90s, monks' habits and all. I guess the wide berth that I give to the fratboy-infested hellhole that is McSorley's means that I never pass by Burp Castle either, since they're on the same block.
Anthony said,
June 26, 2018 @ 8:42 pm
Burping isn't an appetizing idea. Then again, here in Chicago there are several restaurants with "belly" in their name. (I knew before the Internet that one's belly was to be eliminated, not lauded!) What's next, bars with the word "Liver" in their name? These places must be trying to go out of business.
Brett said,
June 26, 2018 @ 10:29 pm
The one time I went bar hopping in New York, my two brothers first suggested McSorley's, which was so crowded and foul that we couldn't even get served. So we walked to the Burp Castle and had a great time drinking and talking with the barmaid. There are cheezy medieval fantasy paintings on the walls at the Burp Castle, the bartenders dress like monks, and they shush the customers if it gets too loud.
languagehat said,
June 27, 2018 @ 8:09 am
Burp Castle is excellent; that's where I learned the glories of Belgian beer. I avoid McSorley's for the same reason as cameron.
Neil Dolinger said,
June 27, 2018 @ 11:57 am
"What's next, bars with the word "Liver" in their name?"
I was sure I would find some place named "Bad Livers Inn" or some such, but no luck. A band named "Bad Livers", yes, but no bars. But the next time you are in Kazakhstan, you could stop in to the Liver Bar Almaty.
https://www.instagram.com/liver.almaty/?hl=en
S. Norman said,
June 27, 2018 @ 1:56 pm
Slurp seems to be a pretty common name for restaurants. At least Ramen places:
http://www.slurprestaurant.co.uk/menu/4583769945
https://www.slurpusa.com/
http://www.slurpramen.com/
Victor Mair said,
June 27, 2018 @ 3:50 pm
It is considered proper to slurp when eating noodles at a Japanese meal. Supposedly it is improper not to slurp when eating Japanese noodles. One of my favorite films is "Tampopo", partly because it has a hilarious episode where Japanese women are learning to slurp elegantly.
In which cultures is it proper to belch after a meal? I seem to recall you're supposed to burp after a meal in some Middle Eastern cultures.
Lugubert said,
June 27, 2018 @ 4:51 pm
The "Soba Song" has "When that dreary dawn starts to breakin, my stomach starts to achin. Just to get out there and slurp some soba down"
Julie Lee said,
June 27, 2018 @ 6:22 pm
I don't know about slurping noodles, but my mom taught me that in Chinese etiquette, it is permissible , during a meal, to sweep rice from a bowl. into your mouth with your chopsticks, but it is bad manners to sweep noodles into your mouth with chopsticks.
Victor Mair said,
June 27, 2018 @ 7:24 pm
From Nathan Hopson:
In Tampopo, if I recall correctly, the women in the Italian restaurant are learning how not to slurp. It's a brilliant sendup of Japanese aping of "Western" manners (and culture, civilization, etc., more generally), and I totally agree that Tampopo is one of the all-time great films, especially about food.
[VHM: It looks as though I misremembered that particular scene of Tampopo, but there certainly was an awful lot noisy slurping of noodles in the film.]
Victor Mair said,
June 27, 2018 @ 11:34 pm
A colleague sets the record straight on Tampopo:
You are right. Slurping is proper (and expected) when you eat noodles in Japan. Quick slurping of noodles with sharp sound is actually appreciated as a fashionable way of eating them.
Nathan is right about Tampopo. The episode of young Japanese women leaning how to eat spaghetti properly (without slurping) is hilarious because the teacher fails to teach them the Western manner. All the students start slurping spaghetti after a few trials of eating it silently (because they want to enjoy eating it). So, the teacher gives up out of frustration, and she starts to slurp it with the students.
Gabriel Holbrow said,
June 28, 2018 @ 5:47 am
All this talk of the wonderful scene from Tampopo requires a link to a video clip:
https://youtu.be/sNAZmLmyCJk
My apologies to the estate of the amazing Juzo Itami, since I do not think this clip is paying any royalties for the copyright.