# Danger, danger, danger at the buffet **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 6, 2010, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/danger-danger-danger-at-the-buffet/552816 "2010-09-06T17:42:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Wincerind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@Wincerind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wincerind)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/danger-danger-danger-at-the-buffet/552816/41 "2010-09-10T13:32:40Z")
I once had a buffet dinner in Cayenne, French Guyana. I thought it would be nice to have some of those berries. you know, red and yellow, looked really succulent. After scarfing a mouthfull, I discovered, the hard way, it was… Cayenne pepper. I guess the potted plant where I discarded the half-chewed peppers can’t have survived. Worse was that, while sleeping, I rubbed my eyes. Even after a shower and a thorough washing of the hands, it still hurt like hell. At least, I was alone. God knows what would’ve happened if I tried some hanky panky with a partner. Or myself, for that matter. ---
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/danger-danger-danger-at-the-buffet/552816/42 "2010-09-10T20:31:35Z")
> [@Autolycus](#): > > . . . Did y’all know that the wasabi you eat is 99 times out of 100 not real wasabi? Real, grated wasabi root is rare, even in Japan. What you think is wasabi is actually horseradish and food coloring. Lame, right? Not lame at all. Yeh, I knew it. I’ve tried the real stuff a few times and it’s pretty heavenly compared to the powdered substitute which one usually gets. It’s way more subtle and complex; hard to find, though. A local sushi bar right next to a big Japanese market here will sometimes have it and will reluctantly give us a bit even though we’re not Japanese businessmen. ---
**Author:** ![Hakuna\_Matata](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a88e4f/32.png) [@Hakuna\_Matata](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hakuna_Matata)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/danger-danger-danger-at-the-buffet/552816/43 "2010-09-10T21:18:26Z")
Recently one of my good friends invited my wife and I to join him and his wife for his birthday dinner. He wanted to go to a Vietmanese restaurant. So we ordered family style and each took a little off each plate of food. All great food except this one dish that had these pretty little red peppers on it ( similar to these [http://www.reimerseeds.com/vietnamese-tear-jerker-hot-peppers.aspx](http://www.reimerseeds.com/vietnamese-tear-jerker-hot-peppers.aspx) ) So all was fine until I decided to eat one of the peppers and suddenly I felt like I could see through time! I stopped talking and my wife looks over at me and asked me if I was alright. I was gulping water and finally sputtered out that the red peppers were real hot. And that was when she said ‘oh-you ate one? I never eat them, they just flavor the dish!’. A good time to tell me would have been before I ate it dammit! ---
**Author:** ![Serenata67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/serenata67/32/10646_2.png) [@Serenata67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Serenata67)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2010, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/danger-danger-danger-at-the-buffet/552816/44 "2010-09-12T02:28:54Z")
> [@Autolycus](#): > > … > I once saw a chef eat a ball of wasabi for 50 bucks. Surprisingly, he took it like a real champ. I think he threw up later in the bathroom, but he claims it was worth it. Chefs are insane. … I know! Mr. Serenata is a chef and I just asked him if he would do that. He smiled and said, “for 50 bucks, I’d eat pretty much anything.” Chefs are crazy. ---
**Author:** ![whiterabbit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/cab0a1/32.png) [@whiterabbit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whiterabbit)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2010, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/danger-danger-danger-at-the-buffet/552816/45 "2010-09-12T03:38:13Z")
Now I’m craving sushi, and pho. At least I know where I can get sushi here if I can afford it. And I like what I guess is really substitute wasabi, in smallish amounts. I’m not big on blow-my-head-off spicy, but I always have a bottle of Sriracha in the fridge. It does wonders for stuff like ramen noodles. ---
**Author:** ![KinkiNipponTourist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e9bcb4/32.png) [@KinkiNipponTourist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KinkiNipponTourist)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2010, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/danger-danger-danger-at-the-buffet/552816/46 "2010-09-12T04:01:08Z")
> [@Autolycus](#): > > Did y’all know that the wasabi you eat is 99 times out of 100 not real wasabi? Real, grated wasabi root is rare, even in Japan. What you think is wasabi is actually horseradish and food coloring. Lame, right? Dude, this is not the case at all! ANY decent sushi joint has the nice man behind the counter grating wasabi for ya. And wasabi is always available at the supermarket. Sure, most regular folks use the tube stuff, but it’s not horseradish/food coloring. The grated real stuff is actually more mild than the tube stuff, btw. Welcome (back?) to Japan, btw! Next time you’re down Tokyo way, let’s go grab a few beers and some sushi! ---
**Author:** ![Autolycus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/22d042/32.png) [@Autolycus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Autolycus)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/danger-danger-danger-at-the-buffet/552816/47 "2010-09-26T14:39:25Z")
> [@KinkiNipponTourist](#): > > > [@Autolycus](#): > > > > Did y’all know that the wasabi you eat is 99 times out of 100 not real wasabi? Real, grated wasabi root is rare, even in Japan. What you think is wasabi is actually horseradish and food coloring. Lame, right? > > Dude, this is not the case at all! ANY decent sushi joint has the nice man behind the counter grating wasabi for ya. And wasabi is always available at the supermarket. Sure, most regular folks use the tube stuff, but it’s not horseradish/food coloring. The grated real stuff is actually more mild than the tube stuff, btw. > > Welcome (back?) to Japan, btw! Next time you’re down Tokyo way, let’s go grab a few beers and some sushi! Wow. Color me corrected. In America are you sure it’s not horseradish? When I worked in a sushi restaurant briefly, I mixed the wasabi powder and I’d be darned if it didn’t say “ingredients: horseradish” on the bag. Anyway, I’m having a blast. I hope to visit Tokyo in the next 2-3 months. Sooo busy.. working 😉 じゃね～ [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/danger-danger-danger-at-the-buffet/552816.md?page=2)