Michael Chugani 褚简宁 - Donkey＇s years｜又中又英

It's been donkey's years since I went to a steakhouse. The expression "donkey's years" has an interesting origin. It is a British slang expression that originated in the early 20th century. It means a very long time. If you say it's been donkey's years since you went on a holiday overseas, it means it's been a very long time since you went overseas for a holiday. The expression is a play on the words "years" and "ears" which sound similar. A donkey has long ears and also a long life. That's why "donkey's years" means a long time. A steakhouse is a restaurant that specializes in different types of beef steak.

I seldom eat steak even though I like it. Last week I went with my elder sister and brother-in-law to a swanky (expensive and fashionable) steakhouse called Sullivan's Steakhouse for dinner. My sister and brother-in-law have been there before and told me it's very good. There are 14 Sullivan's Steakhouse restaurants in the US. They are expensive but very popular. We went to the one in Indianapolis where my sister and brother-in-law live. We had to book three days in advance for a table because it's such a popular restaurant. We started with drinks to relax. My sister had vodka with water. My brother-in-law and I had martinis.

The waitress brought us a large and warm bread roll with creamy butter that had herbs in it, which tasted excellent. My brother-in-law started with a salad but my sister and I shared a plate of French fries instead. For his main course, my brother-in-law chose filet mignon, which means tender and delicate in French. Filet mignon is a small tender piece of steak from the end of a tenderloin. My sister chose Chilean sea bass (fish) with mashed potatoes and I had broiled salmon with asparagus. We shared a Key lime pie for dessert. This pie is made with the juice of Key lime, a small yellow lime with a strong flavour. The dishes were small and expensive but excellent.
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我上一次去扒房（steakhouse），已是咸丰年代（donkey's years）的事了。习语 "donkey's years" 有一个有趣的出处，它是个英式俚语，源自二十世纪初。它的意思是很久很久以前。若你说你上一次到外地度假已是 donkey's years，意即你已有非常长一段时间没有到外地度假了。这个习语是在玩「食字」双关语，因为"years"（年岁）与 "ears"（耳朵）的发音相近。驴有长长的耳朵，亦有很长的寿命，因此 "donkey's years" 就指很长的年日。A steakhouse就是专门提供各类牛扒的餐厅。

虽然我喜欢牛扒，却很少去吃。上星期我跟我姐姐和姐夫到一间奢华的（swanky）牛扒餐厅（steakhouse）「苏利文扒房」共进晚膳。胞姐和姐夫之前都光顾过，告诉我它非常好吃。美国共有十四间苏利文扒房，收费高昂但非常受欢迎。我们去的那间在印第安纳坡里斯，就是我姐姐和姐夫住的地区。因为这是一间深受欢迎的餐厅，我们得提早三天订枱。开始的时候我们先喝上一杯，放松一下，我姐姐喝了伏特加和水，我和姐夫则点了马天尼。

女侍应奉上又大又暖的排包，配以混和香草的软滑牛油，味道棒极了。我姐夫以沙律作始，我和我姐姐则共享一碟薯条。姐夫点了filet mignon作为主菜，它在法语中的意思是嫩和精致的；菲力牛扒（filet mignon）就是里脊肉后方的一小块嫩肉。我姐姐选了智利驴鱼（sea bass）配薯蓉，我的则是烤三文鱼配芦笋。我们共享一个青柠批作为甜品。这个批是用墨西哥青柠檬汁制成的，那是一款味道浓烈的细小黄色柠檬。菜式尽都小巧而昂贵，但味道一流。
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中译:七刻
Michael Chugani 褚简宁