It's quarter till 4 and I just got home from Jackson, TN. It's a slightly larger town about 60 miles north of Savannah. We went up there for some sushi but found a little more than just raw fish.
I was designated the sushi restaurant finder earlier today because we decided it would be a nice change of pace from the regular fried fare we find around here. So I got on to Google and found a few places but narrowed it down to a place called Asahi, yes just like the beer. It had the best reviews of the three I found and I thought it looked like a good area. So off we went, sushi bound.
We got to Jackson around 9 and I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of stuff there was there compared to here. I didn't realize how much I took for granted back home that I don't have here until tonight. Access to real restaurants besides McDonald's, Hardee's or Burger King for instance.
So the three of us rolled in to Asahi and got a table. We were all starving so we all ordered individually. Since I have no control of my mind when I'm hungry I went a little overboard with my roll selection. The dragon, surf and turf, spicy tuna and an eel rolls were my choice tonight. They brought each roll out on their own plates so I had constructed a wall around myself in sushi plates. Next to our table was a group that at first glance looked like two couples out for a nice dinner at a sushi restaurant. We were very mistaken...
One of the guys started talking to us and at first we weren't sure why he was talking to us or what he wanted. So we proceeded with caution at first. He kept asking what different rolls were on our table and what the different sashimis were. Everytime he'd ask he'd order what we had and ate it. It was all very strange to me at first but he was a very friendly person so how could I not like him.
Well as the sushi kept coming both tables started to loosen up. It wasn't as if we were sharing deep dark secrets but we were talking. Since they were locals we asked them were a good club was at. They said that they were headed for a place down the road and that we should come along and follow them. By now we'd been in Jackson for about an hour and appeared to have just met 4 new friends.
The first clue I had that this was not your ordinary run-of-the-mill local was the fact that he knew the owner of the restaurant, who evidently introduced him to his first sushi experience a year ago. Then on the way out of the restaurant the same guy stopped and talked to some people at the hibachi grills on the other side of the restaurant and yet another group in the bar area. This was shaping up to be a very interesting evening... or a scene from Deliverance...
We followed them to a club called Cody's. Now, we had a Cody's back at Mizzou where I went to college and it was COUNTRY. What are the odds that a place called Cody's in Tennessee was going to be a dance club, well I guess the odds turned out pretty good. Despite the odd country song here and there it was mainly dance music. Oh, did I mention our sushi friend knew just about EVERYONE in the bar? He even knew the bouncer!
We spent a few hours at Cody's dancing the night away with our new friends. I was driving so obviously I wasn't doing much of the dancing unless dragged out but still having a good time watching. I was amazed by the number of people sushi-guy knew though. I've been told I know a lot of people but they've never been as concentrated as this guy's network.
We chose to leave Cody's for more dancing at a place right next door called the Mix Factory. Our new friend even knew the bouncer there because it turns out he use to bounce for the place. I later learned that he was an MMA fighter, which explained his energy level. His connections didn't end at Cody's because as soon as we got passed the bouncer he was already shaking hands and doling out hugs.
Girls, guys, black, white, asian you name it he probably knew someone with those characteristics and they all seem to like him. Either that or they were all afraid of him kicking the crap out of them... So a little more dancing after that and a few more glad hands we were finally on our way back home to Savannah. We said our good byes to our new friends in the parking lot and sped off into the night...
On the way home I was almost rearended by someone in a Cougar. They sped by and veered back infront of our car. They kind of meandered between the lane and the shoulder for a bit and continued to pull away from my car. After about a mile we passed them on the shoulder. They had their emergency flashers on, so I assumed they realized that they were drunk and decided to stop and pull off the road.
After a couple more miles the same car nearly rear ended my car again. And yet again they veered infront of us and sped off on ahead. A couple more miles down the road there was a silver Chevy on the shoulder with someone standing besides it looking down the embankment. Sure enough the Cougar had swerved off the road and hit a light pole.
That last part really didn't have anything to do with the most popular man in middle Tennessee but it was part of the night. What a good time though! A new experience, with potential new friends, in a new town, at a new restaurant and then ending the night with someone getting their comeupins. Moral of the story, MMA fighters are cool and don't drink and drive.
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