found at SSG

Some funky sodas I found at SSG Food Market:

I'd never had a cucumber-flavored drink before. It was definitely cucumber-y.

I was also fascinated by the price difference between two brands of cashew nuts. Below is a 200-gram container being sold for an outrageous W19,000 (currently about $14.60, US):

Here is a 352-gram bag of cashews being sold for a fraction of the above cost:

W3,380 is about $2.60, US.

Could the difference in quality be that pronounced between the two brands of cashews? I doubt it. In both cases, the nuts are roasted and unsalted. Otherwise, they both come out of the earth. Does terroir matter when it comes to cashews? The bottled cashews have a label saying they're organic, but does that justify paying nearly six times as much?

While I was at SSG, I also got the filet mignon that I'll be cooking up Thursday morning, right before I head out to the luncheon with my former coworkers. The lady at the meat counter had enough to give me only four 250-ish-gram steaks; she did have more tenderloin, but it had been cut into tiny, 150-gram portions, which I thought to be too puny. I added two of those tiny steaks to my order of four full-sized steaks, and I'll eat those at the luncheon. The bill was, again, pretty expensive. But how often do you throw parties for former coworkers, right?

There's a bit of prep I can do well before the day of the luncheon, but some things have to be done that very day for maximum freshness. The steaks, for example, need to be seared at the last minute. The apple pie can be made a day or two in advance, and the same goes for the peas and carrots, although I might also do those on the day of. The mashed potatoes can be done several days in advance, and the pie filling for the apple pie can, too, along with the dough for the pie crust. Chimichurri, for the steak, can be made in advance, but it's usually better fresh, given that it's made of fresh herbs. Anyway, I've done this prep before, so it ought to go pretty well. Expect photos Thursday.