Me,too - pasta juice is awful to brew, and absolutely no caffiene at all.
You get all that from tea? My tea just tastes like tea.
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My Dad happened to be what they call a 'Tea Taster' (guy who tastes the different blends and gives it the thumbs up or down) in a company called Liptons, and thereafter another Tea Co., called Brooke Bonds - as you might guess I was totalled by tea right from the start.
So, yes, I love my teas, and can be be quite fussy about bouquets and so on when I'm 'playing the game'.
Otherwise any mug of char, chai, or chaya is good enough.
Axletramp - I've had that 'Thali' thing, too, a couple of times at an Indian restaurant - the word, I learned, means 'necklace' - and so one gets this 'necklace' of curries, sauces, gravies, etc in small containers - sometimes upto 17 of them surrounding a dish of (usually) fluffy white rice.
Some of the sauces can be extraordinarily hot - others have strange textures - and the 'Thali' also comes with a huge round cracker that one crumbles into the food - further adding to the smells, tastes, and textures offered to the palate.
Not easily forgettable.
Most often vegetarian - but I've ordered Chicken, and had it served with a Thali.
