Sometimes the plans that seem to be going the furthest awry are those that are the most memorable.

And somehow, they often involve rain: The rainy wedding day that was still so romantic; the camping trip that was fun because it was such a disaster; the vacation in the mountains that turned into a Scrabble fest; and, of course, Monday night.

The Asian Tea House is in Schenley Plaza, off Forbes Avenue between the Carnegie and Hillman libraries in Oakland.

Monday night was the night Munch planned to ride bicycle of Munch to Oakland for dinner with Dapper Friend of Munch.

And really, what better place for an evening meal than the reclaimed Schenley Plaza. Oh sure, Munch was among those who grumbled there would be no parking once the lot was turned into a park. But then, Monday, Munch was able to park right in the plaza and that guy who used to take the money wasn't even there. Instead, Munch biked up the Eliza Furnace Trail to the Panther Hollow Trail and then up Joncaire Street to get to Schenley.

It seemed like such a good idea. DFOM was waiting as Munch rode into the park. We were there to sample the cuisine of the Asian Tea House.

Munch ordered a vegetable spring roll ($1) as an appetizer, and stir-fried chicken with rice noodles ($5.50) as the main course.

Munch also went with the mango bubble drink ($2.65). DFOM explained that he would not be ordering the bubbles because they reminded him of eating squid balls. Munch should have explored how he had encountered squid balls, but instead, Munch ordered the drink.

It was more like gummi balls in the drink. Munch liked them (and tried to ignore the obviously high caloric content of a mango smoothie with gummi balls in it). There was that moment, however, when Munch drew a little too hard on the straw, causing the black ball to fly into Munch's mouth and strike the back of Munch's throat.

"Did you aspirate the gummi ball?" DFOM asked, then joking that the characters, Nurse of Munch, Doctor of Munch and hopefully not Undertaker of Munch could be included in this article.

Despite the near death caused by the gummi ball, Munch soldiered on: the chicken was stir-fried with lettuce and carrots. It could have used a stronger taste, but soy sauce was a good addition.

DFOM went for the bourbon chicken combo ($5.50) with fried rice and steamed vegetables. He declared the chicken "fabulous" which caused Munch to reach over and take a piece with Munch's fingers. (We were outdoors with pigeons watching our every move. The table manners were thrown to the wind). He was right about the chicken and there was enough there for a second meal.

Munch also did not finish all of the stir-fry but did not have a good trick for fitting it on the bike.

It was during our meal that the evening became more than just a dinner between friends -- it became a whole experience that we will talk about for years.

The sky darkened and it started to drizzle. We moved my bike and our food under the permanent tent in the Plaza. The rain came down, creating a lovely light drumming on the top of the tent and, from inside, we watched the lightning and listened to the thunder. Then, when the rain stopped we stepped out to see clouds that mostly are seen in the galleries of museums across the world. Gorgeous yellows, oranges and even bright light blue clouds filled the sky as they slowly dispersed, leaving blue behind it. The grass of the plaza, as the rain cleared, was the kelly green of Ireland in that moment that occurs when the natural light is the same brightness as the street lights, so neither overshadows the other.

After the rain cleared, Munch then discovered something about eating and biking: It's hard to head uphill when you are peddling on a full stomach.