I did it again. I ate at the Golden Dragon Restaurant. When will I learn? The food at Golden Dragon sucks. It will never get better. It was never good in the first place.

So why do I crawl back there every time I get the urge for Chinese?

There are literally dozens of similar Chinese restaurants all over the city. For example, the “Happy Buddha,” complete with large smiling Buddha mascot on the sign, is less than three blocks away. And I have to say that the Happy Buddha looks awfully satisfied up there on that sign, kind of like an Asian “Big Boy.” But no, I keep saying, “Golden Dragon will get it together. The chef had an off night.”

What is wrong with me?

It’s not like it was good for years and then it went down and I can’t shake my allegiance for emotional reasons connected to memories spent with parents or past loves. I’ve been there seven times and every time the food has sucked. Even the fortune cookies were inedible. How the hell does that happen?

So here’s what I’m going to do: place a self-imposed moratorium on all Chinese restaurants for at least two weeks. This will give me a chance to break my habit, sort out my feelings and then, with a clean palette, I can finally give the Happy Buddha the chance they deserve.