Projo Offbeat Blog

I will never eat carp casserole, grilled carp or roasted carp with onions.

Don't bother inviting me for dinner if you're serving buttermilk fried carp fillets, medieval sweet and sour carp or even carp in beer.

Carp tacos, with cheddar cheese, salsa and sour cream, may sound tempting, but you won't find me giving in to that temptation.

Might as well eat toenails, or even a toe, because now we know that carp enjoy nibbling on feet -- corns, calluses, bunions and all.

That's right. Carp pedicures are the hot new trend for the spa set. Those looking for the latest, best way to pamper themselves can dip their feet into a tank of water and let the carp nibble away, according to the Associated Press.

(Check out the AP video.)

John Ho, who runs the Yvonne Hair and Nails salon in Alexandria, Va., with his wife, Yvonne Le, tells the Associated Press, "This is a good treatment for everyone who likes to have nice feet."

The story reports that "5,000 people have taken the plunge so far."

(I wonder if Ho has considered using bluefish for customers who have real stubborn bunions or who are late in paying their bills.)

Customer Tracy Roberts, 33, of Rockville, Md., is quoted saying the carp treatment was "the best pedicure I ever had."

"I'd been an athlete all my life, so I've always had calluses on my feet. This was the first time somebody got rid of my calluses completely," she said.

No offense to Ms. Roberts, but knowing that carp eat calluses has turned me off from steamed carp in egg custard for life.

 Tags  Associated Press beer carp spas

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