Gold

Dined with a group of senior physicians - this was the rare occasion that I have to attend some kind of socio-political function.

(I shall leave the social and political stories later.)

The menu was chosen by the host. One of the dishes was Fried lobster fillet with egg white and gold flakes.

Since most of the guests were nephrologists, there was a surge of discussion when the shiny gadget was served. Many of us hurried to pick up the paper-thin pieces of metal and put it away:
Some did worry about heavy metal poisoning, a few could not accept the idea of swallowing something that is supposedly not edible, others have various excuse ...

For me, I was too much taken in with the story I heard in the secondary school: Socrates committed suicide by gold poisoning.

Of course I would not follow.

(The story was not entirely true. Our great philosopher was actually killed by hemlock. But what we learn as a child inadvertently affect our behaviour in the latter years - however illogical it is.)

PS. I could not remember who first started using gold flakes for Chinese cuisine. Yes, it is a nice decoration, and it gives an excellent excuse for the restaurant to mark up the price. Even if we consider the latter purpose, however, I am sure the same lobster meat topped with nanograms of truff or saffron would be much wiser choices.