**** Sizzling Pot King is now Zhang Liang Malatang
Man, what a difference a year makes. Last year, we kind of celebrated the Lunar New Year by taking a trip to San Francisco (I'll finish those posts one of these days). The LNY fell on January 25th last year; quite early. This year, well it's a whole different story….a whole different world it seems. Hard to believe that I first started working on Covid-19 items on February 10th of last year!
Still, we wanted to have some Chinese food; nothing fancy….we knew for sure that places would be swamped and really just wanted a dry pot to go from Sizzling Pot King; which has been a recent favorite of Hers.
So, I headed over to SPK and got there right when they opened and placed an order. Of course they were busy and I was told that instead of the usual 15-20 minute wait, it was going to be at least 45 minutes. Anyway, I placed my order and walked back to my car……and then it came to me; why not do a short version of the Missus's "I want it and I want it all"? Thinking about timing and such; I decided on Village Kitchen, which is about a 10-12 drive from SPK.
So, I headed over and there was a small queue, but after 10 minutes, I managed to make a takeout order, which I was told was going to take about 30 minutes. Perfect! I jumped back in my car and returned to SPK where my order was just being packed…….
After which I headed back to VK and after a five minute wait, my order was ready to go.
So, the Missus got Her fix from Sizzling Pot King (and I was told on a previous visit, no more cauliflower).
Good "ma-la" and spice, even at medium heat. The trip was quite good on this day.
And was pleasantly surprised by the "bonus dishes".
The La Rou with Cucumber Skin was on the greasy side and not very spicy. There was a lot of smoked meat though.
The Stinky Tofu "Stew" had some decent spice and funkiness, with a touch of acidity.
After our last experience with the Eggplant and Green Chili with Preserved Egg, I decided not to order it.
And so, we'll have leftovers for a couple of meals, which suits us just fine. Maybe I won't have to cook as much this weekend!
Sizzling Pot King
8058 Clairemont Mesa Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92111
Village Kitchen
4720 Clairemont Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92117
Yes, it's almost like we're living in a different time these days. Still, whether you say “Gong xi fa cai”, “Gong hei fat choy”, “Chuc mung nam moi”, or "Saehae bok mani badeuseyo", we'd like to wish you a healthy, safe, and wonderful 2021. A much better year than 2020.
Take care!