Chinese Restaurants – Page 60

Toan Ky Restaurant – A (quick) first look

March 25, 2010 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Vietnamese Restaurants

*** Toan Ky has closed ***

A couple of weeks ago, Toan Ky Restaurant officially opened. Replacing LV sandwiches, and before that Le's, from the name and the look, I thought this would be one of those "Mi" shops a la Minh Ky and Tan Ky. Linda Vista could use a good noodle soup shop, since Mi Ngoc So 1 folded its tent, and was replaced by Thai by Tara, and then (thankfully) Sab E Lee.

The main renovation has been done to the entrance area, where the "bar" has been removed, and a smaller counter with the ever present cash register resides.

The menu, fortunately or unfortunately still has some Thai dishes on it, but Banh Mi is still available; and yes, all the standard Hu Tieu and Mi soups are available. The prices at first glance are about in line with other shops of this type….. but hold on for more…..

The Missus went with Dumpling Egg Noodle Soup ($5.50). When the bowl arrived, I noticed something right away.

The portion sizes were pretty small compared to other shops. This was about the size between a small and medium Santouka Ramen. There were only three dumplings in the soup, but it was supplemented with a shrimp, a fish ball, meat ball, and slice of fish cake. The Missus thought the dumplings were passable, and gave me a taste, which I thought was bland, but much softer than the typical hard packed meatballs of these type of shops. The Missus declared the broth tasty, but light, and believed that only a minimum of MSG was used.

I ordered the Duck Leg Egg Noodle Soup ($6.75):

The broth of this soup was dark, I'm assuming fortified with the drippings of the duck. I usually pour in some of the drippings when I get duck egg noodle soup served with the duck on the side. This duck was braised, and frankly, quite bland, lacking in the richness of say, a roast, or barbecued duck. The soup was fairly good, with mostly a soy sauce flavor. I would have preferred something like what you see here, which is cheaper than this, and twice the size. There were about three to four bites of egg noodles. This was gone pretty quickly.

Our first impressions are mixed. The food is decent, but the soups seem to be snack-sized, and in fact most other tables ordered an additional item with their soups. The Missus has a saying about most of these type of soups…. "the more I eat, the more there is", which wasn't true in this case, as She had almost finished by the time my soup arrived, a mere five minutes. I believe that much of the reason places like Minh Ky and Tan Ky are successful is because of value, this is a bit different. The service was efficient, but indifferent, pretty much what we expected. I dunno……. I'm sure we'll check in again, so stay tuned…..

Toan Ky Restaurant
6925 B Linda Vista Road
San Diego, CA 92111

Open 8 – 8 daily

Road Trip: Tianjin Bistro revisited – San Gabriel (Los Angeles)

March 18, 2010 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Los Angeles County, Road Trip

**** Tianjin Bistro has closed

We hadn't had much luck on our recent road trips, so the Missus decided we should revisit someplace tried and true. Her choice? Tianjin Bistro. The Missus really connects with the food at Tianjin Bistro, probably because the municipality of Tianjin (one of four in the PRC, the others being ChongQing, Beijing, and Shanghai) is about 70 miles or so(I've heard it's more) from Beijing, where the Missus went to High School and College. So the flavors of the dishes served at Tianjin Bistro are somewhat comforting to the Missus.

Formerly Mei Jia Deli, and located in the same strip mall as another of the Missus's favorites, Hunan Chilli King, I think that Tianjin Bistro's food is a bit better than what Mei Jia Deli produced.

The interior of the restaurant is small, and pink tinged, and the customary strips of colored paper line the walls announcing various offerings.

The woman who usually works here is very friendly, and enthusiastic. Ask about a dish (in Mandarin of course) and she'll recite to you how it is prepared, and what makes the version of the dish at Tianjin Bistro so "special". The woman's warmth and tact is especially apparent in her dealings with various customers. Even though it seems that Mei Jia Deli's bone-spitting, bossy customers that would just help themselves to the free porridge, and walk into the kitchen and yell out their orders have gone by the wayside. There are still customers like the older man who came in, and when placing his order, took out a sesame cake from a plastic bag, telling the woman "this is how hard it should be", knocking it against the table "tok-tok-tok"……. The woman accepted that in good spirits, and I guess what came out of the kitchen was ok, since the old man made sure to check every one, knocking it with his knuckles, or tapping it against the table. The guy must have mighty massive muscular masseter muscles… and teeth of steel.

The Missus had seen a dish on one of our previous visits that She wanted to order, the Jing Jiang Rou Si (京酱肉丝 – Beijing/Peking Sauce Pork Shreds – $7.99).

The Missus saw that this was served in the appropriate manner, with scallions and bean curd wrappers, so She wanted to try it out. The pork strips were cooked well, not as soft as I prefer, but still tender. The flavoring was adequate as well. I believe it could have used a bit more bean paste for a deeper savory flavor, and perhaps be a tad sweeter.

I loved the process of wrapping my food….it made me feel like I was eating duck! I did think the cucumbers, while adding that wonderful palate cleansing flavor to everything was chopped much too thick, and proved to be a bit cumbersome. But overall, this was an enjoyable dish.

The Missus saw the Shrimp with Fried Gluten ($9.99), and decided to order that as well.

When the Missus had inquired about this dish, the woman really went off on how they make their own wheat gluten, how many times they rinsed it, etc, etc, etc…..

I'm usually not a big fan of Kaufu (wheat gluten), but this was the best dish of the meal. And changed my opinion of what is usually used as a "meat replacement". The Kaufu was so soft it practically melted in my mouth. It was also a flavor sponge absorbing all the salty-sweet-soy flavors of the dish. I almost forgot about the shrimp which were perfectly tender. Man this was good!

We also ordered the Tianjin Sauteed Eggplant ($6.99):

Seared to perfection in a hot wok, the texture was silken, the temperature was molten, and the scent was heavenly smoky. In spite of looks, the flavor of the dish was very mild, lacking "zing". The garlic sprinkled on the top was the only thing that stood out with regards to taste. We took most of this home, and when I added a bit of "acid" (vinegar) the dish woke up a bit. It could have used a bit more sweetness as well.

And yes, there was Xiao Mi Zhou (小米粥), millet porridge.

We left the meal satiated, and with a good amount of leftovers which would disappear fairly quickly.

And were hopeful that this would start us on another streak of good eats on our future road trips.

Tianjin Bistro
534 East Valley Blvd. #8
San Gabriel, CA 91776

Open Thurs – Tues 11am – 10pm

Mr Dumpling revisited

March 16, 2010 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Xiao Long Bao

**** Mr Dumpling has closed

Recently, while on my way to 99 Ranch Market, I passed Mr Dumpling and noticed a huge banner.

What really caught my eye was the phrase "Grand Opening Feb 28". I was very interested…. what could this grand opening sign mean. It doesn't say "under new management" and the name is still Mr Dumpling. We'd only visited Mr Dumpling once before and was very disappointed in the dishes which were not prepared well, and over-priced. But now…..

I quickly got ahold of a good "FOY", and inquired. The response was, she wasn't sure, but she had heard that the Xiao Long Bao were the best in San Diego. 'Nuff said, I was there ASAP. I met my good eating buddy, and hit up Mr Dumpling.

I've always liked the interior of Mr Dumpling, warm colors and tastefully decorated gives the place much more style than other Chinese Restaurants in San Diego.

We inquired as to a possible ownership change, and was told, it was the same owner, but a different menu. The lunch menu is more Shanghai influenced, so perhaps it was a change in chef? You can order many small bites as the dumplings are served in orders of four or five, and many snack items are available.

Of course we started with the Xiao Long Bao (four – $2.99):

This could've been pretty good. The wrappers were decent, perhaps the best in San Diego. Not too thick or thin, with a decent pull. There were several problems with the XLB. First, there wasn't enough soup in the XLB. Second, there flavor was off, and I never thought I'd say this, but the soup and the meat weren't sweet or savory enough. Much like the XLB at Dumpling Inn, these tasted like regular dumpling filling. Also, there's black vinegar on the table, but you have to request sliced ginger for your XLB.

We also ordered the Special Five Variety Dumpling (5 – $3.99) and Lamb Meat Dumplings (4 – $2.99). I'm putting these two together.

As you notice these dumplings are steamed, and the wrappers are different as well. Tough, gummy, and somewhat brittle, I believe that these are "hot water wrappers" made with boiling water. It's a totally different kind of wrapper, as boiling water really develops the gluten much differently. I guess I'm not a big fan of this type of wrappers…. they remind me of cheaply made Gyoza wrappers.

The fillings were too finely minced causing a fairly dense and dry "meatball". So naturally, the celery, and the egg dumplings fared better, but were bland. The flavor of the lamb dumplings was pretty bland.

The best item of the day was probably the Leek Pie ($2.25):

My dining partner indicated that this could have been a bit more crisp on the exterior. The flavor was very homestyle, and could have used a bit more salt.

Nothing to rave about, but passable.

The "Pancake of Beef" (Niu Rou Chuan $5.99) looked really good.

The "pancake" looked almost like Jiang Bing, since it obviously had egg involved. The beef was just the right texture, a nice semi-cured tender without being mushy and falling to pieces, but it seriously lacked flavor…. any flavor. There's usually an additional flavor component, a smear of bean paste, or a hoisin like concoction. This lacked that, which meant that the pungency of the scallions took over.

I think this place tries hard, and perhaps over-reaches, as each dish fell short, or flat in one way or another. The service was friendly and adequate. Like I mentioned earlier, I like the set-up, but in my opinion, the food leaves something to be desired. I'm likely to make at least one more visit though. The hot pot menu looks promising, and the folks having hot pot looked like they were enjoying their meal. The prices are also right….. and are also 30% off right now.

I will have a challenge on my hands though…. trying to convince the Missus to give this place another shot.

Mr Dumpling
7250 Convoy Ct
San Diego, CA 92111

Road Trip: Mas’ Islamic Chinese Restaurant – Anaheim (Orange County)

March 15, 2010 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Orange County, Road Trip

I'd heard good things about Mas' Islamic restaurant. Located in of all places Anaheim, not exactly your hot bed of Chinese restaurants. But I'd been missing Muslim Chinese, not that the late Jamillah Garden in San Diego made out of this world food, but I'd had some good dishes there. The Missus and I have a soft spot for Islamic Chinese. When the Missus was going to school, She worked briefly at Tung Lai Shun, long gone, but not forgotten, as I think they served the best Chinese Islamic I've ever had. When the Missus and I were first dating, I still remember our wonderful meal at VIP Restaurant in Rowland Heights, which is still there, though I think they've gone through maybe half a dozen owners since then. That meal, featuring a humongous "Da Bing", as huge as a Chicago Deep Dish Pizza, along with our first meal at ChungKing Restaurant (the original in Monterey Park) really stoked my interest in Regional and various ethnic Chinese Cuisines. So on a recent Holiday Monday, the Missus and I made a drive up to Anaheim, and the fairly odd location of Mas' Islamic, located on a rather industrial looking area of Orangethorpe Avenue.

As you can tell, on a pretty humble avenue, full of generic looking industrial malls and complexes, Mas' sure stands out. The interior is huge, comprised of several large "rooms". The restaurant, empty when we arrived, filled pretty quickly with the Monday lunch crowd, a mixed bag of Asians, and non-Asians. Most folks were ordering lunch specials….there was a whole lotta "orange chicken" going on. Between that, and the standard place setting…. which covers all bases, gave me a bit of a weird feeling.

Luckily, all the Servers spoke Mandarin, and among the Shrimp with Cashew Nuts, Kung Pao Chicken, and Mongolian Beef, we found items that represented Islamic Chinese food. Being a Halal establishment, Mas' is a "no oink" zone, so don't even be thinking about ordering something like Dong Po Rou.

First to arrive was the "Lamb Dough Sliced Chow Mein"($10.95) aka Dao Xiao Mian (刀削麵 – Knife cut, or knife shaved noodles), where noodles are shaved from a block of rolled dough. My photo doesn't do justice on the portion size… those spoons are actually large serving spoons. This could've fed an army!

From a noodle perspective, this was a pretty good job. The noodles weren't too thick and doughy like versions in San Diego (can you hear me Dumpling Inn?). No "wok hay" here, but the noodles had a decent al dente pull to them. The flavor was truly lacking, with only a hint of soy sauce flavor. Not much lamb in this either, egg was used to stretch the protein. The greyish pallor of the dish didn't do much to stimulate my appetite either. There was three meals of leftovers out of this dish, which had to be fixed up with a ton of soy sauce.

The Thin Sesame Bread ($9.95). I saw this thing, a large pizza sized bread being cut and placed on our platter.

This was pretty good, not too oily, tons of sesame seeds, decent light crustiness, but really short on scallions, leaving it on the bland side.

I'll say this much….. Sammy loved the leftovers!

By this time, we were used to the huge portions, so when our Lamb and Pickled Cabbage Soup (Suan Cai Yang Rou – $9.95) arrived in a huge cauldron we weren't too surprised.

I'm a big fan of Suan Cai Yang Rou, and eat it every chance I get. This however, was not very good. Instead of a nice pickled flavor, the broth had an intense, almost pure vinegar sour. It was so unpleasantly sour that my salivary glands are quivering in fear and shutting down as I look at the photos. The soup was big on regular Napa Cabbage, and short on Suan Cai (a simpled pickled made from Napa Cabbage that is reminiscent of Sauerkraut), so I'm wondering if they added vinegar to make it sour enough? We could only tolerate a few spoonfuls of the broth. We did take it home, but the next day, the soup was even more sour…… and we just couldn't bring ourselves to eat it, though I tried. This was not even close to my favorite version from Tianjin Bistro, and would even prefer Northern Chinese Restaurant's version to this.

One of the women who served us, was very nice. The others were pretty military-like and efficient. The portions here are humongous, and we could have fed 7-8 people with what we ordered. The food, however only made me miss Tung Lai Shun even more. I wonder how VIP is under their new(er) ownership…..maybe we'll just have to get back to China Islamic soon.

Mas' Islamic Restaurant
601 E Orangethorpe Ave
Anaheim, CA 92801

Minh Ky revisited

March 11, 2010 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Vietnamese Restaurants

It could be that all roads lead back to Minh Ky…… every couple of months we find ourselves back in that lousy parking lot on the corner of El Cajon and Menlo.

Minh Ky, like the Tan Ky Mi Gia's and Luong Hai Ky specialize in Chinese style noodle dishes. And though the interior hasn't changed since I first posted on the place back in January of '06, it seems that the food here has gotten better over time. As I noted in my Mi comparison, the broth for the soups has seemed to gain flavor over the years. So I thought I'd just do a short post on some of the other dishes from Minh Ky, save one, which I'm saving for one of those comparison posts.

On one of our visits, we saw a young girl and her mom working through a plate of chow fun….they sure made it look good. So on our next visit we ordered the Seafood Chow Fun, at $7.25, one of the more expensive (ahem, it's all relative) dishes at Minh Ky.

This was a load of food for just over seven bucks. The noodles were cooked adequately, no wok-hay, but not mushy. The shrimp was perfect, still soft and tender, but the squid was a tad over-cooked. The gravy was excellent, nice hints of the savory flavor of oyster sauce, with a touch of sweetness. We enjoyed the dish, and proceeded to order it again…. this time it had less gravy, which tasted a bit off, and my feet started swelling after a couple of bites. I usually have a pretty tolerance when it comes to MSG, and I really don't mind it being used to "finish" a dish. To take it to the next level, but this was a bit too much.

The Roast Duck Egg Noodle soup is a bargain by San Diego standards at $6.25. And the broth for the egg noodle soup is still pretty solid with regards to flavor. I also don't remember there being so much 'Mi' in the egg noodle soups; that alone was enough to fill me up.

The duck was nice and meaty, but very low with regards to anise-savory tones. It was also too fatty, and fairly greasy. And the skin was quite rubbery.

Maybe next time…….

On one of our visits, I decided to order the Bo Kho Hu Tieu (Beef Stew-Hu Tieu):

There was a ton of meat and tendon in the bowl. The beef was cooked well, and though not melt in your mouth, it was fairly tender. The tendon could have been softer, though. As you notice, like most of the 'Mi' joints in San Diego, it rice noodles, aka Bánh phở that's used, not "bánh hủ tiếu". The overall flavor was on the weak side, lacking in the rich-savoriness of a good beef stew.

It was nice trying some other dishes beyond the usual Egg noodle soups…… I'm thinking we'll be going back to the Sate/Won Ton/Dumpling Egg noodle soup. I will give that Chow Fun another try though.

Minh Ky Restaurant
4644 El Cajon Boulevard
San Diego, CA 92115

And yes, there's still that aisle of parking with no outlet….. you either hope that no one is parked in one of the stalls on the west side so you can cut out, or you have to back all the way out. Or you could jump the curb…..

Recently, we've been parking in the stall behind, pot holes and all…. but be careful, we've seen two cars hit nails……

Road Trip: Hunan Restaurant – Monterey Park (Los Angeles)

March 9, 2010 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Los Angeles County, Road Trip

Right after the calendar New Year, the Missus and I finally made it to Hunan Restaurant in Monterey Park. Since we'd already eaten at Hunan Chilli King (several times), Hunan Seafood, Xiang Wei Lou, and Hunan Style Restaurant, it only made sense that we should check out the simply named Hunan Restaurant. Hunan Restaurant is located on Atlantic Boulevard; we haven't been around this part of Monterey Park in a while, so it was interesting to see the changes since we last visited.

The restaurant is fairly small, and looks a bit worn. And yes, that is a 'C' letter grade taped proudly to the front glass.

Everything about the place is "all business", and I think the napkins, tossed haphazardly on the tables for use is a good representation of the restaurant.

This place really took me back to SGV service circa late '90s. Perfunctory to a fault….. if I dropped dead and fell on the floor at the foot of a table, the Servers would have no problem stepping over my dead body to complete their tasks. Perhaps a bit later, once the bill had been paid, and rigor mortis had set in(for practical reasons, I'd be easier to move), I'd be rolled out, using the "kick method" until I was no longer on restaurant property. Ah yes, remember the good 'ol days?????

The Missus started with the Stinky Tofu Hunan Style($4.99):

The Missus always says that if I'm able to start eating Chou Dofu without hesitation it isn't going to be any good. And She was right in this case. The tofu wasn't particularly smelly, and the sauce wasn't particular spicy, nor salty, or sweet for that matter. It just plain tasted watered down.

The Missus noticed a dish written on one of those ubiquitous strips of paper taped to the wall. It was bamboo shoots stir fried with La Rou (Hunan preserved pork 腊肉), and was the best dish of the day.

The dish was nice and smokey, courtesy of the La Rou. The Chinese celery did a great job of refreshing the palate. The Hunan ham was very waxy, and there were some bits that were almost inedible, but the flavor was good. There was a severe lack of spice in this dish, even though the Missus ordered it "big spicy".

The Missus listening to what other tables were ordering, decided to order the Steamed Whole Fish Hunan Style ($9.99).

I've had some terrible fish in my life, but this one is right up there at the top. First, there was nothing fresh about this semi-rancid fish. The flesh was mushy, and one bite was about it. Also, not enough hot oil and soy was used, and the fish was parched. Third, this fish was topped with only dried chilies, which combined with a lack of sauce, was still totally dry…..like eating seeds and paper. It was like eating a handful of dried Chilies de Arbol. I think that's enough…. I think you get the point.

The SGV has tons of restaurants, and whether you visited on a bad day, or perhaps the dishes aren't to your taste, you are bound to have a lousy meal now and then.

Hunan Restaurant
423 N Atlantic Blvd
Monterey Park, CA 91754

Chin’s on Convoy – A first quick look.

March 3, 2010 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Xiao Long Bao

**** This location of Chin's has closed

As I noted previously, we managed to drop by the new Chin's this past weekend for a quick bite. Lucky for me, FOY Candice managed to get word out to me, because just looking at the place, I really couldn't tell they were open.

We arrived at just about 11am, and the place was empty except for one table. I thought the interior was pretty nice, just hitting the edge of tasteful Chinese restaurant decor. The dining area is small, but the tables are spread out pretty well. There is a bar area, with plasma televisions as well.

A very cheerful, and undoubtedly proud young lady sat us, and handed us the menus…. which looked like a combination of the typical ABCDE Chin's menu, along with items on the Miramar Chin's menu. This was interesting since I know there's something going on between the two Chin's. On our last couple of visits to the Miramar location, the folks there seemed to distance themselves from this location, saying they have nothing in common with this Chin's, other than the name…… We were a bit disappointed since after reading the coming soon banners, I had been under the impression that this place would be serving "Chinese breakfast" much like the Miramar Chin's. The young lady informed us that such a menu is in the works, and will be implemented after things in the kitchen gets straightened out, in about a month. Of course, knowing how long it took this place to open, that may be two, or perhaps three months.

We really had wanted maybe a few small dishes, so we stayed the course and ordered just a couple of items. For some reason, the Missus wanted Zha Jiang Mian, which is not my favorite dish in the world. What's even more funny, is that several Korean friends and acquaintances of mine, don't even know that Zha Jiang Mian, or as they know it Ja Jang Myeon is Chinese in origin. I've even been called a liar to my face! Such has this noodle dish been culturally etched in their society.

This version was different from any I've had before. First off was the soy beans, something which I've never experienced. Second, the "meat sauce" lacked the strong savory presence of bean paste. It also wasn't as salty, or greasy as many version I've had were. This was fairly bland, the noodles were decently prepared, the boiled egg was inhaled by the Missus, who dismissed this as "terribly bland".

We also ordered the Five Spiced Beef, one of my favorite dishes at the Miramar Chin's.

On the good side, the beef had a nice texture, neither too soft, nor too tough and sinewy. The flavor really fell short though. There was a serious lack of five spice flavor, and the sauce, instead of being that classic Shanghainese sweet-soy, was watery and tasteless. Too bad, this dish has potential.

The last item we ordered were the Xiao Long Bao. Now Candice had mentioned something interesting to me. I was told that the Chef was the original chef of Mandarin Garden in Mira Mesa. And when the XLB arrived, I was suddenly reminded of Mandarin Garden.

You see, the two times I had XLB at Mandarin Garden, all the "soup" had leaked out of the bao. Guess what….. like Yogi Berra said: "It's like deja vu all over again." In addition to lacking soup, the skins were too thick for me, and the fold on the tops were really tough.

While we were eating, the young lady approached our table, and dropped this off, telling us, "this one is for you, free, so you can try." I'm not sure why we got the dish, whether all the customers that day were getting something free, or maybe it was all the questions, or perhaps she spotted my camera (I've gotten pretty good at being discreet over the years. I've actually had meals with folks who didn't notice I took photos). But we got a plate of Cold Roasted Duck:

And you know what….. this was the best dish of the day! The duck was nothing to write home about, but the sauce was a pot on rendition of the typical sweet-soy reduction typical of these type of cold dishes. The presence of soy was tasted, but the saltiness deferred to the sweetness, which was nicely restrained from sending the dish into "candyland". Now this dish displayed enough for me to return.

Meanwhile, a small army of Servers poured in the door, and the place had become fully staffed. The young women asked all the customers as they were leaving if they wanted to see the room in the back.

The banquet area is about 2/3 the size of the main dining area, and could probably hold up to perhaps 60 or so people. It's a short hallway down from the main dining area, and has two plasma televisions, and the young woman even pointed to a machine and said "Karaoke"……

I'm pretty sure we'll be checking this place out again once they start serving breakfast. The chef at tis Chin's has a good deal of experience so It'll be interesting to see how they match up with Shanghai City down the street.

Chin's
4433 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

Road Trip: Yun Nan 168 Restaurant – San Gabriel (Los Angeles)

February 8, 2010 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Los Angeles County, Road Trip

**** Yun Nan 168 Restaurant has closed

On a recent trip to the SGV, while driving across San Gabriel Boulevard on Valley, I noticed a new restaurant had sprouted up. What was once a Spike's Teriyaki Bowl, is now something called Yunnan 168.

Even though it was pretty early, we decided to stop by and grab a "breakfast" of sorts. The interior looks brand new but kinda generic….. and of course the 'B' DOH Restaurant rating was hung with care…. as if it was a badge of courage.

Like the other Yunnan Restaurant we've been to, there's a a table of cold appetizers.

Much of it looked delicious, and all the usual suspects were in view, from the Pao Jiao(pickled pepper) chicken feet to the bean curd noodles.

And much like the other "Yunnan" Restaurants we've been to, the menu seemed very "Sichuan" with dishes like "ChongQing Fried Chicken" and "Ma Po Doufu". We did start with a nice plate of appetizers:

The Missus was overjoyed at seeing pickled long beans. These were good, not as salty and spicy as the Hunan version, but very nice. My only problem was that the beans were diced into fairly small pieces, which made eating them a rather laborious task. Think of eating a bowl of peas with chopsticks. Still, quite good, and even better as a part of our leftovers (more later).

The sliced bean curd "noodles" were good as well:

Other versions of this dish are sometimes bland and dry, often breaking when attempting to eat. These had some mild spice, with a bit of tartness to them.

Of the three cold dishes, the eggplant was the best, with a nice garlic-chili-vinegar punch.

The texture was yielding, but not mushy. If anything, this could have used a touch of salt, which was ironic based on our main courses.

While choosing the cold dishes were hard enough, with all the offerings, selecting two dishes from a menu consisting of almost 200 items was quite a task! Looking thru the menu, I noticed something translated as "Yunnan Fried Rice Cake". I was curious, and had a feeling this was a Nian Gao dish. I had the Missus ask our Server, who confirmed my hunch. Having just made Chao Nian Gao at home I was interested to see what Yunnan Nian Gao ($6.95) would be like. It didn't disappoint:

The use of ground pork along with "ham" was a good choice, since the dish teetered on the edge of saltiness. The ground pork helped to level the flavors a bit. I loved the pungency that the chives added to the dish, and the occasional bite of preserved vegetable made this a pretty complex dish with regards to flavor, in addition to adding a bit of crunch. The rice cakes were cooked adequately, with a touch of "wok hay". Since we had a few places to hit on this visit, we packed a good amount of this as leftovers. The next day, I mixed the pickled green beans into this dish before heating….. and it was even better!

We saw a gentleman enthusiastically slurping a noodle dish on one of the tables across from us….. it just looked (and sounded) so good we decided to order it; Yunnan Noodle with Special Sauce (Yunnan Da Lu Mian – $4.95):

From my experience Da Lu Mian is usually a noodle dish with various toppings in a "gravy", and this filled the bill. However, as good as the Nian Gao dish was, this was ten times as bad. The noodles were water-logged on the bottom, like they had not been drained well, residing in a pool of pinkish water. Perhaps it is supposed to be served that way. The noodles were also a tad over-cooked. Even worse, the meat topping was extremely salty, almost inedible. The pork was hard and grainy, and in spite of the looks it had very little for the palate except for the saltiness. The Missus barely finished a bite.

The noodles also came with a clear broth with pea sprouts. This was meant to be eaten separately(we asked).

I'm not really into chlorophyll flavored salt water…….

Still, we had enjoyed the Nian Gao, and the cold dishes were pretty good….. and of course there's Guoqiao Mi Xian (Crossing the Bridge Rice Noodle Soup) on the menu, among another 190 or so dishes. We may return in the future….gotta watch that salt though!

The place is very clean, and the folks working here were very helpful and enthusiastic. It sure ain't no Teriyaki Bowl restaurant……

Yun Nan 168 Restaurant
1530 South San Gabriel Blvd.
San Gabriel, CA 91776

Imperial Palace

January 31, 2010 mmm-yoso Chicken Wings, Chinese Restaurants

With Royal Mandarin currently out of commission, I've kinda been keeping my eye out for various other places that make Salt and Pepper Chicken Wings. Someone mentioned that Imperial Palace in National City made some pretty good wings, and even recommended a noodle dish. I faintly recalled seeing this place while driving up 8th street.

Much like the similarly named Hotel and Casino in Vegas, this place has obviously seen better days. I think just the name itself was enough to keep out of the place in the past. The Missus once had an educational seminar in Vegas at Imperial Palace. Ick….. I especially felt bad when the Missus called me while I was having lunch. The "catered lunch" at IP consisted of some 1960's style iceberg lettuce salad, and baloney sandwiches! Baloney Sandwiches! I really felt terrible since I was having Moules Frites while sitting in the outdoor eating area at Mon Ami Gabi watching the water show across the street at the Bellagio.

The interior of the restaurant, much like the exterior looks a bit worn. One really funny thing that happened when I entered. A woman was manning the counter, and pointed me to a table. I walked over and had a seat. Five seconds later, I see a woman who could be the identical twin of the woman up front coming out of the back of the restaurant! It was then that I realized that the kitchen paralleled the restaurant, with entrances at both ends of the dining area.

Another strange thing was that this place didn't have proper menus per se. I sat at my table for a couple of minutes waiting for a menu, but none was forthcoming. I watched another couple enter, and they walked up to the front counter and grabbed the paper "take-out menus", so I ended up doing the same.

Needless to say, this was obviously an "ABCDE" (American Born Chinese Dining Establishment). If you didn't know when you entered, it would become quite clear when you're given a fork and spoon. Chopsticks are only given upon request, after a bit of digging, and are the thin wooden Chinese Fast Food type chopsticks, which screamed off that SYSCO of Chinese Restaurant supplies, Kari-Out.

I will say that the prices here are very cheap. The Salt and Pepper Chicken Wings were $5.35. And at 10 pieces an order, that's 53.5 cents a wing…. waaaay below the "Kyochon line". I'm pretty sure that almost everyone orders S&P Wings here. When another table didn't order wings, the woman asked them several times, "you sure no chicken wings…. ARE YOU SHU-ah!"

The wings were on the smallish side, and as the picture below indicates, some of them had been "split open" to either check or enhance cooking. Either way, it dries out the wings. The batter and slin had a nice crunch, obviously due to the use of a good amount of cornstarch. Flavorwise, not particularly spicy, and lacking in garlic and green onions. Still, quite a bit of flavor…… you know why, right? Check out the kinda deformed wing below, see all the nice shiny crystals? You know what that is, right?

Unlike many folks I've got nothing against the use of MSG, so long as it's not over-used, or as a way to severely cut corners. And unlike a recent bowl of noodle soup I had at Minh Ky where my feet started swelling after a few sips of soup (which I did finish BTW), there were no effects. So overall, not bad…..

Unlike the "Imperial Pan Fried Noodles($5.35)", which displayed some of he worst qualities of "Ab-Cee-Dee" style food:

Gloppy, tasteless "gravy" over over-cooked, mushy noodles. The chicken was pretty tough, but to be fair, the beef was fairly tender if tasteless. The shrimp was cooked well, with decent flavor and soft. This was so bland that even a good dose of soy sauce couldn't help it.

To sum up, the prices are very cheap. If someone has a recommendation for this place, maybe I'll give it another shot. The chicken wings are decent…. and as I mentioned above inexpensive. It's probably the prices that keeps this place in business.

Imperial Palace Chinese Restaurant
1630 East 8th Street
National City, CA 91950

Road Trip: Dean Sin World – Monterey Park (Los Angeles)

January 25, 2010 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Los Angeles County, Road Trip, Xiao Long Bao

You remember the scene in Back to the Future? You know which one, right? Where Marty McFly and the Starlighters cover Johnny B Goode? If you're one of perhaps three people out there who've never scene the flick, you can find a poor YouTube facsimile here (the fun starts at about 1:25). There's a point where McFly takes the guitar solo(actually played by Tim May) a bit too far and over-the-top(starting Chuck Berry and ending Eddie Van Halen….), leaving everyone stunned, not quite knowing what the heck just happened. I had such a moment recently. I was at work when one of my coworkers asked me about "Chinese dumplings"….. and off I went, talking about wrapper thickness, the folds, the slight pull and pillowiness of well made wrappers. Then there was the thing about not over-working the dough to the point it seizes….. Heck, I didn't even make it to the filling when I noticed that the poor guy stood, mouth agape, eyes rapidly blinking…. he'd been Jiaozi-sized! The silence was deafening, how do you break such uncomfortable silence (I swear, you could hear a fish fart….)? I managed a throat clearing "uumph" and crept away…….. My friends know that I can really get on a roll and build up a good head of steam, and even though I try to reign myself in, sometimes it just comes bubbling to the surface. Oh well…….

I had first read about Dean Sin World on gastronomy, but I really didn't pay much heed. While walking from Giang Nan to Qing Dao Bread Food on Christmas Eve, the Missus and I passed a tiny shop that was full of folks. There was a woman rolling out dough in the little space by the window who cheerfully tried to wave us in. The Missus peered at the menu, and told me "man, it's really cheap here, and the food looks decent, let's check this place out on our next trip." A week later we made our way to this little strip mall. I parked and laughed when I saw the banner:

It was Dean Sin World! I couldn't make out the sign in the dark on Christmas Eve.

We arrived pretty early, and had a seat. Looking up at the menu, I could confirm that the prices were very inexpensive.

10 Shengjian Bao for $4.85? 10 Pork and vegetable Jiaozi for $4.25? Wow……

The two women working here were very friendly, and funny…. more on that later. The Jiaozi was the first to arrive:

These were quite good. The wrapper had a decent pull, and yet was tender and doughy. The portion size of the filling was excellent, a perfect bite. It was also moist and minced not ground, creating a very soft, but not mushy filling. As I mentioned in this post, the Missus loved the use of Savoy Cabbage in the place of the usual Napa Cabbage. Oooops, there I go again. Let me just say that perhaps I lack the vocabularial (I'm guessing there's such a word) dexterity to come up with something more colorful and enjoyable…. soooo how about… It was good, not quite in the league of Qing Dao Bread Food in our opinion, but good enough for the Missus to call Mom and needle Her saying, "we found another one as good as yours." Yikes!! It was also good enough for us to return and buy 50 frozen, at a good price of $10.

The Xiao Long Bao was the next to arrive:

We didn't enjoy these as much. Though I'm not a big fan of over-worked thin wrappers, these were much too thick. Also there wasn't enough "soup" in the XLB for me. The flavor was also on the bland side.

Last to arrive were the Shengjian Bao, white and glistening. The woman who brought these out said something to the Missus which made Her laugh. She said, "these are the first of the day, it's going to be very good. Look how beautiful they are so white and perfect." When we were waiting for our frozen Jiaozi, the same woman brought out some SJB for a couple sitting on one of the tables and exclaimed, "look how beautiful, white, and shiny these are." So this is her usual shtick, and we were a bit charmed by it.

As for the SJB, in my opinion, these were the best I've had to date. It was mostly due to the dough, and how it was cooked.

As you can see, the bottom is nicely browned and crisp, the top has been cooked well, it is nice and fluffy. The textural contrast was excellent. The filling was a simple pork, and could have been perhaps a bit more "juicy". The Missus still prefers the filling from Food Cabin's version of SJB.

And yes, as you can see, these are "beautiful, white, and shiny." I'm looking forward to having this again, and perhaps some Niu Rou Mian on my next visit…. when I pick up my next batch of 100 frozen Jiaozi.

As we were waiting for our frozen Jiaozi to take home, one of the women asked the Missus where we were from. She told Her "San Diego". The woman told the Missus that her son"goes to College in San Diego", and pointing to several plastic sacks filled with bags of frozen Jiaozi, said, "that's all for him". The Missus mentioned how lucky he is that he is able to get good Jiaozi to eat. The woman laughed, shook her head, and said, "no, no, he takes them to San Diego and sells them to other students!" You gotta love it!

Dean Sin World
306 N Garfield Ave #2
Monterey Park, CA 91754

Open Daily – 930am – 9pm

Read Gastronomy's post on Dean Sin World here.