Chow Mein Means Stir-Fried Noodles

This is not chow mein These days it seems like I only blog when I have something to rant about. If I keep it up, this might just merge with my other blog. But nothing raises my ire about Chinese restaurants as much as serving "chow mein" without noodles. More... Recovering from a wicked bout of the...

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Mission Chinese Food Accomplished

Mapo Tofu, Kurobuta pork shoulder, Szechuan peppercorns, chili oil I've been hearing about Mission Chinese Food for some time now. This former pop up that eventually took over a non-descript family restaurant has made "best of" lists all over the country. When I found out that one of my childhood friends...

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Homemade Beef Noodle Soup 牛肉麵 Recipe

Being Taiwanese-American, I am ashamed of not knowing much about Taiwanese cooking. Sure, I can enjoy a night on the town eating through a Taiwanese night market, but I don't know how to prepare much of what I see. Food, je t'aime did a great write-up and photo entry on Taipei's Shilin Night Market...

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White Rabbit Candy Back as Golden Rabbit

Standing at the checkout counter at 99 Ranch, I noticed a vaguely familiar white bunny. But wait, this bunny was anthropomorphized. The face looked the same, but clothes? Blasphemy! I knew that White Rabbit candy had been hit by the melamine milk scandal back in 2008, but I had assumed it returned back...

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Destination Hong Kong #2: Cafe de Coral

It looks like there may only be two Destination Hong Kong posts for now. I realized that my time spent in Hong Kong was spent eating at few memorable places, but the chains we frequented were worth mentioning. My dad had been telling me about HK style Chinese fast food for years, and I made sure I got...

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Too Bad Hot Isn't a Synonym for Spicy in Chinese: Boiling Point in Monterey Park (沸點臭臭鍋)

It's really a shame that I don't make the trek out to San Gabriel Valley (SGV) for Chinese food more often. I'm constantly complaining about the Chinese offerings on the Westside, but it's hard for me to find opportunities to travel East. In my mind, Chinese is always best enjoyed communally; at a dinner...

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Childhood Memories of Wonton Noodles

I recently went back home to the Bay Area for the weekend. A quick trip true, but I managed to get most of the hometown eats that I crave whenever I return. My mom greeted me with steamed cod my first night in town. The next morning I got dim sum at East Ocean Seafood Restaurant, a mediocre place, but...

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Destination Peru #8: Chifas in Peru

Look familiar?What about this one?It's funny how Chinese restaurants look the same wherever you go. The same cheap furniture, tacky posters and paintings, and that ubiquitous bottle of soy sauce on every table. I suppose that you can say the same about any French or Japanese restaurant. But the frugality...

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"Chinese-American Experience" Cookie

Book ReviewThe Fortune Cookie Chronicles: Adventures in the World of Chinese FoodJennifer 8. LeeOn the record, I've never liked fortune cookies. They taste bland, and even as a kid I knew to spend my calories elsewhere. However, I did like to pulverize them, feeling empowered by my ability to Hulk smash something into dust, then pluck out the little slip of white paper. They were amusements while...

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New York Food Fest 2007

Hordes of hungry people lined up along the sidewalk against the backdrop of the Brooklyn Bridge. The door swung open with a deliberate forcefulness. A muscular arm shot out from the door beckoning seductively towards the crowd.Thinking about my two week trip to New York, the one image that stands out...

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