NYC Food Crawl: Pork Bun

If I counted correctly NYC Food Crawl had about a good 100 folks show up in Columbus Park, Chinatown yesterday afternoon for their pork bun food crawl!
It was entertaining to hear the bakeries asking each other in Chinese,"Why are there so many Caucasians today?"-- I wonder if they felt like they were being punked like Improv Everywhere 2004: Best Gig Ever. The creator of NYC Food Crawl did try to forewarn establishments that huge groups would be visiting them solely for pork buns--but obviously there was language barriers.

Anyways, I have to commend NY Food Crawl for putting a well organized event.  We were divided into our own groups, given detailed instructions, maps with addresses and visual, given suggestions on how to split the cost, etc etc etc. It was a happy crawl and we even made a new friend, Josh. (Good luck in culinary school!)

Overall it took us 1 1/2 hours to hit all 6 places.
1. Tai Pan Bakery- 194 Canal btwn Mott and Mulberry
  *Lots of sweet meat, but not a fan of the bread. Their bo-lo-bao was especially dry and stale.
2. Fay Da Bakery-- 83 Mott St
 *Wanted to sell us cold pork buns. Booo....
3. Lung Moon Bakery-- 81 Mulberry St
  * My second favorite. Smaller portion than Tai Pan, but quality beats quantity.
4. Mei Li Wah Bakery-- 64 Bayard St
 *The best of the best. Everything seemed just right. New find for me, but Lisa (center) knew about this already.
5. Vegetarian Dim Sum House-- 24 Pell St
 *Per Scott " Tastes like faux meat wrapped in Wonderbread.". Worst of the worst. You cant fake char siu!
6. Golden Fung Wong Bakery-- 41 Mott St
*Sells mooncakes. Didnt have any pork buns by the time we got there.

Grand Sichuan Hot Pot

It's snowing again! Feels like being in a snow globe doesnt it?

Went to Grand Sichuan for hot pot the other day with Emily to celebrate a belated Chinese New Year. Sichuan is located on the tip of Manhattan Bridge (city side) where all the buses pick you up to go to Philly, Boston, etc.

Its not a schmancy place. Authentic to be for sure. My advice is to eat UPSTAIRS and make a reservation for large parties. Downstairs feels like a makeshift bedroom for hidden refugees. And oh, CASH ONLY.

I recommend getting the half pot nonspicy and chili spicy broth. Dont be intimidated by the chilis guys. It enhances the flavor. Just dont eat the peppercorn. They numb your mouth. Seriously.

See those little balls? Thats what you should watch out for.

You choose your random sides: The 2 of us went for (left to right) tofu, pork, chinese vegetables, dumplings (theyre sweet!!!! really good home made dumplings), scallops (we sent them back, not so fresh) and taro (I especially like the texture when it boils down).

Some common rules/ courtesy while having hot pot for those who have not eaten it before:
1. Use the back of your chopsticks to pick up meat since its raw
2. The wire spoon is to pick out the cooked food from the pot. Do not mix spicy spoon with non spicy spoon
3. When you cook your meat, do not put the whole plate in. It's eat/cook as you go. If you leave the meat in too long (you forget it) and it becomes overcooked.
4. Same for vegetables
5. The tofu used is silken tofu, and is very delicate. Place the amount you want in your spoon and just let it dangle in the broth until cooked to desired temperature. If you dump the tofu in, you may end up getting bits and pieces instead of the desired square shape.
6. Beer and rice helps tame the flame in your mouth if you need it

And oh, do not wear cashmere, turtle necks etc even if its cold outside. You will be sweating when while you eat. <3

Flushing, Queens: Golden Mall

Score! So after the interesting experience at GuangZhou Restaurant, Don showed us (music please) the Golden Mall. Yes, redemption.

Through these sketchy doors you go down a flight of steps and enter into a basement of food stalls ranging from lamb burgers, dan dan noodles, dumplings, lan zhou noodles, and my pride and joy-- Taiwanese food.

Be warned, there are no English menus. Seating is sparse and crowded. But you gotta love eating next to a table of old men and huge 40's of Budweiser.

Stall #29 holds my 2 favorite foods if all time--

1. Oyster Pancakes 2. Stinky Tofu

(I know, here I am complaining about GuangZhou Restaurant-- all the while eating other crazy shit that people wouldnt even touch with a stick).

Oyster Pancake-- made from flour, egg and oyster to this sticky, gooey consistency-- nothing like a green onion pancake or American pancake. Topped with some green veggies and a sweet sauce. Yes it is slimey, but I love it.

Stinky tofu. Obviously fermented with a deadly odor. But I dont care. Deep fried and pungent is how I like it. The stink stays in your mouth despite gum or brushing your teeth. It is heaven on earth. Topped with pickled cabbage and hot sauce. No other way to eat it.

Very acquired taste, I know. But if you can stand it, you will be very happy like me!

Golden Mall
41-28 Main St, Flushing
7 Train to Main St

Guang Zhou Restaurant: Dim Sum Intimidation

I can now add on to my list of things Im scared of besides eating pigeon. Dim sum at Guangzhou restaurant.

There were so many items on these carts that I have never bothered to order at any other dim sum restaurant. The traditional items like jelly fish, clams, tendons, tripe, snails outnumbered the normal things I tend to order like shu mais.

Good for the adventurous, but definitely intimidated me.
(Sorry for lack of pictures. I was with friends of friends and didnt want to cause a scene).

$60 for 5 people.
Guang Zhou Restuarant
136-59 37th Av
2nd Floor, Flushing

Spicy Tasty = Spicy Tasty

Fittingly named Spicy Tasty, only a bowl of rice and a bottle of Tsing Tao can help put out the flames in your mouth.

Every mouthful of this authentic Sichuan-style Chinese cooking, located in Flushing Queens, builds up heat in your body. One accidental bite of Ma La peppercorns will cause your tongue to feel numb and tingly-- a hint of chili peppers will instantly make you sweat. And I love it!

Once you walk in you are greeted with a counter holding a selection of traditional delicacies served at room temperature. I couldnt tell you what they all were-- I grew up eating non-traditional foods-- so nothing scares me.

All I can say is, if they serve it, it must be edible!

(Left) Spicy tendons-- incredible chewy texture
(Right) Bean curds and celery-- your one non-spicy, vegetarian friendly dish
(Center) Spicy Beef with lots of MaLa Peporcorns. Our favorite.

Ma Po Tofu-- popular Sichuan dish. Combination of tofu immersed in spicy chili bean sauce, chili oil and minced meat.

Chengdu Tilapia: I am a huge fan of whole fish. This was topped with layers of garlic and chili and was actually better than the fish dish I usually order: spicy fillet fish with vegetable buried underneath. Noone fought over the eyeballs this time around.

Sauteed Spinach: A nice breather from all the spice.

**If youre not williing to travel that far into Queens, opt for Grand Sichuan in Manhattan Chinatown.


** Also, if youre willing to expand your palatte on different types of food, check out: I Eat Yucky Stuff!