Image
  • Writing
    • Andy Gavin: Author
    • About my Novels & Writing
    • All Writing Posts
    • The Darkening Dream
      • Buy the Book Online
      • Sample Chapters
      • Reviews
      • Info for Reviewers
      • Press Coverage
      • Awards
      • Cast of Characters
    • Untimed
      • Buy Untimed Online
      • Book Trailer
      • Sample Chapters
      • Reviews
      • Info for Reviewers
      • Press Coverage
      • Awards
      • Cast of Characters
    • Scrivener – Writer’s Word Processor
    • iPad for Writers
    • Naughty Dark Contest
  • Books
    • Book Review Index
    • Favorite Fantasy Novels
    • Andy Gavin: Author
    • The Darkening Dream
      • Buy the Book Online
      • Sample Chapters
      • Short Story: Harvard Divinity
      • Reviews
      • Info for Reviewers
      • Press Coverage
      • Awards
      • Cast of Characters
    • Untimed
      • About the Book
      • Buy Untimed Online
      • Book Trailer
      • Sample Chapters
      • Reviews
      • Info for Reviewers
      • Press Coverage
      • Awards
      • Cast of Characters
    • Naughty Dark Contest
  • Games
    • My Video Game Career
    • Post Archive by Series
    • All Games Posts Inline
    • Making Crash Bandicoot
    • Crash 15th Anniversary Memories
    • World of Warcraft Endgames
    • Getting a Job Designing Video Games
    • Getting a Job Programming Video Games
    • Naughty Dark Contest
  • Movies
    • Movie Review Index
  • Television
    • TV Review Index
    • Buffy the Vampire Slayer
    • A Game of Thrones
  • Food
    • Food Review Index
    • Foodie Club
    • Hedonists
    • LA Sushi Index
    • Chinese Food Index
    • LA Peking Duck Guide
    • Eating Italy
    • Eating France
    • Eating Spain
    • Eating Croatia
    • Eating Vietnam
    • Eating Australia
    • Eating Israel
    • Ultimate Pizza
    • ThanksGavin
    • Margarita Mix
    • Foodie Photography
    • Burgundy Vintage Chart
  • Other
    • All Posts, Magazine Style
    • Archive of all Posts
    • Fiction
    • Technology
    • History
    • Anything Else
  • Gallery
  • Bio
  • About
    • About me
    • About my Writing
    • About my Video Games
    • Ask Me Anything
  • Contact

Archive for Arcadia

Tong Tak – Epic Cantonese

Mar27

Restaurant: Tong Tak House Seafood Restaurant

Location: 1265 S Baldwin Ave, Arcadia, CA 91007. (626) 638-3388

Date: February 9, 2020

Cuisine: Cantonese Chinese

Rating: Really great execution

_

Our friend Tony Lau organizes the best Cantonese banquets.
7U1A8012
He always manages to find new places that surprise. Tong Tak isn’t exactly new, but it’s new to most of us.
7U1A8007-Pano
Classic “palace” interior. It was pretty empty too. Sure it was Academy Awards night, but hard to say.
7U1A7886-Pano
After an initial foray into a private room that was way too small they set us up downstairs at this huge table with the awesome blue thrones.
7U1A7940-Pano
The whole gang.
7U1A7858
Salted peanuts.
7U1A7862
Spicy cold marinated cucumbers. Pretty good version of this typical Chinese starter. Nice crunch, garlic, and a bit of spice.

I ate a lot of these because oddly, they didn’t serve any real dishes for 45 minutes despite the place being deserted! Then the dishes came on like a storm.
7U1A7850
Chinese Mountain Yams with Raspberry Sauce. Crunchy yam, not slimey (sometimes it is). The yam itself doesn’t have a lot of flavor. Raspberry sauce is a bit odd..
7U1A7852
Beancurd wrapped mushroom rolls. Interesting texture.
7U1A7855
Marinated wood ear mushrooms. I love the rubbery texture.
7U1A7856
Beans. Not sure what kind. Very mild and I don’t love the pastey bean thing.
7U1A7870
Hot sauce.
7U1A7878
XO sauce.
7U1A7879
Spicy clam with vegetables. Very interesting spongy/chewy texture on the clam and very nice crunchy vegetables.
7U1A7902
Fried oysters typhoon style. Really delicious. Probably the best fried oyster’s I’ve ever had with the crispy fry and lots of garlic.
7U1A7910
Cheesy lobster. Nice tender lobster with a cheesy sauce. Very interesting combo.
7U1A7884
Condiments for the duck and pig.
7U1A7921
Suckling pig with buns. Nice small pig, actually a suckling. Nice crunchy skin and good flavor.
7U1A7928
The pig head returns after a discombobulating encounter with the cleaver.
7U1A7937
Beef with asparagus. Tony always orders a straight up beef dish like this. It was fatty and pretty tender with nicely cut asparagus.
7U1A7953
Crispy roast pigeon. Very nice hot juicy pigeon. Not too dark, not overcooked at all.
7U1A7959
Peking Duck (Cantonese style) with buns. Very tasty as always, but is of course much better with pancakes and cut a bit differently.
7U1A7968
Duck part 2: Lettuce cup duck. The meat from the duck mixed with water chestnuts and celery.
7U1A7970
Lettuce cups to go with the duck.
7U1A7975
Packed lettuce cup ready to eat. These were good.
7U1A7980
100 Flower Chicken. 2 ways. Pressed chicken with shrimp paste. This version was mostly shrimp paste. Almost no chicken meat under the skin. Still it was delicious.
7U1A7983
Wok cooked vegetables and oyster mushrooms. I like the double texture thing.
7U1A7990
Yin Yang Fried Rice. Two types of sauce covering fried rice. The lighter one was asparagus stalks and shrimp in a light sauce. Very savory and delicious. The red one was with chicken and a tomato based sweet sauce. A bit too sweet for my taste.
7U1A7996
Dessert Buns. The yellow topped ones were filled with pineapple and egg custard.
7U1A8002
Crackerjack Gelato – Smooth Peanut Base with homemade Dulce de Leche Ribbon, Toffee Peanuts, and Caramel Popcorn! — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — oh my! — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #food #foodgasm #foodblogger #dessertgasm #desserttime #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #peanut #caramel #DulceDeLeche #Popcorn #CaramelCorn

Raspberry Sorbetto — French Raspberries and a touch of lime juice — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — Unusual for me to go so “straight” with my flavors but I wanted a complement to a complex flavor — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #food #foodgasm #foodblogger #dessertgasm #desserttime #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #sorbetto #raspberry
7U1A8006
Overall, another great night. Really, these Tony Lau dinners are always great. Despite the slow start to the food, service was very good and the execution of the dishes was excellent. Very nice plating and on point flavors. The kitchen’s command of vegetables was particularly impressive. They know how to cut them into the proper shapes and to wok them quickly so they are still crunchy and tender.

It just goes to show that just because a Cantonese place has that “dated” palace look, doesn’t mean the kitchen isn’t first rate. Somehow they have 3 stars on Yelp. I wonder if we just got the royal treatment of if it’s just Yelp haters.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

For more LA Chinese dining reviews click here.

7U1A7864
7U1A7869
7U1A7874
7U1A7865
7U1A7872
7U1A7873
7U1A7876
7U1A7914
7U1A7867
7U1A7868
7U1A7875
7U1A7871
7U1A7931

Related posts:

  1. Cantonese Pig Out!
  2. 888 Seafood – Banquet
  3. SGV Nights – Seafood Palace
  4. Tang Gong at Night
  5. Shanghailander Arcadia
By: agavin
Comments (0)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Arcadia, BYOG, Cantonese cuisine, Chinese cuisine, Gelato, hedonists, Peking Duck, Seafood, SGV, suckling pig, Tong Tak, Tony Lau, Wine

Shanghailander Arcadia

Jun14

Restaurant: Shanghailander Palace [1, 2]

Location: 1440 S Baldwin Ave, Arcadia, CA 91007. (626) 348-8866

Date: May 19, 2019 and January 18, 2020

Cuisine: Shanghai Chinese

Rating: Excellent – best Shanghai food I’ve had in the US

_

Hedonist trips to the SGV and its requisite Chinese adventures are among my favorite dinners. Shanghailander specializes in Shanghai style cuisine (obviously). We’ve been out many times to their Hacienda Heights location, and last time the owner invited us to try their newer spot in Arcadia — which is closer so no complaints there.

7U1A1572
Chinese frontage built into what may have been some kind of family restaurant in the 50s or 60s.
7U1A6105-Pano
The dining room.
7U1A1683-Pano
But the Arcadia one has several awesome private rooms!

7U1A1589
Cold appetizer plate (5/19/19 & 1/18/20) to start.
7U1A1590
Greens in a mustardy sauce to the left. Sweet meat and tofu to the lower left. Hainan chicken on the bottom.
7U1A1592
Mushrooms to the right.
7U1A1593
Perhaps an eggplant to the right.
7U1A1594
Crunchy marinated sweet turnip in the upper right and pork jelly at the top.
7U1A1597
Jellyfish in the upper left.

7U1A1582
Cold Shanghai style duck (5/19/19). Excellent and very juicy.

7U1A6018
Sautéed shrimp (1/18/20). Simple but tasty. I’ve had this dish dozens of times at many Shanghai restaurants and this was for sure one of the best versions I’ve had in the US.
7U1A6022
Sea cucumber with shrimp roe (1/18/20). Sea cucumber, the white stuff was roe, shrimp and fish. Weird soft textures but very pleasant. Not exactly a looker, but quite tasty.
7U1A6028
Sea cucumber (1/18/20) — nice texture, odd mild garlic and grain sauce.

7U1A1603
Shrimp with pineapple in mustard sauce (5/19/19). Close to walnut shrimp, but with a distinctly different flavor.
7U1A1615
Shanghai style crab with rice cakes (5/19/19). Really nice garlic and ginger sauce (delicious with the cakes).
7U1A6037
Seasonal special: Crab with sticky rice (1/18/20) — really nice. sticky rice has mild but good flavor with sweet Chinese sausage.
7U1A6051
Peking/Shanghai duck (1/18/20). Sometimes peking duck isn’t so hot at non Beijing places, but this one was excellent with a rich thick hoisin sauce and pancakes (way better than buns).
7U1A6055
The whole assembly.
7U1A6058
Duck soup (1/18/20). This was actually a tasty duck soup! It was rich, not overwhelmingly salty, and tasted of actual duck. There were also big chunks of juicy meat. Usually I hate duck soup, but this was quite enjoyable.

7U1A1617
Shanghai style eel in pot (5/19/19 & 1/18/20). This was delicious. Soft and rich in a savory slightly sweet sauce.
7U1A1628
Shaking Beef or French Style beef (5/19/19). Excellent juicy beef with lots of beefy flavor.
7U1A1630
Fried fish with herbs (5/19/19 & 1/18/20). Lovely fried fish. We always order this.
7U1A1636
Shanghai style braised pork in brown sauce (5/19/19). A huge hock of pig that falls off the bone. This is about as good as roast pork gets.
7U1A1647
Cut up a bit. It’s a lean meat.

7U1A1652
Meatballs stuffed with egg (5/19/19). Very unusual dish (here, typical in Shanghai). A kind of fried meat ball with a gooey duck egg yolk INSIDE!
7U1A1659
Soy sauce or 3 cup chicken with chestnuts (5/19/19). Not always my favorite dish but this example was really good.
7U1A1662
Jellyfish with cucumbers (5/19/19). We loved this dish so much we ordered another (larger) one. Awesomely tangy with a textural contrast between the crunchy cucumbers and chewy jellyfish.
7U1A6070
Braised eggplant with salty fish flavor (1/18/20) — sweet sticky sauce and distinct bonito flake flavor. Almost Japanese in style like miso eggplant.
7U1A6078

Grandmother’s special pork (1/18/20) — super tender, fatty, delicous with that thick sticky sauce

7U1A1666
Pea tendrils with garlic (5/19/19). At first it was a little short on the garlic and we mentioned it and they remade it with even more garlic — awesome.
7U1A1671
Shanghailander pan fried buns (5/19/19 & 1/18/20). A fried version of same. So hot they were hard to eat, but oh so tasty.
7U1A1678
Shanghai steamed dumplings (XLB) (5/19/19 & 1/18/20). Always one of my favorites. The dough was great, the meat needed a hair more flavor, but I still ate about 6.
7U1A1682
Nocciola Espresso Caramello Gelato (5/19/19) — A classic nocciola base made with Pure PGI Piedmont hazelnut paste and then layered with a house-made Espresso Caramel Ganache then topped with fresh roasted hazelnuts — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato –#SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #food #foodgasm #foodblogger #dessertgasm #desserttime #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #Valrhona #hazelnut #ganache #dulcy #ChocolateTruffle #nocciola #caramel #caramello

Sicilian Tiramisu Gelato (5/19/19) –attempting to reinvent Tiramisu with Sicilian flavors: Pure DOGC “Bronte” pistachio paste gelato base with lady fingers soaked in house-made orange syrup and layered with house-made “cannoli filling” (sweetened fresh ricotta with cinnamon and mini dark chocolate chips) — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — this one will be a test of concept: too much? –#SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #food #foodgasm #foodblogger #dessertgasm #desserttime #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #pistachio #sicily #ricotta #chocolate #orange #ladyfingers #tiramisu

7U1A595720200118
Mud Pie Gelato (1/18/20) — Hot brewed espresso gelato with house-made milk chocolate coffee ganache and crushed Oreos — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — the gluttonous classic made even more gluttonus! — #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #food #foodgasm #foodblogger #dessertgasm #desserttime #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #chocolate #valrhona #espresso #coffee #oreo #MudPie
7U1A598420200118
Peppered Lemongrass Ginger Creme Brûlée Gelato (1/18/20) — A blended milk and Thai coconut cream base steeped with lemongrass and ginger and then juiced up with yuzu and black pepper. For sugar, I used coconut palm sugar and even torched the top! — created by me for @sweetmilkgelato –#SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #food #foodgasm #foodblogger #dessertgasm #desserttime #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #lemongrass #ginger #CremeBrûlée #BlackPepper #coconut #yuzu

7U1A1698

Our 5/19/19 visit to Arcadia was insanely good. Almost every dish was on point and many were unusual. Food was really really good. Service was great too but this was certainly the best Shanghai style food I’ve had outside of China — and this is just a couple months after my most recent visit to Shanghai and incredible means like Shanghai Tang. The private rooms are better here, but we forgot to preorder some dishes, like roast duck, plus they had lots of other interesting things. So next time we will have to really up the ante for a major banquet. They are super nice and I’m sure will knock it out of the park.

Our 1/18/20 visit was just as good — if not better — with a great menu (picked by Bonnie W and I) and a more focused set of wines. Still the best Shanghai place I know of in the US.

For more LA Chinese reviews click here.

or more crazy Hedonist dinners here!
7U1A1573
7U1A1576
7U1A1574
7U1A1575
7U1A1578
7U1A1579
7U1A1577

Wines from 1/18/20:
7U1A6088
7U1A6089
7U1A6090
7U1A6093
7U1A6091
7U1A6092
7U1A6119
7U1A6094

Related posts:

  1. Hedonists at Shanghailander
  2. SGV Nights – Seafood Palace
  3. So Many Palaces, So Few Sundays
  4. Szechuan Impression Tustin
  5. Day of the Dumplings
By: agavin
Comments (1)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Arcadia, BYOG, dumplings, Gelato, hedonists, pork, SGV, Shanghai Cuisine, Shanghailander, Wine, XLB
Watch the Trailer or

Buy it Online!

Buy it Online!

96 of 100 tickets!

Find Andy at:

Follow Me on Pinterest

Subscribe by email:

More posts on:



Complete Archives

Categories

  • Contests (7)
  • Fiction (404)
    • Books (113)
    • Movies (77)
    • Television (123)
    • Writing (115)
      • Darkening Dream (62)
      • Untimed (37)
  • Food (1,483)
  • Games (100)
  • History (13)
  • Technology (21)
  • Uncategorized (16)

Recent Posts

  • Robo Eats – Szechuan Place
  • Providence Chef’s Table 2022
  • OOToro Double
  • Robo Eats – Anarbagh
  • Fred loves N/Naka
  • Major Major Major
  • Far East – Beijing Tasty House
  • Home Sweet Spicy Home
  • Quick Eats – Bafang
  • Quick Eats – Peking Restaurant

Favorite Posts

  • I, Author
  • My Novels
  • The Darkening Dream
  • Sample Chapters
  • Untimed
  • Making Crash Bandicoot
  • My Gaming Career
  • Getting a job designing video games
  • Getting a job programming video games
  • Buffy the Vampire Slayer
  • A Game of Thrones
  • 27 Courses of Truffles
  • Ultimate Pizza
  • Eating Italy
  • LA Sushi
  • Foodie Club

Recent Comments

Archives

  • March 2023 (11)
  • February 2023 (11)
  • January 2023 (14)
  • December 2022 (11)
  • November 2022 (13)
  • October 2022 (14)
  • September 2022 (14)
  • August 2022 (12)
  • July 2022 (9)
  • June 2022 (6)
  • May 2022 (8)
  • April 2022 (5)
  • March 2022 (4)
  • February 2022 (2)
  • January 2022 (8)
  • December 2021 (6)
  • November 2021 (6)
  • October 2021 (8)
  • September 2021 (4)
  • August 2021 (5)
  • July 2021 (2)
  • June 2021 (3)
  • January 2021 (1)
  • December 2020 (1)
  • September 2020 (1)
  • August 2020 (1)
  • April 2020 (11)
  • March 2020 (15)
  • February 2020 (13)
  • January 2020 (14)
  • December 2019 (13)
  • November 2019 (12)
  • October 2019 (14)
  • September 2019 (14)
  • August 2019 (13)
  • July 2019 (13)
  • June 2019 (14)
  • May 2019 (13)
  • April 2019 (10)
  • March 2019 (10)
  • February 2019 (11)
  • January 2019 (13)
  • December 2018 (14)
  • November 2018 (11)
  • October 2018 (15)
  • September 2018 (15)
  • August 2018 (15)
  • July 2018 (11)
  • June 2018 (14)
  • May 2018 (13)
  • April 2018 (13)
  • March 2018 (17)
  • February 2018 (12)
  • January 2018 (15)
  • December 2017 (15)
  • November 2017 (13)
  • October 2017 (16)
  • September 2017 (16)
  • August 2017 (16)
  • July 2017 (11)
  • June 2017 (13)
  • May 2017 (6)
  • March 2017 (3)
  • February 2017 (4)
  • January 2017 (7)
  • December 2016 (14)
  • November 2016 (11)
  • October 2016 (11)
  • September 2016 (12)
  • August 2016 (15)
  • July 2016 (13)
  • June 2016 (13)
  • May 2016 (13)
  • April 2016 (12)
  • March 2016 (13)
  • February 2016 (12)
  • January 2016 (13)
  • December 2015 (14)
  • November 2015 (14)
  • October 2015 (13)
  • September 2015 (13)
  • August 2015 (18)
  • July 2015 (16)
  • June 2015 (13)
  • May 2015 (13)
  • April 2015 (14)
  • March 2015 (15)
  • February 2015 (13)
  • January 2015 (13)
  • December 2014 (14)
  • November 2014 (13)
  • October 2014 (13)
  • September 2014 (12)
  • August 2014 (15)
  • July 2014 (13)
  • June 2014 (13)
  • May 2014 (14)
  • April 2014 (14)
  • March 2014 (10)
  • February 2014 (11)
  • January 2014 (13)
  • December 2013 (14)
  • November 2013 (13)
  • October 2013 (14)
  • September 2013 (12)
  • August 2013 (14)
  • July 2013 (10)
  • June 2013 (14)
  • May 2013 (14)
  • April 2013 (14)
  • March 2013 (15)
  • February 2013 (14)
  • January 2013 (13)
  • December 2012 (14)
  • November 2012 (16)
  • October 2012 (13)
  • September 2012 (14)
  • August 2012 (16)
  • July 2012 (12)
  • June 2012 (16)
  • May 2012 (21)
  • April 2012 (18)
  • March 2012 (20)
  • February 2012 (23)
  • January 2012 (31)
  • December 2011 (35)
  • November 2011 (33)
  • October 2011 (32)
  • September 2011 (29)
  • August 2011 (35)
  • July 2011 (33)
  • June 2011 (25)
  • May 2011 (31)
  • April 2011 (30)
  • March 2011 (34)
  • February 2011 (31)
  • January 2011 (33)
  • December 2010 (33)
  • November 2010 (39)
  • October 2010 (26)
All Things Andy Gavin
Copyright © 2023 All Rights Reserved
Programmed by Andy Gavin