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MK BBQ

Sep26

Location: 18406 Colima Rd D, Rowland Heights, CA 91748. (626) 616-1826

Date: January 28, 2024

Cuisine: Southern Chinese BBQ

Rating: Casual, but tasty

This is a new place run by our friend Derek, formerly of Elite. It’s basically a hong kong BBQ shack that used to be in the supermarket in this same mall. We actually went there in 2022. I was pretty skeptical because it’s hyper casual — and because it used to be just a shack inside the supermarket in this plaza.

The glamourous parking lot — we’ve been here a bunch for various.

Enter.

They still have the duck.

Minimalist decor.

The simple menu.

Decent lobster. A little shreddy, and a bunch of small lobsters, but tasty sauce.

Hong Kong Style Dungeness Crab. Lots of fry.

Macau style BBQ pork. Tasty, clean, light porcine flavor — luke warm (it’s actually supposed to be, but a little disconcerting).

BBQ Roast Duck. Excellent for this juicy type of Chinese duck.

Honey Glazed Sausage. Kinda delicious — probably my favorite dish.

Beef Stew “clay pot.” No clay involved, but this tendon and beef stew was pretty good. Would have been even better with silky curry sauce like at Henry’s.

Fresh veggies and mushrooms. Fabulous MSG flavored veggies. Nicely cooked.

Silken tofu. Also very good.

Salt and Pepper Pork Chop. Tasty but so fried and chewy.

BBQ Pork Neck. Fatty, greasy, kinda delicious and kinda gross at the same time.

Overall, this was better than I expected, but certainly no gourmet feast.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

For more LA Chinese dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Cantonese, Chinese Food, duck, SGV

I don’t think that word means what you think it means

Aug06

Restaurant: Blooming VIP Restaurant [ 1, 2]

Location: 8118 Garvey Ave A, Rosemead, CA 91770. (626) 280-2288

Date: January 8, 2023

Cuisine: Cantonese Chinese

Rating: There are better

The latest Dirty Dozen white overlaps with Sunday Chinese. Truth is, I prefer just straight Sunday Chinese, but having a wine theme is ok. It was Champagne again this time.

We went out to relative newcomer Blooming VIP — which has pretty decent dim sum – and a very over the top decor.

This time around we needed white wine to begin, as Champ was the main event.

Peanuts Yarom brought in from Sichuan Delicious. They were pretty good, nice bit of spice and Chinese flavor.

Smashed Cucumbers. Very solid classic smashed cucumbers with garlic. Not spicy but nice crunch.

Chicken Feet. Bleh. Only Yarom ate these as usual.

Geoduck Sashimi. It looked good, but these were tasted like a bait and tackle shop. Not even close to the quality of Longo. I actually had a hard time finishing what I took. It didn’t taste unfresh, and this should have a briney quality, but this was too strong.

Close up.

Fried Geoduck. The neck fried salt and pepper style. Edible, but not really good, particularly in comparison to Longo (whose version of this dish is awesome).

Walnut Shrimp. Excellent version of the gweillo classic. Large shrimp, lightly fried with the sweet mayo. Guilty pleasure.

Ginger Scallion Lobster with Noodles. The lobster was tiny, very little meat, but it was juicy. Ginger balance was way too strong here. I also don’t love this kind of sloppy noodle, but it is typical.

White Pepper Jellyfish. Someone in the kitchen accidently dropped an entire cannister of white pepper into the dish. It was disgusting and I like white pepper. Almost sneeze inducing and none of the vinegar thing that this dish should have.

More wine (getting lazy).

Roast Chicken. A very solid roast chicken. Not the best I’ve ever had, but nice and juicy. It was served with an odd “jus” gravy.

Roast Quail or Pigeon. Solid 7/10 version of this classic dish and certainly enjoyable.

Pseudo Peking Duck with buns. Thin Cantonese hoison and spring onions (no cucumbers, no pancakes). The duck itself was pretty tasty although this was like 1/2 a duck as it was on top of a huge pile of shrimp chips to make it look bigger. To find out more about Peking Duck, consult my Ultimate Peking Duck Guide.

Thin Cantonese hoison.

Yarom brought these carb free egg-white pancakes which actually served quite well as duck pancakes.

Duck Lettuce Cups. Fine.

The lettuce itself.

Tofu with Mushrooms. I added to the order because we had nothing from the wok — Yarom has a thing for straight meat dishes. This tofu had that lovely soft egg custard texture. The mushrooms were nice but covered with a slightly sweet cornstarch sauce. There were not actually very many mushrooms however, and they were bulked up with a bunch of soggy iceberg lettuce underneath.

Clay pot with satay beef and vermicelli. More vermicelli than beef. The satay sauce was decent and the beef was nice and tender.

Roast Suckling Pig. Excellent 10/10 Chinese style crispy roast pig. Best dish for sure with awesome crispy skin and nice slightly porky flavor.

Cremino al Siciliana Gelato — The base made with Galbani Whole Milk Ricotta and Sicilian Acacia Honey laced with house-made Bronte Pistacchio DOCG “Fudge” — 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 #ricotta #honey #pistachio #pistacchio #fudge

The scores.

Overall, it was a fun evening, but the food was really hit or miss. Blooming is good at roast birds and pig, but all the seafood was really meh, almost bad. Not “really bad”, still better than a westside Chinese, but not up there with the good Cantonese seafood places. The wok dishes were decent but not outstanding. But again, the birds and pig were excellent. So they know how to BBQ. Service was great and we had a nice private room.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

For more LA Chinese dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Blooming VIP, BYOG, Cantonese, Chinese Food, Dirty Dozen, Gelato, hedonists

DimSumQuest – Bistro 1968

Aug01

Restaurant: Bistro 1968

Location: 402 S San Gabriel Blvd Ste A, San Gabriel, CA 91776. (626) 766-1968

Date: December 30, 2022 & January 4, 2023

Cuisine: Chinese Dim Sum

Rating: One of the current best

Bistro 1968 opened with considerable fanfare (for the SGV) at the tail end of 2022. It serves up a large but focused menu of Cantonese dim sum and unusually is not two restaurants in one like most of the Cantonese places. Instead they have the same (dim sum focused) menu for both lunch and dinner.

The underground parking lot here sucks. Upper level was full and the lower level had this mechanical gated “resident only tow zone” that was poorly labeled and easy to get trapped in.

Escaping the parking lot involved this endless corridor.

Brand new!

Double-sided order sheet

The long form menu.

The main dining room. Several private rooms spawn off the sides.

At first we were in this claustraphobic interior room, but then we moved.

Into this much nicer (and larger) room. It had a window!

Holds a good sized group.

Jasmine Tea.

Basic sauces. They put several on the table, plus some chili oil.

Black and Red Vinegar.

XO Sauce was an extra $4, but totally worth it.

Chili oil is always better than paste.

Bean Curd Skin Roll in Soup. Great texture but very mild in flavor.

Shrimp Har-Gow. Fairly perfect textbook har-gow. Shrimp was delicious and skin was light.

Golden Har-Gow. I think these had a little bit of truffle inside plus the dark (squid ink?) skin. Normally I don’t like these “amplified” classics but these were excellent.

Pork Siu-Mai. Awesome version. Light, meaty, tasty. We had 5-6 orders.

Abalone Tart. A “lard short crust” pastry with shredded pork and abalone. Gorgeous. The tart was very crumbly. The pork itself was sweet and very nice, the abalone was great, not at all chewy — well it was abalone but it wasn’t too chewy.

Pumkpin Dumplings. Seasonal. Very mild and pleasant.

Leeks and Shrimp Dumpling. I really liked these. I’m not sure the wrapper tasted different, but the interior had a nice leek and shrimp (big surprise) vibe.

Shanghai XLB. Usually at dimsum houses the XLB are heavy and just “kinda nice.” These were delicate with fabulous pork soup flavor inside, arguably better than at specialty places like DTF. Really great.

Spicy Minced Pork Dumpling. Chewy and a bit sweet with that sweet porky filling. I’m not sure what was spicy about it but it was good. Sometimes this dumpling type, which is normally light brown, is underfilled. These were generous.

Stuffed Morchella Elata Fungus. They spelled it Fungas. Lol. This was one of the best dishes. It was a nice shrimp paste ball with a “fungas” wrapper” and a sweet soy sauce. Delicious.

Shrimp Noodle. The shrimp were large and succulent and the chow fun texture was excellent. The sauce could have used slightly more punch.

Wagyu Beef Noodle. I’ve never had chow fun with wagyu. It was silky soft, a touch sweet, and did pack quite a bit of flavor.

BBQ Pork & Mixed Fungus Noodle. Again they spelled it “Fungas.” Lol again. These were actually some great Chow Fun with nice Sweet BBQ Porky filling and a hint of mushroom.

House Special Seafood Congee. I didn’t try because of the carb factor — hey it’s all carbs — but some of my friends complained that it wasn’t jammed with enough goodies.

Close up.

Sticky Rice Wrap. This is the usual lotus leaf wrapped sticky rice. It was fabulous though with all sorts of flavor goodness and perfectly sticky rice.

Sticky Rice. These were mild, a bit sweet, and filled with Chinese sausage, ginkos, egg yolks, etc. Not nearly as good as the lotus leaf sticky rice.

Pan-fried Turnip Cake. I didn’t try because of the carbs.

Crabmeat Egg-Roll. I didn’t try but everyone else toasted them in two seconds.

Seaweed and Shrimp paste cake. Nice firm shrimp cake with an interesting spongy texture and a bit of crispiness from the seaweed. The mayo complemented.

House Special Crispy Lobster Roll. Very fluffy and crunchy texture stuffed with noodles and tiny bits of lobster. Interesting.

Steamed BBQ Pork Bao. The bun was a bit soggy and the filling overly sweet.

Snow Capped BBQ Pork Bun. This version was leagues better than the steamed version. Great slightly cirspy donut style bun with nice pork filling.

Deep Fried Taro Puff. Pretty but carb on carb — plus I hate taro. Anyway there were some little bits of pork in there too.

Supreme Beef Balls. Great spongy texture. I ate a ton of these.

Ground Minced Pork. Not a very descriptive label but these were delicious pan-fried pork patties. Nice and greasy.

Wonton w/ Chili Oil Sauce. This was one of the weakest dishes. The wrapper was soft and pillowy, but the chili sauce was weak, and the filling was shrimp (would have been better as pork). Mostly it just didn’t have the chili oil punch this dish deserves.

Lobster with Ginger and Scallions. Pretty nice lobster in the “wet” style.

Soy Sauce Chicken. A bit sweet, but very aromatic and juicy so a lovely chicken.

Hongkong Style Roast Duck. This was probably the best Hongkong style roast duck I’ve had. It was extremely juicy with fabulous skin and lots of great flavor.

Smaller sized portion of the same dish.

Slightly Sweet Sauce for the duck.

Sichuan Sauce Hen Chicken. Cold chopped Hainan Chicken style chicken with nice numbing sauce. Really good.

Sauce for that.

Barbecued Iberian Pork w/ Honey. Classic sweet red Chinese BBQ pork. Very sweet sauce but pretty damn tasty!

Deep Fried Quail with Spicy Salt. Yummy, but extremly salty and mostly bones with little bits of meat on them.

Roasted Squab. Leave it to Yarom to order every bird on the menu. These were solid, but not in the top tier.

Crispy German Pork Knuckle. Very piggy, nice crispy skin, succulent meat. I enjoyed these.

Oxtail Stew with Wine Sauce Clay Pot. There was the oxtail bone factor, but this did taste great. Moderate amounts of tasty meat clung to the tail bones and the whole thing was drowned in some sort of gravy.

Poached Watercress w/ Fish Ball. Basically a nice light broth with lots of greens and fish/shrimp balls. I actually really liked this dish, particularly given the nasty rainy weather. It was very soothing and provided needed carbs.

Creamy Egg-Yolk Bao. Tasty and the yolk inside almost exploded out. I just nibbled for dietary reasons.

Macau Egg Tart. A classic. Nice and eggy.

I love this flavor — Peppermint Bark Gelato — Base is pure peppermint milk (subbed the sugar with crushed peppermint candies) and it’s laced with house-made double-sided peppermint bark, Valrhona Dark Chocolate and Ivoire White! — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — The Peppermint Bark recipe was developed by a famous pastry chef and author, the mum of a Naughty Dog Alum @nancy_baggett — this year I added the two layer thing which is awesome — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #dessertgasm #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #peppermint #bark #Valrhona #chocolate

The wines.

Yarom and the owner and the manager.

The whole gang.

They collect all the steamer trays in rolling huskee’s!

Overall, I thought Bistro 1968 is currently one of the best dim sum places in the SGV — and therefore in SoCal. Not every dish is perfect but they have a big menu, many interesting dishes, and an overall standard of execution that is just higher than most of the older places. Sure, there are a lot of good (and even great) options in the SGV but you totally can’t go wrong with this one!

For more LA dining reviews click here.

For more LA Chinese dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Bistro 1968, BYOG, Cantonese, Cantonese Chinese, Chinese cuisine, dimsum, DimSumQuest, dumplings, Gelato, SGV

Dirty Dozen Grand

Dec07

Restaurant: Grand Harbor [1, 2, 3]

Location: 5733 Rosemead Blvd, Temple City, CA 91780. (626) 280-2998

Date: October 14, 2018 and June 27, 2021

Cuisine: Cantonese Chinese

Rating: Very good Cantonese

It has become traditional for the Dirty Dozen (our blind tasting group within a group) to do white wine lunches over dim sum — but this time we mixed it up slightly and combined with Sunday night dinner into a Cantonese banquet Dirty Dozen White dinner. I think this was originally white Burgundy themed, then opened up lightly to some “other” (aka lessor) Chardonnay. Mostly it was White Burg.

Grand Harbor is a relatively new Hong Kong place in Temple City from Jackie Zhou.

The dining room is huge and opulent in that chintzy Chinese way. I would have thought from all the overzealous cove lighting that the space was built out in the 80s, but apparently it’s only a year or two old!

Real marble blends non-so-seemlessly with faux-alabaster. They have wine too like many of the new high end places. Mostly big young red wine like Bordeaux which totally fails to pair with Cantonese Chinese, but it’s the thought that counts.

We had a private room — pretty much a necessity given the crowded main room.

From my cellar: NV Drappier Champagne Rosé Brut Nature Dosage Zero. BH 90. The color is paler than that of the regular brut rosé. A pretty and slightly more elegant nose features a similar aromatic profile but with more evident yeast character. There is fine intensity to the delicious and vibrant flavors that are supported by a firm and definitely finer mousse, all wrapped in a bone dry and youthfully austere finish where a hint of bitter cherry pit appears. This won’t be for everyone as the dryness is pronounced; I happen to like it but it would be fair to say that this is not a charmer. With that said, a few years of bottle age should serve to round off the austerity and add a bit of depth as well.

Crispy taro chips. Like crunchy French Fries.

Marinated cucumbers. Very good, nice crunch and a bit of heat. These were so good we ordered them again.

Peanuts.

2008 Domaine William Fèvre Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos. VM 95+. Pale yellow-green color. Manages to be both explosive and reduced on the nose, offering strong notes of lime peel, seashell, spices, mint oil, white flowers and smoky, flinty minerality. Extremely backward on the palate, showing hints of smoked ham and dusty stone. Less silky and tactile today than the C o te Bouguerots but this will ultimately be the more complex wine. The extraordinary palate-saturating finish is like chewing on rocks today.

2004 Domaine William Fèvre Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos. BH 95. Stylistically, this closely resembles the Valmur with its ultra elegant and pure aromas featuring white flowers, oyster shell and subtle spice notes that perfectly complement the round, powerful, rich and full-bodied flavors that coating the mouth and culminate in a saliva-inducing, incredibly intense finish that reminded me more than a little of a great Corton-Charlemagne. This just oozes minerality and the texture is minerally to the point of this resembling a block of stone. A great Les Clos.

Suckling pig. Really nice one with crunchy skin and great piggy flavor.

Sandi, Stefano, and the manager.

Cantonese style peking duck (with the buns). We’ve had a rash lately of these Cantonese ducks. Good, although not as crispy and delightful as the real Beijing style.

Scallions and hoisin for the duck.

2014 Marc Colin et Fils Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru La Garenne. BH 92. Discreet touches of reduction and wood still allow the ultra-fresh pear, white peach and lilac-inflected aromas to shine. There is both good volume and richness to the solidly well-concentrated medium-bodied flavors that possess a textured mouth feel before terminating in an energetic, balanced and mouth coating finish that exhibits a bit of youthful austerity. This chiseled and citrusy effort is definitely in need of at least a few years of bottle age first as it’s presently quite tight.

2002 Jean Boillot & Fils Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Clos de la Mouchère. VM 94+. Lemon, lime, spring flowers, nut oil and minerals on the vibrant nose. Dense and sweet, with penetrating flavors of peach, spice and minerals lifted by a captivating floral character. Broad, classy and extremely long on the back end. Already showing terrific personality, but this will be even better for five to seven years of cellaring.

Roast pigeon.

Duck, second way, chopped up with veggies.

With the lettuce cups.

And nestled inside one. Way better than PF Changs!

2011 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Meursault 1er Cru Les Genevrières. VM 97. The 2011 Meursault Genevrieres is emotionally moving. Deep, layered and explosive, the Genevrieres bursts from the glass with an utterly beguiling combination of fruit, minerality and structure. Layers of rich, vivid fruit flow to an effortless, kaleidoscopic finish of exceptional grace. Pierre-Yves Colin makes a number of fabulous wines, but none goes straight to the heart like the Genevrieres does. The 2011 is another spectacular version. Readers who can find the 2011 should absolutely not hesitate.

From my cellar: 2011 Domaine Roulot Meursault Les Tessons Clos de Mon Plaisir. VM 92. A statuesque Burgundy, the 2011 Meursault Les Tessons Clos de Mon Plaisir is all class. Nothing in particular stands out, so impeccable is the wine’s balance. The depth and intensity of the fruit is apparent, but readers will have to give the 2011 at least another year or two before the elements start to truly come together. The 2011 is impressive for its depth and stuffing.

agavin: a bit corked. sigh. Second time I’ve tried to use Roulot to just power through to the win and had a corked bottle. sigh.

Salt and pepper shrimp. Eat the shells!

Garlic lobster.

2014 Kongsgaard Chardonnay. VM 94. Kongsgaard’s 2014 Chardonnay is a crescendo of aromas, flavors and textures. Expansive, rich and super-expressive, the 2014 is surprisingly accessible at such a young age. I am not sure how well the 2014 will age, but it is exceptionally beautiful and inviting today. Slate, candied lemon, vanillin and a hint of reduction infuse the striking finish. This is a terrific vintage for the Napa Valley Chardonnay.

agavin: Grr. fake chard!

2015 Raymond Vineyard & Cellar Chardonnay Generations.

agavin: two of them in fact!

Chicken Knees — yeah little cartilage bombs. Really yummy.

Ultimately fried fish. All crispy and delicious.

Greens. Colon sweeper.

2008 Domaine Henri Gouges Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru Les Pruliers. VM 91. Good bright medium red. Enticing, very pure aromas of cherry, raspberry and flowers. Quite juicy and precise; not a fleshy wine but intensely fruity, taut and pure. Impressively long, rising finish. Gregory Gouges told me he finds most of the family’s 2008s to be agreeable now and probably best drunk early for their youthful fruit. He’s not convinced that the wines have enough dry extract for extended aging.

2006 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape. VM 93. Vivid ruby. Spicy, finely etched red berry and cherry aromas are complicated by fresh lavender, herbs and minerals. The palate offers tangy raspberry and cherry skin flavors, with gentle tannins adding shape. Impressively pure, even delicate, with outstanding finishing clarity and length. This beguiles rather than brutalizes; I underestimated it last year.

Fried sweet and sour pork chops. All sticky and chewy and delicious.

Shrimp fried rice. Bits of pork in there too.

Compressed noodles with beef — looks like barf but tasted great! Really interesting chewy texture to the noodles too.

Sweet mysterious Chinese dessert soup.

Sweet buns. From the dim sum collection and pretty good.

Pecan Pie Gelato – Tahitian Vanilla Bean Base with Mom’s recipe Pecan Pie Filling layered in — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato.

In the bowl.

My lousy notes.

Overall, Grand Harbor had really nice Cantonese banquet — color me impressed. Lots of fabulous dishes.

Service here was amazing too. This time we had the private room and they really took care of us. They kept trying to bring us more stuff, all of which was delicious.

Very fun night as always.

June 27, 2021, right after the lockdowns

So we came back to Grand Harbor again in June of 2021 and they were still — as many places are — in a weird transitional state after the disruptions of 2020 and 2021.

They have this much reduced menu which we had to order from, and even to get the live seafood we had to call way ahead.

Pork belly and Jellyfish — Jellyfish was spicy, pork salty but good.

Here’s our reserved live seafood, squirming in the bucket.

Live Crab Typhoon Style.

Lobster w/ Ginger and Scallion and noodles — noodles were fabulous.

“Flounder” Sichuan Hot Pot style — not really spicy, maybe not our flounder. Really wouldn’t matter what kind of fish you spiced up this way.

Roast Quails — good.

Scallops with Snow Peas — great texture.

Cantonese Roast Duck.

Walnut Shrimp — Delicious.

Stir Fried Beef with Egg and Tomato.

Salt and Spicy Pork Chop.

Yangchow Fried Rice.

Bok Choy with Garlic.

Buko Pandan Gelato — Infused the milk with fresh Pandan Leaves and then crafted it into a dairy coconut base as my take on the Filipino favorite. Unusual and soothing. — 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 #buko #pandan #coconut

Thai Red Curry Sorbetto — I made a version of this in 2017 and it was a dismal failure, but haunted me since and so this one is redemptive. Made a (no salt) red curry paste from scratch (chilies, lemongrass, galangal, cilantro roots, kaffir lime leaves, garlic, Asian shallots etc) and then cooked it into a pure Thai Coconut Milk base. Sweet and Spicy! — 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 #sorbetto#Thai #red #curry #spicy

Honey and Almond Sponge Cake.

Today’s meal was not Grand Harbor at its best. Although execution on the dishes they did have was pretty good, and service was excellent, the limited menu and near empty dining room was a touch sad. Still and great kitchen and hopefully they bounce back quickly.

For more LA Chinese dining reviews click here

or more crazy Hedonist dinners here!

By: agavin
Comments (0)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Cantonese, Cantonese cuisine, Dirty Dozen, Gelato, Grand Harbor, GYOG, SGV, White Burgundy

Derek moved to China Red

Nov20

Restaurant: China Red

Location: 855 S Baldwin Ave, Arcadia, CA 91007. (626) 445-3700

Date: September 30, 2018

Cuisine: Chinese

Rating: Very good Cantonese, has some DM though

Another Sunday, another Chinese. In this case we came to China Red because our friend Derek, former manager of Elite and World Seafood has moved here.

For some reason I’ve been on a run of places on the slightly more “Eastern” half of the main SGV. Slightly more annoying drive too as it’s 10-15 minutes further.

The interior is typical midsized Cantonese. There is some DM (deferred maintenance). This is very Chinese, but the place is only a couple years old and is showing some wear and tear.

Here is Derek on the left with Yarom.

We were in the private room — which is eclectic to say the least.

Peanuts to start.

We started with a few classic bits of dimsum, even though it was evening.

Har Gow. Pretty solid shrimp dumplings.

Shu Mai. Pork and shrimp. I always love these meat bombs.

Roast Pigeon. Finger licking good.

Garlic fried fish. Or maybe it was frog, I can’t remember. It was crunchy, garlicky, salty, and pretty good.

Peking duck. Can never go wrong with that and this was a fairly juicy version.

Even if they only had the buns (I prefer the pancakes).

Roast pork. Nice crispy skin.

Mixed seafood chow mein. Carby goodness.

And the next noodle, because we needed a LOT of them. This was some sort of meat and black bean and black pepper wok fried noodle – it was delicious.

String beans with eggplant.

Pea tendrils or whichever type of colon sweeper with garlic.

Everything fried rice.

Lobster. A solid lobster. I’ve had better sauces but the meat was good.

Sweet and sour squirrel fish. Very fried, which makes it extra tasty.

More noodles, chicken noodles I think. Not quite as good as the beef pepper noodles.

Custard buns. Tasty.

I can’t even remember if I brought gelato this night. Lol.

Food was quite good at China Red and Derek really takes care of us. We have so many Cantonese feasts that it’s hard to remember which ones are the best, but this was quite solid, although not super “unique.” China Red was oddly quiet, and the place looks a touch shabby, but it’s certainly better than most (but not all) SGV Cantonese by a good bit.

For my catalog of Chinese restaurant reviews in China, click here.

By: agavin
Comments (1)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Cantonese, Cantonese cuisine, China Red, Chinese cuisine, Chinese Food, Dim sum, hedonists, Lobster, Peking Duck, pigeon, SGV, Wine

Sauvage by Moonlight

Aug19

Restaurant: Lunasia [1, 2, 3]

Location: 500 West Main Street Suite A, Alhambra, CA 91801. (626) 308-3222

Date: August 14, 2015

Cuisine: Cantonese Chinese

Rating: Fine Cantonese

About once a year the Sauvages lunch group heads down to some wine friendly SGV Chinese restaurant for some fun filled Cantonese.

Flight 0: Les Amuses

2013 Château Miraval Côtes de Provence Rosé. VM 90. Pale orange. Fresh tangerine, strawberry and white flowers on the fragrant, mineral-accented nose. Silky and precise, offering tangy red fruit flavors that are lifted and sharpened by a white pepper nuance. Finishes clean, nervy and long, with excellent clarity and lingering minerality. This suave wine has the power to work with rich foods and the energy to give pleasure by itself.

agavin: a decent provencal rose. The big claim to fame is the Brad Pitt / Angelina Jolie connection.

Typical sauce: mustard, chili, and XO (fermented shellfish with a bit of chili).

Flight 1: Radical Riesling

2011 Domaine Ostertag Riesling Muenchberg. VM 92. Pale straw. Sweet chamomile, anise and licorice notes complicate very ripe pear jelly and Golden Delicious apple on the nose and palate. Dense and suave in the mouth, with smooth flavors of ripe citrus, chamomile and minerals carrying through on the very long finish. Like many of Ostertag’s wines, this one comes across as unctuous yet very fresh, thanks to firm acidity and chewy buffering extract. Ostertag owns two parcels in this grand cru, mostly in the central part of the cru, which is exposed full south. The average age of the vines is almost 50 years, and you can tell from the wine’s rich texture and depth of flavor that this is a true vieilles vignes bottling.

From my cellar: 2011 Prager Riesling Smaragd Klaus. VM 91. Rich aromas of vineyard peach, passion fruit and acacia honey. Tautly strung on the palate, with juicy apricot fruit wound around a vibrant backbone. The wine’s discreet residual sugar is disguised by abundant minerals and a lemony nuance. With a long finish featuring yellow plum and wet rocks, this riesling shows good balance in spite of its 14% alcohol.

2002 Schloss Vollrads Riesling Kabinett. 89 points. Deep Golden Yellow, Crisp and fruity
Very tasty.

Jumbo shrimp har gow. As good a version as I’ve had.

Jumbo pork siu mai. Perhaps more succulent and tender than many.

Spring roll. Perfectly fine. I forgot to photo one at the beginning and had to make due with this unappetizing “after the fact” image.

Flight 2: Alsace Alpha

2012 Domaine Weinbach Riesling Schlossberg. VM 92. Luminous straw-green. Delicate aromas of nectarine, lemon verbena and jasmine are complicated by racy minerality. Deep, dense, clean flavors of white stone fruits and aromatic herbs are penetrating and very long, with the finish showing an obvious saline edge. Made from vines grown on the higher slopes of the Schlossberg hill, this wine is always characterized by ripe, floral acidity and rarely expresses fusel aromas, especially when young.

2005 Domaine Weinbach Riesling Cuvée Ste. Catherine. VM 91+. Pale green. Complex aromas of citrus skin, ripe peach and spices, with a tangy whiff of botrytis. Spicy, dense and rich but quite backward and wound-up. This, too, is classically dry in style, with nearly exotic mace and nutmeg notes perking up the palate. Finishes very dry and very long, with flavors of pineapple and dusty stone. Penetrating and rather austere-in need of aging. This is mostly from the bottom of the Schlossberg, but 20% of the wine comes from outside the grand cru border.

In the back, Turnip roll. A light flakey pastry stuffed with turnip and onion. Quiet nice actually, if a little heavy.

Front and center, BBQ pork. My favorite type, sweet and flavorful.

To the right, BBQ roast duck. Great except for all the bones (which are usual).

Duck sauce. Good on the pork too if you like to double down on your sweet.

Flight 3: Hot in the South

2004 Chapoutier Ermitage Cuvee de l’Oree. Parker 99. A wine that tastes akin to liquid rocks as well as white currants and quince is the light golden 2004 Ermitage Cuvee de l’Oree. This is a fabulous wine, with blockbuster intensity and richness. This is the kind of wine that may last 50-100 years, but of course most readers will opt for earlier consumption.

agavin: Parker loves these, and I own a whole bunch, but I’m not really feeling the love. They are so high alcohol.

2007 Guigal Condrieu la Doriane. Parker 95. This full-bodied white was aged in one-third new oak and two-thirds tank. One hundred percent of the 2007 Condrieu La Doriane is vinified in new oak, and put through malolactic. It is then aged for 11 months prior to bottling. Absolutely exquisite, with the oak pushed to the background, this wine’s fruit character is dominated by apricots, peaches, honeysuckle, and marmalade. The beautiful floral and honeyed fruit aromatics are followed by a sumptuous, full-bodied white that is never heavy (because of good acidity) or flabby. Consume it over the next 2-3 years.

2012 Andre Perret Condrieu. Parker 92. Moving to his Condrieus, the 2012 Condrieu (aged in equal parts barrel and tank) offers up classic lychee nut, flowers and tangerine aromas and flavors, medium-bodied richness, and brilliant purity of fruit. Possessing a perfect mix of freshness and richness, with vibrant acidity and loads of fruit, it should drink nicely for 4-5 years.

Shrimp lettuce cup. The plum sauce unfortunately came AFTER I had finished the roll. Nice crunch to it though.

Stir-fried lobster w/ black pepper sauce. A nice lobster.

Flight 4: Rhone Rampage

1999 Chapoutier Chateauneuf du Pape la Bernardine. Parker 89-91. The 1999 Chateauneuf du Pape La Bernardine offers a sweet perfume of jammy black cherries, cassis, licorice, and minerals, moderate tannin, medium to full body, and excellent ripeness as well as flesh. It will age well for 10-12 years.

2000 Domaine de la Grange des Peres VDP de l’Herault. Parker 94. Profound aromas of peppered blackberries, and garrigue emanate from the glass of the 2000 Vin de Pays de l’Herault (red). This juicy, fresh, concentrated wine is a powerfully elegant beauty. Dark cherries, black raspberries, flowers, and assorted red fruits are found in its seamless personality as well as in its luxurious finish. Anticipated maturity: now-2014.

2004 Domaine Tempier Bandol Rouge Cuvee Cabassaou. Parker 91. The nose stubbornly refuses to charm: surly, introspective with faint scents of forest floor, damp moss, leather and blackberry. The palate is full-bodied, very backward, dense and at the moment just lacking some cohesion. But I am sure this will meld together with ageing but it just lacks a little persistency on the finish. Drinking 2015-2022.

Stir fried frog. With whole garlic, mushrooms, and sweet Chinese sausage. Tasted great, although the look of the frog legs in this sauce wasn’t the most attractive thing I’ve ever seen.

Flight 5: Power of the Priorat

2004 Clos Mogador. Parker 96+. Clos Mogador is produced by the esteemed Rene Barbier who has hit homeruns in both 2003 and 2004. The 2004 Clos Mogador has a more saturated purple color than the 2003 as well as a more expressive perfume of mocha, coffee, and flowers (violets) in addition to toasty oak, earth, and blue and black fruits. More extracted and backward than the 2003, it demands a decade of cellaring and should drink well for an additional 20 years. The 2004 is a tour de force.

2001 Costers del Siurana Clos de l’Obac. Parker 91. This unfiltered blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Grenache, Syrah, Merlot, and Carignan, aged for 14 months in new French oak, and bottled unfiltered, boasts a deep purple color along with a pure bouquet of raspberries, blueberries, wet stones, and toasty, subtle vanillin. Medium-bodied with outstanding concentration, impressive elegance, and a nice texture, this tight but promising 2001 should hit its prime in 2-4 years, and last for 12-15.

2003 Alvaro Palacios L’Ermita. Parker 94-97. I tasted a ready-to-be-bottled tank sample of the 2003 L’Ermita. Typically there are 400-500 cases of this blockbuster, but because of the vintage’s tiny crop as well as a severe triage, only 240 cases were produced. This superb effort displays a black/blue/purple color along with a huge nose of creme de cassis, flowers, crushed rocks, and a hint of smoke. The wine is full-bodied and opulent, with tremendous structure, great definition and purity, and a huge, but elegant, persistent finish. It will benefit from another 1-2 years of bottle age, and last for 15 plus.

agavin: someone brought out the big guns!

On the left, fried frog. Really great crispy garlic fry. Few bones. One of the best frog preps I’ve had.

On the right “french beef.” Sweet and beefy. Good with the wine.

Asparagus. Sort of the prep for Szechuan string beans, but with asparagus.

Flight D: Sweet Finish

2003 Dönnhoff Niederhäuser Hermannshöhle Riesling Auslese. VM 93. Birch beer and pungent brown spices in the nose. Enormously rich, with a hint of caramelization, yet only subtly sweet in overall impression. Peach jam with candied lemon zest, herbal essences, and brothy meat and mineral depths. Firmer in feel than this year’s Brucke Auslese #19, and apt to unfold over a long period.

My cup of tea! Actually it’s the Donnhoff.

Macao Egg Custard. This version was a little eggy, but good.

Sesame mochi ball with bean paste. Nice texture and a really good bean paste. Too bad I don’t digest beans like I used to.

A mango soup, very refreshing.

First off, I have to say this may be my first (regular) Chinese meal that was individually plated. Impressive.

Second, we had a LOT of great straight up Cantonese here and some fun wines with a lot of variety. I thought the dry rieslings paired best, but some of the reds were fabulous wines. Oh, how I love the SGV.

For more LA Chinese dining reviews click here,

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Cantonese, Chinese cuisine, Lunasia, Sauvages, Wine

Enter the Mandarin

Apr03

Restaurant: Mandarin

Location: Saigon

Date: March 23, 2014

Cuisine: Vietnamese / Cantonese

Rating: solid

Our second night in Saigon lead us to this upscale Vietnamese / Cantonese placed called “Mandarin” (like the lame fake villain in Iron Man III).

The dining room is lovely. And another menu the size of Texas:

Fresh spring rolls with shrimp and pork. Not as good as some, these had a slight medicinal taste (some herb?).

Or maybe it was the slightly strange plum sauce.

Pan fried rice pancakes with shrimp mouse. The mouse was the standard Chinese (and Vietnamese shrimp ball material). Fairly mild.

Slightly spicy fish sauce.

Fried soft-shell crabs with da lat lemon sauce. Good and crunchy.

Special king prawn. This guy was huge, and pretty, but a bit of a disappointment as the meat was bland.

Tea to clean the fingers.

Salty beef in bamboo. It was on fire, which is always cool.

And tasted pretty good.

Sticky rice in lotus leaf. Certainly lovely presentation. The rice itself was good, pretty typical.

Roasted duck Mandarin style. We had thought this might be Peking duck, but no, it was this boneless duck in a sweet lemony sauce. Like lemon chicken but duck. Still tasty.

Grilled eggplant with onion.

Mandarin was solid, but nothing amazing. And it was considerably more expensive than most Vietnamese places. Certainly it was interesting, offering a lovely setting and serving up a hybrid Vietnamese and Cantonese cuisine.

For more Vietnam dining reviews, click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Cantonese, Chinese cuisine, eating-vietnam, Restaurant, Saigon

Feasting Lunasia

Feb13

Restaurant: Lunasia [1, 2, 3]

Location: 500 West Main Street Suite A, Alhambra, CA 91801. (626) 308-3222

Date: February 9, 2014

Cuisine: Cantonese Chinese

Rating: Fine Banquet Cantonese

Another week, another Hedonist Chinese extravaganza in the SGV. Up this time, Lunasia, usually known for its all day dimsum. But tonight we’re here for Cantonese banquet.

In a lovely private room. Lunasia is definitely much better looking than many of the local places.

2011 Hatzidakis Winery Assyrtiko. 89 points. Fantastic minerality, great acidity, just a touch of florality on the nose, and just a touch of salinity. The one trick is that you must follow: You must serve this wine between 45 and 52 degrees. At 56 degrees, you lose the minerality, and it seems flabby and unbalanced. But serve it at the right temperature, and wow!

Candied walnuts on the table.

From my cellar: 1990 Mommessin Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Suchots. 93 points. Lovely nose of sweet cherry fruit, barnyard, and spice, more of the same on the palate, tasted young, rich with great complexity, medium body, medium/long finish.

Our bottle was quite nice.

Yarom brought in both boar and venison that he personally killed, and the chef prepared it in various forms. There are two kinds of BBQ chops, some sliced (boar?) meat, and ground boar balls deep fried. This was one of the best preps we’ve yet had from these animals, and we’ve had several (here and here).

2006 Sine Qua Non Autrement Dit. 90 points. Very nice blueberry/strawberry nose. not hot on the nose. really nice full palate and mouthfeel with a nice mix of red and blue fruits, and integrated earthiness. did not noticably detect any heat or wood on this. certainly a bigger and different type of rose, but this bottle was nicely restrained and seemed in good balance tonight.

This is a very expensive, but very nice rose.

Stir-fried lobster w/ black pepper sauce.

2008 Lucien Le Moine Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru Les Vaucrains. Burghound 89-92. A background hint of wood does not compromise the clear reading of the equally pungent and complex nose that is much more animale in character and this character also suffuses the textured, powerful and precise big-bodied flavors that, like the Les Cailles, also lean out somewhat on the otherwise linear and exceptionally long finish. Also like the Les Cailles, my predicted range assumes with this will flesh out with more time in barrel.

Young, but very good.

Various kinds of pork. An almost ham like roast pork in the back (Macau Roasted Pig’s feet?) and a sliced brown sauce version in the front — both delicious. It’s possible the foreground was actually abalone. I’m not sure (it was very tender though).

Some hot chili oil and an unusual (to me) seafood based “fish or scallop” sauce with an extremely unami flavor.

From my cellar: 1994 Bollig-Lehnert Piesporter Goldtröpfchen Riesling Auslese. 92 points. The sweetness had pleasantly faded, but it had extremely nice petrol notes.

Bullfrog with chilies. Good for frog, although one of the more mild dishes tonight.

2005 Hans Wirsching Iphöfer Kronsberg Riesling Spätlese trocken. 90 points. Dry. Green-tinged, straw yellow –maturing. High extract/alcohol (14%). Expressive nose, peach and citrus fruit plus a touch of classic ‘Petrol’ Riesling character. (Small tartrate crystals in this bottle). Very concentrated, rich, spicy, peach and ripe apples, taught minerality and very fine acidity. Very attractive, maturing wine that is great to drink now or in 2-3 years.

Some steamed vegetables with fish cake.

Crab in a special (curry?) fermented sauce. Very tasty, although hard to break into.

1999 Paul Hobbs Pinot Noir Cuvée Agustina Hyde Vineyard. IWC 85. Medium-full ruby. Extractive, oaky aromas of roasted black fruits, tar, bourbon, meat and eucalyptus oil. Fat and full, but the bitter cherry, tar and menthol flavors come across as roasted and tired. Finishes with smooth tannins, but I don’t find much pinot perfume or charm here.

1999 Paul Hobbs Pinot Noir Cuvée Agustina Hyde Vineyard. Parker 94. Paul Hobbs fashioned a potentially monumental 1999 Pinot Noir Cuvee Agustina. An opaque ruby/purple color is followed by a sweet nose of blackberries, cherry liqueur, smoke, forest floor, and toast scents. The wine is terrific on the palate, with multiple layers, great purity, and a prodigious finish. It is made from the Calera clone (the crop size was 0.2 tons per acre), this expensive but blockbuster Pinot was aged 16 months in 100% new French oak, and bottled with neither fining nor filtration. This powerful, intense effort, will require 2-3 years to display its varietal character. This is a Pinot Noir for gluttons.

For a new world pinot, this was a nice wine, certainly way better than Tanzer’s 85, although I think Parker with his new world bias is too generous. I’d probably rate it around 92 points, like a decent premier cru. Spectator gives it a 92.

French style beef. Tender filet mignon.

Stringbeans with pork. A very good example of this type.

2005 Sine Qua Non Pinot Noir Over & Out. IWC 92. Ruby-red. Exotically perfumed nose features energetic raspberry and blackberry scents complicated by cinnamon, mace and fresh rose. Plush and sweet, offering powerful red and dark berry flavors, suave tannins and impressively chewy finishing grip. Less a pinot than a Sine Qua Non wine, and that’s not a bad thing.

Well made, but way way too much oak (as usual for new world pinots).

Peking duck with the soft buns. This was a pretty awesome meaty example.

And the hoison and scallions.

2001 Shirvington Shiraz. Parker 98. The 2001 Shiraz may be even more momentous than the Cabernet Sauvignon. There are nearly 1,000 cases of this blockbuster, opulently-styled, black beauty. Its inky/purple color is followed by an exceptional bouquet of black fruits, espresso roast, charcoal, and smoke. With great ripeness, intensity, purity, that fabulous seamless texture the Marquis team routinely obtains, and a finish that lasts more than a minute, it should offer profound drinking for at least a decade.

I really don’t see what Parker sees in these massive New World Shiraz. It’s fine, but just searing grape.

Chinese Broccoli with bean curd or bamboo shoots?

2000 Domaine Weinbach Tokay Pinot Gris Altenbourg Cuvée Laurence. 93 points. Color: Light golden yellow. Smell: Stone fruits, mineral, and roasted apples/pears. Taste: A melange of stone and tropical fruits with an underpinning of minerals that ebb and flow over a long finish. Overall: Outstanding!! Words won’t do this wine justice…several of us got stuck tasting, and re-tasting this wine through out the evening. Medium body, med+ fruit, med-high acidity, and a long glorious finish.

Someone brought this chocolate filled with poprocks!

A mango soup, very refreshing.

Red bean “soup.” Not my thing.

Of course we headed over to Salju Dessert for some awesome. Above banana peanut-butter Nutella crepe.

A super fruity one with coconut snow and various tropicals.

Almonds and berries.

An unexpected nightcap:

1986 Lafaurie-Peyraguey. Parker 92. A wonderful bouquet of pineapples, smoky nuts, honeysuckle, and other flowers soars from the glass. In the mouth, the wine is rich, with the essence of apricots, pineapples, and other tropical fruits. The acidity is crisp, giving the wine great definition and clarity. The finish is sweet, honeyed, and long. This beautifully made Sauternes is one of my favorites from the 1986 vintage.

For more LA dining reviews click here,

or more crazy Hedonist dinners here!

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Alhambra California, Cantonese, Chinese cuisine, hedonists, Lunasia, Lunasia Chinese Cuisine, san Gabriel valley, Wine

More Mark’s Duck House

Dec11

Restaurant: Mark’s Duck House [1, 2]

Location: 6184 Arlington Blvd # A, Falls Church, VA 22044 703-532-2125

Date: November 30, 2011 & November 25, 2017

Cuisine: Cantonese Chinese

Rating: Very very good cantonese.

Mark’s Duck house is an amazing Cantonese place I go to when I’m home in Washington D.C.. There’s nothing fancy about them other than the food but they make a lot of stuff, and they make it all really well.

Below is the menu to end all menus.

Picking from that menu can be a bit of a challenge!

We tried to entice my three year-old with this “pasta.” (pan fried noodles with Buddha’s delight) but he declared “that’s not pasta!”

But he did go for this lo-mein with garlic.

Hot and sour soup. Classic, but delicious.

The hot and sour soup is so good it was almost finished by the time I got the camera pointed at it (in 2011, the above photo is from 2017).

Beer really goes best with Chinese. If you’ve ever had Chinese wine (I have) you know why.

Succulent “Har-gow” (shrimp dumplings).

The whole peking duck and a glimpse of the green onions and hoisin.

The pecking duck here is incredible. They make the pancakes for you if you want, but the whole assembly was brought out to the table. I had photos of it the last time I was here.

Lobster causeway style. Fried with lots and lots of garlic and a little chilies. One of my favorite Chinese lobster preps.

“Lightly” fried shrimp with the heads still on.

Stir-fried chive-blossoms. It sounds weird but they are incredibly good.

Baby bok choy with garlic. I don’t love full sizec bok, but these were quite nice actually.

Sizzling beef short ribs with black pepper sauce. These were tasty, but the hard part was getting the meat off the bone with chopsticks and teeth!

Filet Mignon with black pepper sauce. Very tender and delicious.

Sauteed mixed seafood in a nest.

“Sweet and sour pork.” At the Panda Express and the like they always have those fried pork balls (which I call fried lard balls). This is the ultimate version. Incredibly tasty!