Yep, it's me again and I'm back in Shanghai. And once again I'm eating and I have no idea where. Actually, that's not 100% true. I can probably find this restaurant again if I tried real hard, but as far as the name, etc... no clue.
Let's eat!
For those of you that can read Chinese here's the menu cover, maybe it says the restaurant name?!?!?
Tea, for sure. Here it's pretty much a constant thing. With meals, before meals, after meals, all the time. Good things it's awesome or it might suck. What?
The first dish up is a cold offering of chicken. It's first boiled and then sliced and then it rests in a bath of white wine, a sort of cold poach. Correct, this kicks ass. There are a few small bones throughout, but it's worth dealing with them to be able to enjoy the deepest juiciest chicken flavor ever.
I know I know, looks terrible, but tastes great.
EEL
I think it's fried and then bathed, liberally, in some brown hoisin'ish sauce. It was hot (temp wise), and it had a very deep flavor with super soft flesh, and it was delicious. Alternating with a mouthful of rice makes this a winner in my book.
Bamboo Shoots and some sort of greens?
The greens were barely saute'd and the bamboo shoots were crunchy and yummy. The sauce was a little heavy but it worked.
Xiao Long Bao
Mini soup dumplings. A Shanghai specialty, and this place is hand making the best I've ever had, anywhere. I believe that they are a mix of pork and shrimp and the soup broth inside was mind blowing.
Amaze-balls
Hong Shao Rou
Red Braised Pork
This is the dish that brought us to this restaurant.
Another Shanghai original, the pork belly is slow braised forever and finished with a light coating of again a Hoisin'ish sauce (maybe it IS just Hoisin but that would be too easy and I'd get bummed, but maybe they make it so then it would be great?!?!? How the F am I supposed to know this shit?!?!?!?)
Back to the pork.
SOOOOOOOOO GOOD!!!!!
And made familiar to by my good friend Eddie Huang of the Viceland TV Show "Huang's World"
For more on this dude, click just below!
Eddie is the Chef/Owner of Bao House fame, who now has a show on Viceland, it's a TV Channel.
Eddie is of Taiwanese decent with his parents emigrating from mainland China in their youth.
Eddie loves this dish and there are a few clips of him making this online, so I was pretty stoked to check it out live and in person, and now you can too.
Along with the pork are these round spheres nestled in and around the porky goodness.
Potato? Shallot? Pearl Onion? WTF???
Hard Boiled Quail Egg
SOOOOOOOOO GOOOOOOD and goes so good with the pork!!!!
And then alas, the evening comes to an end. A few long hard days behind, another few long hard days ahead with a 14 hour flight to bring up the rear. Right now all my rear wants is a toilet, shower, and a bed.
Thanks for reading.
Peace and Love
DVA
(Deep Fried Baby Pigeon)
