HungWeiLo's Profile
Indian in Seattle?
re: the point about getting "soft" - just because someone is of an ethnic group 'X' doesn't necessarily mean they are knowledgeable about cuisine of 'X'.
That's why it's never a good idea to ask a random stranger on the street of wherever (or a coworker in your case) to recommend a good restaurant. Most people, regardless of where they live, just don't really care or care to know, and just want to eat something cheap and convenient / non-offensive / familiar. Even in extreme chow-worthy cities like Hong Kong as you mentioned, the majority of people there are content just eating cheap fast food (think Cafe de Coral) all the time.
Best Korean or authentic Chinese (any region) in Shoreline? Dinner out tonight!
I thought the usual rule for most Korean places for grill use was at least 2 meat dishes, right? It's "more than" 2 now?
Best Korean or authentic Chinese (any region) in Shoreline? Dinner out tonight!
Yeah, I wouldn't be surprised if they were closed. They looked like they were about to be the last time I was there (and I don't remember when that was).
Best Korean or authentic Chinese (any region) in Shoreline? Dinner out tonight!
Korean - there's Ka Won and Sorabol. Heard very good things about Haenam but never been.
Chinese - there's really only Szechwan 99 that's good up that way - one of the standout Szechwan places in the Seattle area. Stick with the somewhat limited set of authentic dishes and you'll do very well (tofu dishes are especially a standout).
Secret, irresistable ingredient used in a local Vietnamese restaurant revealed
300 pot plants found growing in My Canh on MLK:
http://www.komonews.com/news/local/300-pot-plants-found-inside-eatery-following-electrical-fire-151420315.html
Never tried this place. But this does remind me of a previously popular place in Vancouver called Double Double Wonton which burned down some years ago, and the firemen found a similar "surprise". I remember craving their food quite often back then...
Recommendation for husbands birthday - we are foodies but i am pregnant
Thank you for your responses.
Recommendation for husbands birthday - we are foodies but i am pregnant
Thanks for this thread. We're in the same situation and planning a rez at either the Modern and/or EMP soon. We're just doing the standard no raw meat and no high-mercury fish route. Although added to this equation is that my wife is lactose intolerant and hates lamb with a passion. (I myself have zero dietary restrictions, fortunately)
Or is it not worth it to go until after the pregnancy as we have these additional restrictions?
Awesome Vietnamese in International District (or downtown vicinity)
Huong Binh, Lemongrass, maybe Ben Thanh (south of ID).
Green Leaf and Tamarind Tree are fine, as they're a more refined "restaurant experience", but the food is a tad sugared up for the non-Vietnamese clientele. Long Provincial (not in ID but in downtown) is, I believe, the sister restaurant of Tamarind Tree.
BIg News in Seattle Restaurant Scene!
After years of exporting the likes of Celine Dion, Bryan Adams, and the Bieber, you guys owe us at least that much. :-)
Speaking of which - my obligatory Bieber anecdote belongs here. I saw him at Metrotown before he got really huge. Disney was promoting him at the time as "as seen in High School Musical" or something like that. There he was, sitting in a mall booth table waiting impatiently for people to come up to talk to him. I was there waiting for my wife to come out of the bathroom. She came back and we look at him sitting there all by his lonesome and we were like "who's that"? Then he asked me about the bubble tea I was drinking (Bieber-related and tangentially Chow-worthy!)
Falafel?
There's a place next to Pan Africa by Pike Place - I think it's also owned by the same people who own Shawarma King on the Ave. Are they still any good? There's Aladdin on the Ave also - not as good as Shawarma King but it's got its fans.
On the eastside, Garlic Crush and Med Kitchen in Bellevue/Kirkland. Also Gyros 2 Go in the strip mall next to Value Village in Redmond.
BIg News in Seattle Restaurant Scene!
Great news!
Although some part of me wishes that Vij's and its sister restaurants would also lend some of their talents to serving up some more old school / classical dishes in addition to their fusion offerings.
Just Moved to Redmond from Boston -- Food Shopping Help Please!
"but I'll throw out the fact that I think Safeway and Albertson's are nasty. I do not think you find quality products there. "
These things are all relative, though, aren't they? While growing up poor, Safeway is where the rich folks went.
Just Moved to Redmond from Boston -- Food Shopping Help Please!
Feels that way. It's odd because Haggen's is too high-end for the relatively lower income Crossroads. The previously lower-end Top Foods was a better fit for the neighborhood. I wonder how they'll compete on price in this economy, especially with WF just minutes away.
Just Moved to Redmond from Boston -- Food Shopping Help Please!
You've nailed most of the food places in the Redmond area. Haggen in Bellevue would also be worth going, though for that price point Whole Foods is probably better. (Off topic - Haggen is based in Bellingham near the Canadian border. Why does everyone there pronounce it "Hagen's" as if there's only one "G"? It seems like people are doing it down here now as well).
Bellevue and Redmond have farmers markets in late spring and summer. Though the ones across the pond (Ballard esp.) have better selection.
For bread, I like going to Columbia City Bakery, Macrina, Grand Central (I think WF carries at least Macrina and Grand Central if you don't feel like crossing the bridge).
Fred Meyer, as mentioned, has above average quality for produce for their price point (Safeway / Kroger) and plus you can get pretty much anything else you can think of while you're there.
Also, Redmond / Bellevue has several smaller Indian and Asian groceries too should you need specialty items.
Recipe for Harusami Salad from Musashi's
There are several recipes online. Seems like a fairly easy thing to do:
http://www.grouprecipes.com/83721/harusame-salad.html
Your disappointing purchases from Costco
I'm usually the last person to judge by the cover of the book, but I've just been burned in the past from Costco's obviously-repurposed-unsold-rotisserie-chicken items, and have extrapolated that experience to this new offering of theirs.
It just looks like it has to be as bad as that sushi party plate. Anybody here tried it and can tell me otherwise?
Favorable review of new Olive Garden in Grand Forks, ND
There's an Olive Garden and Red Lobster pair in a burb 15-20 min north of Seattle, and there always seems to be people camped out on the front lawn around dinner time waiting for a table. Same with the Buca di Beppo nearby. So this phenomenon is not limited to just rural America.
Your disappointing purchases from Costco
Haven't bought it and tried it yet (and never will) - but that premade deli chicken tikka masala (next to the rotisserie chicken rack) just looks like a disaster.
Your disappointing purchases from Costco
To find the best specimens of Washington-produced apples, look in the premier supermarkets of East Asia. They look so perfect you can't help but think they're genetically engineered from the ground up. The best fruits and foods from the agra-producer regions of America gets exported there these days.
Rou Jia Mo (肉夹馍) - who has best ?
Just tried them last weekend at both O'Tray's and R&H and they're both just heavenly.
Incidentally, we also tried the signature shank/tripe/tendon noodles at Chef Hung's at Aberdeen Centre and found it very odd and unpleasant tasting - almost as if they had used some out-of-a-jar sauce for the soup base (kind of like how some bad pho places would "cheat" and use the jar of soup mix). This was disappointing as the quality of their ingredients was top-notch. Whereas similar noodles at O'Tray's were done very well and did not have a hint of the "artificial-ness" of the spicy soup base.
Where to purchase Pho noodles
I don't think they put their entire inventory on their website. They seem to have plenty of non-Korean items in their stores, usually. Might be worth a try.
Where to purchase Pho noodles
Look for packages that say "banh pho".
Depending on where you are looking, sometimes they might even have it in the "foreign foods" aisle at Fred Meyer, though that may not be the case in Tacoma. Try Paldo World or Boo Han down there, or H-Mart in Federal Way.
Dim sum in Seattle
I can't say I can agree with that. Vancouver locations like Kirin, Sun Sui Wah, Shiang Gardens and Neptune are really on a whole another planet compared to what we have here. There is simply not the critical mass of Cantonese diaspora in the Seattle area to bring it world-class dim sum. Taiwanese / northern/central Chinese are usually the better bet around here.
Dim sum in Seattle
DTF certainly has finally hit their stride and overcome their growing pains. It was really inconsistent quality for the first year or so.
And ipsedixit is correct - DTF is not dim sum or yumcha. (Are you an Aussie or Kiwi by any chance? I haven't heard anyone used that term "yumcha" here in an English context otherwise...)
Dim sum in Seattle
It's pretty much still the same food and same owner. Apparently someone sued them for name infringement or something like that.
Old-Fashioned NYC-Style "Cantonese" Chinese-American Food in Seattle?
Tai Tung in the ID, Louie's in Ballard, and Rickshaw in Greenwood would probably work.
I'm far from an expert on this, and the last time I've had this stuff was because it was the only restaurant in a town of 250 in southeastern Oregon.
Seattle/Tacoma--college dining
Now that you mention it, Rancho Bravo is very highly inconsistent. It can seem like it was owned by 2 sets of people depending on which day you go. I usually go south to Taqueria el asadero anyways, but if you have to find quick taco truck fare in Wallingford / U-District, that's pretty much your own choice, and it's not terrible most of the time...
Fine Dining with Banquet Room and Grand Piano? (Eastside)
I had the exact same issues when I got married (except I was the one getting married and the now-part-time concert pianist and was going to jam a bit with the hired orchestra during the reception). I think the closest you'll get is the Newcastle Golf Course, but the piano there is pretty sad.
I would focus on choosing the right restaurant and the food that they offer, then rent a good piano and have it delivered for the wedding. Professional concert pianists are usually pretty picky about their instruments, and most restaurants willfully neglect their already substandard instruments.
Hungweilo - not seattle related, but didn't know where to post
Thanks for the interesting article.
"Visiting Chinese anthropologist Fei Xiaotong, for example, was amused and amazed by a restaurant he visited in the early 1940s. "It was called a Chinese restaurant," he wrote, "but ... nothing made me feel the slightest at home."
Even back then, the "authenticity police" was in full force!
Seattle/Tacoma--college dining
Oh I sure did miss Shwarma King - that place tastes a lot better than its looks suggest.
I enjoy many items at Hiroshi's - I need to go check them out again as I've not been in a while. One thing I haven't tried there are their noodles...I should do that.
