foodie_21's Profile
Chinese Soup Dumplings in Phoenix Area
Some Chinese friends took me to a place at the Chinese Cultural Center and we ordered soup dumplings. It was delish!
Schezwan Palace
668 N 44th Street
Phoenix, AZ 85008
Review: Little Rangoon - Scottsdale
Never having Burmese food and following a quick look see on the chow board, i approached a friend's invitation to Little Rangoon with a quite bit of trepidation. However, I was pleasantly surprised by how good some of the dishes were. My impression was that Burmese food kind of like Thai food without the chilli burn and a much lighter hand on the various seasonings.
For appetizer, I avoided the spring roll (thanks for the warning Firenza00) and went for the crispy gourd fritter instead. The vegetable itself was on the bland side, but the crispy tempura-like crust and sweet chilli (barely spicy) dipping sauce made the dish a winner.
I also had the tea salad which I quite like, though I would agree that the crispy garlic bits within the salad was so subtly flavored that it verged on being bland. But it all works well in balance with the other elements in the dish which comprises of lightly flavored tea leaves, the crunchy peas, sesame, cabbage and tomatoes. Over all a tasty treat.
The absolute winner of the night and the dish that will be bringing me back to Little Rangoon would be the Burmese Traditional Fish Curry which is actually panfried catfish chunks lightly topped with a curry sauce. The fish was meltingly tender and the flavors were kicked up by a spicy hint of chili. Delicious enough for multiple repeats
Asian Cafe Express in Mesa
I love Asian Cafe Express. Sorry that some people didn't have the same great food experience there. I first went with a Cantonese speaker who had a pretty extensive conversation with the chef's wife(?) behind the counter and the food we had was really awesome...and quite different than the Panda express like dishes that I saw other people ordered on their table. I think the key is to speak to the owners and just ask them for authentic stuff that they would eat themselves.
Thai House in Scottsdale? (FLW/Pima)
I just went to Thai House for lunch and ordered the spicy noodles and the beef pat phrik king. Both were excellent...and spicy as all heck. I went with a friend who has lived in Bangkok and was able to order the dishes in Thai (that might have made a difference in how hot they made it). She assured me that both dishes were completely authentic and well executed, particularly the touch of kaffir lime leaves (in the menu it said "lemon leaves") on the dish. Who would have thought, great Thai food in North Scottsdale.
Sunday Night BBQ - Bourbon Steak, Scottsdale
Mouth wateringly good review. I have been wanting to go, your description is enough to push me off my inertia this weekend.
Favorite White Pizza? (PHX)
Just went to humble pie last night. The shrimp pizza with basil and lemon zest was excellent. The shrimp was just cooked, while the tanginess of the lemon and the fresh basil lighten up the whole dish and made it perfect for a hot evening.
Pizzeria Bianco Trek: 3 Must Order Pizzas
Wise guy is awesome. If you like sausage then this is a can't miss.
My personal fav in the create your own category is the marinara with anchovies.
but since you're making a trek, becareful to check their website (http://www.pizzeriabianco.com/index2.html) for closed dates. For instance, they're actually closed next tues through thrus (6/17 - 6/19)
Sweet Republic - Scottsdale
So I went back to check out some these intriguing flavors that Ciaogal and Jess321 reported on. The salted caramel was a yes for me. So were the pear ginger and lime basil. But the one flavor that I thought was really outrageous was the honey blue cheese. I wasn't sure that this would work, but it totally blew me away.
Second Ciaogal on their need to advertise.
Favorite White Pizza? (PHX)
Totally agree with Silverbear's choice of Pizzeria Bianco, but my fav white pizza there is the wise guy with their housemade fennel sausage...worth the hours of wait under the blazing Phoenix sun...we alway over order so that we can take the extra home
Staying at the Scottsdale Princess, looking for good eats
Bourbon Steak is currently running a special Sunday BBQ dinner for just $49 with choice of main (skirt steak, salmon, chicken), very interesting sides (heirloom tomatoes, kobe sliders, etc), and unlimited apps. Some foodie friends just went this past Sunday and highly recommended it
Last minute Pork Shop news
Queen Creek Olive Mill is pretty close to the Pork Shop. You can do olive tasting, buy some tasty olive oil and get a light lunch there.
Also last time I was at the Pork Shop on a Saturday, there was a lady who provides knife shapening service in the parking lot. I brought some of my kitchen knives to her and she returned them to razor sharpness. Very reasonably priced too.
Last minute Pork Shop news
Very true on the bus loads of older folks...but it's me that about have a heart attack whenever I see them cause I'm afraid that they're gonna swipe all the goods before I get to it.
Sweet Republic - Scottsdale
I was at Sweet Republic last week and really liked the housemade everything concept. But they didn't have the flavors that ciaogal is talking about.
I'm really curious to try the salted caramel ice cream mentioned the the New Times blog. I tried it before at Bi-Rite in SF, but didn't really like it there though I enjoyed the other flavors. So hopefully the salted caramel will be better at Sweet Republic.
Last minute Pork Shop news
Kansas City style bacon is definitely the way to go...all the flavor without most of the fat in regular bacon...it's worth my 3 hrs+ round trip drive...bring a big big cooler, you'll want to stock up
Greatest Hummus-PHX/Scottsdale
Have you tried Aladdin's (near corner of Via Linda & 90th St)? Small family owned place where they make everything from scratch. Only down side is that they're not speedy (best to call ahead with order) and they close pretty early at 8pm. The owner is from Lebannon and the food (including hummus) is pretty darn authentic and tasty.
Phx: Sugar Bowl vs. MacAlpine
I think MacAlphine has the edge with its cute retro look --- original wooden booths and classic coke signs on the wall. They also do a pretty mean shake with 6 scoops of ice cream. But both are more for taking in the atmosphere than the ice cream since neither makes their own --- Sugar Bowl uses Dryer's and MacAlphine's uses Thrifty.
If you're into homemade ice cream, then there is a new place in Scottsdale called Sweet Republic (next to Jade Palace at Shea & 92nd St). They make all their own everything including the toppings for the sundaes.
Suggestions for Thai food n.scottsdale/phx area?
Have you tried Rama Thai? Pretty decent and fairly authentic Thai place. Not as good as Nakorn Thai in LA or Silapachai in NY but the best I've had so far in Phoenix.
1221 W. Camelback Road
Phoenix, AZ 85013
602.285.1123
Best Inexpensive Eating in LV
Absolute best non-fancy place in Vegas is Ichiza serving izakaya (little plates...think tapas Japanese style). Unbelievably good, totally inexpensive (as long as you stay away from Uni and other sushi), honest & authentic food, and open til 3am to boot. On my last trip to Vegas, we were there everyday...and if it was closer to home, I'd be there weekly.
Be warned though that hordes of other people are also aware of how good Ichiza is so if you show up at peak dinner hours, you can expect a wait.
It's on the second floor of the strip mall at
4355 Spring Mountain Rd
Las Vegas, NV 89102
(702) 367-3151
Any decent Dim Sum in Phoenix area?
China Chan (on the outer ring of the metro parkway mall) is the best dim sum I've had so far in Phoenix. If you ever wonder where all the Chinese Aunties & Uncles are on the weekend, well certainly more canto speakers than I've found at any of the other dim sum places (C-Fu, Great Wall, etc). Would recommend going there on the weekend. While the menu is quite short, it does cover all the usual suspects from har gow to siu mai to char-siu bao (and even some unusual ones like tripe with ginger and scallion -- highly recommend this one in particular). Would also highly recommend the steam cheung fun and the egg custard tarts.
Note that since this is a small space, they don't do cart dimsum, but rather steam items to order which IMHO is the superior way to serve dimsum...and is the way that dimsum are now served in HK and Vancouver. Also very rare for a Chinese dim sum place, it is actually a chef-owner restaurant...so the dimsum should stay quite tasty for a while.
However, would caution against going there for dinner -- when I was there the dishes were quite average and not worth the drive.
China Chan is at
10227 N Metro Pkwy E (Between the Olive Garden and Barnes & Noble)
Phoenix, AZ 85051
(602) 331-1313
