daekr

.
.

PDF Document was moved: https://bit.ly/2ulojle

.
.

Down one star cause the last 2 times I came back the food was a little bland and the pork in the sweet and sour ttangsuyuk was tough and not soft like it used to be the first time I came. Everything still tasted good but it doesn’t seem too consistent. My original review: Honestly best place for some good jajangmyun and jjampong! The sizes are huge too! Definitely family style and pretty reasonable! My mom was telling me that this location used to be in harryhines but closed down and went somewhere else. I used to grow up going to that location and missed it so much.. when I found out they opened in the new Frisco Asia plaza I was ecstatic! I came here on a Monday night with the family and my bf and when we came in around 630 it was empty. However not a moment later after we ordered, the whole place soon became packed!! Once we were seated down, we got our drinks and menus very quickly. We decided what we wanted to order and our waiter came to us and took our orders. But literally not even a blink of an eye later… our food came out!! It was so quick I swear we waited like 1 minute! Super hot and steamy food.. insanely huge portions and sooo good. We ordered the dangbang jajangmyun (black bean noodles for 2) ; Jjamppong (spicy seafood noodles) ; and pork ttangsuyuk (fried pork with this sweet and sour sauce). They served the sauce on the side so you can eat it however you like. I personally dont like the sogginess it can get if you just pour the sauce all over, so I liked that I was able to pour little sauce and little pork into my plate and eat it slowly while it maintains that crunch! Anyways for 4 ppl it was a ton of food. We left stuffed. It would probably be just enough for 5 ppl to feel satisfied or 4 ppl to be stuffed Haha. Definitely give this place a try!

Sides of Seoul (SOS) – Menu with Prices – 10084 Page Ave, St. Louis

THIS IS IT! What took me so long to visit SOS? This is the most comforting and legit Korean restaurant in St. Louis. My first time here I visited at 6pm and they were sold out of seolleongtang (beef bone broth) and that they were cooking more broth as we spoke – I ain’t even mad. Instead, I took it as a good sign and that I’d be back very soon. I went with the soondubu (soft tofu soup) and my husband went with the jajangmyun (black bean sauce noodles). They have specials of the day posted on the wall on the left side of the restaurant. The special today was a ginseng chicken soup – as if I couldn’t be more long winded, but it doesn’t get more classic/home style than this place. Soondubu – seafood galore. Deeply flavorful and rich. They must’ve packed in two full packages of soft tofu in my bowl. No shortcuts. I got 3 huge shrimp, along with mussels and clams that overflowed my bowl. Jajangmyun – OMG I haven’t had good jajangmyun since before I moved from NYC and even there it’s a hit or miss dish based on a very specific list of specialty Korean restaurants that try to do this dish justice. The biggest factors of this comfort food staple is chewy noodles and an extremely addictive black bean sauce. SOS nailed it so hard that I’m writing this review 30 minutes after our dinner and already planning my next visit. Kim bap – they sell a variety of Korean rice rolls. I got mine to go as a snack for the next day. It’s a small shop – come for the food, stay for the homey hospitality and comfort. P.S. Found the ahjummas and ahjussis hangout spot

Viet Subs Cafe – Menu with Prices – Monument Rd, Jacksonville

Came here for lunch due to a recommendation of a friend. It’s a small spot (probably 10 top). The lady at the register was nice. The menu is slightly smaller than other Vietnamese places I’ve been to (but maybe they pride in quality over quantity?). I ordered some spring rolls. When I checked the yelp the pictures showed a bunch of shrimp to each spring rolls. But when I got mine there was only 3 pieces of shrimp per roll AND a mix of beef or pork? I’m not sure why the switch from a lot of shrimp to some shrimp and another meat, but it wasn’t bad. In the roll had sole good fresh greens and rice noodles. Normally it comes with peanut sauce but the wife has a nut allergy so they switched it to their version of ‘sweet and sour.’ It wasn’t bad but it could have used a stronger sweet and sour flavor to it. It was a very faint flavor of a little tang/sour and some sweet. I ordered the philly (cheese) steak banh mi. At first you think they sandwich is small which technically to me it is (check picture;nickel for reference). But after I ate sandwich, I felt STUFFED! Maybe because the meat and cheese is dense? Anyways, it came with a good amount of mixed flavors. First the bread had crunch but ALSO still had chew to it (I hate hard crunchy bread). I don’t think the beef had any sauce/marinade but the combo of beef and the melted cheese they used had a good savory/steak component to it. It wasn’t to salty or anything. To add to the savory, there were julienned pickled carrots (it’s wasn’t heavily pickled/sour to those asking; it was only a slight sour with a little hint sweet, to me) and cucumbers to added the ‘freshness’ elements to it. Then there were some cilantro on it and a few pieces of jalapeños. I like spicy food but I hate the taste of jalapeños, but I like to try everything “as is” the first time, so this sandwich had some. It wasn’t bad with the jalapeños but I would still go without it in the future. But if you like them/spicy, just keep it on.

Xiao Xing Yun – Menu with Prices – 240 Legacy Dr, Plano

Get the Biang Biang Noodles! (I would type it in Chinese but that’s not possible…) \\ biang biang noodles – fresh chewy hand-pulled noodles that can be probably even a foot long – a wee spicy kick accompanies the other savory umami tastes – hearty chunks of soy sauce-infused sweet pork belly are just the right size to be not too greasy for one bite – don’t wear white because it can be splashy… – definitely can be shared with a friend You can add a è???? (Rougamo) to make a $12 combo. Mo is a little like an English muffin, a little like pita bread… which makes this a little like a really really juicy and flavorful hamburger. I also tried a little of the Pork and Hot and Sour noodle soup. Those noodles are also chewy and appear to be handmade. This is the first place I’ve seen in the metroplex that specializes in Xi’an cuisine, and it’s fantastic that they do it so well. Do indulge, but maybe not too often. At less than $10 a bowl, it’s a great deal for lunch! Bring cash just in case you don’t hit the $10 limit for credit card.

Lá Mint – Vietnamese Kitchen – Menu with Prices – 770 S Meadows Pkwy ste 101, Reno

We were so very excited to try this place. And the excitement didn’t last past the second dish. Service was fast, our server was friendly and informative. The spring rolls were freshly made and came out in minutes. They weren’t the typical tight roll you’d expect. They were loosely rolled and not packed as per the norm. We were told the wrappers are presoaked in the morning and the meets are grilled in advance so they can serve them quickly. I’d rather have a better rolled roll! The sauce was much like I’ve had at a Vietnamese friend’s. Hoisin sauce cut with water and thickened and maybe a dab of peanut butter added. The calamari rings were nicely battered with a light tempera-like batter. The rings themselves were very fishy. We were told this is how the chef likes to serve them so you can taste what you’re eating, thus the light batter. I’ve had many a calamari ring and steak, unbattered that weren’t fishy. We ate one ring each and sent them back. The sweet and sour sauce, however, actually had a sour note, unlike the overly sweet sweet & sour sauce typically found at Asian restaurants. Potstickers…we were so excited, but let down. They were nicely fried, but the wrapper was still uncooked and doughy. The filling smelled stale and also tasted a bit fishy. Not sure if they were the norm with a pork & shrimp filling; just couldn’t make any determination what the filling was…other than not good. The Phó broth was very tasty, as though it had already had hoisin put in it. I know it’s not supposed to be about the noodles…but we love our noodles. The rice noodles in the phó were hands down the worst I’ve ever had. They were a square cut, mushy, broke when you tried to spool them or just get any out for a bite. We decided they tasted somewhere between paper and cardboard, and we all know what paper tastes like. The Korean short ribs were very tasty. They had a great char on them and the marinade was excellent. They were the fattiest short ribs we’d seen so only ate maybe half of them. The pickled daikon and carrots were very yummy! Vietnamese coffee is divine. Theirs was pretty good, they being it brewing over the cup with condensed milk, to pour over ice. The ice had melted a lot before it was all brewed….but even diluted it was still a treat! May you have better luck than we did.

P & Y Cafe Asian Bistro Menu with Prices 2769 S Parker Rd, Aurora

I’ve had jjajangmyun (black bean noodles) my entire life so I’d say I have a pretty good idea of good v. bad noodles. My parents have been eating this dish for a majority of their lives, so a thumbs-up from us means NOM. I think that the jjajangmyun is one of the best I’ve had and would go so far as to say that it’s better than any of the ones I’ve had in Koreatown in LA, in Berkeley, and in Seattle. I don’t know what it is, but it’s delicious without being too salty and too sweet. My mom says that this place is her favorite so I know I’m not the only one who feels this way. I also love P&Y’s fried rice. I DON’T KNOW WHAT IT IS, FOLKS! I eat fried rice all the time, being the Asian that I am, but it is so dang good here. I’m convinced it’s the pork grease, the pork (so tender and juicy!), and the crack. (In my head, I refer to this dish as “crack rice.”) I’m sure someone will eat this and be like, Alice, ‘what’s she smoking?’ And the answer is – nothing! Just high on life… and this rice. But seriously, so good. Sidenote: the fried rice comes with a small bowl of jjajangmyun sauce and a small bowl of jjamppong soup which is the best deal one could hope for. I have also liked their tangsooyook (fried sweet and sour pork (?)) and their Sichuan pork, which is similar to tangsooyook but is spicier. 10/10 recommend.

Long Life Vegi House Menu with Prices 1725 University Ave, Berkeley

So, my friend became vegan, and invited me to this Chinese restaurant that is VEGAN. I couldn’t believe it. Chinese food being vegan? Being half Chinese, and growing up with Chinese food, I couldn’t believe it. LOL **NO MSG!! :):):):) Anyway, we ordered sweet-and-sour pork, with a side of fried rice, and eggroll. Also, we ordered beef with mushrooms braised. I couldn’t believe the “beef” & “pork” actually tasted like beef and pork. I was amazed, and I still am. I am not a huge fan of sweet and sour soup, but their’s was pretty good, especially since it was vegan. Yes, they specialize in vegan food, but they also have a regular menu. I really think that is a great/smart move. More business, more money. Not only that, but a variety is good. I have yet to come back and try more dishes. Maybe it will inspire me to finally try to become vegan, and try to make different dishes, because it is really DIFFICULT to do so. My husband loves meat too, and has no intention in becoming vegan, BUT I can’t wait to have him come to this place! He will be amazed also.

Marco & Luca Dumpling Store – Menu with Prices – 176 Zan Rd, Charlottesville

Something interesting here is that this location has a chicken curry that I’ll address later in the review. I enjoy the simplicity of the sauces that they use. The dumpling sauce is sweet yet spicy, not too dense and compliments the dumplings well. The porkiness of the dumpling shines through, yet I wish the chive flavor was more pronounced. The peanut noodles here are quite good, shame that they’re more expensive than the dumplings themselves and the prices have only increased in the most recent years. The sweet and sour noodles are questionable and you find yourself only ordering them once and then reverting back to your peanut noodle orders. The soup is quite generic but one doesn’t come here for the soup. The aforementioned chicken curry was banal and honestly quite uninspired, granted I shouldn’t expect much as their main staple of the menu is dumplings and noodles. Something I wish to see in the future is more variety in dumplings and less exploration of food items no one really asks for. Instead of curry and soups, just have dumplings and noodles and do it well. All in all, its not a bad place to come and chill with a friend for a snack on the Corner if you’re not too hungry.

YC’s Mongolian Grill – Menu with Prices – 752 W Elliot Rd, Tempe

Woke up needed noodles. Used Yelp to look at all the places near I-10 for noddles since I was meeting my friend to car shop. Anyhoo. We scaled it down to 3 places but in the back of my mind…I knew I wanted Y.C. My friend prepaid for my meal. So as soon as I arrived, we dug in to making a Mongolian treasure. I love the dark meat chicken but also add some white meat. I stacked up with all the fresh veggies. They have definitely uped their selection since I last was there. I did get noodles…hmmm so good. I favor the rice noodles because they are so yummy. I try to leave space for all the sauce but this time, I add the dry seasoning to my meat beforehand and it made a difference. Sauce: YC, Sweet Sour, Garlic, Hot Oil, Orange sauce. At least 10 laddles. My meal was well worth every penny. My friend meal was undercooked. Now, I noticed that her food wasn’t on the grill as long but literally she had pink chicken at the end. It was only one huge piece but made her feel uneasy. But for the uncooked chicken this would of been a 5 star. Love this location. Always clean, always friendly. Pricepoint can’t be ignored. Totally forgot to grab my frozen yogurt…wonder if I can go back and grab that. Had lots of leftovers for me and hubby to enjoy all Sunday.

Peking Express Menu with Prices 514 S Van Dorn St, Alexandria

Peking Express, which was once known as Ho King, is a small Chinese carry-out/delivery place off of Van Dorn. They offer a full menu of appetizers, soups, noodle dishes, chicken/beef/pork/vegetarian options, and even some Thai dishes. The hubs and I ordered some late-night Chinese: Hot & Sour Soup (this was for the hubs only; he said it was just okay); Sesame Cold Noodles (the sesame sauce was way too sweet, and there wasn’t enough to dress the big amount of noodles); Spicy Tangy Dumplings – Szechuan Style (stuffed with ground pork with a peanut butter dressing and topped with green onions; these were little steamed wontons coated with a sugary sweet peanut dressing – not at all spicy and not at all savory; also, the dumplings were also a little cold); Crab Rangoon (the wontons were more on the chewier end, but they were filled with a lot of the cream cheese/crab mixture; a little less thick and more watered down); Mongolian Beef (which comes with white rice or fried rice (brown rice is an extra charge); this tasted okay, but it was a lot of onions; the sauce could have been more thicker, as there was plenty of liquid at the bottom); and, Chicken Fried Rice (the hubs was a total fan of this – light had a good combination of veggies and strips of chicken). They have a delivery option, but we went to go pick it up. Most of the items seemed to be made to-order. There are a few tables and chairs to eat, but most locals seem to just do carry-out/delivery. Plenty of parking in the plaza lot. +Chicken Fried Rice +convenient online ordering system +most food made to-order +delivery available +plenty of parking in shared plaza lot

Pho Lena Express Menu with Prices 3101 Penland Pkwy, Anchorage

This is by far the best location and the most authentic to the original location that was located behind REI on Spenard. The current Spenard location has been very hit and miss for the last year. We only eat at the Northway location now because the food is consistently good, made the way Mama Lena always made it originally. I am a fan of the appetizers and tend to order the fresh rolls and the stuffed chicken wings. Order them with a small side of peanut sauce and dip them in the sweet chili sauce, peanut sauce, and the peanuts. It’s SO good. The outside of the chicken has that red marinade red pork has and the inside is stuffed with clear glass noodles, ground meat, and vegetables. The fresh rolls and egg rolls are the best in town–the vegetarian version of the egg rolls too. I highly recommend their chicken pad Thai, pad zee ew, and broccoli beef too. My roommate gets the pho and beef fried rice every time. He is Thai/Laotian like the owners and Pho Lena makes his favorite beef fried rice. The location is inside the Northway mall near the Joann Fabrics mall entrance. It’s a small hole in the wall type atmosphere. Sometimes the cleanliness isn’t the best because of other customers who leave surprises near the condiments, but that’s more lazy people’s fault than the owners. They also have Thai desserts like glutinous rice and coconut milk, but it can vary from day to day. I reckon my roommate and I have eaten at Pho Lena’s multiple locations so many times we may as well own stock in the company. 10/10 highly recommend for the best Thai and Laotian food.

Phá»? Lê – Menu with Prices – 2100 SE 164th Ave, Vancouver

It’s rare I leave a review of a Vietnamese place that is this low. We went in and sat down to order. The menu was very plain, but looked decent. We ordered the regular salad rolls (pork and shrimp) as well as the chicken salad rolls. The pork and shrimp were decent, but light on the herb flavor. The chicken salad rolls were bland. Boiled chicken, rice noodles, and rice paper is pretty bland (no herbs of any kind, really?) My partners dish came first. He ordered the chicken vermicelli bowl. Despite the menu saying it was grilled, it was clearly stir fried chicken and very saucy. It wasn’t pleasant. They served it with what they called “sweet and sour sauce” which smelled strongly of vinegar but tasted like a very mild fish sauce with sugar and chili’s. Our friend had the pork version, which again was fried, not grilled. The bowl was quite bland over all. Lastly I had the 11. Pho dac biet – not bad broth, very clear, with a good portion of meat. The Tripe and tendon were tender, and the noodles fresh. This dish saved this review from being one star. The servers were friendly enough but the decor is weird (someone’s art/photo projects on the wall) and is taped awkwardly around. We won’t be back. Go to the Vietnamese place across the street. It’s SO much better.

Happy Bao’s – Menu with Prices – 66 S Dobson Rd #112, Mesa

The next time you’re picking up groceries at Mekong Plaza, stop in to Happy Bao’s for some good dumplings and noodles! Happy Bao’s is a relatively new restaurant to the Plaza, next to the dim sum restaurant (which is next on my list!). It’s a small space, so probably not great for large groups, but it’s cute. There are pictures of bao buns and dumplings on the wall, in addition to life size representations used as decor (adorable). Our waitress used these to give us a visual of the size of the “giant bao” special for the day, which, of course, we ordered when she said it was two dollars and some change (great deal!). The giant bao was about 4 inches in diameter and was stuffed with pork and chicken. The bao dough was great, soft and pillowy. The filling was okay, it really came to life though with a little of the chili paste and dumpling sauce. Side note about these condiments, you have to ask for them! Make sure you do. I’m not sure why they aren’t on the table, since everyone wants them. I’m a huge fan of Dan Dan Noodles, so of course we had to order those. Great spicy ground pork on top of noodles, accompanied by sliced fresh cucumbers and topped with roasted peanuts – so good! To round out our sampling, we also order the steamed chicken dumplings. They were the biggest surprise because they looked kind of boring, but had big flavor. Happy Bao’s was really inexpensive too. Our total bill for all three items, plus tea, soda and tax was $21.00! Now, is this as good as a famous chain like Din Tai Fung, of course not, but it is really tasty!