The General

EMM Group, the people behind Catch and Tenjune, just opened their new spot The General last week.  Talk about getting the word out - I got emails about the opening from all sorts of sites such as Urbandaddy, Eater, and Thrillist.  All right all right, let's give it a go then shall we?

One of my dining compadres called earlier in the week to make a reservation for 4 people for Friday night.  We were told that only 6:30pm and 9:30pm were open.  Ok...looks like we're gonna have to go with 6:30pm on this one.  Late dinner reservations on a Friday really means an ugly Saturday morning so yes, lets eat first before kicking off any kind of Friday night festivities.  (Although, after we finished up and were leaving a bunch of tables were still open and available.  I will never know how these things work...)

Upon arrival, I was amazed at how big the space was.  There's a huge bar area up front with lots of tables and a decently sized dining room in the back.  The General had bold wall paper, funky lights, and modern chairs which added to the fun and super lush feel of the place. 

Given all the space and the scarcity of people rushing for 6:30pm dinner (just me huh?), I was surprised when the hostess tried to seat us right on top of the only other table seated.  No exaggeration, the chair of one of the girls at the other table was touching the chair at our table.  When we asked to be placed in any of the other 296 remaining seats, I was even MORE surprised when we were given push-back and left standing (!!).

Nyonya

Looking for some cheap eats?  In a bid to keep costs down for a dinner out, my friend suggested Nyonya, a Malaysian restaurant just north of Chinatown (around Little Italy) she had been going to for years.  I'm so glad she introduced me to this place!

For appetizers, my friend and I shared an order of Homemade Roti Canai.  The pancake is flakey and crispy and the curry dipping sauce has some nice heat.  Love! Seriously, you won't regret getting this dish.

Nyonya is known for their Hainanese Chicken with Rice, a steal at $5.75! The chicken is served room temperature (not hot) in their chef's soy sauce.  It's served alongside a serving of rice flavored with chicken - ohmygosh I could eat bowls of this.  Oh wait, I did!  I definitely licked my rice bowl clean.  The chicken is delicious with the soy sauce, but it also comes with a side dish of some spicier sauce.

Hainanese Chicken with Rice at Nyonya

Singapura

Stopped by Singapura for dinner the other week and was pleasantly surprised!  Located in the Murray Hill / Gramercy area, this spot was perfect for a low-key Malaysian and SE Asian meal.

The space is longer than it is wide, with booths on one side and tables with flowery lights above on the other side.  I liked the little touches Singapura added, such as the lion-esque medallions on the chairs and abacuses on the side of the booths.

Booths on one side, tables and flowery lights on the other

Small touches I liked...

When perusing the menu, it took all my willpower to resist the call of my usual noodle and curry dishes.  At the encouragement of my dining compadre, we tried (almost) all new things this meal!

Glaze (Union Square Location)

Glaze has finally opened their second outpost in Union Square!  Their first location in Midtown East is only a couple blocks away from Piggy KL's humble abode and I was definitely jealous.  Well you know what?  Now I get my very own Glaze just a couple blocks away from my apartment too!  YAY! 

Glaze Union Square now open!

The look, feel, and menu of this location is the exact same as their Midtown East location.  Glaze's specialty is the teriyaki plate and they streamline your decision making with a three-step process: you choose a protein (chicken, steak, salmon, tofu, veggie, or pork loin available), white or brown rice, and a dressing for your salad. 

Menu

Simple and open space

Flushing: Mala Xiang Guo (Spicy Stir-fry Pot)

There's a new shopping center called New World Mall that opened in Flushing just last year.  And its amazing.  Located on Roosevelt Ave right next to the 7 train, New World Mall is comprised of a full Asian supermarket, two floors of shops, a gorgeous restaurant on the top floor, parking garage, and an awesome food court in the basement.  Just like the ones you see in Taiwan!! 

I'm sure I'll be posting about my various trips to eat there, but in this post I'll be taking you through my experience at the Mala Xiang Guo station. 

Mala Xiang Guo station at the New World Mall food court

Located in one of the the corners of the food court (when you come down the escalators, keep going straight and it'll be in the corner on your left at the end), This definitely offers a unique experience that I've never had in the city.

In the simplest terms, Mala Xiang Guo is a spicy and fragrant stir-fry pot.  Its almost like a dry hot pot with only one flavor choice - spicy fragrant.  Not really getting what exactly this is?  Easier for me to show you!

When you come up to the station, you'll notice a large variety of raw veggies.

All your choices to include in your pot!

Cha-An Tea House - Part II (Tea and Desserts)

Happy Valentine's Day to my fellow Piggys!  

In my last post yesterday, I took you through my meal experience at Cha-An Tea House which had me walking away disappointed.  However, what really did blow me away at Cha-An was their tea and desserts!  If you are still thinking of last minute V-day plans, I think this is the perfect answer for you!

Cha-An has a pretty extensive tea list that goes beyond your standard black tea and green tea.  In fact, they offer five kinds of black tea, eleven types of green tea, three types of Oolong tea, two types of Pu-erh tea, two white teas, six herbal teas, and two special latte teas!  You can take a look at their full tea menu here. 

During peak times, there is a one order per person rule  However, this does not mean one tea order per person.  They are perfectly ok with you sharing orders of tea and dessert and Cha-An is VERY good about refilling your tea pot with hot water so that you maximize your pot.

Cha-An Japanese Tea House - Part I (Meals)

I've been on a tea kick lately and have been loving all the new tea spots that I've finally been getting around to discovering!  One I've heard so much about for a while now is Cha-An Japanese Tea House.

Entrance to Cha-An Tea House

Located just a block off from St. Marks, this little haven is tucked away in a totally zen second floor space. Just as the sign in the picture below says, when you walk into the Cha-An space you really do "leave your cares behind" and "just feel the quiet moments" as you relax and enjoy their tea house setting

 

Inside of the tea house

Fatty 'Cue (West Village)

Question:  Asian cuisine + American BBQ = ?
Answer:  Fatty 'Cue!

Combining these two cuisines results in truly amazing Asian flavors with great quality meats.  I just visited Fatty 'Cue in the West Village, and they also have a location in Williamsburg which I visited over the summer.  Surprisingly the menus differ at the two locales, which makes it all the more interesting to try both!

The food was delicious and every dish had different flavors.  Nothing one-note here! The food line up consisted of:

Ham, Jam, Butter & Bread (edward's ham, pretzel bread, cincalok, aged butter)

Trippa 'Malaysiana' (Tripe in a red anchovy curry)

Special: Braised Beef Cheeks with Noodles and Chinese Sausage

Non-traditional Christmas Dinners

361 days until Christmas 2012! I hope you all delighted in holiday festivities this year and enjoyed and embraced with loved ones.

This year, we split our time between hubby's family and my family, and lucky for us, that means not one, but TWO Christmas dinners!

Our families are prime examples of how there are many different ways to celebrate the holidays.  One tradition is Asian style (over Korean BBQ or Chinese food), while another is the traditional American feast at home.  Here are some pictures of how we feasted over the holiday.  After all, remember food is just the accessory when you're surrounded by the people you love!

While visiting family in New Jersey on Christmas Eve, we wandered over to Chung Sol Bat in Edison for a fantastic Korean BBQ dinner. The portion sizes were plentiful and the quality of food was very good.  Everything is shared amongst your party and the meats are cooked right in the middle of the table.  If you're ever in the area, this place is a solid choice!

Assortment of banchan (small side dishes) were shared with the table

Kalbi cooking over hot coals

Almost ready to eat!

The whole spread.  Plentiful? YES!

Cooking: Gai Lan with Garlic Sauce

Next to being a super duper carb-monster, I'm a pretty fabulous veggie-inhaler as well.  My parents never had to tell me to eat my greens twice.  No problem!  These days, I tend to position myself closest to them at the dinner table.  If you ever wind up eating with me, consider yourself warned! I may or may not be the reason why the veggies are disappearing :)

One of the vegetables I grew up eating are Gai Lan (Chinese broccoli).  It's green and leafy and good for you too.  My Dad still makes this pretty often and I've finally learned how he makes it taste SO darn good!  He serves Gai Lan with his wonderfully fragrant Garlic sauce, which is quick and easy to make, and very versatile.  It can be mixed with almost any vegetables (think bok choy, string beans, or a mix of zucchini/mushrooms/baby corn, etc).  I love Garlic and am pretty generous with it when cooking, so don't be afraid to throw in a few extra cloves like I do!

Here's a quick, easy and pretty healthy recipe (courtesy of my Dad aka my greatest cooking teacher!).

NJ: Shanghai Noodle House

We all have that one restaurant that you always crave.  The one restaurant that you always find yourself eating at when you are in the neighborhood.  For me, my calling is at Shanghai Noodle House in Edison, NJ.

My favorite meal!  Read on to find out more!

Every time I go back to see my mom in NJ, I definitely have to must be no other option have a meal at Shanghai Noodle House.  My family has been going to the original location, Shanghai Bun in Matawan NJ, since it first opened 10+ years ago.  Even though it was a 45 min drive (was only 20 min before but my mom moved!) we still made the trip for my necessary bowl of noodles each and every time I came back to good ‘ole Jerz.  

Last year, I heard rumor that they were opening a second outpost in Edison, NJ.  And so, one glorious evening, my mom took me to scope out the situation and HUZZAH!  The rumors were true and the new location was only a 10 minute drive from my Mom’s place!  

Front of Shanghai Noodle House in Edison, NJ!! (pic from shanghaibun.com)

Dinners & Lunches in Taiwan

In my last post I re-lived some of my favorite small eats in Taiwan.  There are endless casual and delicious places to discover! However there are also a ton of sit-down places and finer dining.  The cuisine in Taiwan is very heavily influenced by the Japanese, so it really is a wonderful fusion of Chinese and Japanese. Here's a smattering of a couple of the bigger meals I had in Taipei!

Business Lunch at Sumie

One huge difference between Taiwan and the US is that they actually take lunch hours! While the norm for us (especially in the Financial industry) is that we grab something really quick and work while eating at our desks, the norm in Taiwan is to get away from the office and have an hour+ long meal.  So jealous!  As such 'Business Lunches' are quite popular.  While I was in Taipei I tried the Business Lunch menu at Sumie, in the San Want Hotel.  It cost about $30 to $40 USD per person.  We got a lot of food for the value, check it out:

Prices for the Business Lunch vary depending on the main 'entree' that you choose, but you still get [Before your entree] Sushi, Salad, Appetizer (Eggplant), Mushroom and Turnip Soup, [After your entree] Oden with Miso Soup, Mochi dessert. So much food!

Eggplant appetizer.  Delicious! and Beautiful

Baohaus



Wondering what I've been eating?  Read on to find out!

 The first time I gave Baohaus a try was at their original location down in LES.  It was a tiny bare-bones shop with barely any seating and no bathroom.  Its prices also made sure that I wouldn’t make the trek down to LES just for a Bao again (even though it was pretty delish).  Fast forward a couple years and Baohaus has now opened an outpost in the Union Square/East village area.  Located less than two blocks away from my apt, Baohaus was screaming for me to give it a re-do. 

The new shop is outfitted with bright blue fluorescent lights – you can’t miss it. 



Baohaus' bright storefront



East Noodle (Ramen and Robatayaki)

The best part of living in Union Square is how close I am to St. Marks.  I have several staples that I usually end up at but occasionally I try to branch out and try something new.  This time I decided to give East Noodle (Ramen and Robatayaki) a try.

Just like every other smart diner, I did a quick search on Yelp for East Noodle before I committed.  Surprisingly, Yelpers gave it a 2.5 star rating!  I usually put full faith in Yelp and would stay away from places with 3 stars or less, but something about the “50% off all ramen” signs (I like a good deal what can I say?) and the bustling atmosphere inside the restaurant encouraged me to take a risk.



Despite the low yelp reviews, East Noodle is moving and shaking inside!

First order of business after being seated: order a $2.50 glass of Sapporo draft.  Score!

Momofuku Noodle Bar (Late Night)

Guilty.  I may have taken late night munchies to an extreme.  But it was so worth it!

Momofuku Noodle Bar serves their late night menu between 12am and 2am.  It's pretty limited with just about a handful of things to choose from, but fear not - it doesn't mean you won't want ALL of it!  Fortunately we strolled in just in time about a half hour before closing.  When you have the munchies, imagine how hard it is to choose between chicken wings, noodles, pork buns, rice cakes and ramen.  Um, is there a choice (F) All of the above??

In the end we narrowed it down to Ginger Scallion Noodles and Smoked Chicken Wings (and a bottle of Sake! oops). 

Ginger Scallion Noodles - pickled shiitakes, cucumber, menma

Kimchi Taco Truck

While heading home after a day of errands, I noticed the Kimchi Taco Truck parked right around the corner from my apartment.  I didn't think I was hungry at the time but one whiff as I walked past was all it took for me to rethink my current situation: sudden mouthwatering hunger.  Double bonus for me: no line at the truck AND I had cash on me (a rarity).

Kimchi Taco Truck

My crooked shot of the menu - you can check out their website here for more details on their menu.

A quick look in my wallet showed $11.  With my budget in mind and a quick scan of the menu, I settled on an order of the Spicy Rice Cakes ($3) and the set of 3 tacos ($7): Grilled Korean BBQ Beef, Pulled Chicken, and Tofu Edamame Falafel.

Spicy Rice Cakes