Perfectly Braised Eggplants and Slimy Chilean Bass at Taiwan Cafe in Boston

There was one Chinese restaurant in Davis, California, that my family and I used to frequent. I would always get its lunch special of General Chicken (fried chicken "balls" marinated in sweet & spicy sauce) and chow mein or fried rice with eggroll and today's soup. After realizing how greasy and MSG-loaded Chinese food is, however, I tried to avoid it as much as I can. I actually haven't been to a single Chinese restaurant since I came to college, but my cravings won over and I decided to go to Taiwan Cafe in Chinatown for early dinner on Sunday.

According to my friend, the place was closed for a while for renovation and recently had its re-grand opening. That would explain the confettis, ribbons, and ballons in the restaurant. The first dish we ordered was Home-Style Braised Eggplant with Basil ($9.95).

I would order this dish over and over again. The eggplant was cooked just enough that it wasn't too mushy or tough. The eggplants were lightly sauteed and mixed in slightly spicy and sweet sauce. The basil added a layer of savory yet bittersweet flavor to the dish.

I have never ordered a fish entree at a Chinese restaurant because the skeptic in me doubts what they serve is what is actually on the menu. Because my companion was wanting to try the bass, we decided to order the Steamed Chilean Bass with Ginger & Scallions ($18.95).

The filet was cut open, served flat on a wide plate. It was marinated in soy-teriyaki sauce with julienne-styled scallions on top. The fish tasted very tender and soft, although I didn't like the bits of bones throughout the filet. I also wished the chef had taken the scale because it was disgusting to look at! It certainly made me squeamish.

The Most Reviewed Business on Yelp: NYC Halal Guys

I use Yelp  all the time to search for restaurants nearby, read real people reviews, and look at photos. Possibly the most reviewed places of all time on this popular website is 53rd & 6th Halal Cart, also known as Halal Guys. To date, the food cart in New York City has a whopping 2,933 reviews!

Halal Guys is a New York City landmark. It is even listed as one of the top spots you must visit when in the city. In a city where the price of Big Mac is more expensive than most places, Halal Guys caters to those who are looking for quick and cheap, yet filling, meal on-the-go.

When I arrived at the corner of 53rd and 6th during lunch time, the line extended for about a block. Nonetheless, the workers adorned in bright yellow shirts were super efficient so the line moved really fast. When you approach the front of the line, the guy asks you, "Chicken, Lamb, or Combo?" ($6) Since it was my first time, I decided to try the combo. You can also get falafel if you oppose meat.

The Halal guys fill the round silver tin with orange Spanish rice (food coloring?), a bed of iceberg lettuce, and chicken & ground lamb. He also put three pieces of warm pita. I decided to get the signature "red sauce" and "white sauce" on the side with a little bit of BBQ sauce.

When I opened the lid, the smell was pungent. MSG overload? I couldn't believe how much food they packed in that tin. I scooped some rice and bit into the minced lamb, which just tasted like mushed meatball. The chicken wasn't much better because it was really overcooked and dry.

The pita had sprinkles of seasoning, and I appreciated that it was warm. I only had about a quarter of the meal because my stomach was filling a bit queasy. I am not used to food with such strong artificial flavors. I guess having the most reviews on Yelp doesn't mean that the place is delicious.

 

Enjoying the Raw Food Trend at Quintessence in East Village

Whether one orders a burrito, pizza, or burger, the entree that comes to the table at Quintessence—a 100 percent organic, vegan, and raw restaurant in East Village—will be served uncooked. Quintessence takes the diners on a unique culinary experience, offering innovative dishes made with ingredients that are not found in a typical kitchen pantry, such as kamut, nut meat, and fofu (yes, that's tofu with an f!).

For an unconventional taste of traditional dishes, try the Italian sausage pizza ($15.50) topped with savory nut meat, nut cheese, and tomato sauce. It was a bit weird trying a cold pizza, but it worked for this one since it didn't have cheese to begin with.

The pizza had an interesting dichotomy between strong nutty and sweet flavors. The pizza dough, which is not baked, had some sort of a grainy, granola-bar like texture. The tomato sauce tasted sweeter than your usual marinara sauce, whereas the nutmeat and the nut cheese had flavors that were surprisingly reminiscent of their real counterparts.

The Indian platter ($21) is a lighter alternative to the typically rich malai kofta, a vegetarian meatball made with chickpeas. The Indian platter included two chickpea balls covered in creamy almond curry sauce with sweet mango chutney and tamarind sauce, side salad, two pieces of kamut bread, and tangy cucumber “yogurt.”

I really enjoyed the cucumber yogurt. Since I am lactose-intolerant, I tend to avoid dairy products unless I am really craving them. This yogurt satisfied my cravings without the sore stomachache aftermath. I am not sure what the green dressing was, but it complemented the salad well. The kamut bread was rather disappointing because it tasted so bland.

The malai kofta didn't disappoint! Traditionally, this Indian dish uses loads of heavy cream and the chickpeas are deep-fried, adding tons of calories to the meal. However, this lighter dish came with chickpea balls that were binded without frying, and the creamy almond curry sauce didn't have any cream. It probably used almond fat or coconut milk.

The sweet mango chutney on top of the chickpea balls were pleasant additions. My only wish is that I could had more of it! The brown tamarind sauce tasted like teriyaki sauce to me.

The chickpea balls were quite dense and a bit dry on the edges. I would have preferred it if the chef had put the curry on the plate first and then the chickpea balls, but because he/she did it the other way around, there were no curries to dip the chickpea balls underneath. Nonetheless, I enjoyed my first raw-food experience!

New York City Dessert Extravaganza

No matter how full we are, women always leave extra room in their stomach for dessert. I don't have a huge sweet tooth except for my weakness for frozen yogurt. Luckily, there is an abundance of dessert cafe in New York City to satisfy my cravings. I stumbled upon a small Japanese bakery in Midtown East called Cafe Zaiya, where I purchased a swirl of Green Tea & Sesame soft-serve ice cream ($4.50).

The ice cream was a bit overpriced for the size, but I have absolutely no regret about getting this delicious treat. The sesame flavor was a bit overpowering that I couldn't taste the green tea flavor, but that was fine because I much preferred the sesame flavor anyways. The ice cream melted really quickly in the heat.

My friend and I went to an indoor market in Chelsea Market, where we found a booth that serves instant s'more. When you order one, they use the fire to melt the marshmallow and press them in between gingerbread-like graham crackers.

The s'mores were about the size of a small palm. There was a piece of dark chocolate underneath the marshmallow. The graham crackers were dusted with bits of sugar.

We walked around a bit and found these petite, alcohol-infused cupcakes. The cake itself didn't have any alcohol taste, but I could definitely taste some rum in the frosting. This chocolate cupcake with peanut butter brittle, I think, was the only non-alcohol cupcake. Just for the minors ;)

Both the blue and the yellow cupcakes had alcohol in them. I don't quite remember what they were made of, however.

I also bought a trio of desserts and brought it home for later. Clockwise from top are Red Velvet Cupcake from Sprinkles Cupcakes, Steamed Green Tea Bread from Cafe Zaiya, and Yakimochi also from Cafe Zaiya. The Yakimochi is baked glutinous rice stuffed with sweet red bean paste. The glutinous rice was chewy with slightly crunchy exterior, and I could definitely taste the sesames. The red bean filling wasn't too sweet.

Sprinkles Cupcake, the world's first cupcake bakery that opened its first store in Beverly Hills, prides in its handcrafted delicacies made from finest ingredients, "including sweet cream butter, bittersweet Belgian chocolate, pure Madagascar Bourbon vanilla, fresh bananas and carrots, real strawberries, and natural citrus zests.

The Red Velvet Cupcake I had was decorated with a piece of sugared clover leaf. This is its most popular cupcake made from Callebaut cocoa and red hue, and topped with rich cream cheese frosting. To be honest, I thought both the cake and the frosting was overly sweet. The cake was quite dense.

The Steamed Green Tea Bread with red bean fillings was really fluffy. Like the cupcake from Sprinkles, this bread was also dense and heavy.

Even though the top of the bread was moist, the bottom layer was dry. I would have liked the bread to have lighter, more "steamed" feel to it. The green tea flavor wasn't very strong at all.

The bread was filled with red bean paste like the yakimochi, but it wasn't as packed. Eating this whole bread could probably substitute as a meal, both in terms of calories as well as in satisfaction.

The final dessert is my own personal twist on an ice cream sundae. There are two scoops of Dreyer's fat free vanilla frozen yogurt, a handful of Honey Bunches of Oats with almond slices, and a drizzle of honey.

I had to eat this fast before the cereal got soggy. I didn't like the drizzle of honey because it didn't add much flavor. Besides, the ice cream itself was already sweet enough. I realized that ice cream is best in its purest form.

Colorful Vegetable Frittatas and Pistachio Meringue at Tatte

Kendall Square is home to a couple vintage coffee shops and bakery, including Tatte Bakery & Cafe. I don't have a huge appetite for baked goods (or at least I try to resist them), but I decided to check out Tatte because I heard the cafe also has a great lunch menu. Tatte offers an outdoor dining option, which is perfect for the sunny days in the summer.

I got this picture from Tatte's blog, but when I got there around 12:30pm, the place was completely packed that we actually had to wait for a couple minutes to find a place to sit down for two people. The bakery had an extensive display of cookies, pastries, and other sweets in addition to a full lunch menu that includes sandwiches, salad, and plates.

My friend and I decided to have dessert first. We ordered two Pistachio Meringues, which were served on a china plate with flowers. Perfect for a tea party?

Each meringue was about the size of a fist. It was sprinkled with toasted pistachio. The meringue itself didn't taste like pistachio, so I am guessing it was just a plain vanilla one. The meringue was crispy and light.

We were about half way through our meringue when the waiter brought our orders. My friend's Balkani ($8) is a roasted eggplant, feta, fresh basil, tomato, and pesto sandwich served on Ciabatta bread.

The sandwich was served on a wooden cutting board, which gave off the aura of freshness. The square-shaped Ciabatta bread seemed pretty dense. It was served as an open sandwich, with one side of the bread smothered with pesto and the other topped with basil and feta cheese.



I had Vegetable Frittata ($13), a colorful assortment of housemade vegetable frittatas served with creamy yogurt sauce and fresh cucumbers. The three vegetables were sweet potato, zucchini, and cauliflower.

I was afraid the dish might be too heavy for lunch, but the frittatas were super light and fluffy! I loved the slightly mushy texture of them. Each frittata also had a distinct taste of its respective vegetable. I think my favorite was the sweet potato. The only downside about the dish was that the frittatas were topped with large chunks of sea salt that made the flavors too strong.

 

Boston Restaurant Week: Savory Bluefish at EVOO Restaurant in Kendall Square

After spending the summer in New York City--the culinary epicenter of the world--I became quite spoiled in terms of food. I especially loved the deals I got through Restaurant Week. Although I would have preferred to visit restaurants during non-Restaurant Week to enjoy their regular menu and full service, my wallet was certainly a lot happier with the budget-friendly prie fixe menu. I was fortunate enough to be in Boston to try out Restaurant Week while it was in session in the city. My team and I went to EVOO Restaurant, which is located in Kendall Square.

EVOO stands for Extra Virgin Olive Oil. In accordance to the name of the restaurant, we were served extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar mixed in with chopped garlic and parsley. The sliced baguette was toasted, per request. I am usually not a fan of olive oil because it tend to be too heavy for my liking, but this olive oil had a distinct taste that I couldn't keep my toasted bread away from dipping into it. I would have liked more balsamic vinegar and less garlic though.

The 3-course prie fixe lunch menu included an appetizer, entree, and dessert for $20.12. My friend ordered Chilled Cantaloupe Soup with diva cucumbers, prosciutto dust, and mint foam. I think all soup needs to be hot, or at least warm, so the concept of chilled soup confuses me.

 

I wonder how they got the foam on the soup. I didn't get to taste it, but apparently the mint flavor wasn't strong enough. The combination of fruity and savory seems interesting.

Another appetizer on the table was Tomatoes, Basil, Mint, EVOO, Coarse Salt, and Burratini. It was basically a plate of all the ingredients drenched in olive oil. Burrata, which is a type of cheese made of mozzarella and cream, reminded me of a pouch. I liked seeing different varieties of tomatoes. 

I knew I would be way too stuffed if I didn't get something light as an appetizer, so I opted for the Lettuce, Little Tomatoes, Corn, Radishes, and Goat Cheese salad with roasted garlic vinaigrette. Even though the menu indicated that I will be served lettuce, what came to the table was a bed of slightly wilted spinach. 

I also asked for no dressing, but the chef instead put so much salt and pepper that it had really strong, salty flavors. 

Underneath the bed of spinach were radish, corn, tomatoes, and goat cheese. The sweet goat cheese and corns complemented each other pretty well. I thought the red radishes had some bitter aftertaste that I didn't like too much. 

For appetizer, everyone on the table except two people ordered different dishes so there was some variety on the table.

For entree, however, everyone must have felt a bit fishy because we all ordered Backroom Smoked Bluefish Fillet with Corn Risotto, Grilled Zucchini, and Nectarine-Basil Relish. 

I had absolutely no regret about getting the bluefish because it was absolutely delicious. The fish had sweet nectarine relish on top with savory corn risotto and grilled zucchini underneath.

The problem I often encounter when ordering fish is that it's usually overcooked that it ends up tasting really dry. However, this fillet was cooked perfectly, if not slightly undercooked, which is just the way I love because it maintains all the juice.

The corn risotto wasn't too creamy, yet still had the rich flavor of a delicious risotto. The rice was also cooked nicely because it wasn't that mushy. The sweet, fruity relish added an interesting flavor to the savory dish.

I didn't realize how delicious bluefish was before I took my first bite. The fish was rubbed with spicy seasoning that added an extra layer of flavor.

The fish had an excellent, melt-in-your-mouth texture. Nom nom nom. This is a dish I could eat over and over again. I also liked the grilled zucchini and the risotto.

To cap off my 3-course lunch, I had Warm Chocolate Truffle Cake with Toasted Marshmallow Cream. I am not a fan of chocolate, but I was really craving something gooey that day so I ordered the truffle cake, hoping that it would resemble something like a molten lava cake. The round chocolate cake was served on a pool of toasted marshmallow cream with a basil leaf on top.

The outer edge of the cake was slightly dry, but the inside was molten and gooey. Since the cake is truffle-based, it was really rich and dense. I much preferred the marshmallow cream to regular thick cream.

One other dessert on the table was Peach-Berry Crisp with Sweet Corn Ice Cream. Just based on what it looked like, the dessert seemed very buttery, especially the cobbler on top. Also, the peach/berry compote seemed quite artificial too.

I would have never guessed that the ice cream was sweet corn flavor because it just looked like plain vanilla ice cream to me. Overall, I enjoyed my restaurant week experience at EVOO, and would definitely order the bluefish multiple times.