“Dumpling Day”

The Mouse had to satisfy his “dumpling” craving. The Mouse had a “forced” half day off. He  didn’t know he had a “float” day from the warehouse, “use it or lose it” by the end of the year. Although the holiday season is “dark”, supervisor allowed two half days.

The Mouse headed to Chinatown, Hunan restaurant for dumplings!

Won Ton Soup

Way better than PF Chang’s, but still kinda meh. Not bad won ton still better than none. Hee hee.

Steamed Dumplings

Pretty good, maybe a little too much garlic? The vinegar dip complimented the jaozi well. 🙂

For a change up in texture, The Mouse added eggrolls. I know, not “Chinese” food, but The Mouse wanted something crunchy.

Eggrolls

Fried to order, crunchy like glass and lava hot. Nom!

Oh, and the fig and nut bread from yesterday?

Fig and Nut Bread Toast

Nice, just a hint of sweet and the right amount of nuts for The Mouse, The Cat on the other paw would probably want more nuts.

Enjoy. Eat well.

The Mouse

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By Request

Some farmers market and Chinatown shopping. Farmers market for cassava/yuka root, for co-worker (no pic, it’s a root, not too interesting). 🙂

Chinatown for The Cat. Our supply of chili bamboo ran out.

But first, The Mouse had to eat. Just had to. Two of the dim sum joints on The Mouse’s list were overflowingly crowded. The Mouse’s fault for arriving in Chinatown at 12:00 noon. Humph.

Ended up at an “old school” Chinese restaurant. I think at one time the restaurant was “new school” but with time, the restaurant became “dated”. That’s okay, food still satiated The Mouse.

Dim Sum!

Dumplings and Lion’s Heads. Nom!

Of course, to The Mouse, eating dim sum not complete without egg tarts.

Egg Tarts

Again, decent/passable to satiate The Mouse. Best egg tarts though were from a “street vendor” with a little heated cart selling in the corridors of the Shanghai subway system. Nom!

The Chinatown haul.

Chinatown Groceries

Chili sauce, Sriracha, Chili Bamboo, Grass Jelly (individual cups), and Sardines (Moroccan Spiced) to try try.

And since The Mouse was there, and the shop was open …

Manapua

From Char Hun Sut. For later, comfort food to the max! Happy Mouse.

And, for The Cat’s bento(s) …

Roast Duck

Good for a couple day’s bento.

Enjoy. Eat well.

The Mouse

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Foray into Chinatown

Wanted to pick up a lei for a retiring co-worker the other day. Headed to Chinatown.

Ginger Lei

Since I was there, picked up some peanuts for another co-worker, newlywed, kitchen newbie.

Raw Peanuts

She want to try to cook oxtail soup.

And something The Cat recently got interested in …

Lao Gan Ma

Debating whether to open now or wait for the cuzes P&B to come over.

And … since I’m already here … hee hee.

From the Chinese Sweets Shop

Mini mooncakes (for The Mouse), and walnut and mac nut candies (for The Cat).

Happy Friday!

Enjoy. Eat well.

The Mouse

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Shopping at Chinatown

This past weekend, we picked-up a few things from a Korean market (see here). Yesterday, I picked-up some items from Chinatown.

Dried Cabbage

Quite often, if a Chinese restaurant has a soup of the day, there’s some of this in the soup (at least where I am).

Dried Mushrooms

A staple in our pantry.

Dried Chrysanthemums

For making chrysanthemum “tea”. Supposed to be good for cooling the body, not bad taste too.

Preserved Bead Curd

Soy beans, water, salt, wine. Definitely an acquired taste. The Cat uses it to “send down rice”. One of the ingredients for “jai”, and good for braising pork, beef, or chicken.

Chili Bamboo Shoots

For The Cat to “send down rice”.

Supermarkets are great, but sometimes …

Enjoy. Eat well.

The Mouse

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To Close Out The Year

Lately, I’ve had to go to Chinatown at least once a week. Since I get charged a minimum for parking whether I stay one minute or an hour, I usually walk around a bit, if I have some spare time. Eastern Food Center (118 North King Street, Honolulu, Hawaii) has been on my radar for some time now.

Sign

It used to be one of our go to places for Chinese-style roasted meats, take-out, not eat-in. Lifestyle, circumstantial, and geographical changes (ours, not theirs), means I’m not as frequent a visitor any more. This past Thursday would be my first time eating a meal there.

Their “star” rice plates were recommended. Descriptions from their menu:

Three Star: Char Siu, Roast Duck, and Chicken – $7.95.

Four Star: Char Siu, Chicken, Roast Pork, Lup Chong Sausage – $7.25.

Five Star: Char Siu, Chicken, Roast Duck, Roast Pork, Duck Egg – $8.50.

I went with the four star, more bang for the buck. 😉

Four Star Rice Plate

With a few strands of choy sum to give the impression of “balance”. 😀

The char siu was the weakest link on the plate (it was okay), but in my opinion, there were always better options for char siu nearby. Everything else was extremely decent.

The chili sauce was more like spicy ketchup (in a good way).

Chili Paste

Definitely want to go back to try their other offerings. Their Hong Kong style shrimp won ton is highly recommended and they also list some Singapore/Malaysia/Indonesia dishes that sound interesting. There’s also the roast duck I need to reacquaint myself with. I brought a menu back for The Cat to peruse, there are some dishes she may want to try. 🙂

I thought the previous post would be the last one for the year, but this one definitely is. Again, have a safe and happy new years. Best wishes (peace, prosperity, health, and so on and so forth) for the coming year.

See you next year.

Enjoy.

The Mouse

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