Tag: sichuan

The OG of Hot Pot Was Pure Pain

M's Adventures
Two spicy broth, one tom yum, and one bone.

The lunar, Chinese, new year is February 17 to March 3 this year. Here is a memory of eating Chinese hotpot last year.

The OG (original gangster — a name from the 1970s for the “original”) of hot pot is a place called Hai Di Lao.

We ordered too much.

The first Hai Di Lao restaurant was opened in Sichuan, China, in 1994. Now it is a global chain with over 1,000 locations. When in Flushing, New York, we had to go.

Selection of meats.

First, even if you think you can hack spicy, go lower. We got the spiciest and the pain for the next, sleepless, 12 hours was not worth it. Never again (I hope I remember this next time!).

More stuff, from lotus root, tofu skin, dumplings, etc.

Second, make a reservation. The location in Flushing is massive. We were at table 89. The place is fun for families and there are treats in the waiting room (fresh soy milk! wowza).

Multi level swinging shelves.

Third, remember that you can order more… don’t go all out first time round. Remember to order the hand pulled noodles so that you get some good video of the guy spinning around and flipping noodles at you like a lasso.

Chicken skin.

Fourth, enjoy the aprons. It helps with the mess (and drooling?).

My dipping sauce bowl.

As you may know, sichuan peppercorns and other chiles are addictive. So while I enjoyed the spicy hot pot, I could not sleep that night and the pain in my tummy was too much.

A final note on OG. I always thinks it stands for original goat.

Eating Hyped Chinese Foods

M's Adventures
Famous place making crepes for breakfast.

With a name like New World Mall, I had high(ish) hopes. Not sure why. I had read that one could get the famous Sichuan breakfast crepe/roll and the famous Xian “burger” all in one place.

Flaky Xian “burger”.

So I went.

Well, it is a huge mall with a grocery store. That’s a plus. The food court is in the basement. There are toilets. That’s a plus. Some of the food stands are extremely busy.

Breakfast wrap.

I had the breakfast wrap. Maybe I don’t get the hype. Maybe it’s me. I tried the Xian “burger” and it was good but not something I’d walk over ice (again) to get to.

Noodles and dumplings (those took 20 minutes or longer — seemed like foreva).

We sat at a table that was mysteriously available. Next to a woman who insulted us. It was awkward. Sort of. Mostly, I wished that she had not been so insulting. But there has to be room for all of us in this world.

So all in all, the hype is good advertisement. They got my money. So it worked.

Chinatown Food Tour

M's Adventures
The social media sensation noodles…

For $95 per person, you get a whole lot of history and trivia about Chinatown Manhattan and New York City (what Chinese dish was invented in Manhattan? That sort of thing). Oh, and you get to eat at five different places.

Chinatown Manhattan

I won’t give away all the places on the food tour, but it was definitely worth it. We went with Ultimate Food Tours.

Steamed buns.

Our group had ten people and the tour took three hours. Along the way, our guide shared lore, etiquette (how to eat a soup dumpling properly!), and stories about the Chinese in America.

Soup dumplings.

The guide was awesome and he left without waiting for a tip!