Old School Cantonese in Flushing

The long awaited first post, I am going to dedicate this to my partner in crime who first dragged my procrastinating behind into this.

I am a firm believer that while you can get a variety of decent Chinese food in Chinatown, Flushing is the place to go for truly good old school Cantonese. And what's more old school than seafood cooked in multiple ways and claypot rice?

Let's get to the good stuff...

Lobster #1 cooked in egg yolk sauce with dried scallops and shrimps

This is by far one of my favorite presentation of any crustaceans. It's actually a variation that you don't find often in the states, the last good version I had was in Shanghai. It an old method of first deep frying the seafood, then baking it in a concoction of salted egg yolk, dried baby scallops and shrimps. It tasted like the ocean on weed.

Lobster #2 cooked in black bean sauce

Some people complain that the flavor of the black beans is a little too strong to compete with the sweetness of the lobster. But personally, I think the salty, murky flavor of the black beans are a perfect contrast to the seafood. THIS should be the next miso and cod!

Chilean Sea Bass in sweet soy sauce

I was actually a little underwhelmed, in a sea (literally) of shellfishes, crustaceans and etc, Chilean Sea Bass in my mind is a pretty generic tasting piece of flesh. It has that subtle, almost milky flavor, but it really does depend on the sauce to fully coax out it's personality. Give me some uni or fresh oyster that can stand up on it's own without any garnish.

Beef Short ribs with chili peppers

Truthfully, beef is hardly ever the highlight of any Cantonese meal. Perhaps it was because pork is the dominant meat in China or perhaps because of the quality of beef served in Chinese restaurants. You are never gonna get waygu lo mein in Chinatown or Flushing. However, short ribs is always the safe choice to go since it can stand up to flash cooking via a wok relatively well. This rendition wasn't half bad.

Rice Casserole with Chinese sausage and frog legs

Next to the lobsters, this was the highlight of the meal! This was the traditional rice casserole with Chinese sausage, duck and pork, however they added frog legs!! The whole dish came in a perfect little claypot with it's own mini-pot of sweet soy sauce. The sauce was dumped into the pot and the lid was placed back on for a few minutes for the soy sauce to be fully absorbed into the rice and to lend even more flavor to the meat and frog legs! The best part was the crispy, slightly burnt rice on the bottom. It's rare for a restaurant to conquer the food-stall version of claypot rice and the high-end preparation of the lobsters.

Red bean soup

No decent Cantonese restaurant would let you leave without some form of "sweet soup" and fruits. And the red bean soup is my favorite. I am usually as giddy as a child when I am offered this treat at the end of a cholesterol laden meal of seafood and meat. Think of red bean as the Chinese fudge. Rich, decadent, comforting and leaves you completely satisfied and warm inside. It's perfect by itself on a cold day. It's even better on ice during the summer. Starbucks should take note.