We’ve enjoyed going to China town in Spokane but I was suspicious when the menus often contained more types of fried rice and sweet & sour dishes than any other dish. How good could a Chinese restaurant be if it didn’t carry at least one or two parts of an animal that you would never eat?. How can a couple of billion people only eat fried rice? There aren’t enough cans of little corn cobs to fill everyone up. Here are places that I will never forget. (I’ve changed the title because my Native American friend Tanaka says it isn’t PC to say Oriental — must be some tribal superstition but I am all about being weak and changing things any time someone lodges a complaint.)
New Green Bo (Bayard St NYC)
New Green Bo (now Nice Green Bo)-New York Don’t let the stolen picture fool you, this place is crazy busy during the dinner hours. The name changed a few years ago from the New Green Bo to Nice Green Bo (I guess after 20 some years “New” seemed out of place. They just used thin paint so at night when the light shines just right you can still see the “new” under the “nice.” The food is more Shanghai oriented with wheat noodles and onion cakes. You can get a nice appetizer of crispy eel but most would go for the steamed crab meat and pork buns. I almost always get a pan fried noodle dish — crispy noodles with a sauce on top. When you want to splurge in New York take your $10 bill and go down to the Green Bo (and maybe a little extra to have ice cream across the street.)
Shun Lee-New York is a completely different trip. I usually go to the one on 65th street and instead of formica topped tables and waiters walking on your shoes while you wait for a table at the New Green Bo in Chinatown you get shiny black lacquer in the hallway. Instead of Pork Snout or Chicken feet you might try the Grand Marnier prawns, braised sea bass Hunan style or duck liver sauteed with Chinese mushrooms. I’ve had the fillet of Veal in spicy barbecue sauce, the red cooked pig’s knuckles and ox tails and rack oflamb szechuam style. You can easily spend as much here for one person and you can for five people at the New Green Bo but I wouldn’t let that discourage anyone. The Shun Lee is one of the most interesting dining experiencing in NY — gourmet Chinese and there sweetbreads with black mushrooms in a Szechuan sauce is worth the visit.
Momofuku NYC
Momofuku-New York — Lucky Peach I’ve only had someone else’s leftovers but the ginger scallion noodles with pickled shiitakes, cucumber and cabbage was outstanding. Tiny places, hard to get into but amazing menu and reputation. roast lamb with greek yogurt, pine nuts and raisins; brisket with horseradish, pickled red onion and cucumber; bowls of chilled spicy noodles, sichuan spiced sausage, spinach and cashews; sides of chilled snap peas with carrot sesame and radish or fingerling potatoes with miso, ramps and bonito.
Ginger Beef Slanted Door SF
Slanted Door-San Franicsco — The Phan Family opened the Slanted Door on Valencia Street in 1995. It rocketed to the top of the charts. Moved a couple of times landing at the Ferry Building in the Embarcadero area. Everyone eats here from the gourmets on bike trips to businessmen in ties. One reason is he has a very interesting wine lists that goes well with his fresh approach to Vietnamese cooking. (Read Robert Olen Butler’s short story “A Good Scent from a Strange Mountain” I think about every time I eat here). He has a larger sparkling wine list than most French restaurants. The list includes dry rose, earthy reds and crisp whites from Austria, Alsace and Germany. I mention it because it is very unusual to find an Asian restaurant with any decent wine, let alone a well thought out, large wine list. I’ve eaten at three of the Slanted Door venues (they also have other restaurants in their empire now). Halibut ceviche with cilantro, habanero, spring onion; crispy imperial rolls with gulf shrimp, pork shoulder, glass noodle and roasted peanut; lap cheong sausage rolls with jicama, carrot, thai basil and spicy hoisin sauce; barbecued willis ranch pork spareribs with cilanto, hoison-honey sauce; wood oven roasted pei mussels with lemongrass, shallot, kaffir lime, basil in a red curry broth; asparagus soup with wild dungeness crab; green papaya salad with rau ram; grass fed shaking beef, lemongrass grilled devil’s gulch ranch rabbit with house-made sausage, heirloom carrot and thai chili marinade; pan-seared day scallops with spicy pineapple coconut sauce; spicy monterey squid or wood oven roasted arctic char with oro blanca grapefruit and cucumber lime dipping sauce. Vegetables — all star organic fava shoots or hodo soy beanery yuba noodles with chanterelle mushrooms. Amazing view, incredible food, superior wines to pair with cuisine. If you haven’t been there, plan ahead for your reservations and go.
Hunan-San Francisco
One of my first excursions to San Francisco included going to Henry Chung’s Hunan restaurant on Sansome Street. I had read about him and one of the first Chinese cookbooks I ever purchased was from here. I couldn’t believe an onion cake could have so much flavor or smoked ham or spicy noodles. Outside of going to Joyce Chen in Cambridge during my college days the Hunan had the biggest effect on my pension for Chinese cooking.
House of Nanking-San Francisco
I’ve been going to the House for more than twenty years. In the early days you always had to wait 45 minutes or more. That seems to have become less of a problem (unless you go on a weekend night at supper time). I remember waiting an hour one time and the owner asked me if I liked beer. I told him, “Sure,” and he led us to our table which was three chairs in the corner and a stack of three cases of beer which was our fourth seat! I guess that was when I first noticed my hearing was going. This place still has some of the best prices in Chinatown and after many visits has consistently had some of the best Chinese food. They will order for you if you don’t want to tackle the menu (be prepared for a couple of fish dishes) but I like to order my own stuff — for appetizers the Onion Cakes, fried Chinese eggplant with hot sauce and Potstickers are still my favorite. The Fried Calimari with garlic, Bao Bing Wrap with slow cooked beef, stir fried baby peashoots in garlic and chili are favorites as well as the House noodles with asian spices or house specialty Nanking sesame chicken and I like the chicken in Tsingtao beer sauce. This place is for someone who wants to be told how to like their food, told where to sit, not told too much about the food you are getting and if you don’t eat your food in a timely fashion watch the lack of service go downhill. It’s the perfect introduction for those who think Chinese should be ordered by combination A, B or C.
Keo’s –Honolulu
I’ve made several trips to Honolulu and I try each time to stop by this amazing restaurant. It was the first restaurant I went to that the chef had a cookbook. Keo Sananikone is the chef and he isn’t afraid to use spices. Every day he picks 30 pounds of mint and 50 pounds of basil from his herb farm for the restaurant. This was the first restaurant I had Sa-teh and stuffed buffalo wings followed by a spicy lemon grass soup and green papaya salad.
GINGER STRING BEANS WITH GINGER AND CHILI 
CHAR BROILED HONEY GLAZED BONELESS CHICKEN
EVIL JUNGLE PRINCE Medium or hot only
Keo’s most famous dish combining fresh basil, coconut milk, and red chili. A flavor for the gourmet’s delight. Served on a bed of chopped cabbage.
With Seafood $16.95 Chicken $14.95 Vegetables and Tofu $12.95
CHICKEN, BEEF or SEAFOOD WITH FRESH HOT BASIL Very spicy, medium or hot only
Slices of lean chicken breast ,flank steak , or seafoodsautéed with sweet basil with young bamboo, and other hot spices. Chicken or Beef $14.95
GARLIC SHRIMP OR BEEF WITH MUSHROOMS Mild
Fragrant garlic cloves are pounded and cooked with beef, tofu, or shrimp to perfection with just enough black pepper, coconut milk and straw mushrooms to make this dish a favorite.
Beef $14.95 Shrimp $15.95
CASHEW NUTS WITH CHICKEN Mild
Tender slices of chicken breast pounded with garlic cloves and onion, cooked to perfection with cashew nuts, oyster sauce and green onion. Served on a bed of lettuce and topped with fried whole chili.
$16.95
GINGER STRING BEANS AND CHILLI WITH SHRIMP OR BEEF Medium or hot.
Shrimp $15.95 Beef $14.95 String beans only $12.95
SHIITAKE MUSHROOMS AND SNOW PEAS Mild
Shrimp$13.95 Tofu $11.95
BANGKOK DUCK Medium or hot
Bangkok style tender slices of duck breast thinly sliced and topped with your choice of:
1-The traditional green or red curry 2-Plum sauce with steamed vegetables. $14.95
EGGPLANT WITH FISH, BEEF, or TOFU Medium or hot
Slices of eggplant, fresh sweet basil and garlic stir-fried with Thai hot spices.
With Fish $16.95 Beef or Chicken $14.95 Tofu $12.95
SAUTÉED MIXED VEGETABLES WITH GARLIC Mild
With vegetables and tofu $12.95 Shrimp $15.95 Chicken $14.95
BROCCOLI or ONG CHOI (Asian watercress)
Stir fried with yellow bean sauce and garlic.
Shrimp $15.95 Beef $14.95 Tofu $12.95
SIRLOIN STEAK with Spicy Lime Cilantro Chili or Mild Shiitake Mushroom Sauce
Thinly sliced grilled sirloinsteak, topped with choice of sauce $19.95
GRILLED FRESH SALMON
Fresh Salmon grille to perfection, then topped with choice of:
1 – Spicy Thai chili lime or
2 – Red Curry sauce or
3 – Mild Shiitake mushroom sauce
$19.95
GRILLED FRESH FISH FILLET Topped with:
1 – Spicy Basil and Chili
2 -Mild garlic shiitake mushroom sauce
$19.95
MAHIMAHI Medium or Hot, Very Spicy
Stir fried with your choice of:
1 – Green onion and ginger or:
2 – Sa-Teh sauce
$19.95
CRISPY MAHIMAHI Medium or Hot, very spicy
Pacific Mahimahi lightly coated with rice flour, deep fried crispy, topped with your choice of::
1 – Red Chilli Sauce orr:
2 – Sa-Teh sauce
$19.95
FILET OF CATFISH
Cooked Thai style catfish fillet crispy, then topped with your choice of:
1 – Spicy Thai fresh lime, cilanto, and fresh hot chili sauce or:
2 – Basil and chile sauce or:
3 – Mild garlic Shiitake mushroom sauce.
$19.95
SOFT SHELL CRAB STIR FRIED WITH GARLIC AND PEPPER Mild
$19.95
-CURRIES-
PANANG CURRY Medium or hot
Famous Bangkok style Panang curry with kaffir lime leaves, fresh ground lemon grass, peas, and coconut milk. This is one of the favorite curries of Americans in Thailand.
With shrimp and scallops $16.95
Seafood $16.95
Chicken $14.95
Vegetarian $12.95
YELLOW CURRY Medium or hot
This curry tastes more like most Americans expect curry to taste. This is the mildest of our curries, and is cooked with potatoes, onions, and coconut milk.
Seafood $16.95
Chicken $14.95
Vegetarian $12.95
GREEN CURRY or RED CURRY Medium or hot
Green curry with eggplant or Red Curry cooked with young bamboo shoots, fresh basil, coconut milk, and hot spices.
Seafood $16.95
Vegetarian $12.95
FRESH PINEAPPLE CURRY Medium or hot
Served on a bed of long rice.
With Shrimp $15.95
MUSLIM BEEF CURRY (Masamum Curry) Medium or hot
Cooked with potatoes, peanuts, onions, and coconut milk.
$14.95
Deluxe Set Dinner
Appetizers:
Pupu Platter AA
(Spring Rolls, Golden Triangles, Crispy Noodles)
Salad:
Country Salad with Chicken or Green Papaya Salad
Soup:
Spicy Lemongrass Soup with Shrimp (one soup per person)
Entrees: (one entree per person)
Evil Jungle Prince with Shrimp
Panang Curry with Seafood
Spicy Sweet and Sour Seafood with Mixed Vegetables
Cashew Nuts with Chicken
Grilled Fresh Salmon with Thai Red Sauce Garlic Shrimp with Mushrooms
Bangkok Duck Breast with Plum Sauce
Western Style BBQ Ribs
Spicy Scallops with Lemongrass and Peppers
Snow Peas with Shiitake Mushrooms and Shrimp
Rice:
Choice of White, Sticky or Brown Rice
Dessert:
Choice of Ice Cream or Thai Tapioca . (one per person)
$36.95 per person
Super Deluxe Set Dinner
Appetizers:
Pupu Platter AA
(Spring Rolls, Bangkok Wings, Crispy Noodles)
Salad:
Roast Duck Salad or Country Salad with chicken
Soup:
Spicy Lemongrass Soup with Seafood (one soup per person)
Entrees: (one entree per person)
Thai Style Alaskan King Crab Legs with yellow curry
Panang Curry with Seafood
Spicy Sweet and Sour Seafood with Mixed Vegetables
Bangkok Duck Breast with Plum Sauce
Honey Glazed Babyback Ribs
Grilled Fresh Fish with Shiitake Mushroom Sauce
Grilled Fresh Salmon with Thai Red Sauce Rice Ginger String Beans and Chilli with Shrimp
Choice of White, Sticky or Brown Rice
Dessert:
Any choice on the dessert menu. (one per person)
$44.95 per person
Mekong I and II-Honolulu
The Mekong I and II are aprt of the Sananikone family restaurants (Keo’s) The atmosphere is more Mekong Delta than Honolulu chic but the food is amazing and reasonably priced. When I first went here you had to bring your own beer or wine but alas, after twenty years they have their license now.This is a really good place to take that picky vegetarian who wants fresh at cheap prices (order it extra hot for them) and you can enjoy both the veggies and the other amazing Thai dishes.
| Appetizers | ||
| Crispy Noodles 6.50 | Spring Rolls 7.50 | |
| Sa-Teh Shrimp or Fish 10.50 | Sa-Teh Chicken 8.50 | |
| Fish Patties 7.50 | Bangkok Wings 7.95 | |
| Fried Calamari 9.50 | Summer Rolls 5.50 | |
| Salads | ||
| Green Papaya Salad 6.95 | Thai Beef or Chicken Salad 7.95 | |
| Calamari Salad 8.95 | Chieng Mai Beef or Chicken 8.50 | |
| Soups | ||
| Spicy Shrimp or Fish Soup 4.95 | Spicy Chicken or Beef Soup 4.25 | |
| Spicy Seafood Soup 5.50 | Chicken Long Rice Soup 4.25 | |
| Thai Ginger Chicken Soup 4.25 | ||
| Rice | ||
| Water Chestnut Fried Rice 7.95 | Beef, Chicken, or Pork Fried Rice 8.50 | |
| Shrimp Fried Rice 10.50 | Spicy Shrimp Fried Rice 10.50 | |
| Spicy Vegetable Fried Rice 8.50 | Jasmine White, Sticky or Brown 1.50 | |
| Spicy Beef, Chicken or Pork Fried Rice 8.50 | ||
| Curries | ||
| Panang Chicken, Beef or Pork9.50 | Panang Seafood 13.95 | |
| Panang Shrimp w/ Scallops 13.50 | Shrimp Pineapple Curry 10.95 | |
| Yellow, Red or Green Curry w/ Chicken, Beef or Pork 9.50 | ||
| Yellow, Red or Green Curry w/ Shrimp or Fish 10.95 | ||
| Yellow, Red or Green Curry w/ Vegetables 7.95 | ||
| Mixed Vegetable Curry 7.95 | ||
| Seafood Dishes | ||
| Fillet of Catfish or Sole 14.95 | Garlic Shrimp w/ Mushrooms 10.50 | |
| Thai Ginger Shrimp 10.50 | Evil Jungle Prince w/ Shrimp 10.50 | |
| Fish with Bean Sauce and Ginger 10.50 | Ong Choi w/ Shrimp 10.50 | |
| Fish w/ Fresh Basil 10.50 | Long Rice w/ Shrimp 10.50 | |
| Eggplant w/ Fish 10.50 | Broccoli w/ Shrimp 10.50 | |
| Sweet & Sour Seafood w/ Vegetable 13.95 | ||
| Beef, Chicken or Pork Dishes | ||
| Evil Jungle Prince w/ Chicken, Beef or Pork 8.50 | Spicy Sweet & Sour Chicken, Beef or Pork 8.50 | |
| Thai Ginger Chicken, Beef or Pork 8.50 | Garlic Beef, Chicken or Pork 8.50 | |
| Cashew w/ Chicken 10.50 | Thai Crispy Fried Chicken 9.50 | |
| Broccoli w/ Chicken or Beef 8.50 | Ong Choi w/ Chicken, Beef or Pork 8.50 | |
| Eggplant w/ Chicken, Beef or Pork 8.50 | Basil w/ Chicken, Beef or Pork 8.50 | |
| Noodle Dishes | ||
| Thai Noodles w/ Chicken, Beef or Pork 8.50 | Broccoli Noodles w/ Beef, Chicken or Pork 8.50 | |
| Thai Noodles w/ Shrimp 10.50 | Broccoli Noodles w/ Shrimp 10.50 | |
| Broccoli Noodles Soy Sauce w/ Beef, Chicken or Pork 8.50 | ||
| Please specify Mild, Medium or Hot when ordering. | ||
 |
||
| Appetizers | ||
| Vegetarian Spring Rolls 7.50 | Vegetarian Crispy Noodles 6.50 | |
| Sa-Teh Tofu 7.95 | Sa-Teh eggplant 8.50 | |
| Salads | ||
| Green Papaya Salad 6.95 | Cheing Mai Tofu Salad 7.95 | |
| Soft Long Rice Salad 7.95 | ||
| Soups | ||
| Spicy Mixed Vegetables Soup 3.95 | Mixed Vegetable Long Rice Soup 3.95 | |
| Ginger Tofu Soup 3.95 | ||
| Entrees | ||
| Evil Jungle Prince w/ Mixed Vegetables 7.95 | Thai Noodles w/ Tofu and Bean Sprouts 7.95 | |
| Ong Choi w/ Tofu 7.95 | Broccoli w/ Tofu 7.95 | |
| Eggplant w/ Tofu 7.95 | Ginger String Beans 7.95 | |
| Sweet & Sour Mixed Vegetables 7.95 | Tofu w/ Fresh Basil 7.95 | |
| Mixed Vegetables w/ Yellow Bean Sauce 7.95 | ||
| Tofu w/ Bean Sauce and Ginger 7.95 | ||
Hee Hing–Honolulu
Ariang Korea Noodles-Manhattan
Pho Pasteur — Boston
Pho Bolsa–Boston
Pok Pok- Portland OR
Burma Superstar — San Francisco
Mifune–San Francisco
Yank Sing Dim Sum–San Francisco
Betelnut- San Francisco
Betelnut open in 1995. Like many restaurants when they are successful the owners and occupants can’t agree on a renewable lease so the restaurant goes away. How many landlords would love to have a tenant that succeeds in the restaurant business? The first time I went there I was awestruck. Fusion Food at its finest and there aren’t any people alive who tried to steal the recipe for the smoked sea bass. From the unique dishes of short ribs (long before they became a $35 entree dish at chic restaurants) or anchovies tossed with chillies, garlic, ginger, nuts. The Seoul chicken on crispy noodles was always one of our favorite dishes along with many spicy stir friend vegetables dishes. This is where I learned about lettuce cup filled with spicy chicken. Chef Ong was from Malaysia and had been trained at many famous hotel restaurants inluding Shangri La in Kuala Lampur, the Fairmont Southampton, Ritz Carlton at Amerlia Island and settled in San Francisco with stints at Stars (I went here when it first opened in SF with Jeremiah Tower) and he was the chef at Le Colonial and Xanadu (noted as a rising star Chef by SF Chronicle.) Writing this is making me think about Stars and some of the chefs that migrated from Chez Panisse. That must be a part of this journey.
Tamarind Tree Seattle
Joyce Chen — Cambridge, Mass (now closed)
In my freshman year I heard some professors talking about a Chinese woman, Chef Joyce Chen. I only knew about Chinese food from the couple of times I had gone to restaurants on Division or Sprague streets in Spokane and often ladies of the night escorting men home after they had a few naight caps. These were the only restaurants open late at night.The bars had a reputation for very strong drinks and the food was cheap. One day I was at a friend’s house going through the television channels (all four of them) and landed on Public Broadcasting Station with a show in Black and White on Chinese cooking. I had to have some of the food this woman was talking about. I went to Louie’s Chinese restaurant and tried plates of Chop Suey, fried rice and Chow mein. I had no idea what Chinese cuisine was but even those “American” Chinese dishes intrigued me.
When I realized the woman I saw in that black and white kitchen was Joyce Chen I decided I was going to seek out her restaurant in Cambridge. I found out that Joyce was born in Beijing to a high ranking family of the Qing dynasty. That she left Shanghai in 1949 as the Communists were taking over China. (This is confirmed in Wikipedia which I will leave to you as positive proof or not.) I don’t know if her family was fleeing the potential Communist takeover or not. She opened her first restaurant in 1958. I recently read an article by Bill Daley of the Tribune Newspapers that said her daughter Helen said Joyce did not like having two menus, one for Chinese and one for everyone else so she printed up one menu. She found out that didn’t mean that Westerners would take to her cooking so she started inventing ways to get them to try different Chinese dishes. She marketed potstickers (who wants to eat something that sticks to the frying pan) as Peking Ravioli. I’m guessing she hoped that people would associate Peking with Chinese and Ravioli with Italian food, maybe the appetizers might be worth trying. She also did all you could eat buffets on Tuesday and Wednesday nights, traditionally slow evenings in the restaurant business, to encourage people to come in and eat all they want and eat different types of food and then hopefully order those foods on other nights. Chen became a catalyst for a revolution in who came to Chinese restaurants and what they ate but the real celebrity in the Cambridge food scene was Julia Child who was warbling her “The French Chef” series on PBS. The success of this show led to PBS looking for another series and they ended up doing a 26 episode series “Joyce Chen Cooks. It was shot in 1966 and shown in black and white.
Ming Tsai praised Chen in many ways but said the biggest impact Chen had on American culture was to introduce the flat bottomed wok. (I wish I would have known about this when I purchased my round bottom wok that ended up on the floor more than once as I tried to flip my stir fry in the air and it slid off the stove.) Tsai said of Chen, “That invention put her on the map…You can be in Oklahoma and get a Joyce Chen wok.”
Joyce Chen has such a big place in my heart. She was the first chef I had seen on television and longed to meet. I did meet her several times during my years at Harvard 1968-1972. And I now own several flat bottom “woks” and the old rounded one I use as a large mortar. One of the funnier things is that she is often credited with making a Chinese menu easier to order from because she numbered the dishes. You no longer had to be able to pronounce Sichuan to get a spicy dish!
I ate here in 1968 for the first time and several times after that until it was closed in 1971 after a ten plus year run. Just before I arrived to Harvard she had opened a second restaurant in Central Square the Joyce Chen Small Eating Place. I only ate here on two occasions. I didn’t really want to be seen wandering around MIT. In 1970 she opened a third restaurant which seated several hundred people. We went to this restaurant with the Chief (Spike’s dad) and all of the children (Harvard room mates) during one of their visits to campus.
In 1973 Joyce opened her fourth restaurant which was to last for 25 years. This was near Fresh Pond. On almost every visit to Cambridge I visited this restaurant. During my many visits to the restaurant I saw and heard about celebrity guests like chefs like James Beard and Julia Child (I saw Julia several times), political stalwarts like Henry Kissinger and John Kenneth Galbraith (my econ professor) or artists like Beverly Sills or Danny Kaye. It was more than just a restaurant, it was the gathering place of people from all walks of life from the rich and famous to the local admirers of Chinese cuisine.
Joyce started her community building by teaching Chinese Cooking classes in the Cambridge Center for Adult Education which soon had waiting lists for her classes. In 1962 she published her book Joyce Chen Cook Book. Rumor has it that the publishers didn’t think colored pictures of food was a good idea so she published it herself and once again when more than 5,000 copies of her cookbook were pre-sold to her fans (people probably did not know that chefs could have a cult following in those days) she proved the establishment wrong.
In 1998 the restaurant property was foreclosed upon. Just four years after Joyce’s death which had been preceded by several years of Alzheimer’s.
Pho Pasteur — Boston
Doesn’t look like much but don’t let that fool you. Pho Pasteur has been serving flavorful Vietnamese food at the right price since 1991. I usually start with a fresh egg roll (there are usually six different choices), a Banh Xeo (Ga or tom or heo) pancake and maybe Chim Cut (roasted quail). The soups go from Wonton to rice chowder with duck, from duck legs with vermicelli to chicken curry soup, 15 different types of Pho from beef brisket to the all time favorite of well-done flank steak, brisket, soft tendons and trip. They also have a large selection of soups with chicken broth from seafood combo (shrimp, crab, fish cake) to chicken! Stir fried noodle dishes including Hu Tieu Xao Chowfood with peppers, onion, broccoli, corn, napa cabbage and straw mushrooms. 15 different Vermicelli rice bowls, large selection of vegetarian dishes (25 different ones) and traditional entrees like sweet and sour catfish, crispy jumbo shrimps or spicy pork cooked in a clay pot. Top it off with a glass of Xi Muoi a salty plum drink or the only place I’ve ever found Sinh to Sau Rieng, a durian shake.