Oriental East Restaurant

Dim sum is something that I have enjoyed and will always enjoy on the weekends.  Wherever I lived, there was always a place to have this most quintessential part of Cantonese cuisine.  It consists of small plates of food similar to Spanish tapas or Greek mezze.  And there is no place to get that better than at Oriental East.

Despite serving traditional Chinese food, there is a rather diverse clientele here.  My estimate would be that the diners are about 60% Asian and 40% non-Asian.  It's shocking.  I mean, what are all these "infidels" doing here?  Don't they want Chipotle, the Italian place across the street, or some hipster vegan place with waiters that smell like hash?

On the weekends, it gets very crowded here.  Before opening at 11, there is always a line out the door for up to 20 feet.  On holidays, the lines tend to be even longer.  Space is very cramped and small compared to other dim sum parlors.  Therefore, the restaurant is stuffed with the as many tables as possible to optimize sales.  At certain times, the manager might ask some parties to share a table.  Usually, 2 or even 3 small parties would sometimes sit together in one of the larger tables in the back.

The dim sum is served on carts which go around the restaurant to every table.  Each cart has a different variety of items.  One may have dumplings while another has baked pastries.  Since there are too many dishes to name, some of which I've never tried, I will just highlight some of the dishes I recommend.

Rice Crepe

Oriental East serves a variety of rice crepes.  These are long rice noodles wrapped around a variety of fillings, such as shrimp, beef, and barbecued pork and steamed.  Upon serving, they are topped with soy sauce.  The best kind here is the shrimp.

Sticky Rice in Lotus Leaf

Sticky or glutinous rice is stuffed with chicken, shiitake mushrooms, and Chinese sausage.  Then it's wrapped and steamed inside a lotus leaf.  The leaf gives a nice tea like aroma and taste to the rice.

Barbecued Pork Pies

Another great item here is are these Chinese style meat pies, which I'm guessing were influenced by the British.  Pork and onions with barbecue sauce are baked in a flaky pastry crust.  You get a nice mix of sweet and savory.  They have a very limited supply of this, so you must come early in order to have this.  Whenever I came here late in the afternoon, there was never any left.

Congee

This is a rice porridge with preserved duck eggs and pork, a classic dish that is typically found in street stalls and small eateries in Hong Kong.  But Oriental East's version of this dish is perhaps the best I've ever had.  They have a lot of dried scallops, or conpoy, which gives the congee a rich umami flavor.  The balance of the porridge is just right with the amount of rice to water.  At Oriental East, it comes in a small or large bowl.

Phoenix Claws (Chicken Feet)

This may be bizarre for most people, but it is one of the best dishes in the dim sum repertoire if done right.  First, the feet are fried to puff up the skin and to seal up the collagen and cartilage.  Then, they are braised in a black bean sauce.  You eat the skin and cartilage around the bones and then spit out the bones.

Egg Custard

These tarts are probably the main reason why I will always keep coming back here.  The sweet custard placed on the flaky pastry crust is out of this world delicious.  The custard is usually consistent like jello in most places that make this.  Here, the top layer is like a soft crust while the inside is almost molten.  It reminds me of creme brûlée.

They also serve dim sum during the week, but there are no carts.  Everything is made by request only.  And don't even bother trying the dinner here.

Typically, the best dim sum would usually be found in Hong Kong, New York, or San Francisco.  The usual places.  But, I can tell you that Oriental East is as good as if not better than those other famous spots.  My parents were in Hong Kong and they told me that this place is as good as the ones they went to.  And they went to some very well known restaurants.  So consider yourself lucky if you do come here.


1312 East West Highway
Silver Spring, MD 20910

Taco Bar: Authentic Mexican Food in a Gas Station

When you think of gas station food, what comes to mind?  Junk food, soft drinks, or some quick meals like sandwiches filled with mystery meat, perhaps.  Stuff that is only bought in desperation or impulse.  But there are a rare bunch of stations that have food that stands out from the rest.

Situated inside the W Express on Fields Road and Sam Eig Highway, near the Rio commercial center and the newly built Crown Plaza, lies Taco Bar.  There's no big or flashy sign pointing to this place.  It's only a small sign right next to the gas station with "Taco Bar" near the bottom in small font.

The Taco Bar is truly a hidden gem.  You can get an authentic taste of Mexico through their tacos, sopes, and tostones, among others.  It's a very simple hole-in-the-wall sort of place with an open kitchen next to the service counter and few inside and outside.  Next to the tables are racks of wine bottles and fridges filled with beer.  So you can get your alcohol on your way home after a nice snack.    There's also patio seating in the back for those that like an al dente experience.

The tacos here are tasty, filling, authentic, and cheap.  The price depends on the type meat 

($2.79 or $3.10 each).  And they give you a lot of meat, which is cooked to order.  But the greatest thing about the tacos is the tortillas.  These are corn tortillas made from masa, water, and salt.  Each one is hand pressed, and grilled to order.  This provides the starchiness and great taste.  They also use two tortillas to wrap the fillings.  There's no definitive reason as to why this is done but considering how they are stuffed, it tortillas try to balance the filling-to-wrapping ratio.

Suadero- Shredded beef that is cut from between the belly and the leg.  Nothing remarkable about the flavor, but this cut is new for me.

Chorizo- This is a Mexican version of the Spanish sausage.  It is made with chilies rather than paprika.  It's got a nice smoky and spicy flavor from the adobo seasonings its cooked in.

Bistec- Small chunks of steak.  It's seasoned modestly and tastes pretty good.

Pollo- This was a bit of a surprise to me.  Rather than grilled chicken breast, it's shredded breast meat cooked with adobo seasonings.  

Al Pastor- This usually means that the meat comes from a spit like a gyro, but they don't have that here so it's just grilled pork.  They say that it is flavored with pineapple, but I could hardly taste it.  But other than that, it's really good.

Lengua- Even though it isn't my first time having beef tongue, it's the first time I've had it served in chunks.  It has a very nice beef taste to it, which lingers in the mouth for some time.  To me, tongue is way better than any luxury cut of beef.  And at Taco Bar, it's considered a luxury cut since it's the most expensive meat.  

Across from the service counter and open kitchen lies a small table with a variety of condiments.  There are 4 kinds of salsas, red and white onions, pico de gallo, cilantro, jalapeños, hot sauce, and lemon juice.  Personally, I overload on these even though the tacos are already overstuffed with meat.  After all, veggies are good for you.

I can't speak for the other menu items, but I'm willing to try them at a later time.  Otherwise, it will be al Pastor or lengua for me.  Finally, I can say that I've had some authentic Mexican food and not some Tex-Mex forgery.

10003 Fields Road
Gaithersburg, MD 20878

Sichuan Jin River

Tucked away in the back of an old, unattractive office building in Rockville lies one of the few places around that serves authentic cuisine from Sichuan Province, China.  This cuisine is known for dishes that are so spicy, it would make your mouth go numb.  This sensation is called "mala." The pain felt from the numbness leads to the release of endorphins in your body. This creates a natural high, causing the eater to want more of the food.  The first outsiders to try this cuisine thought that the food was laced with opium.  But unfortunately or fortunately (depending on your preference), none of the spicy dishes here will go that far.

This place may be seen from Rockville Pike, but is commonly passed over with the modern and trendy Town Square right across the street.  It's a brown brick building with a brown roof.  The menu here is quite large.  There is a variety of cold and hot appetizers, traditional dishes, home style dishes, and for some reason, Americanized dishes.  I went with a friend to sample some classic Sichuan dishes.

Dan Dan Noodles

To start off, there was a bowl noodles with pork in a sauce consisting of chili oil, Sichuan peppercorns, and sesame paste.  The sesame paste actually moderates the spiciness of the dish, which I guess probably a way to cater to the Western palate.  The traditional version has the noodles doused in a bright red sauce.

String Beans with Yacai

The green beans are dry fried with a specialty food unique to Sichuan Province.  Yacai is a part of the stem of the mustard plant that is salt pickled.  Because it's really salty, only a little bit is needed to flavor the dish.  I mean, who wants to eat straight salt.  And no, this isn't spicy, but it can be.

Double Cooked Pork

Pork belly gets cooked by itself before being stir fried with chilies, scallions, onions, peppers, and cabbage.  It's fatty and delicious.  I have had this dish before, but this version contains fried bread.  It's the sauce mop as well the croutons of the dish.  Personally, I don't think this was necessary just because the meal already comes with rice, which also mops up the sauce and intense flavor.  I also don't like croutons.

Mapo Tofu

This is basically tofu and some minced pork in a sauce made with spicy bean paste, chili flakes, garlic, and chili oil.  The sauce is modestly spicy but very fragrant.  Like many of the served here, the heat has been tapered down to a tolerable level.  For me, a little more heat would be alright.

Even though the taste is not as authentic as you would get in China, these dishes themselves are.  It's a great way to immerse yourself into a different style of Chinese cuisine.  I just wish that they would be able to pull all the stops to ensure the most authentic experience.  I mean, Rockville has a huge Chinese population, who would expect or prefer the numbing spiciness in the applicable dishes.  Nevertheless, I still think Jin River is an important restaurant as one can get a different taste of Chinese food.  China is a very diverse and country with many regional cuisines and Sichuanese is among the greatest of them.

Sichuan Jin River
410 Hungerford Dr.
Rockville, MD 20850

Hong Kong Seafood Garden

In the shadows of the Strip on Spring Mountain Road lies another part of Vegas very few people see: Chinatown.  I bet you didn't know about it.  It's a bit of a dicey place with Asian business and restaurants lie next.  Many of the places here are considered to be dives.  But they are certainly worth looking for.  Here, you can get a large variety of Asian food at reasonable prices.

On the first and last nights in Vegas, I went to this restaurant which, according to its name, should have some great seafood.  Well, that's true but there is a whole lot more to the menu.  So here are some of the highlights of my two visits here.

Pork and Vegetable Soup

At the start of every meal, a complementary bowl of soup is served.  It's the same for every table.  This is made with pork neck bones, dried bok choy, carrots, and ginger.  It's a clash of savory, bitter, and umami tastes.  The pork bones have plenty of meat which is falling off the bones.  

Razor Clams

I have never seen these clams this big before.  They are nearly the length of my hand.  These clams usually contain lots of sand, but these were well cleaned.  They are simply steamed and served with minced garlic and soy sauce.

Clay Pot Rice with Frog and Chinese Sausage

One kind of dish that I have seen a lot of out West is rice cooked in a clay pot.  This version contains frog meat, Chinese sausage and bacon, and shiitake mushrooms.  The waiter removes these ingredients and mixes the rice prior to serving.  The frog literally tastes like chicken.  The only difference is that the taste goes away almost instantly.

Surf Clams

Here is some more great seafood.  These surf clams are steamed, then sliced and served with glass noodles on the shell.  It's just 3 clams sliced 6 times and placed on both shells.  It's not always available, so you must check on the day or order in advance.

Spot Prawns

This is the last of the West Coast seafood that I have had.  And it's quite spectacular.  Being $33/pound, my family decides to sample just 3 large ones out of a tank at the side of the dining room.  The flesh is very sweet and briny like the ocean they once swam in.  I think they should have laid off the garlic here.  It masks the flavor of the prawns too much.

Old Water Duck

No seafood here, but a great dish nevertheless.  The duck is cooked in soy sauce called "old water."  This kind of dish originates in the Chaozhou region of Guangdong Province.  The kind of food is more rustic and not as colorful as mainline Cantonese cuisine.  Like the seafood dishes above, the ingredients speak for themselves.  In this case, it's all about the duck with some soy sauce.

This place is also open late.  And by that I mean from 11am-6am.  Yes, they are open until the crack of dawn.  So this would the perfect place for a late night snack.  I never stayed here past 9, so I don't know what kind of people would go there.  I do know that they have late night specials, which means even better value.

Hong Kong Seafood Garden
4300 W Spring Mountain Road
Unit 103, 104, 105
Las Vegas, NV 89102

Hash House a Go Go

Usually, I don't go out for breakfast or brunch.  Maybe it's because it's all standard stuff: eggs, bacon, pancakes, waffles, sandwiches, etc.  Don't get me wrong, I like that stuff.  But, I do like some change.   Or something that I can't make at home.

Hash House specializes in what they call Midwestern farm food with a twist.  Usually, that means super-sizing the portions, or creating combinations you'd least expect.  A typical plate is about a foot long.  Another twist is that they have a full bar here that's open during restaurant hours.  You can have a Bloody Mary, a PBR, or a mimosa with your waffles.  Now that's pretty badass.  So badass that they have a pretty decent celebrity clientele here.  Neil Patrick Harris was here.  He apparently really liked the pancakes, which are the size of actual cakes.

So here is what my family and I got during our visit here.

S'mores Mocha

My sister starts things off with a giant and delectable coffee drink.  Since I don't drink coffee, I can't describe the taste, but I would definitely recommend anyone who orders those weird drinks from Starbucks to try this.  It's got actual Graham crackers, marshmallows, and fudge.  No artificial ingredients here.

Pork Tenderloin Sandwich

I'm not kidding when I say super-size.  The pork cutlet is almost the size of the plate if you place it lengthwise.  It looks like it has been hit with gamma rays, so I called it "the Incredible Pork."  Its served with onions, pickles, and ketchup on a wheat bun.  The pork is perfectly fried and surprisingly tasty, reminiscent of tonkatsu.

Tractor Driver Combo

For this plate, you get eggs, sausage or bacon, and a choice of a pancake, waffle, or french toast.  This  one has scrambled eggs, sausage links, and a bacon stuffed waffle.  So cool.

Bacon and Mashed Potato Burger

Yes, there are two strips of bacon and mashed potatoes stuffed between two patties.  Mashed potatoes in a burger, who would have thought of that?  Add the fries and you've got a potato overload.  I like the toasted brioche bun, which gives the burger a nice buttery texture.

Fried Chicken Benedict

This dish was featured on Man vs. Food on the Travel Channel a few years ago.  It's an absolute behemoth of food.  A layer cake of excess.  A showstopper.  Whatever I call it, it blows my mind how this was ever conceived.  Just look at a cross section of this thing.

It begins with griddled mashed potatoes.  The second layer consists of a buttermilk biscuit, spinach, tomatoes, fried spaghetti.  Lasts comes the sage fried chicken, which is breaded with corn flakes.  It is then topped with griddled mozzarella, scrambled eggs, and a chipotle cream sauce.  And there is some fruit on the side to lighten things up.

I have been here twice now and each time has excited me.  Not only does the come in great quantities, but also great quality.  And it's not just the food I have had, but also those of the people sitting around us.  I got see some of the ways Hash House is changing the way breakfast and brunch is made.  It could be a tower of chicken and waffles, a hot dog served with a beer in a brown bag and a side of bacon, or Snickers pancakes.  But what gives me the greatest kick is their reactions to the food.  It's the looks of shock, awe, and puzzlement.  Or the whispers of "Wow", "How can I eat this whole thing?", and "I've got breakfast, lunch, and dinner right here." I saw one large party where each person looked at each other speechless with their eyes and mouths wide open.  This is probably one of the few restaurants I have had fun eating at.

If only there was a place like this in the DC Metro area, I would go out for brunch or breakfast more often.  They seem just a little too familiar.  Washington may never change, but I'm sure that breakfast can.

Endnote:  I am aware that there are two other locations on the Strip (The Quad and Imperial Palace Hotels).  This is the original Vegas location and do not know how good the Strip locations are compared to this one.  All I know is that the first restaurant is in San Diego and they have also expanded to Chicago, Reno, Orlando, and Montville, Connecticut.

Hash House a Go Go
6800 E Sahara Ave
Las Vegas, NV 89146