Places we're curious about

[joethefoodie]

Lukewarm tea. Comical, nice service.
Cold spareribs…not room temp, which I can deal with, cold.                                                                 Too much sweet - even inside the soup buns. 
We thought one of their special noodle soups was okay, as was the bok choy.

 Just nothing which made us think we can’t wait to get back to try more stuff.

[small h]

Oy. I've had issues with too-sweet food at Shanghainese places before (China Blue, if memory serves). I was thinking of getting the fish stew pretty soon, or one of the noodle soups. Hopefully that'll be hot, at least.

[Sneakeater]

On 10/22/2021 at 3:11 PM, The Flon said:

The reopened Temple Bar was a disappointment. Loud party music, standing room allowed and while the drinks were fine it was not a place I wanted to linger at all. 

I somehow contrived to be an hour and a half early for a show in the Sheen Center.   So here I am sitting at Temple Bar.

 I don’t much like it. 

[Sneakeater]

What is up with all the chest hair the bartenders are apparently made to show here?  I HOPE it’s ironic. Makes me nostalgic for suspenders and sleeve garters.  

[The Flon]

3 hours ago, Sneakeater said:

I somehow contrived to be an hour and a half early for a show in the Sheen Center.   So here I am sitting at Temple Bar.

 I don’t much like it. 

Right? At least you got to sit. They let us in for standing room and acted like it was a favor. 

[Jesikka]

Is there any remarkable Chinese in either Flushing or Manhattan right now? Wus is reliable but I’ve never been as smitten as some and a lot of the old favorites like Sichuan Mountain House and Hunan Slurp seem to have done a major slide.  What’s really good?

[joethefoodie]

22 minutes ago, Jesikka said:

Is there any remarkable Chinese in either Flushing or Manhattan right now? Wus is reliable but I’ve never been as smitten as some and a lot of the old favorites like Sichuan Mountain House and Hunan Slurp seem to have done a major slide.  What’s really good?

They all seem to do slides, as cooks and other kitchen personnel move on. Wu's has worked in waves for sure.  But their most reliable stuff has maintained, similar to how Great NY Noodletown's has as well.

[Sneakeater]

I don’t think CheLi has slid yet.  But get there soon.  

[voyager]

3 minutes ago, joethefoodie said:

.... cooks and other kitchen personnel move on.

Good point.    While staff  may be moderately stable in higher priced Asian houses, noodle and dumpling kitchens seem to be landing and launching pads for newcomers who with luck stay in a particular kitchen a year or so.    Then your order may seem like a completely different dish as the new chef/cooker imprints his style.

[Jesikka]

1 hour ago, Sneakeater said:

I don’t think CheLi has slid yet.  But get there soon.  

I’m looking for a reco for non NYers for Xmas Chinese and CheLi feels like a bridge too far with kids, but I could be wrong

[Sneakeater]

No you’re probably right 

[Jesikka]

But also is anything like Guan Fu in the old days good? Where does one even go in Flushing?  I feel like I’ve got no taxonomy of Chinese in NY that feels updated enough to make any recommendations.

[Sneakeater]

The problem, as I know you know, is that The Quarantine hit Chinese restaurants especially hard, so it’s hard to know what’s even open, let alone — NYC Chinese restaurants famously being so changeable — what’s still good. 

Also, if there are still a lot of people who are wary even of dining indoors, then I can’t believe they’re taking the subway to Flushing (at least not as often as in the past). 

[Sneakeater]

(As someone in the Times recently pointed out, if you’re not comfortable doing that stuff now, then you probably NEVER will be for the rest of your life, because an inflection point will never come when things are clearly materially better.)

[AaronS]

I’ve had a few very good meals from chuan yue on 64th street in sunset park over the last few months. not as good as my best meals at guan fu but as good as the way I remember say spicy and tasty. (from because I get delivery from there sometimes.)

the menu is broad enough that it would probably work for my kids.