法式蛋卷 Chocolate Covered Meat Floss Sushi

Pinyin: fǎ shì dàn juàn


This dish was a calculated risk and I gotta say we came out on the losing side. My interest was piqued and then the waitress told me that the brown sauce was chocolate I couldn't resist. I wanted to know how scrambled egg, meat flosh, cucumber, and chocolate combined to make a sushi like appetizer. The answer unsurprisingly was not very well at all. Meat floss in any dish is always a bit awkward, it's a bit sweet, but also a bit savory, it's meat but doesn't feel like meat, very strange stuff indeed. It wasn't helped at all by the chocolate.

No worries though for the average diner, I'm guessing that only this one tucked away restaurant in Jing'An District in Shanghai serves this dish. The real moral of this story is that you should try new and interesting things, including food, even when they might not seem all that great. There's always a chance you'll be pleasantly surprised. This wasn't one of them, but maybe I'll have better luck next time.

东北酱脊骨 Braised Pork Spine

Pinyin: dōng běi jiàng jǐ gǔ

A dish fit for a man. Meat and bones greasy and fried, not much in the way of spices or strange flavors, just meat and grease.

I've never had braised pork spine before, it seems as though it's a lot like pork ribs, but more difficult to eat. Trying to dig in to the corners and crevices while keeping the cheeks clean was basically impossible. After the fact I'm not really sure that you could give the bones to a dog but I'm sure they'd appreciate it.

The only real complaint I had was that it was a bit greasy, overall the dish was just OK, nothing to rave about.

八宝菜 Eight Treasures

Pinyin: bā bǎo cài

I saw this dish on a table next to mine when I walked in to this restaurant and it looked great. I'm a fan of peanuts, and I saw it had carrots and cucumbers, tofu, meat, and more. I had to have it. Come to find out this dish is actually called the Eight Treasures Dish. It has everything mentioned above as well as mushrooms, peppers, and peas.

It really reminded me a lot of Kung Pao Chicken, of which I am a huge fan, but with more variety. My hopes were dashed though upon the first bite. The dish was quite oily and the sauce was very dark and heavy feeling. It was a bit saltier than I would have liked even though the overall flavor was good.

I had such high hopes and like so many things in China those hopes were dashed. I still think that this dish has great potential if it was done right. Given the right restaurant I'd try this one again, though I think most of the cheap local places would abuse this by over oiling it, so be warned.

白切肚头 Pork Stomach with Soy Sauce

Pinyin: Bái Qiē Dù Tóu

Startling in its appearance I was surprised that this dish actually tasted not bad. Warning bells usually go off in my head when people start talking about eating internal organs, but I'll give most things a try. The meat was actually served chilled, not just room temperature and soy sauce was provided for dipping. The meat was tender albeit the texture was a bit odd, but it tasted clean, a little like ham but definitely not overwhelming. I kept going back for more throughout the meal as it provided some nice contrast to the other dishes. I can't say I'd recommend it, but I wouldn't avoid it either.

蒜泥白肉 Sliced Pork with Garlic Sauce

Pinyin: Suàn Né Bái Ròu

What a salt filled delightful dish, an American meat eaters dream come true. Sliced steamed pork, served cold, almost like cold cuts for a sandwich. The dipping sauce is what really makes it great though. It's simply sesame oil, salt, and minced garlic. Combined together it fully flavors the pork and is one of my favorite dishes to have on a Friday or Saturday night with friends while drinking a beer or two, damn salt and beer go together so well.

I've never seen this anywhere aside from the local Shanghainese restaurant that I frequent, but it's certainly easy enough to reproduce at home if you ever felt so inclined.