A stroll along the Qianmen gateway

This January when I visited Beijing for the Chinese new year, I finally got a chance to walk on the newly renovated Qianmen gateway. Qianmen (前门) literally means the front gate.

The weather was cold; not many tourists in that afternoon. I was left alone to enjoy the street and the view myself. I especially liked these birdcage-like street lights.

The top of an old building.

A “Diang Diang Cart” passing through the gate.

A mini-guide to Chinese restaurants in New York

Suddenly I feel so hungry as I write this blog, even though the most difficult part of writing a guide of Chinese restaurants is to handle their “dynamic nature”.

A Chinese restaurant may offer an extremely tasty menu at beginning, but over time, the dishes and menu become trashy. A successful Chinese restaurant might open a couple of branches, but do not expect the quality and service to be standard.

The best place for Chinese food used to be the Chinatown in the lower Manhattan. A couple of years ago, mid-town Chinese restaurants boomed. Now the best/authentic Chinese restaurants are in Flushing, Queens.

OK, I should stop whining and move on.

Sichuan:

(1) Duo Yi 曼哈顿朵颐食府: 21 W 39th St. (between 5th Ave. and 6th Ave.), (212) 921-0233.

(2) Wu Liang Ye 五粮液: I love their razor clams. 3 branches.

• 36 West 48th St. (between 5th Ave. and 6th Ave.), (212)398-2308
• 338 Lexington Ave. (between 39 St. and 40 St.), (212) 370-9648
• 215 East 86 St. (between 2nd Ave. and 3rd Ave.), (212) 534-8899

(3) Grand Sichuan 大四川饭店: 3 branches. I visited the following two most often.

• 227 Lexington Ave., (212) 679-9737. With an online menu.
• 125 Canal St., (212) 625-9212. It does not seem to be related to the one on Lexington, but both are in fact from the same owner. There is even an online menu. This one is cash only.

(4) Grand Sichuan 故乡味: Yes, I know. The same English translation, different Chinese titles. The Chinese name literally translates into “Home taste”. The same owner as these in (3). Three branches.

• 1049 2nd Ave. (between 55th and 56th St.), (212) 355-5855. Subway Stops: 6 to 51st St.; E, V to Lexington Ave.
• 229 9th Ave. (at 24th St.), (212) 620-5220. Subway Stops: C, E at 23rd St.
• 19-23 St. Marks Pl. (near 3rd Ave.). (212) 529-4800. Subway Stops: 6 to Astor Pl.

Cantonese (dim sum)

(1) Oriental Garden 福临门海鲜酒家: 14 Elizabeth St., (212) 619-0085. Always crowded. Services are preliminary (a.k.a. terrible). Forget about the decors. But it has so-called best seafood in Chinatown.

(2) Golden Unicorn 麒麟金阁: 18 E Broadway., (212) 941-0911. I used to go here for dim sum whenever I am in town.

(3) XO Kitchen 食坊: 148 Hester St., (212) 965-8645. This one has a very tasty bubble tea selection and a lot of Cantonese traditional dishes. The place is small, and always crowded. And, as usual, cash only.

(4) Jing Fong 金丰大酒楼: 20 Elizabeth St., (212) 964-5256. I have been there twice for dim sum. It is spacious and offers a good selection of dim sum. I also like their special cooking station, though that area could be crowded.

Shanghainese:

(1) Evergreen Shanghai Restaurant & Lounge 绿杨村. 2 branches that I go often:

• 10 East 38th St. (between Madison and 5 Ave.), (212) 448-1199
• 785 Broadway (Corner 10 St.), (212) 473-2777

(2) Joe’s Shanghai 鹿鸣春: 3 branches. I only went to the mid-town once and tried these Shanghainese traditional dishes.

• 9 Pell St. (between Mott St. and Bowery), (212) 233-8888. Subway Stops: 6. W, Q to Canal St.
• 24 W. 56th St. (between 5th Ave. and 6th Ave.), (212) 333-3868. Subway Stops: F to 57th St.
• 136-21 37th Ave. (between Main St. and Union St.), (718) 539-3838. Subway Stops: 7 to Main St.

(3) Shanghai Cuisine 上海老饭店, 89-91 Bayard St., New York, NY 10013, (212) 732-8988, or (212) 732-5122.

(4) 上海老正兴, 65 Bayard St., New York, NY 10013, (212) 566-6111.

My Soho shopping list

Every time I head to New York, there is a list that I carry to make sure I hit the shops that I want in the Soho area.

★★★ Tous. 109 Greene St., (212) 219-1444. What can I say, I love Tous. Its jewelries are so beautiful and creative, and so reasonably priced.

★★★ Custo. 474 Broome St., (212) 274-9700. I always like their outfits. Sometimes it depends on how far I want to go. 

★★★ Braccialini. 438 West Broadway, (212) 334-2441. Their handbags are so cute and creative. I also love their gadgets.

★★★ Hogan. 134 Spring St., (212) 343-3039. “The cooler, younger sibling to conservative counterpart Tod’s, best-known for colorful suede sneakers and supple leather bags”.

★★ Tokidoki. 176 Spring St.

★★ Kate Spade. 454 Broome St., (212) 274-1991. Sometimes they have quite innovative and fun stuff.

★ Anne Fontaine. 93 Greene St., (212) 343-3154. Sometimes their white/black shirts are amazing. Not all of them practical though.

★ LeSportsac. 118 Greene St., (212) 625-2626. When they were teaming with Tokidoki, I check this store a lot. But now I drop by occasionally — only there is extra time to kill.

Nearby Subway Stops: C, E at Spring St.; N, R, W at Prince St.; 6 at Spring St.; B, D, F, V at Broadway-Lafayette St.

Panda Kindergarten

13 baby pandas were born after the Sichuan earthquake. Now they have moved to a “panda kindergarten” located around Ya’An Giant Panda Research Base in Sichuan.

Original link of the news report: http://www.china.com.cn/photo/txt/2009-02/16/content_17286132.htm

The photographer: Xiaoyun Luo

A cute Sohu blog’s banner

Another cute banner from sohu’s blog templates. It also fits the theme of Saint Valentine’s Day. I wonder why these Chinese blog sites can offer way more fun and beautiful templates?

On top of that, there are more choices that a blogger can add to decorate his/her pages. Sigh…

Thoughts on Saint Valentine’s Day

It is the Valentine’s Day, so let me write something about love.

Love can be blind.

So can someone like me.

It is exhausting to go through the same old argument, then the same empty promise that all of us know won’t last for 10 minutes. Why cannot someone just see this whole thing is really gettting old? How many times have I gone through this kind of routines before I get truly sick and tired of? 

Most important above all, why can’t I just accept the simple fact that I am hanging out with someone hopeless and should write this off?

No self-discipline, no motivation, no ambition, no courage. Any bumps on the road must be others to blame; never his own problem. What can people like this truly accomplish anything and deserve anything?

Haven’t I had enough needies in my working environments already? Hasn’t my job been stressful enough that I need another emotional and physical meltdown?

This Valentine’s day is so sad.  

My analytical mind says that if I hang out with a loser, then I am a loser as well. True. Maybe I am upset because I cannot accept this fact.

My analytical mind also says that I should not try to change anyone. It is useless. Take care of myself — at least I won’t be disappointed — and move on.

The artists behind the famous cartoon “Maodou the Piggy” created a mini-series of “Happy Valentine’s Day” last year. The Chinese name Maodou (毛豆) means candida (soya beans).

I used to love every single piece of their work. Today’s the Valentine’s day. I should be happy and enjoy this holiday to myself.

The artists of Maodou the Piggy also created a special Happy V-Day Wallpaper. Obviously, the cute Maodou got busy on this day.

Preparing for Melbourne

I finally finished that set of documents and sent them out for visa to Australia.

Never liked paperwork, especially visa application.

With that load of work off my shoulder, now Melbourne looks more pleasant.

I dug out the pictures that my Australian friends sent to me in the past. In the past I have received a picture of Rainbow Lorikeets and one about Eastern Rosellas.

My friend wrote about them, “these Rainbow lorikeets eat a variety of seeds.  We buy a mix for large parrots which has sunflower, wheat, some maize, and sorghum, and probably more, in it.  They are also most happy to be offered apple, any sweet fruit, old banana, old bread softened in sugary water, etc. We used to have large number of them come every day, but now two have taken up residence somewhere nearby and they try to chase the others away.  So I leave seed in the hanging tray and also on the paved path to our washing-drying lines, so that they are at a distance of 4-5 m where the local pair can tolerate them.”

He continued, “The lorikeets are so aggressive that other parrots, such as Eastern rosellas, which we used to have hardly come anymore.  Crimson rosellas, which were the most common rosella in Park Orchards. Occasionally in winter we get a few galahs come looking for food.  The crimson rosellas can become very tame in National Parks where people feed them (officiallyone is not supposed to do that).  They will sit on your arm or head whilst waiting to be offered something.”

Now just by looking at these cute pictures again all of sudden I so want to visit Melbourne.

Cool Koala

“A small ray of sunshine on an otherwise very dark day”, writes my Australian friend who lives in the suburb of Melbourne.

I have been following the news coverage about the record temperature in Australia, followed by the wildfire, that have affected Melbourne dramatically. My friend seemed, however, to be in a good spirit, and sent me some fun pictures.

“It has been so hot in South Australia for over a week…45+ degrees Celsius every day.  At Maude, in the SE corner of the state, a little Koala just walked into the back porch looking for a bit of heat relief.  The family filled up a bucket and this is what happened!”

Look what I have found!

That looks like water

Dipping in

And relax...It is so hot outside!

My must-hit hot pot restaurants in Beijing: Mongolian Style

My previous post covers My must-hit hot pot restaurants in Beijing: Sichuan Style. Here is the list of my favorite Mongolian style hot pot restaurants in Beijing.

(1) Dong Lai Shun (东来顺). The most famous and oldest Mongolian hot pot retaurant in Beijing, now also owns a nation-wide chain. They are virtually the one who started the real Mongolian hot pot in 1903.

They have the most picky eye on lamb choice, and the most amazing shaving techniques. Their lamb meats are paper-thin and are cut in a special direction so that each piece is almost transparent. In mondern days, of course there are always machines that can produce almost the same cut, but again, we lose the human touch somewhere…

The main one is originally located near the Tian An Men square. Now the closest branch can be found in the busy shopping district Wang Fu Jing. Address: Floor 5, #138 Wang Fu Jing Street (东城区王府井大街138号新东安大厦5楼). Phone: 010-65280932, 65280501.

Do not expect too much of the service. But the lamb is outstanding.  It is not cheap, according to local standards. The lamb itself is not expensive, but others — drinks, for example — are over priced.

(2) Kou Fu Ju (口福居). An old and traditional Mongolian hot pot restaurant chain that is popular among locals. Not necessarily trendy, but the food quality is amazing, and the price is so cheap.

The one that I visit often is near the financial street, about one bus-stop away from busy shopping district XiDan. Address: #93 Bing Ma Si Hu Tong (西城区兵马司胡同93号). Phone: 010-66083288. Subway Station: Fu Xing Men. Then a 5-10 minutes walk eastbound along the Chang An Boulevard.

Do not expect the service is as good as its menu. But the restaurant offers some amazing traditional Beijing local dishes that you won’t be able to experience somewhere else, even in Beijing.

(3) Little Sheep (小肥羊). Another popular Mongolian hot pot chain, famous for its lamb. And unlike some that claim to serve lambs from Mongolia, this restaurant does start from Inner Mongolia. Believe it or not, this company is even listed at the Hong Kong stock exchange.

The chance of you seeing a “Little Sheep” restaurant is almost the same as you see a McDonald’s in Beijing. But there is no comparison in terms of taste of the food.

My must-hit hot pot restaurants in Beijing: Sichuan Style

In Beijing, I check out the Sichuan-styled restaurants more often. Here is the list of my must-hit Sichuan style hot-pot restaurants.

(1) Hai Di Lao (海底捞). A hot pot restaurant chain. Famous for its service, and quality of the food. Very reasonable price. No wonder it is popular. This restaurant is always crowded. In winter, people sometimes wait for hours just for lunch.

The one that I visited most often is near the west side of the downtown Beijing. Address: Floor 7, 109 Xi Dan Street North (北京西城区西单北大街109号西西友谊商场7楼). Phone:  010-66174063, 66174043. Subway station (Line 1): Xi Dan.

Customers can get really spoiled here. While you are waiting for seat, the restaurant provides free services such as manicure, tea, shoe-shining, internet-surfing, and gaming. While you are ready for your hot pot, they also provide free goodies such as eye-glasses wipes, hot towels, and apron (yes, it can get messy in “hot-potting”).

(2) San Zhi Er (三只耳). A famous Sichuan hot pot restaurant chain. The surname of the owner of the restaurant is “聶” (pronounced as “Nie”), which is written in Chinese as 3 “耳”s (ear). So came the name of the restaurant.

San Zhi Er Restaurant

People in Chengdu, Sichuan, who have all kinds of hot pots available and who are the most picky customers, normally have to wait for about an hour during dinner time to be able to get a seat at this restaurant.

This chain does not have many branches in Beijing. The one that is closest to downtown Beijing is its “Fang Zhuang” branch. Address: #9 PuFang Rd (丰台区蒲方路9号院1号楼). Phone: 010-58070888. Subway station (Line 5): Pu Huang Yu.

(3) Jin Shan Cheng (金山城). A relatively earlier chain of Sichuan-styled hot pot restaurants. In Beijing alone it owns over 20 branch restaurants.

I am most familiar with its branch located inside the third floor of the New World Shopping Mall.

Jin Shan Cheng

Address: Floor 3, New World Shopping Mall, #5 Chong Wen Men Wai Street (崇文区崇文门外大街5号新世界商场二期3楼). Phone: 010-67089566. Subway station (Line 2): Chong Wen Men.

In the past, I often check out this one for a late hot pot lunch after morning shopping. In recent years, this chain is not as popular as its competitors.

For a list of Mongolian style hot pot restaurants: http://minifish.wordpress.com/2009/02/08/my-must-hit-hot-pot-restaurants-in-beijing-mongolian-style/