I’ve been hearing about Wang’s Fast Food for years. And, as a dumpling addict, I have no excuse for not going sooner (besides the fact that I rarely go to Somerville). Since I couldn’t remember which type of dumpling were supposed to be the best, we got an order of the Shrimp & Pork ($5.50) and the Pork & Leek ($5.25). There are 12 dumplings in an order so it is a pretty good deal. However, the best deal is to get an order of 50 frozen dumplings ($11-$13) to cook at home. (There are many ways to cook the dumplings. I usually boil them for about 5 minutes and than pan fry them until the bottoms are nice and a little bit brown.)
Verdict: Delicious dumplings!
Cheap, Chinese, Somerville
Cheap, Chinese, dumplings, pot stickers, Somerville
I’ve been reading the hype about Gitlo’s for months, but I didn’t believe that it would be that good. Now, I’m kicking myself for not going sooner because it really was a great meal!
Here’s what we ordered:
Scallop Shiu Mai w/ Scallops ($3.75)
Stuffed Long Hot Pepper w/ Shrimp Paste ($4.25)
XO Sauce Daikon Cake ($3.65)
Curry Spare Ribs w/ Potato ($4.35)
Cantonese Dumplings ($3.75)
Taro Spring Rolls ($3.55)
Char Siu So (BBQ Pork in Puff Pastry; $3.75)
(sorry, no picture)
Everything we ordered was delicious enough to order again. However, the highlights were the Char Siu So (the sauce in these were fantastic), the Curry Spare Ribs (the curry was delicious), the Cantonese Dumplings, and the XO Sauce Daikon Cake.
Verdict: One of my new favorite places!
Allston, Cheap, Chinese, Dim Sum
Allston, Boston, Cheap, Chinese, DimSum, Gitlo's
I am at work, and I feel like crap because of a cold that I can’t kick. Based on this thread, I decided to walk to Beijing Star for their Lamb Soup with Shao-Ping ($7.95). It was delicious, and it made me feel better than I have all day.
Thanks Beijing Star!
Cheap, Chinese, waltham
I justed wanted to post a big thank you to King Fung Garden II since they delivered delicious Chinese food late last night as the snow storm was winding down.
Brookline, Cheap, Chinese
I don’t order delivery often, but when I do, I feel like there are not many tasty options in JP. I am not a fan of the pizza places or the Chinese food around here, and other places that deliver are pricier than I want for the inconsistent quality of their food, such as Bukhara. This is why when PK and I order out, we always call Penguins Pizza. We usually need to reheat the pizza when it arrives, but it is always delicious.
However, a few weeks ago, when we found a King Fung Garden II menu in our mailbox, we were skeptical. We did not think that they would deliver all the way to JP. That night, we decided to find out, and, to our surprise, they did deliver. The food even arrived about 30 minutes after we placed the order.
Verdict: While the level of deliciousness seems to be a notch below the original King Fung Garden in Chinatown, the food is still fantastic. 
Brookline, Chinese
Since I started working in Waltham a few months ago, I have been checking out many of the eats around Main Street and Moody Street. So far, I have found four places that I really like. One of them is Beijing Star.
On my first visit, I ordered the Shrimp Ball and Ground Chicken Soup ($7.50). This was good, but was too bland for my liking. However, while eating, I noticed that they had frozen dumplings for sale. I picked up 50 Frozen Pork Ravioli ($12.50) and 50 Frozen Three Delight Chive Ravioli ($15). When I got home, I took a few out of each bag and boiled them for about 5 minutes and then pan-fried them. These are delicious! I like the Pork Ravioli a bit better than the other ones. If you get these, beware of the first bite, since some liquid often squirts out of them, reminding me of the Pissing Beef Balls from God of Cookery.
The next time I came back, I went for one of their lunch specials, Shredded Pork with Sliced Pancake ($6.25). This was amazing. It sort of reminded me of King Fung’s Pork and Rice Cake dish since the texture of the shredded pancakes was similar to the rice cakes. And, the Hot & Sour soup that came with the meal was pretty good.
Then, last Saturday, I picked up a shift at work, and when it was lunch time, I decided to try a couple of items on their Dim Sum menu (since I only had $5 dollars). The Steamed Scallion Bun ($1.25) was just like every other one that I have had in the past. The Steamed Pork Bun with Preserved Mustard ($2.95) was not so ordinary. I expected it to be full of big slices of BBQ pork. Instead, it was packed full of tiny pieces of pork and other shredded stuff that I could not identify. While I really liked it, it was not very flavorful.
Verdict: For Chinese food outside of Boston, this place is great, and they do seem to have several items (which I plan to discover more of) that can rival some of your favorite spots in Chinatown.
Chinese, waltham
The other day, PK and I were on Route 9 and were craving a drink and a snack. It had been almost a year since we were last at Green Tea, and I had a craving for their House Mai Tai ($7.95) which is served in a glass the size of a small fish bowl.
When we got there, they were still serving Dim Sum. We ordered their chive dumplings and pork buns, which were both fine, but not very memorable. When we finished these, we had barely made a dent in our fish bowl Mai Tais, so we decided to share the Szechwan Beef Noodle Soup ($6.95). Our expectations were not very high, and when the soup arrived, we were both shocked that it was so tasty. The broth was thick and had a very good spice, the noodles were thick and tasty, and the beef was tender. (The host even stopped by our table to tell us a bit about the history of the soup.)
Verdict: While the drinks are not at the Spring Blossom level of deliciousness, the Szechwan Beef Noodle Soup was quite good. I am going to do a bit of research to find out about their specialties since if more of their dishes are as tasty as the soup, I am looking forward to going back.
P.S. I just remembered that Boston Chomp has a write-up on Green Tea, and based on their review, it looks like PK and I found the best item on their menu.
Cheap, Chinese, Newton, MA
The other week, PK and I were running some errands in Downtown Crossing and decided to head to Peach Farm for lunch. We wanted to keep our meal under $25, since, between us, that was all the money we had. As we entered the restaurant, we made sure to grab the yellow colored menu that lists many dishes that are not on the regular menu given to English speakers. We split the Spicy Salted Shrimp with their heads ($11.95) and, even though we both wanted the Soft Shell Crabs (which we had on our last visit), we had to keep within our budget so we ordered the Sizzling Eight Delights which consisted of scallops, shrimp, squid, fish cake, chicken, pork, bean curd, and mushrooms ($8.95).
As always, everything was fantastic and very fresh. We were both shocked at the amount of food that we got with the Sizzling Eight Delights, but we were disappointed that it only included one scallop.
Verdict: If you want delicious seafood, Peach Farm is at the top of my list. There are just too many seafood dishes that I want to try on their menu. I already know what I am going to order the next time we go (the scallops served on the halfshell and the ginger and scallion crab).
Boston, Chinatown, Chinese
(The photo was taken with my crappy phone so sorry about the quality. I also took the picture after I ate some of the dish.)
I normally bring my lunch to work, but the other day I left it in the fridge. I didn’t have enough time to walk to El Pelon (which I was craving) so I decided to go to the Chinese Food Truck. I have only been there a handful of times, and I have always ordered the Peking Ravioli (I prefer to call them Potstickers) over white rice ($3.00). However, several people in front of me ordered the Yushang Eggplant and Pork ($4.50). So, I decided to do the same. I made a mistake. The dish was rather soupy and bland. I won’t say the dish was horrible since it was edible and worth the $4.50. (I wish that I ordered the Potstickers).
Verdict: I cannot figure out why there is always a huge line for the Chinese Food Truck when there are a handful of better eating options within a few block radius.
Boston, Chinese, Longwood
On Sunday, PK, Marg, and I decided to head to Chinatown for some dim sum. We normally go to China Pearl, but this time, I wanted to try Hei La Moon since I had read so much about it on chowhound and Boston Chomps. We got there just before noon, and there was already a long line. After waiting for almost 30 minutes, I was getting impatient since I really hate waiting to eat, especially in the morning.
Once we were seated and the carts were stopping at our table, I soon forgot about the wait. Hei La Moon is a step above every dim sum place around due to quality, flavor, price, and variety.
The fried squid dish was delicious.
The fried and spicy shrimp (with their heads) were very good, but far from the best I have had; however, we will get them again due to PK’s shrimp head addiction.
The shrimp dumplings were fantastic. They were my second favorite of the meal. My favorite was a similar dumpling on the same cart that was packed full of scallions.
The long rice noodles with beef were very good.
The turnip cakes were good, but not a favorite.
And, this was voted the least favorite of the meal.
Verdict: No matter where you go for dim sum, you will have to wait, so you might as well wait outside Hei La Moon.
Chinatown, Chinese, Dim Sum