Saturday, August 4, 2007

Azn Invasion



I love Asian food. This love might have something to do with my being Chinese, but even so, you've gotta admit that Asian food is tasty. I like everything spanning from Vietnamese and Thai to Filipino and Japanese. Chinese food is pretty good, too, but the American-Chinese food that is all too prevalent here in the USA can really turn my stomach sometimes. However, I can usually come to terms with it. My dad took my brother and I to a great Chinese buffet in Calgary last summer. It sounds trashy, and it is in the mall, but WOW was it good. It was by far the best authentic Chinese buffet I've ever been to in North America.

The way you can tell an Asian restaurant is good is by looking at the clientele. Most people know this, but some snobs are very picky about restaurant cleanliness. Now, I'm all for not getting Ebola or Salmonella, but I don't care if the floors are crusted over if the food is good. A little stomach ache later is a personal sacrifice that sometimes must be taken. Fast food does it to me all the time, and those places are always cleaner than the average Chinese take-out joint!

We went to an Asian Supermarket today, after discovering the Farmer's Market we drove 30 min to didn't actually exist, contrary to what the worldwide web said (lies!). Usually when we go to the Asian supermarket, we're not buying bread and meat and vegetables. We get treats, little things, some sauces, frozen dumplings, etc. So we got some Bulgogi marinade to try out. For those of you who haven't ever had Korean food, you have got to try Beef Bulgogi. Grill it at your table yourself (Korean BBQ) or have the restaurant serve you theirs. Abbie remarked after her first bite: "mm mm, tastes like CANDY!". I guess the marinade is usually made with Asian pear puree, and it is deliciously sweet.

/end commercial

FYI, some of my favorite dishes are (in no particular order):

pho (Vietnamese noodle soup)
Korean barbecue
Vietnamese pork chops
mussaman curry
stinky tofu (actual name)
ginger beef
roasted goat meat

Also, Florida is pretty scarce when it comes to Asian food, but I have managed to find a few decent places for Vietnamese, Korean and Thai. Los Angeles had so many restaurants....

2 comments:

Brian said...

Heidi and I loved the Vietnamese place we went to in Hawaii with you guys. We cannot find another place like it here in Madison.

The spring rolls were awesome and a couple places we've been don't have them.

It's a cryin' shame.

Mia said...

Mmmm. Love good Bulgogi. Mmmm. Now you've made this pregnant woman want some. And it's Sunday morning. Where am I going to get some now?? Curse you!!