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Joe’s Shanghai vs. Nan Xiang Xiao Long Bao

For those of you that don’t know what a xiao long bao is, it is a soup dumpling. Xiao long bao is roughly translated as ‘little dragon bun’ and is one of my favorite foods since childhood. A gelatin filling melts into soup as the dumpling is steamed in a bamboo basket on a bed of cabbage. My favorite type has crab meat and pork.

Context: Ian found a soup dumpling he claims is better than the ones found at Joe’s Shanghai. We made our way out to Flushing on Sunday afternoon and put the two to a taste test.

We first went to Joe’s Shanghai on 37th avenue to reacquaint ourselves with taste. We needed a point of reference. We are also glutinous people and love eating.

First off, my opinion is skewed because my heart yearns for Joe’s crab meat and pork xiao long baos- they were the first I’d ever had in my life. There are a lot of dissenters who claim Joe’s Shanghai is overrated and they may very well be right, but I think they are THE SHIT. The skin is thick and the soup and meat are super tasty. I’ve had some mixed experiences at the Chinatown location on Pell Street. The restaurant is a busy place and they’ve learned to prepare batches and batches of dumplings ahead of time to meet demands- so in turn, I’ve always had fast service but some unimpressive and dry dumplings, but my nostalgia always kicks in and I never leave unhappy.

That being said, Joe’s Shanghai fulfilled my hopes today and definitely set the tone for some tough competition.

Unable to keep this a controlled test (as previously mentioned, I already ate a pork and vegetable bun before getting to the restaurant), we had some salty, delicious string-beans. Yum.

That about wraps up Joe’s for now. On to Nan Xiang. After some wrong turns, we eventually found ourselves under a red awning waiting for a seat at Ian’s newfound favorite soup dumpling joint.

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A Picture Prelude to a Flushing Taste Test

My friend Ian claimed to have found a xiao long bao spot in Flushing that rivals my childhood favorite, Joe’s Shanghai. Ian promised a juicier xiao long bao. We set out to put the two to the test.

Sitting on the floor of the express shuttle to Flushing from Manhattan’s Chinatown. 20 minutes to destination! A bargain ($2.50 each way) versus the hour long commute using the 7 train.

Already starving. Had to pick up a pork and vegetable bun. Mmmm.

Enjoying some warm soy milk on the way to the meeting point.

Success! Ready for the Xiao long SHOW DOWN – first stop. Joe’s Shanghai.

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A Taste of Britain at Tea & Sympathy (not for your wallet)

Yesterday I went Tea & Sympathy in the West Village on Greenwich Ave (by 13th st). The restaurant is small and cozy, seating only 23 people, with lots of floral prints and patterns on all the tupperware and tables. Always a cheap-ass, I was worried about the restaurant’s pseudo-premium price point but Tea & Sympathy delivers!

We got the lamb shepherd’s pie and bangers, bacon and beans. The shepherd’s pie was deliciously lamb-y and accompanied by a side of peas. The bangers, bacon and beans came with warm toast that was so tasty. We might have overdid it on the meat, but who doesn’t love meat? While the dishes didn’t look particular big I was sufficiently stuffed after our two entrees (both pricing in around $14.95).

After our meal we followed up with a pot of Tea & Sympathy’s Rosie Lee tea (for two at, I think, $10.75). The pot was huge, with more tea than I could drink in one meal, but really soothing after binging on a meat festival.

If you like English food, go to Tea & Sympathy. You might feel like you’re paying pound (£) prices, but you get generous portions and the feeling of sitting in your British friend’s house and getting his mom’s home-cooking.

Their tea-time specials look delicious. The “Afternoon Tea for One” comes with an assortment of fancy finger foods (scones with clotted cream and jam, finger sandwiches, cakes and a pot of tea) at $35.00. Unwilling to shell out the money I jealously watched other diners enjoying this seemingly wonderful mix of foods (pictured below).

Also, their desserts are delicious. Try their sticky toffee pudding in warm custard. MMMMM!

pictures stolen from internet

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Somehow I missed this – Illa J doing his best Dilla

I remember being astounded at the striking resemblance of J Dilla’s younger brother, John Yancey, to the man himself, when I first saw the video for Dilla’s “Won’t Do” which dropped after his untimely passing. Don’t know how I ever missed this, because this came out in November of last year, but John Yancey put out an album entitled Yancey Brothers, entirely produced by Dilla and emcee’d by himself (as Illa J).

I heard one of the tracks while at a bar a few days ago and kept trying to figure out whether the track was Dilla or not. The production sounded spot on Dilla and even the voice was relatively similar. I asked the bartender what the music was, who in turn asked the DJ, and later slipped me a piece of paper saying ‘Illa J feat. Debi Nova.’

This track is super slick and you should give it a listen if you haven’t already, although I am already obviously way behind on this one. The beat is unquestionably Dilla gold and Illa J has some decent flowing. I always loved Dilla’s flow, he’s just so cool and unpretentious and Illa J delivers a very similar rhyming style.

I’m not so sure how I feel about the concept of Dilla’s brother rapping over Dilla beats. I enjoyed the album but I have yet to make a verdict on the fact that Illa’s flow is very reminiscent of Jay Dee- can’t tell. Does it irk me or doesn’t it?

Go get the whole album and you be the judge. I can’t stop listening to ‘Sounds Like Love’ and the album has some other gems as well. For die-hard Dilla fans the instrumental version of the album is also available.

LISTEN: Illa J - Sounds Like Love (feat. Debi Nova)

And when you get another moment check out John Yancey playing Jay Dee in the “Won’t Do” video.

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Freedom

Taking a cue from Eileen, who beautifully designed this blog by recreating a cat pillow I bought for my girlfriend in Hong Kong in Illustrator as a logo, here is a quotation…

From Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts:

It took me a long time and most of the world to learn what I know about love and fate and the choices we make, but the heart of it came to me in an instant, while I was chained to a wall and being tortured. I realised, somehow, through the screaming of my mind, that even in that shackled, bloody helplessness, I was still free: free to hate the men who were torturing me, or to forgive them. It doesn’t sound like much, I know. But in the flinch and bite of the chain, when it’s all you’ve got, that freedom is an universe of possibility. And the choice you make between hating and forgiving, can become the story of your life.

Literally the first paragraph.

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Little Dragon Live @ Le Poisson Rouge

Yukimi Nagano kicking ass

I fell in love with Little Dragon’s debut album in 2007. An amazing mix of soul, house, electronic and pop music. Has anyone noticed Sweden keeps popping out the sweetest bands?

I was initially a little disappointed with Little Dragon’s second album, Machine Dreams. I found the album to feel a little more stiff than their first, and frankly, a little boring (still, there are some amazing songs to be found here).

That being said, Little Dragon’s show at Le Poisson Rouge mainly featured songs from Machine Dreams and live, the songs sounded, well, alive! While an encore was expected, I didn’t think that they would keep kicking ass for almost an extra half hour. Yukimi Nagano is the most badass performer I have seen in over a year. She’s got an amazing voice, she can dance, and she makes you want to move. Yukimi Nagano is just fucking cool.

They are amazing live, so do yourself a favor and check them out the next time they’re in New York City. In the meantime…

http://www.myspace.com/yourlittledragon

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The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay

The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay by Michael Chabon.

If you like Prague, New York, World War II, comic books and escape artists – read this. And it won a Pulitzer Prize!