Dumplings, Dumplings and More Dumplings
“You eat that one… I cant”
“No you eat it… I’m done!”
“Oh NO… another round is coming… how many is the supposed to be?”
“Ooooohhhhhh look honey, these are pink and green.”
“And there looks like more.... I just spotted our stack of steamers and we’re nowhere near the end”
We settle back and try to pace our selves as the Food just kept coming… and coming… and coming.
Yes dear hearts, we were Han Tang Tiensha restaurant at the Dumpling Banquet, aptly named as there are 18 courses of two dumpling each not counting 6 boiled dumplings they served as comparison at the end… plus Soup and rice and fresh fruit, accompanied by the traditional Green tea.
With apologies to Zhang Teng in Beijing… THESE are the BEST Dumplings on the 7 continents [so far… it seems like we keep finding one-up each time we think it can’t get any better.] But in his defense… he did say his spot was the best in Northern China.
The meal started with a 5 item appetizer plate of a sliced sausage type of meat [like a bratwurst], baked ham with the skin and fat on [the Chinese seem to like their fat on pork] pickled bean sprouts and pickled cukes and an almond roll with a sweet bean center. Then came the steady parade of some of the most creative and attractive dumplings imaginable. Served in their own round steamer tray, each dumpling was a delightful little pouch formed to represent the filling. There were rabbits and flowers and veggie baskets, chickens and pigs and birds…oh my. All of them steamed versus the boiled ones in Beijing, each one staged so as not to overwhelm the previous flavors but accentuate the experience going from mild to meaty to tangy to spicy and then sweet and finally the fruit. It was an amazing array of flavors and textures to totally delight the senses. I had asked our guide before we entered the restaurant what dips or sauces she recommended and we were told to try them without anything in order to savor the individual flavors and character of each dumpling as it should stand alone in your mouth to appreciate it. She was right… although the Chinese use either Soy [salt to them], Rice vinegar, or Han Cho Chile’s [Habanero chilies have nothing on the HOT BAD BOYS”] we enjoyed each one “Au Natural” and it was magnificent. The service was excellent and although I was tempted to try one of national wines, [Great Wall seems to be the “Mondavi” of China] we elected not to. It would have overwhelmed the dumplings and we really wanted to enjoy each one on its own merits.
At each planned meal you are allowed “one cup of Soda, or Water or Beer”… now picture this… there’s this big bottle that holds at least 3 glasses… they pour one for Illy and one for Chucky and think that they will get away from the table with the remainder for another guest… those that know Chuck know… That Ain't Gonna Happen!!!!.. This usually happens while our guide is still around making sure of the menu and that we’re settled in, before they head to wherever they and the driver are to eat, of coures now they hurry to explain to the confused wait staff to
just leave the bottle, I'll pay the balance if any. Most of the time they waive the extra charge by the time the “Fengtze Meiguo Ren” [crazy American] has them all posing for pics and chatting them up in his limited but appreciated Mandarin.So to sum it up… Great soup, served in a fire pot heated at the table, good rice… Outstanding Dumplings and service…Beer Good. The first 5 * rating of the trip.
We head back… OK.. Waddle to the van and back to the hotel. Chucky has a lot of NOWAT to catch up on and manages to get a couple finished and over to the business center for the broadband access before they close for the night.
Illy insists that we comment on the different style and the middle eastern influences on the table service and general accoutrements such as the tapered tall cup with handles for the tea at the Tang Dinner [ as opposed to the tiny handless cups in Beijing] to the different style of Chop sticks and of course the fact that the classy restaurants give you little porcelain rests for the sticks, most usually shaped like animals. She also thinks we should remark on the marked difference in the facial features of the average population in Xi'an… Broader higher foreheads, longer paler faces with very prominent cheekbones.
Additionally she feels strongly about commenting on the middle-eastern and some western influences on the food and style of preparation.
I don’t think we need to… so we won’t.
After retrieving the Passports from the Safety Deposit box, I manage to score some cheap beer [make that less expensive than in the mini bar] in the lobby shop and take it back to relax a bit before starting another NOWAT but barely finish the beer before I start nodding. With a 4AM wake up, I'll catch up on the flight to Hangzhou.
再见朋友
Zài Jiàn Péng-You
Chuck and the now anxiously tapping her foot “so we can go now Chucky”
Dragon Lady
