[Temple City] [Chinese] Happy Noodle

Happy Noodle
麵對面
4815 El Monte Ave
Temple City,CA 91780
(626) 279-7558

We went home to have lunch with my parents. Dr. P requested to go to Happy Noodle. This is a small hole-in-the-wall Chinese restaurant with cheap and amazingly good food.


小菜三拼 3 Items Combo Appetizer

3 Items Combo Appetizers comes with sauteed greens, peanuts, and salted duck. But my dad asked to have the seaweed instead of duck. I liked all 3 appetizers very much.

[Rosemead] [Chinese] Hunan Seafood Restaurant

Hunan Seafood Restaurant
大湘園
8772 E Valley Blvd
Rosemead, CA 91770
(626) 280-8389

Mom went back to Taiwan to visit so dad was home alone. Dr. P and I went back home to take him out for dinner. He requested Hunan Seafood.


小菜三拼 (夫妻肺片 / 海帶 / 豬耳朵) Cold Appetizer (Beef & Tendon / Seaweed / Pig Ears) ($5.95)

Waitress brought us a free small plate of pickled radish. Dad thought it was too sour and didn't like it. We ordered a 3 items cold appetizer with beef & tendon, seaweed, and pig ears. Everything was great, and VERY spicy.

[San Gabriel] [Chinese] Shanghai Restaurant

Shanghai Restaurant
上海聚福樓
140 W Valley Blvd #211
San Gabriel, CA 91776
(626) 288-0991

We went to Shanghai Restaurant for Chinese New Year, and was turned away because we didn't have reservation. This was a restaurant that my parents wanted to try. So for my dad's birthday, we made reservation to make sure we would get a table this time.


醃篤鮮新筍砂鍋 Bamboo Shoot Clay Pot ($17.95)

I didn't like the soup at all. I think they used preserved meat in there. I thought it smelt like.... dog.

[Irvine] [Chinese] S.W. Seafood & BBQ Restaurant

S.W. Seafood & BBQ
三禾燒腊海鮮麵家
5406 Walnut Ave
Irvine, CA 92604
(949) 262-0128

Dr. P had to work late. I was too lazy to cook for myself. So my friend Wen suggested that I go to S.W. Seafood & BBQ to get her favorite dish there, the squid tentacles.


五香龍鬚 Deep Fried Squid Tentacles

I took a bite, and thought "man I wish I have some beer to go with this!" The squid tentacles was chewy on the outside, tender in the middle, and full of flavor. It was addictive!

[San Gabriel] [Chinese] Newport Seafood

Newport Seafood
新港海鮮
518 W Las Tunas Dr
San Gabriel, CA 91776
(626) 289-5998
http://www.newportseafood.com

We took my mother-in-law to Newport Seafood for her birthday last year. She likes it so much that she requested to go back there again this year for her birthday.


新港招牌湯 House Assorted Seafood Soup ($11.95)

[Rowland Heights] [Chinese] Haige Star Boulevard

Haige Star Boulevard
海哥星光大道
18438 E Colima Rd #105
Rowland Heights, CA 91748
(626) 839-2438

It was Valentine's Day, and Dr. P said I could pick any restaurant I want to go. I was seriously craving for hot pot. So first we went to The Red Pot in Garden Grove. The wait was 2 hours. I thought if I had to wait for 2 hours, might as well drive up to Rowland Heights then.

We called A-Lien Hot Pot to make a reservation. I told the guy who answer the phone that we are driving all the way up there from OC. He assured me that we would get a table when we arrive. When we got there, there was one empty table. I thought they left it for us. As we stood by the door waiting for the waitress to greet us, another couple walked in after us and just went straight to that table and sat down. We then told the waitress we had reservation. She just said, "Oh everyone has reservation." She asked us to sit at a big 10 people round table to wait. Then another couple came in. She sat them at another 10 people table in the back, and started serving them!! We were so unhappy with the bad service that we just got up and left. I heard A-Lien's food is good. But for that kind of service, I will never step in their door again.

We ended up going to Haige Star Boulevard because I remember they had spicy hot pot. But after looking over their menu, we decided to order some spicy dishes. Everything actually worked out because the food was super delicious!


茅台啤酒 Moutai Beer ($5.00)

We were ready to drink when we finally sat down at a restaurant at 9pm. They had a buy one get one free special on Moutai beer. I've never had this beer. It turned to be quite good. It was light and crisp.

[San Gabriel] [Chinese] Dong Ting Chun

Dong Ting Chun
洞庭春
140 W Valley Blvd #206
San Gabriel, CA 91776
(626) 288-5918

We had dinner with my family at Dong Tin Chun for Chinese  New Year this year.


什錦湯 Combination Soup

[Temple City] [Chinese] Happy Noodle

Happy Noodle
麵對面
4815 El Monte Ave
Temple City,CA 91780
(626) 279-7558

Dinner with parents at my dad's favorite noodle restaurant.


小菜三拼 3 Items Combo Appetizer

I like the seaweed the most.

[Irvine] [Chinese] Chef Chen

Chef Chen
馥園
5408-B Walnut Ave
Irvine, CA 92604
(949) 786-8898

It was a raining day. Both Dr. P and I were craving for somthing hot and soupy. The beef noodle soup from Chef Chen seemed like an good idea.


牛肉麵 Beef Noodle Soup

The bood noodle soup we had last was great. But this time, it was not just bad... it was horrible. The noodle was mushy. The beef and tendon was tough and hard, like it wasn't stewed long enough. The soup tasted like soy sauce soup. It was just bad.

[Aliso Viejo] [Asian Fusion] East Avenue Bistro

East Asian Bistro
26921 Aliso Creek Rd #E
Aliso Viejo, CA 92656
(949) 360-7666

This place used to be Jade Palace. We went there once for lunch, and didn't like it at all. I guess they went out business soon after. Now a new restaurant called East Avenue Bistro took over the space. From looking at their menu, this new restaurant seems to be a Vietnamese influenced Chinese restaurant.


Chicken Egg Roll (Cha Gio) ($6.50)
Chicken rolled in a golden crispy shell served with fresh herbs, lettuce and accompanied with the house special dipping sauce.

We ordered the Vietnamese Chicken Egg Roll for appetizer. The egg roll was done well, but it came with just one piece of lettuce? We asked our server, who seemed to be a Vietnamese lady. She said that since majority of their customers are non-Asian, and they don't eat the egg roll with herbs and lettuce, so if we want it we should tell her beforehand next time. Later she brought a plate of lettuce, but still no herb. Their fish sauce was not overly sweet and very good.

[Temple City] [Chinese] Mandarin Noodle Deli

Mandarin Noodle Deli
山西麵館
9537 Las Tunas Dr
Temple City, CA 91780
(626) 309-4318

We had a family lunch at brother's house. For dinner, sister and I decided to go get pork chop rice. While driving, we passed by Mandarin Noodle Deli. All of a sudden we changed our mind and decided to have some noodle instead.



This place specializes in dishes from Shanxi (Mountain West) Province. I don't really know Shanxi food that well. I just know they eat a lot of noodles and buns, kinda like Shandong (Mountain East) Province, where my grandfather was from.

[Irvine] [Chinese] Chef Chen

Chef Chen
馥園
5408-B Walnut Ave
Irvine, CA 92604
(949) 786-8898

We had been wanting to try Chef Chen ever since we moved down to Orange County. It's been two years, and we finally tried the restaurant.


花生 Peanuts

Free peanuts was served before the food arrived.

[Irvine] [Chinese] Spicy City

Spicy City
雲川園
14310 Culver Dr #F
Irvine, CA 92604
(949) 733-9200

We were in the mood for spicy Chinese, but thought we went to Chong Qing in Irvine a bit too often. We haven't been back to Spicy City for a very very long time. We thought the food at Spicy City is way too spicy, and like Chong Qing's flavor better. But we haven't been back for so long, maybe the food would taste better now?


風味涼菜 Cold Table Appetizers ($5.50)

We started the meal by going to the counter to pick our 3 item cold appetizer. We got spicy beef, spicy pork skin and seaweed. Everything was good. My favorite was the seaweed. I like the vinegar, cilantro, and slightly spicy sauce of the seaweed a lot.

[Irvine] [Chinese] Chong Qing Mei Wei Szechwan Restaurant

Chong Qing Mei Wei Szechwan Restaurant
重慶美味川菜
5406 Walnut Ave #C
Irvine,CA 92618
(949) 651-8886

We go to Chong Qing Mei Wei at least once a month, and sometimes we go three times a month. haha...


風味冷菜 Cold Appetizer ($5.50)

We always start with 3 items cold appetizer. Our two must-order items are spicy beef and spicy kidney. Then we get one vegetable item to go with it.

[Arcadia] [Chinese] Tasty To Go

Tasty To Go
五星美食
142 E Duarte Rd
Arcadia,CA 91006
(626) 447-3788

I told Dr. P I was going up to LA for the day. His request was to bring home the Hainan Chicken Rice from Tasty To Go. He asked me last time, but I didn't have time to go pick it up. He was so disappointed. This time I made sure I would bring home what he asked for, plus more!


海南雞飯 Hainan Chicken with Rice ($5.55)

This was the Hainan Chicken with Rice Dr. P has been craving for. The boneless dark meat chicken was very flavorful and tender. The sauteed napa cabbage with black ear mushroom was very tasty. The chicken rice was delicious. The best part was the green onion and ginger sauce. Dr. P just couldn't get enough of this.

[Irvine] [Chinese] 101 Noodle Express

101 Noodle Express
魯味居
5408 Walnut Ave #A
Irvine, CA 92604
(949) 654-8542

101 Noodle Express is a well-known Northern Chinese restaurant specialized in dumplings and noodles in San Gabriel Valley. I've been to the Alhambra location once. Service was so bad that I never returned again. The Taiwanese eatery Nice Time Deli in Irvine closed down, and 101 Noodle Express took over the space. The restaurant opened about 2 weeks ago. We ate at Chong Qing Mei Wei in the same plaza, and saw a huge crowd waiting outside 101 Noodle Express. Dr. P accidentally left his credit card at Chong Qing that day. When we went back to get his card back a few days later, we decided to give this popular new restaurant a try. I thought maybe service would be better in Orange County as we experienced since we moved down here. Nope, we got the same SGV style service, and ate DISGUSTING RAW FOOD! There are just so many things wrong about this place.



They really cram this place up with tables and chairs. Tables and tables are so close together that not only it was difficult to get in and out, it was quite uncomfortable when you felt like you're sitting on the same table having dinner with strangers. Seriously, the tables were like 1 inch apart from each other. Also I had to put my chair in 45 degree angle and sit side way so my chair wouldn't bump into the guy who sat right behind me. We had the menu for about 10 minutes and nobody came to take our order. I flagged down a waitress to tell her we were ready to order. She just said ok and walked away. There were maybe 3 or 4 other tables wanting to order as well. The two ladies who sat next to us didn't even get their menu after 10 minutes. Finally when the waitress came to take our order, she offered absolutely no smile.

[Irvine] [Chinese] Chong Qing Mei Wei Szechwan Restaurant

Chong Qing Mei Wei Szechwan Restaurant
重慶美味川菜
5406 Walnut Ave #C
Irvine,CA 92618
(949) 651-8886

WE


風味冷菜 Cold Appetizer ($5.50)

LOVE

[El Monte] [Chinese] Ocean Bo Dim Sum Cafe

Ocean Bo Dim Sum Cafe
海寶點心美食坊
3944 N. Peck Road #1
El Monte,CA 91732
(626) 452-1818

I spent the night at my parents' house. The next morning I felt like having dim sum, but was too lazy to go out to a restaurant. So mom and I went to Ocean Bo Dim Sum Cafe to get some take out dim sum for breakfast.



All the dim sum were in the dim sum counter. You can order off their menu, or just look at the food and tell the counter girl what you want. Some of the items had probably been sitting there for a long time though because some of the stuff we got were already cold.

[Temple City] [Chinese] Happy Noodle

Happy Noodle
麵對面
4815 El Monte Ave
Temple City,CA 91780
(626) 279-7558

I'm back at my parent's house in San Gabriel Valley to take care of some business. My parents asked me where I would like to go to have dinner. I told them I wanted something we don't have in Orange County. So we went back to Happy Noodle. Dr. P is going to be jealous. He was just talking about going back to Happy Noodle next time we come up to LA.


小菜三拼 3 Items Combo Appetizer

3 Items Combo Appetizer came with spicy peanuts, mustard green with edamame and tofu, and seaweed. Everything was great. The spicy peanuts were pretty addicting. I couldn't stop eating them.

[Rowland Heights] [Chinese] Haige Star Boulevard

Haige Star Boulevard
海哥星光大道
18438 E Colima Rd #105
Rowland Heights, CA 91748
(626) 839-2438

My friend Tammy invited us out for dinner to her new found favorite restaurant, Haige Star Boulevard. She said it was so good that she with her fiancee, cousin, and cousin's husband had dinner there 4 days in a row! She told me that place has really good spicy crawfish. It's not like Boiling Crab kind of crawfish, but like a Chinese Szechuan style spicy crawfish. If they would go eat 4 days in a row and still want to go back again, food must be really good. Plus this place has a really strange name. So I want to go check it out more. haha....


麻辣花生 Fried Spicy Peanut ($4.99)

Fried Spicy Peanut was on the menu for $4.99, but they gave it to us for free. Maybe it was because my friends went there too often? The peanut looked really spicy with all the chili pepper, but it wasn't as spicy as I thought. I think they added some sugar too it, too. It was a mixture of spicy, salty, and sweet. It tasted even better with some beer. A pitcher of beer is $10 there. Spicy food really goes well with beer.