Peking Duck III

This restaurant with its banner for Peking Duck House on Mott Street in Chinatown supposedly serves one of the best Peking ducks in NYC. I was invited to dinner there a few years ago and I have to admit, it was a classy joint.

The duck was served three ways: (1) the whole duck was carved table side to yield pieces of crispy skin with a layer of fatty meat, and served in paper thin crepes with scallion and hoisin sauce; (2) the skinless duck was then taken back into the kitchen and the meat cut into small pieces and stir-fried with shiitaki mushrooms and other vegetables, served with rice; (3) the rest of the duck (bones and all) was then stewed to make a light soup, which was served last.

It was probably the most decadent Chinese meal I've ever had in NYC. Thank goodness I didn't have to pay for it. The host did.

So where did you eat your most decadent meal?

Converted Co-op Building

I have posted a photo of this former police department a couple months ago. It is now a luxury condominium in downtown Manhattan, near Chinatown. The first time I walked by it, I thought it was a public building so I walked into the lobby. The doorman told me it was a private residence so I was not allowed to take photos of the inside.

I wonder what it would be like to live in that clock tower with all the windows. Would it be like a movie scene where you can see the clock from the inside of the building?

So have you ever been up a clock tower or a light house?

Chinese Chess

I saw these old men playing Chinese chess at the Columbus Park in Chinatown last weekend. It resembles Western chess but is played on a different type of board. I remember playing this when I was a kid but I don't know how to play it now.

What kind of board games did you play as a kid?

These Little Piggies Went Wee Wee Wee...

I saw this delivery truck parked on the curb in Chinatown where dozens of restaurants line the street. Kitchen staff from different restaurants as well as a few of the delivery truck guys began to unload the merchandises and if you look closely enough, you will notice that the little suckling pigs were hung in the back of the truck.

So what is your your type of meat and how do you like it cooked?

Chinatown Street Scene

This photo was taken two weekends ago when I was in Chinatown to meet my friends for brunch. The street was especially busy because it was a couple of days before the Lunar New Year. After brunch, we went to see Mama Mia, the Broadway show that is based on songs by the Swedish pop group, ABBA.

So who is your favorite singer? Who have you been listening to lately?

Tangerines for the Lunar New Year

Today is the Lunar New Year and one of the traditional practices is offering friends even number of tangerines with stems and leaves still on them.

Since I cannot offer you REAL tangerines, here is my digital gift to all you readers out there. May the Year of the Rat bring you and your love ones plenty of good health and happiness.

Old Police Station

This magnificent looking building, on the corner of Centre and Grand Street, used to be the city's police headquarters. Now it is a luxury co-op building with a 24-hour doorman service.

Fenix of Bostonscapes Daily Photo found a website with more information of the building.

Have a good weekend.

Lafayatte & Canal

This traffic light post at the corner of Lafayatte and Canal is covered with numerous street signs. I thought the structure was interesting because the it resembles a fork on the road -- do you continue in the same direction, turn left or turn right?

So have you ever come upon a fork on the road in your career? What did you do?

Jing Fong Restaurant in Chinatown

A couple weekends ago, I took some out-of-town friends to Jing Fong Restaurant for some dim sum. If you never had dim sum, it is a traditional Cantonese brunch menu that includes Chinese (Jasmine and/or Chrysanthemum) tea, dumplings, cakes, pastries and congee (rice porridge). You can also get the more exotic dishes or cuts of meat like stew chicken feet, fish bladder soup and stewed pork stomach.

This photo shows the small room/section of the restaurant, which have been renovated recently. The dim sum menu here is vast and quite inexpensive. It is one of my favorite places to bring friends for brunch on weekends.

So what is the most exotic food/meat you have ever eaten?

Chinese Toys on Strings

These little toys are Chinese puppet lions on strings. Personally, I think they are more for decorations than actually play toys because a kid can easily tear them apart within 5 minutes. They are made of paper and stick-on fur and beads.

When you were a kid, did you have a favorite toy? Where is the toy now?

Ming and His Raw Food Diet

Chinatown vegetables like these are fairly common and relatively inexpensive. Many families come here to buy their weekly rations of meats and vegetables on weekends. I, however, come here for the restaurants and cafes. And while I'm here, I take a lot of photos.

Some of you may already know this about me -- I don't cook. In fact, I dislike cooking so much so that I have developed a taste for raw food like sushi, beef tartar, carpaccio, uncooked vegetatbles like broccoli, cauliflower, squash, carrot, pea pods and salads. I even like my burger cooked medium rare. But I'm not a member of the raw food movement.

What are your favorite vegetables and how do you like them cooked?

Cruelty Free Life

Bonsai is a traditional Chinese art of training trees and shrubs into miniaturized version of adult plants. Tree species like maple, pine and elm are regularly pruned to stunt the growth and shape their foliage. Then wires are used to produce pronounced bends and curves in the brunches and trunks to mimic the appearance of age and growth.

This photo was taken on a street in Chinatown. The vendor had a cart full of bonsai trees in different sizes and shapes. Some of the bonsais are about the size of a cupcake while others are larger.

Do you find this practice barbaric or do you think it is an acceptable way to produce an aesthetically attractive plant?

Chinatown Souvenirs

These little statues of Buddha are some of the souvenirs that are commonly sold in Chinatown. Other popular souvenirs include I ♥ NYC t-shirts, key chains and baseball caps.

What souvenirs do you usually buy when you visit a new city?

Shanghainese Soup Dumplings

One of my coworkers, who is Shanghainese, introduced me to soup dumplings about 6 months ago. Now I am totally addicted to them. Soup dumplings, which originate from Shanghai, are essentially meat dumplings filled with hot, delicious soup inside. The dipping sauce of choice is black Chinese vinegar with shredded raw ginger.

So how does the soup get inside the dumpling? Well, the meat filling is mixed with a soup base and frozen for a couple of hours. That enables the soup base and filling to solidify and congeal together. The frozen mixture is then scrapped with a spoon and (securely) encased in wonton wrappers, and steamed to perfection. Because there is soup/liquid in the dumplings, they are made-to-order and have to be consumed immediately. Otherwise, the wonton wrappers will absorb the soup inside and turn doughy instead of light and soupy.

Fruit Vendors in Chinatown

Street vendors are a common sight in New York City. They provide a convenient and inexpensive option for commuters to pick up some fruits and vegetables on their way home from work. This is because the lines are shorter and the produce are usually fresher. Plus the low overhead expenses mean cheaper prices for the consumers.

The vendors in this photo taken in Chinatown sell exotic tropic fruits that you will not find in regular grocery stores. Some of the more interesting produce are fresh longans, dwarf bananas, pomelo, kumquats and persimmons.

Keropokman of Singapore Daily Photo recently posted a photo of durians, the supposed "stinkiest fruit in the world." Have you tried them??

Chicken & Ducks

Chinatown in Lower Manhattan is the largest and one of the oldest Chinese settlements in the United States. The first group of Chinese immigrants came to New York City in the mid-1800s to set up laundry businesses and restaurants. Today it is estimated that there are over 300,000 ethnic Chinese people living in the area. There are also smaller Chinese enclaves in New York City, specifically Flushing in Queens and Sunset Park in Brooklyn.

Chinatown is a favorite haunt of many locals and tourists alike because of the huge number of restaurants, street vendors and supermarkets in the neighborhood. Some of the best Shanghainese, Cantonese and Szechuan restaurants are found here.

This photo was taken at one of the Chinese restaurants in Chinatown. You can see the roast chicken, Peking ducks and roast pork prominently displayed on the window to entice hungry people to come in for dinner. My favorite dish here is the white (well, yellow) chicken on the lower right, which is usually served with chicken flavored rice and pickled vegetables. Yummilicious!!! Do you have a favorite?