TromboneChat

...from Massachusetts

Good grief - the Kowloon in Saugus - it's still there? I remember it as a bit over the top from more than 40 years ago! Is the Hilltop Steak House (with the neon cactus and plastic cows) still across the street? Between the two, there was enough kitsch for the entire state of Massachusetts.

Perhaps you'll find something similarly flamboyant in Yokohama, Harrison.

If I remember correctly, Hilltop closed a few years ago. I don't travel Route 1 much so I haven't been nearby in quite a while.

No love, eh? The particular inauthenticity of MA chinese food only exists in MA and maybe in New Hampshire. If you've ever thought, "this egg roll is great" or asked for extra applesaucy duck sauce, just realize that they only exist in MA.

I think it's fun!

I found Chinese food outside my home in New York City was odd. Why do they serve dinner rolls instead of rice?

Exactly! Why is the fried rice dark brown? What is in those egg rolls? Why is the duck sauce made out of apple sauce? What are Peking Raviolis? Why all the toothpick umbrellas? Mollases in the spare ribs. Lobster sauce?? Chicken fingers that look like yellow submarines that are called Gold Fingers "007".

It is a mysterious thing people in New England don't recognize as unique to their culture.

Much American Chinese cuisine is based on Cantonese cooking. Also based on recycling leftovers (which was apparently common in Chinese restaurants in the mid-19th Century at the time of the Great Migration). About 40 years ago Szechuan and Hunan were introduced. Much better than Cantonese to my palate.

I also found it interesting that Chinese restaurants adopted Polynesian dishes and decor.

BGuttman wrote: ↑Tue May 21, 2019 3:53 pmI also found it interesting that Chinese restaurants adopted Polynesian dishes and decor.

I always figured that started with Chinese immigrants to Hawaii who developed a fusion cuisine, then either they or their descendants brought it to the contiguous 48. The Hawaiian restaurants around here are more Japanese- than Chinese-influenced, though.

One finds all sorts of interesting combinations. We've got a Bolivian-Italian and Chinese-Islamic restaurants here, as well as a barbecue joint that serves tabooli. I've seen Mexican-Italian, too (though that's the result of the Italian-American owners retiring and selling the place to their Mexican-American cook).

I think its the same the world over... I have a friend who was in charge of all international relations for the city she lived in in Finland. The city invited a Chinese trade delegation over for a week. She thought it would be nice to take them to the local Chinese restaurant. The bewilderment of a group of native Chinese sat in the restaurant looking at the menu had to be seen to be believed. They didnt recognise anything. A discussion took place in Chinese with the restaurant owners and an agreement was reached the delegatiion all dissapeared in to the kitchen and made a 'proper' chines meal themselves - all parties involved were satisfied - if to the bewilderment of the Finnish hosts!!

Some Chinese restaurants in Edinburgh have two menus. One for the locals/tourists and one for any Chinese who come in. My wife is Chinese so we sometimes get the 'proper' menu though it's all written in Chinese characters.

Ronnie

ronnies wrote: ↑Wed May 22, 2019 5:54 am Some Chinese restaurants in Edinburgh have two menus. One for the locals/tourists and one for any Chinese who come in. My wife is Chinese so we sometimes get the 'proper' menu though it's all written in Chinese characters.

Two menus ("Westernized" and a secret "authentic") has pretty much been SOP in North America for the last 40-50 years: you just needed to know to ask (in Chinese) for the authentic menu (and be prepared to order in Chinese).

Interestingly enough, "secret" menus appear to be fairly common in East and Subcontinental Asian and Central/South American restaurants as well.

Thankfully, in my opinion, the explosion of interest in "real" food, with its championing to unapolegetically authentic ethnic cuisines, over the last 15-20 years is increasingly relegating "Westernized" menus to the dustbin of history.

(Not gonna lie: I'd scarf up that whatever-the-heck-they-call-that-heart-attack-on-a-platter, though.)

It was crazy good

sungfw wrote: ↑Thu May 23, 2019 9:08 amThankfully, in my opinion, the explosion of interest in "real" food, with its championing to unapolegetically authentic ethnic cuisines, over the last 15-20 years is increasingly relegating "Westernized" menus to the dustbin of history.

Such things aren't necessarily going away - in some cases, they're starting to be recognized as a cuisine unto themselves, separate from but influenced by their ethnic roots. Various different "fusion" cuisines seem to be proliferating.

That's what this topic is about!

JohnL wrote: ↑Thu May 23, 2019 12:08 pm

sungfw wrote: ↑Thu May 23, 2019 9:08 amThankfully, in my opinion, the explosion of interest in "real" food, with its championing to unapolegetically authentic ethnic cuisines, over the last 15-20 years is increasingly relegating "Westernized" menus to the dustbin of history.

Such things aren't necessarily going away - in some cases, they're starting to be recognized as a cuisine unto themselves, separate from but influenced by their ethnic roots. Various different "fusion" cuisines seem to be proliferating.

The food may not be going away, but the practice of having two menus, with the authentic menu being the "secret" one, is—or appears to be—dying. I can think of half a dozen Chinese restaurants in Durham, NC alone that have replaced their Westernized menu over the last 5 years or so with a bilingual version of their formerly "secret" menu, updated to include a few perennial "traditional" "Chinese" favorites (sweet and sour pork/chicken/shrimp, Kung Pao chicken/beef/shrimp, General Tso chicken/beef/shrimp, etc.).

I've noticed the same thing happening across the country when I'm traveling and revisit restaurants that used to have two menus.

Fusion cuisine has its place, and some of it can be quite exquisite. (Szechuan salt-and-pepper soft shell crab or char siu braised pork belly tacos, anyone?) But it's nice to be able to walk into a Chinese restaurant and order straight off the menu and be served something that at least approaches authentic instead of some bastardized abomination from La Choy hell.

On a certain level Chinese cooking is a collection of techniques and has an ethos of making the best of what is at hand. It seems to be adapted everywhere to local tastes.

When my wife and I were living in Korea we regularly ordered in (Pay-dal-hae-yo chuseyo!) from the local "Chinese" restaurant. Nothing there resembled Canadian Chinese or, as we found out in later travels, food in Beijing or Shanghai. But it was its own kind of yummy...

Korean Chinese food is unique. Especially the Zha Jiang Mien which many believe is 100% Korean, but is not.

I'm looking forward to Japanese Chinese food. Chaahan チャーハン (fried rice) is on another level there.

Around here, "Japanese" food is anything with Teriyaki sauce on it.