Saturday, May 3, 2008

Lunch Stop at the Windy City



I’ve driven over 24 hours without stopping now. Somehow it’s hard for me to blow through Chicago without a quick lunch break at my all time favorite Chinese restaurant in the States: Old Sze Chuan. Anyone who comes in contact with me knows that I have a passion for food and spicy food is something I can’t live without.

Lao Sze Chuan is a well-known establishment in Chicago Chinatown that has been catering to native and American dinners alike over the past decade. I can’t remember exactly when I first came here but since then it has been a must-stop destination every time I come to the city (along with a Brazilian steakhouse chain name Fogo de Chao). After getting directions on the phone from Rob and Eli I finally made my way to Chinatown. The restaurant was completely packed as usual but I didn’t have to wait for long for a table. The menu has been updated to a new colorful one instead of the old black and white printouts in plastic see through sleeves that had gradually become less clear over the years. The prices hasn’t changed much despite the recently inflation on food and don’t even get me started on gas. You can always count on getting a bang for your buck here. Although I have the habit of ordering the same dishes every time I’m sure all of them are memorable.

I’m an adventurous person but when I find a good one I like to stick to it. There’s a restaurant in Rochester called Mamasan’s and I’ve been ordering the same dish there (Basil Beef) since high school! There’s nothing like a good reliable meal. I heard majority of people prefer that over sex. Here’s the logic: if I have something excellent I’ll keep ordering the same dish; if I have something above average I’ll go back there and try another dish; anything below average I won’t go back to the restaurant again unless I’m there for reasons other than food (i.e. meeting people). In my opinion it’s not love unless it’s something I can’t live without.

My dishes at Lao Sze Chuan are Mapo tofu and Lamb with alfalfa. To me Mapo tofu is the single measuring stick for all Sze Chuan restaurants. The southern Chinese province is known for its spicy cuisine and this is one of the most distinct dishes coming out of the area. I’ve had it in many places from its original birth place to Buenos Aires. Two Sze Chuan restaurants that have impressed me so far are this one in Chicago and a smaller place on Spring Mountain in Vegas. But the mapo tofu here is one of the best you can possibly get without a thousand-dollar flight to China. It’s too bad the pictures I took came out blurry so it’s hard to see all the peppers and hot oil but since you would have been looking at them with tears in your eyes anyways I guess it really captures the essence of the meal. The sautéed lamb here is extremely tasty especially with alfalfa seeds. It’s probably an herb most people are not familiar with outside of few Middle Eastern dishes. Alfalfa seeds have a very distinct aroma and it’s often used with lamb or other meat with strong flavors to accentuate their natural taste.

My father side of the family is originally from Sze Chuan so I was born with hot chili peppers in my blood. Having only been to Sze Chuan once when I was very young, eating deadly spicy food makes me feel close to my heritage. There are many things I can live without but I can’t live without the mouth-numbing, tear-jerking, sinuous-clearing, temperature-rising, sweat-pouring Sze Chuan chili peppers.

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