Killer Dumplings at Tanxia Wang Fu Zhou Cuisine

I'm back.

Like I said in my brief post repping for Real Cheap Eats, the past month and a half was spent almost exclusively preparing for (and ultimately losing) a trial. That's over now, and I've returned with one of the choicest pieces of Chinatown knowledge I've acquired in ages. Tanxia Wang Fu Zhou Cuisine is on Eldrigde, just south of well known hand-pulled noodle spot Sheng Wang, serving a succinct menu of Fujian classics.

The dumplings here are the main draw, and they're brought steaming on styrofoam plates almost as soon as you've snagged a seat (sometimes before you've even finished ordering). The waitresses speak barely any English, but you can always point at the menu along the long, constantly crowded wall. It's a busy spot, but turnover is high, so you're likely to find a seat soon enough.

Back to the dumplings. They're filled with copious greens mixed in loosely amidst slightly sweet, ground pork. With just a bit of grease–enough to coat your mouth, alerting you to the presence of fatty pork juice–these dumpling don't easily wear out their welcome. The dumpling skin (likely a commercial wrapper), is just thin enough and more than up to the task.

At just $9 for a bag of 50, it's worth bringing some home. 

The Flavors of Henan

On a Chowhounder's report, it was impossible to avoid the newest, most unique addition to Chinatown (especially since I was conveniently in the area for dinner). That night, we found ourselves at Henan Flavor. On Forsyth across from Sarah Roosevelt Park, Henan Flavor is the Manhattan branch of Flushing's Henan Fengwei. Billing itself as the "First Henan Restaurant in East America," there really is nothing like Henan Flavor in all of Chinatown.

Robyn Lee took much better pictures of our meal at the original location than my typically crappy photography, but be aware, they show the expanded menu at Henan Fengwei. Here, there are no cold dishes or casseroles, but the abbreviated menu features handmade noodle soups and the imposing "Big Tray of Chicken."

For a Sunday night between 9-10pm, the narrow restaurant was actually fairly full, with people coming in and out for eat in and takeout. The lady running the show is actually Fujianese, which is probably good for business, since this part of Chinatown is their territory.

Goin' Down to Old Old Sichuan

Didn't we all used to agree that Midtown and Flushing had the best Sichuan food in the city? These generalizations are no longer true and I'm forced to qualify every pronouncement I make about Sichuan cuisine with a "yeah, but...". Yet this works to everyone's benefit, since excellent Sichuan food is popping up from the Upper East Side (Wa Jeal and Szechuan Chalet) to even Bensonhurst (Bamboo Pavilion). So why can't a new Sichuan restaurant open up in Chinatown, where Cantonese and Fujian dominate? This would seem fairly obvious to most people, so I won't get into it. Anyway, on to the food...

It's the Year of the Tiger at Golden Steamer Bakery

Actually, just the tip of 2010 was the year of the cock.

I was down in Chinatown this past Sunday for the Chinese Lunar New Year parade on a friend's rooftop on Mott Street.