This is my sixth posting, and frankly speaking I'm having a swell time doing this. It's a challenge writing out my thoughts, more so knowing that what it comes down to is using words and pictures to capture the interests of my readers. Words are a powerful tool, and couple with pictures to further illustrate a thought, it becomes a beautiful tool. I'm going to try something different this time. I'm incorporating three different places, on three types of food into this post, namely Italian, American and Chinese (street food). I'm well versed with Italian cuisine, having worked many years as a waiter in Italian restaurants in New York City. American is American, straightforward and dull; I mean the food. No, I'm just kidding. Finding good street food is a joy to behold and brings out the beautiful side of me (do I have one?). Please enjoy.
House Insalada from the Olive Garden
The Olive Garden is a chain restaurant serving mainly Italian cuisine with locations throughout the United States. The house salad here is served unlimited. See the croutons in the above picture? On a personal level, I think croutons only goes well with Caesar salads. My perspective on this joint is...too artificial, prices does not match quality of food, and the fad has passed it by
Shrimp and scallops fettuccine Alfredo (Olive Garden)
The Alfredo sauce came out too thick and the pasta not al dente (too cooked). Pasta should have a slight crunch when you bite into them. A staple of Italian restaurants is their pasta is always served al dente unless requested otherwise. A good Alfredo sauce texture will drip slightly off the pasta when the pasta's forked from the plate
Sweet and sour whitefish Cantonese style (street food)
Eggplant parmigiana with spaghetti (Olive Garden)
The 'Parmigiana' way of cooking is, from this dish for e.g., the eggplant is first breaded, pan seared and finally oven finished with cheese and tomato sauce on top. My first reaction when I tried to slice off a piece of the eggplant parmigiana was 'You have got to be kidding me! It was 'highway robbery' considering how THIN the 2 slices of eggplant were! I understand the business perspective of 'profit maximization', but do not take me for a fool. When this happens, my motto is 'One and Done'. Believe me, I tried to dig deep down into my soul to be diplomatic and objective in my criticism but to no avail.
At the Magic Lamp Inn
Grilled sirloin and stuffed chicken breast served with double-baked mashed potato and organic vegetables in a mushroom demi glaze. The two pieces of sirloin and the piece of chicken were quite tender and the double-baked potato was creamy and tasty. The food is not too bad here but thank god I only have to be here once a year (office annual dinner) as I call this joint 'granny's place'. I don't mean to degrade all the grandmothers out there, just using it as a description.
The Magic Lamp Inn
New York cheesecake (Magic Lamp)
Best cheesecake I've had for a long time. It's how cheesecake is suppose to be...cheesy, creamy, smooth and melts in your mouth. Downing it with a hot cup of aromatic coffee is 'deserting' in it's most complete form. Anyone had 'frozen' cheesecake before? It's a 2-in1 treat...cheesecake that taste like ice cream. Next time anyone of you have cheesecake, throw a few slices into your freezer. I guarantee you'll not be disappointed
Third year in a row my boss had picked this joint for our year-end dinner. Notice the outdated wall paneling and the hideous antique chair? I'm desperately crying out in silent for a change of venue this year. Change is needed, change is good, change is refreshing, change is maintaining my sanity
One day my ex-girlfriend and I had a craving for inexpensive Chinese food and ended up in the food court I frequent often. In terms of presentation, this is not the best dish for it but the cubes of deep fried whitefish were delicious. That's what deep frying does, keeping the moisture inside. This sweet and sour version is far from our version of sweet and sour in Malaysia but it hit the spots and satisfied our cravings
Suen choy chitterlings (street food)
Chitterlings, also known as 'dai cheong', are not everyone's favorite kind of food, especially chicks (lang looi) but I'm a sucker for this. I just love how they taste and coupled with the sourness of the suen choy, it is delightfulness (my own word) in each mouthful. How about the deep fried 'dai cheong' you find in your bowl of 'jue jhap juk'? Shiok right, when biting into them? Talking about chitterlings, there's a Vietnamese restaurant in New York's Chinatown that has the best chitterlings. I'll write about this restaurant and it's chitterlings in a later post.
Taiwan spinach sauteed with 'ha' and salted fish 'wat dhan' style (street food)
Tried this for the first time and really enjoyed it, even though the eggs (wat dhan) was a tad too cooked. My mom cooks something similar to this. She uses 'sing gua' instead of spinach, minus the salted fish. I miss this dish of my mom's. Better make a notation to have her cook this the next time I'm home
Picture of satisfaction after good lunch
Food, no matter what kind, if done the right way and most importantly the authentic way will bask in it's glory most often than not. It ticks me off when I come across food not done right from chefs and owners trying to cut corners, for example the 'Olive Garden'. The recession and topping that off with inflation is putting a lot of pressure on the restaurant business to come up with new ideas to stay afloat. From what I experienced at the Olive Garden, I think they have gone overboard with prices that does not match the quality of the food, or quantity for that matter. Charging paying customers US$13.95 for two very thin slices of eggplant parmigiana with spaghetti marinara is so ridiculous it's not even funny. I can easily guess the profit margin on this absurd dish easily tops 70%. On the other hand, charging US$17.25 for the seafood fettuccine Alfredo I've nothing to write about if the Alfredo sauce wasn't that thick and pasta so over cooked. Feeling violated from paying for something you thought you're going to get but turn out otherwise is a tough pill to swallow.
On a brighter note, finding inexpensive street food that taste like it's suppose to taste is a joy to behold. Ever wonder why street food has carved such a good name and following, especially in Malaysia? Is it because they're not taking their existence for granted (most probably), or the big chained restaurants think they're invincible or too 'big to fail' (no doubt in my mind)?
The moral of the story here is paying customers nowadays are more savvy and very knowledgeable on what they're paying for. It's a fine line, if crossed, can certainly affect business.
Olive Garden:
http://www.olivegarden.com
The Magic Lamp Inn is located at:
8189 Foothill Blvd.,
Rancho Cucamonga, CA 91730
(909) 981-8659
Food Court:
Rowland Heights, CA 91748
The moral of the story here is paying customers nowadays are more savvy and very knowledgeable on what they're paying for. It's a fine line, if crossed, can certainly affect business.
Olive Garden:
http://www.olivegarden.com
The Magic Lamp Inn is located at:
8189 Foothill Blvd.,
Rancho Cucamonga, CA 91730
(909) 981-8659
Food Court:
Rowland Heights, CA 91748
