HG will whisper the name. Full House Cafe (in New York’s Chinatown — east side of Bowery at Hester Street). SJ was tipped to the restaurant by his Chinese dentist, a bit of a health freak, who raved about the clean and hygienic food. Other than this cleanliness-obsessed gentleman, It seems only a few people know about this restaurant even though it is serving some of the most exquisite Cantonese cooking HG has ever encountered. The ground floor restaurant is decorated in Hong Kong style. Ultra-modern. Flat screen TVs. Pink neon accents. It is quiet and uncrowded (most of their business seems to be the karaoke rooms on the upper floors). HG and BSK dined there a few times and were astonished, The scallion pancakes were crispy miracles of flaky pastry and slivered scallions. The crab meat and pork soup dumplings (xio lum bao) and chive dumplings were sublime. The Ma Po Tofu was powerful, redolent of Szechuan peppercorns and hot chili oil. And, the fish dishes. Wow. Filets of fish with yellow leaks. Minced flounder on a bed of baby bok choy topped with crab roe. Wonderfully light while intense in fresh sea flavor. HG and BSK also enjoyed extraordinary pork belly and pea shoots with garlic. HG is writing all of this with reluctance. Fears crowds and popularity.
