Excellent Tasty Garden in Monterrey Park: Indulge in Extra Decadent Walnut Shrimp and Garlicky Green Bean

I love it when I have a meeting somewhere and get out early enough to make a pit stop at a restaurant during off-hours. Tasty Garden is one of those places. Behold the giant shrimp fried to perfection and smothered in mayo and sprinkled with sesame seeds and paired with the crunchiest candied walnuts ever. It was the most raved about dish on message boards and it certainly didn't disappoint. I still dream about this.

The walnut shrimp was by far the best thing I had but the string beans stir fried in garlic and red chilies were done just the right way -- cooked until firm but tender with an explosion of garlic flavor and the right amount of heat.

The Singaporean noodles came with pork, shrimp, onions, bean sprouts, bell peppers and egg, all coming together with some curry powder. I know that's how they're made but I found the noodles a bit dry. I had to add some hot chili oil to moisten it. Still, pretty solid.

It was late afternoon and most of the other customers were having brick toast with tea. The portions of the dishes are huge and there will be plenty of leftovers.

Udon in Uni Sauce at Marugame Monzo and Mediocre Burmese at Daw Yee Myanmar Cafe

Even though I'm more of a ramen person than udon, I had heard a lot about Marugame Monzo and had been curious to try it. They are known for unusual iterations of this classic dish and since it was a rather summer night, I decided to try the uni udon. Hmm. It's not that it was bad. It's hard not to love uni. It was creamy and all that good stuff and the salmon roe provided a pop of salty flavor and distinct texture (not to mention a food porn element in the image above). However, I'm not sure this more modern take on the uni sauce, so to speak, goes best with the udon noodle. I've had much better versions of uni pasta using spaghetti noodles instead at EMC Seafood in Koreatown, which was delicious and topped with some dried roasted seaweed.

I think I've been spoiled big time when it comes to Burmese food because the first tea leaf salad I had was at arguably the best Burmese restaurant in the US -- Burma Super Star in San Francisco. All the tea leaf salads I've had since have not lived up to this OG version I had years ago. Daw Yee Myanmar Cafe in San Gabriel Valley was no exception. The ingredients and plating look so promising, right? The downfall of this version was its tea leaf that was overpowering because there was too much of it and the flavor and aromas coming from the fermented leaves were far too strong and it overpowered everything else. I wasn't able to enjoy the crunchiness of the nuts. Maybe this one is more authentic but I didn't like it as much as the BSS version. 

We also got a chicken noodle with nuts and sesame seeds as well as some red chilies and fresh cilantro. I liked the surprise of biting into some pickled vegetables that I couldn't identify but I was sure they were probably good for me so just savored them. The noodles, though, were a bit mushy because they seemed overcooked and the overall dish didn't work for me. There was a lot going on and I couldn't enjoy any one flavor or texture in this dish. 

Now for the really bad. We had these pan-fried, crepe-like rectangles that had meat and other vegetables in them. Again, it looked so promising visually. Look how nicely browned they are. Alas, upon first biting into them, an overwhelming taste of meat that wasn't top quality took over and I couldn't take another bite. The meat had a bothersome smell. This happens when the restaurant don't use the best quality meat and don't take the care to mask this not so good flavor with garlic, ginger or whatever that will work. What a shame. 

The restaurant's interior was very cute and I really wanted to like this place but I'm not sure I'll return. I may just stay away from Burmese for a while. Which restaurant serves your favorite tea leaf salad?

Yoma Myanmar Restaurant: Pared Down Tea Leaf Salad Leaves Some to be Desired, On-the-Shell Shrimp Curry Taste Improves at Home

I've been smitten by Burmese food and particularly by the tea leaf salad I had at Burma Super Star in San Francisco a few years ago. So when I encountered this sadder version of the tea leaf salad at Yoma Myanmar Restaurant, I was sorely disappointed. This version was a significantly pared down iteration that I couldn't help but call the poor man's version. The flavors were a bit better than the visuals but still, nothing like the perfect blend of fermented tea leaves, peanuts, deep fried beans, tomatoes, chili and garlic mixed with some green cabbage. The dressing is minimal with just right hint of fish sauce.

We wanted a curry dish and when asked what he recommended, our server immediately said the shrimp curry, and so shrimp curry it was. We just didn't expect it to be in-the-shell shrimp curry. We got used to it, though, and after a few bites alongside a nice heap of white jasmin rice, we were set. The spiciness level of the curry was just right and the fresh cilantro on top helped to balance out the heavier sauce with a healthy dose garlic and chili flavors. It actually tasted even better when I had it later at home with the rice. I was able to savor this dish solo and therefore appreciate it even more.

The samosas got written up and were raved about but they tasted almost like something you'd find at Trader Joe's frozen section. That's not necessarily a complete dis but you know what I mean. They somehow didn't taste as home-made or made with care. They tasted rather mass-produced. It had potatoes and onions and lacked any punch of flavor. 

The ambiance was pretty much zero but we know we don't go to holes in the wall for the decor. While not blown away, I still would like to return to try other dishes like the noodles that were also called out on message boards and the other Burmese joint just down the street that we were actually going to try called Daw Yee Myanmar Cafe. 

Huge Tree Pastry: Taiwanese Breakfast-style Rice Rolls with the Best Freshly Made Soymilk Ever

I was beyond excited to try Huge Tree Pastry, a Taiwanese breakfast food joint in the venerable San Gabriel Valley, especially after the Taiwanese American friend I went with gave it her seal of authenticity and approval. The item I was most excited to try was the rice rolls, called fan tuan.

I wanted the black sweet rice roll because I love black rice and it looked like the most unusual and interesting. Message boards recommended adding an egg and pickles, so it was a no brainer to add them. They came tightly rolled using clear wrap and sliced into half per our request. It was a bit of a pain to eat because the rolls didn't hold very well but I liked the idea of using a thin layer of black rice to stuff it with shredded fried pork, a well-done fried egg and pickled cabbage. Verdict on the first bite: a bit dry and bland. I wished they had left the yolk uncooked so there would be some oozing going on that would make it less dry (a Taiwanese American friend later assured me his mother made them that way.). Or that the fried pork came in different levels of spiciness as with the pickles, so there is some kick. So I proceeded to add some chili sauce and paired it with the recommended drink of choice, freshly made soy milk.

This is when I had my revelation. The soy milk was fantastic. The only time I recall having soy milk with such strong tofu flavor was when I made cold soy milk noodles in the summer, which requires soaking and grinding soy beans with some water. That soy broth is the closest I've gotten to freshly made soy milk, which is pretty much the same thing. But this "sweet" soy milk (it didn't taste sweet at all) served hot was the bomb. Who knew one could get this excited about soy milk? All I can say is that I stopped by a market next door afterwards and bought myself some freshly made soy milk from a local manufacturer. Some of the milk was sold warm. I was so sold. This VK brand unsweetened soy milk was excellent too although not quite as good (while fresh, probably wasn't as fresh as the one served at restaurant).

Another big breakfast item in Taiwan is apparently you tiao, or very long fried donut. It's not seasoned so has to be consumed dunked in the milk for flavor. I didn't love the donut. I think I'm just not conditioned to have fried donuts as a savory meal.

The rest of the stuff didn't blow my mind but I also think they are an acquired taste. The sesame bread sandwich with beef slices and pickled cabbage was also a tad dry. Even when I dabbed the chili sauce, I wasn't feeling it. I found the quality of the beef slices to be particularly disturbing. The beef was flavorless and rather fatty. Thumbs down.

We also had the scallion pancake with egg, which was good but I found too dry again. Even dipped in the soy sauce that was on the table, it seemed overcooked so the pancake was hard and difficult to chew on.

We also had the pork soup dumplings (xiao long bao), which were decent but ultimately couldn't hold a candle to Din Tai Fung's version (I know there is controversy over whose xlb is best in LA -- let me know what your fave is).

Another excellent milk-related revelation (it's all about the milk in this post) was the sweet peanut milk that I tried. I first had it served cold and found it too sweet and thick, much like a smoothie or shake. So my friend recommended I mix it with the warm sweet soymilk. Oh man. What took me this long to discover this concoction? It was the perfect drink to hold me over between meals as a snack. I'm going to have to try making fresh peanut soy milk at home.

On my way out, I picked up some of the savory buns and pastries sold at the counter. I got the curried beef pastry, shredded radish pastry, a pork belly bun with pickled cabbage and greens, a leek and pork bun and mushroom and pork bun.

Unfortunately, the only one I liked was the pork belly and only the pork belly itself, which was soft and very well cooked. But the bun was too dense even though I steamed it at home. I know things aren't as good when reheated but I think I'm just not into Taiwanese savory pastries.

The curried one was so promising but alas, it didn't quite work for me either.

I'd like to return and have more of that amazing soy milk and try their noodle dishes.

SinBala in Arcadia: Glistening Pork Belly Cubes and Lovely Dumplings

I'm not that familiar with Taiwanese food so it was with much anticipation that I went to SinBala in Arcadia. I wasn't sure what to expect, especially since the last time I had stinky tofu hot pot -- a Taiwanese staple, I'm told -- I didn't like it. I need not have feared.

The perfectly braised cubes of pork belly dotted a rice dish that came with strips of bamboo shoots and fried tofu, all topped with sprigs of fresh cilantro. What a deceptively simple dish that combines the porkyness from the meat with the stringy bamboo shoots and softness of the tofu. They were all seasoned similarly with a soy sauce-based sauce that was equally delicious. The pork belly pieces were tender, as they should be, after having been slow cooked for hours.

The pork and shrimp dumplings were a revelation that later inspired me to make dumplings at home to mixed success. I'm usually super picky with my dumplings because either the quality of the meat used isn't on par and it smells too porky (and not in a good way) or it tastes too doughy with the skin. But these dumplings were ethereal -- light and fluffy. The filling was so flavorful and best of all, it wasn't too dry and didn't even need a dipping sauce because it came with some nicely seasoned liquid. Another unusual topping: ground nuts or some kind of nutty goodness and freshly diced scallions. Everything fell right into place. I venture to say this was my favorite dish.

Then there was fried chicken. The cut pieces of chicken were crunchy and perfectly seasoned. I'm totally in love with this place at this point. How can everything be so good?

We got the spicy sausage made in-house and they were very juicy and salty but not overly so and sprinkled with some dried pepper flakes that added yet another dimension both in terms of flavor (subtly spicy) and texture (crunch) to the sausages. Sure, they were on the heavy side but then again, they were sausages made with pork fat, after all. I didn't mind at all. Would make a great breakfast dish, perhaps without the pepper flakes. I've been having a hard time finding good breakfast sausage so this is a good find.

It's a shame it's so far away from where I live and work but I'd like to return as many times as I can so I could try everything on the menu. It's that good.