Mein Menu, part 7: New Peking Restaurant
Berkeley is a cool city and all, but sometimes one gets tired of only having blatantly student-centric businesses or blatantly chic upper-class businesses with nothing in between. Berkeley does not seem to believe in chains... even the Ace Hardare is disguised as "Berkeley Hardware" with a tiny Ace logo underneath. Many of the independent stores are quite good -- there are some great bike shops, for instance -- but often they seem to think that being an independent business means they can overcharge for things. The term "hoighty toighty" comes to mind.
Thankfully, there is a solution, in the form of San Pablo avenue. If you can't find something in Berkeley, you can find it on San Pablo avenue. It's where you go to get to a Target. If you drive far enough you can find an IHOP, or a Denny's, or a real Ace Hardware. If you're going to a funk fest and you need fried chicken, you go to San Pablo avenue to get it. In fact, you have as many as four choices of fried chicken if you drive far enough.
And San Pablo avenue has its share of little independent businesses as well, but not the uber-chic kind. Businesses like the famed Wet Pets San Pablo (in this case, the "pa-" is pronounced as in "patty"), though you have to drive a ways to get to that one. Tiny used electronics shops, little beauty salons. And, of course, food. Here at the HMS it's one of our favorite pasttimes to just drive down San Pablo and pick a place to eat at random. If you go north to the city of San Pablo, you can find a bunch of tacquerias where no English is spoken. A little closer, you have burger joints, Hawaiian barbeque shacks, pizza places, English-speaking tacquerias, and of course, a plethora of Chinese places. And it's my duty to try their Chow Mein.
This time I was driving with Craig and Tiffany. We had passed four or five Chinese restaurant before we randomly picked a place: New Peking Restaurant. It seemed like a pretty standard small Chinese restaurant. There weren't any other customers. They had a big fishtank.
Tiffany grudgingly accepts that we apparently wish to each order our own dishes instead of ordering as a group and sharing them. Ordering as a group would, of course, be correct, but Craig and I have bad habits. The waiting staff seem to be used to people with bad habits.
I get the House Special Chow Mein, naturally. Craig gets the House Special Fried Rice, so we have the House Specials covered. Tiffany orders a pork dish. Prices seem to be fairly standard, but when the food arrives I notice that portions are significantly smaller than I have usually seen. The chow mein is decent but not a standout, and I get a similar impression from tasting the other dishes. It did have good vegetables though. Overal it was fairly average... I've definitely had better.
But who knows? Maybe the best chow mein I've ever had is waiting at one of those five places we passed on the way. You never know unless you just try eating there. That's what San Pablo avenue is all about.
Thankfully, there is a solution, in the form of San Pablo avenue. If you can't find something in Berkeley, you can find it on San Pablo avenue. It's where you go to get to a Target. If you drive far enough you can find an IHOP, or a Denny's, or a real Ace Hardware. If you're going to a funk fest and you need fried chicken, you go to San Pablo avenue to get it. In fact, you have as many as four choices of fried chicken if you drive far enough.
And San Pablo avenue has its share of little independent businesses as well, but not the uber-chic kind. Businesses like the famed Wet Pets San Pablo (in this case, the "pa-" is pronounced as in "patty"), though you have to drive a ways to get to that one. Tiny used electronics shops, little beauty salons. And, of course, food. Here at the HMS it's one of our favorite pasttimes to just drive down San Pablo and pick a place to eat at random. If you go north to the city of San Pablo, you can find a bunch of tacquerias where no English is spoken. A little closer, you have burger joints, Hawaiian barbeque shacks, pizza places, English-speaking tacquerias, and of course, a plethora of Chinese places. And it's my duty to try their Chow Mein.
This time I was driving with Craig and Tiffany. We had passed four or five Chinese restaurant before we randomly picked a place: New Peking Restaurant. It seemed like a pretty standard small Chinese restaurant. There weren't any other customers. They had a big fishtank.
Tiffany grudgingly accepts that we apparently wish to each order our own dishes instead of ordering as a group and sharing them. Ordering as a group would, of course, be correct, but Craig and I have bad habits. The waiting staff seem to be used to people with bad habits.
I get the House Special Chow Mein, naturally. Craig gets the House Special Fried Rice, so we have the House Specials covered. Tiffany orders a pork dish. Prices seem to be fairly standard, but when the food arrives I notice that portions are significantly smaller than I have usually seen. The chow mein is decent but not a standout, and I get a similar impression from tasting the other dishes. It did have good vegetables though. Overal it was fairly average... I've definitely had better.
But who knows? Maybe the best chow mein I've ever had is waiting at one of those five places we passed on the way. You never know unless you just try eating there. That's what San Pablo avenue is all about.
posted by Waltorious at 12:33 PM
2 comments
