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Thanks for a great segment! This segment reminds me of my first introduction to Crab Rangoon (fried wonton with cream cheese and crab) when I lived in St.Louis. My friends kept telling me it was Chinese, but as someone who is Chinese knows...anything with cream cheese in it is not Chinese!

Stephen,
I'm so sorry that was your experience. You should come out west and try the Chinese restaurants along the Pacific Coast, where we have a much longer history of large Chinese settlements. For most of that time, chinese restaurants made food specific for westerners, but this changed radically after the immigration laws changed in the 1970s, and we got an influx of new Hong Kong immigrants. And there has long been a history of race mixing here, so it is more like westerners learning to eat more authentic chinese food, than Chinese changing their food for western palates.
Chinese food is far from bland! and it is very diverse. Here you will find a much bigger focus on vegetables, and it is spicier, and lighter. I've NEVER been to a chinese restaurant that serves fish and chips, as you describe. That sounds nightmarish. (BTW, I get very worried when I hear Irish people describe food as "bland"... LOL!)

Was on hold to get on the show today. Found the conversation very interesting. As I told the screener. I grew up in Ireland and Chinese restaurants were few and far between. Those that were around were largely the fast food variety and they were great. They were quite expensive, but the food was great. You could get everything there from battered fish or sausage and chips to more 'traditional' chinese foods. When I moved over to the US in the 90's I tried chinese food and found it to be very poor. Besides the intitial excitement of eating out off those Chinese food cartons that I had grown up seeing on American T.V. and movie's, and getting fortune cookies with your meal, it was largely a huge disappointment. I tried many different places and they all seemed the same. Rather bland tastless food, that seemed like something you would get out of a frozen food stir fry bag from home.

Joe Six Pack,
Maybe you and Catherine should meet up - she might be able to show you some decent restaurants. I appreciated her perspective, and the reality is that most Americans know about as much about "real" Chinese food as I know about pork rinds.
If you'll note, she's only saying what a lot of non-Chinese Americans have said on this board - many Chinese restaurants in the US don't serve the good stuff to non-Chinese Americans, so how are non-Chinese Americans supposed to know what's authentic and what's not?

I think people should stop ordering seafood in chinese restaurants - you have no idea how that stuff is farmed. It's VERY toxic. I know quite a few Chinese here in SF who have gone vegetarian. Some older chinese women stop eating meat as a religious/spiritual issue, and the toxic seafood farming issue has now become, well, an ISSUE with the more Americanized chinese. I agree with Catherine, #68.
I am a big proponent of a return to vegetarian chinese food. Or just more vegetables, way less meat. Use a little chicken stock or a little chicken meat or fish for FLAVOR. Not as main ingredient. It is the right thing to do in the midst of a world food shortage.

What a sophisticated Asian girl! We Americans are humbled to have been scrutinized. Thank you so much.

Why is a pinoy trying to drag another pinoy down..?

Hey Catherine(Comment #68), what does being Filipino has to do with your comment? Furthermore, anything outside of the typical "American" food, if served in a Chinese restaurant, is considered Chinese food. Perhaps, you should travel more in places such as Middle America, small town America, and you'll see that people are happy and content to have a Chinese restaurant in their neighborhood, and would consider one of their local Chinese Restaurant to be the best; the cooks/chefs in these restaurants do take pride in their cooking. Perhaps, you need to get off your Filipino Chinese ancestry high horse and expand your horizon and stop being a Chinese food elitist.

I am Filipino of Chinese-ancestry from Manila, Philippines. In my travels to Shanghai, Nanjing, Hong Kong, Beijing, I was fascinated by the richness and variety of Chinese food in the various regions. I enjoy Shanghainese and Sichuan cuisine the most. It is not easy to find good quality Chinese food here. Most restaurants do not seem to take pride in their cooking. I believe that when Americans talk about Chinese food, they are thinking of Americanized "Cantonese" food; that is the cooking style that is mostly available here because of the immigration patterns.

When I moved to Chelsea 30 years ago there wever several (10 or so?) Chinese/Cuban restaurants. During the days of the quota system many Chinese came to the US through Cuba/as Cubans. I was introduced to these wonderful (now all gone) restaurants through a neighbor whose father (Jewish) fled Germany during early WW2 through Turkey and then somehow to Cuba, came to US as a Cuban I think in late 40s/early 50s. I don't remember the details of how he got his wife out, but she made it to Cuba, arriving before he did I think.

The best Chinese restaurant I've been to in New York is Fay Da in Flushing. I used to go with one of my vendors who was from Taiwan. I let him do the ordering and it was a feast every time. They specialize in fresh seafood, as in pulled out of the tank and cooked minutes before you eat it.

My second favorite restaurant is Chin Chin on 49th and 3rd Ave, across the street from Smith and Wollensky. I'm not sure if the food is in any way authentic, but the tea smoked duck is unusual and delicious.

I thought there'd be a few comments on Brian's pronunciation of "Linux", my only contribution is a link to the bit on Wikipedia, it has a few links to audio clips of Torvalds saying the word, in '92 and '01:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linux#Pronunciation

Interesting segment for sure, mouth watering.

*posted from a GNU/Linux system, not to get 'em started on including GNU in the name of the OS ;)

NYU expansion in E Village continues and people get evicted. Now they're working on getting MET foods out on 2nd Av bet 6-7streets. What up? They have to be stopped. They own so much property in the area now and beyond!!!

My family and I went to an authentic chinese resuant and My husband and I got real chinese food but it was a struggle to make the waitor give us an order off the real chinese menu. We were not chinese enough to get the hotpot soup.

Kate

The Indian Chinese food has a rich tradition. The authentic tradition comes out of China towns of many India cities especially Calcutta; from ethnic chinese who migrated to India at the turn of 19th century.

There is a lot of 'fake' Indian-Chinese food but the closest real ones are called Tangra cuisine and the only restaurant in New York is 'Tangra Masala' in Sunnyside Queens.

I saw a Chinese family eating a great looking bright green vegetable heavy with garlic. I couldn't resist and asked what ir was. Turns out it was snow pea vines stir-fried with extra garlic. It was not on the menu. The family helped us order it...and another family saw us eating it and asked for the same thing.

Absolutely delicious.

I remember I got a fortune cookie that once said: "Stop for a moment and think about what you've done."

While they probably meant stop and reflect on your accomplishments and mistakes, it sounded more like somebody had found the body...

Queens Blvd and 63rd Drive has good Indian Chinese place called Tangra Wok.

Friends who moved to Wilmington, NC from
Bergen county are deprived of Chinese
food and both parents and kids eat it
almost exclusively when they come back
to visit. That, and bagels, of course

Just so Brian is not to be embarrased in the future, Linux is universally pronounced "Len-ux" rather than "Line-ux.

"Lenus" is how Linus Torvald pronounces his name.

You can find Indo-Chinese food in Jackson Heights, QUEENS!

What about the Chinese Food in Seattle? I always thought it was better than the fare in New York. Also, the parents of my childhood chinese friends claimed the stuff in American chinese restaurants was "junk."

Also, what's the difference between shrimp and prawns?

Great show, Brian.

Cuban Chinese is another whole (albiet dieing ) gastronomic delight.

Don't forget about HALAL Chinese!

For example, there is such a takeout joint at the corner of 4th Avenue and Dean Street in Brooklyn near the Atlantic/Pacific subway station.

if you go to a good local restaurant .. the wonton "plant' is in the kitchen or sometimes an empty table during the off hours

Before traveling by bus from Belize City to Flores, Guatemala we stopped at a window front Chinese place. "chinese fry chicken" and "vegtable noodle" were the main items. The noodles were horrible, but chicken was tasty! But the window was the only thing open at 8 am on a saturday :-)

I used to live in the Dominican part of Inwood / Washington Heights, and there was a Chinese restaurant there that served fried plantains. The menu was also tri-lingual: Chinese, English, and Spanish.

Can you ask Jenny 8. about the MSG found in chinese food and if there is a centralized plant where items like wontons are mass produced?

Thanks.

Has Jennifer spent any time in Flushing, Queens. Has she found restaurants there to be more authentic?

we have been in fear of chinese economic expansion... but we have already succombed to Chinese gastronomic expansion.... Thank God for Chinese food.

I've never heard the word "Linux" said the way Brian said it. Jennifer 8 seemed to say it correctly, but maybe Brian knows better than me. Could you explain this?

Linux: It's "LINN ucks", not "LINE ucks".

Talk about LaChoy Chinese food, the horrid stuff my mom made when I was a kid!!

best fries hands down, in my neighborhood,are from the green leaves restuarant on manhattan ave. bet. green and franklin! forget french or freedom, it's chinese fries baby!

to the caller--if you like shrimp and rice, you'll love shrimp and grits.

I'm salivating just thinking about some.

Its ironic that chines efood is often served with the worst rice that people can eat. Its hard to find a Chinese restaurant that serves good rice. The Taiwanese may be better . Definately the Koreans and of course the Japanese use the better quality rice. top quality rice is an experience of bliss

Some of the most authentic Chinese in the city is in modest "food courts" along Main Street in downtown Flushing.

Even the phrase "food court" makes these places sound more grand than they are. They're storefronts divided into stalls that share space with handbag and shoe shops and other smalll retailers. Most don't have English
menus (a few have photos of the food, so you can order by pointing). The clientele is mostly Chinese who work in the area.

In cuisine they are more diverse, regionally, than most of the city's Chinese places - which skew more Cantonese and (more recently)
Fujianese in Manhattan, and Cantonese and Taiwanese in Flushing.

For example, Golden Mall (http://www.chow.com/places/2469) at Main and
41st Rd includes vendors selling Chinese food from Xian and Guizhou. The newer "Oriental Express Food" (http://www.chow.com/places/26918) a few doors south has a stand selling Muslim-style Chinese food, alongside a place with northern Chinese-style dumplings.

Great places for hungry adventurers to explore.

Anyone know
--Best vegetarian chinese restaurant? Especially of the fake meat variety. I used to live in San Jose, CA, and was blessed by having at least 4 - 5 of these restarants nearby. I haven't found a good NYC replacement. Any recommendations?

I believe I heard your guest say that General Tso, thought he was a relation of Jesus. I have not been able to find any information on the web supporting this comment. Could Jennifer commnet on her source about this fact?

You may be interested to know that there are several Peruvian chinese restaurants in Paterson, NJ. Peru has the largest Chinese population in South America (brought over to build the railroad). So here we have Chinese food twice interpreted: China --> Peru and then Chinese Peruvian --> US.

大四川 (or Grand Sichuan) is the best Sichuan in NYC on 229 9th ave near 24th. Lots of rare dishes.

does the guest have any recommendations for getting good (authentic or american) gluten free chinese food in nyc?

thanks

cd

Been to Taiwanese restaurant and find that their menu is very different from even the mainland Chinese restaurants here in Flushing. can you comment?

She's right about americans no wanting to think of their food as once having been alive. The greatest fiction example that illustrates this is from the movie Christmas Story when at the end the family must eat at a chinese restaurant where the head of the duck they order is left on and the father complains that it is smiling at him

I grew up in an Italian family and one of grandpa's favorite easter treats was capozella or lamb's head eyes and all. It sat in the middle of the table and you pulled of the meat from the cheeks and plucked out an eye and some brains. I like brain!

I think it's slightly problematic to contrast "American Chinese Food" to what we're calling "Authentic Chinese Food" since there are 9-12 distinct styles of Chinese cooking. What a Beijing'er would call "authentic Chinese food" would be very different from a Shanghai denizen. Just look at the regional variation of the dumpling from province to province! With so many kinds of "Chinese food", what can we rightly call Authentic?

Brian, the phrase is "fewer eyeballs" not "less eyeballs."

The restaurant "Fetch" on the Upper East Side serves Philly cheese steaks rolls and they are amazing!

I'm not a Chinese-American, but being a Jewish American I can certainly say I know my Chinese food. "New Green Bo" on 66 Bayard Street in Chinatown is hands-down the best Chinese restaurant in Manhattan. Chicken that's lightly breaded and moist, beef that is flavorful and tender (as opposed to the leathery, stringy shlock you get at most places), and sauces that don't congeal into superglue after 10 seconds. It's also cheap and unpretentious. If there's better Chinese in New York, I haven't found it.

Many chinese restuarants have an english vs chinese menu, often with completely different dishes. Specials are often posted only in chinese.

Look at what the chinese ppl in the place are eating and ask to have what they're having. Chances are, you will get better food.

I live and work around Paterson, NJ and there's a number of Chinese-Peruvian restaurants. Apparently, a number of Chinese people came to Peru in the 1800s and early 1900s, and they developed a sort of merged cooking style that those descendents have brought here to America. It's pretty good!

Check out any of the restaurants on 8th ave south of 45th st in Brooklyn. One of the best places I've been is between 52nd and 53rd, and the best dumplings are on 8th and 48th st. My Chinese roommate can always find the authentic dishes and ingredients, and my Jewish-American tastebuds can find the less adventurous fare.

How come rice is included in Chinese restaurants in New York but you have to order it in San Francisco? Also, how come Lo Mein means a spaghetti-type noodle dish in New York but it's not in San Francisco?

I also think Canada has the best Chinese Food.

So where in America do you go to get authentic Chinese food, and not the Americanized version?

Yes, I forgot I had wonderful and very different from any place else in Vancouver in 1982. I was at first skeptical when I saw it but it was luscious too. Dishes I've never seen nor heard of elsewhere.

We tried to order real chinese but we were just not chinese enough. We watched other's around us get what we wanted while when we ordered we were told that this dish was only available in winter and the picture we pointed to was "just advertising".

You're welcome! We did it to make you look funny on bikes.

Nancy Lee's Pig Heaven on the Upper East Side. The name says it all....and Nancy presides over everything as the grande dame she truly is!

When I get chinese for lunch at work, I will play those numbers on the fortune cookie in the Mega millions that night.

Once I almost forgot, and I had to run out of my apartment to the store about 15 minutes before they draw the numbers, because I knew I still had the numbers in my pocket, and if they won and I didn't play them, I would probably cry forever.

Our all time favorite Chinese restaurant is Kam Chueh (formerly Shing Kee) at 40 Bowery, NYC. We have been going there for 22 years and the food has been consistently fresh, tasty and amazing. We have brought generations of friends and family there (both Chinese and American) and everyone agrees that it's the best Chinese food they've ever eaten!!! The restaurant specialize in fish, which is located in tanks in the restaurant's vestibule just prior to cooking.

I'll take Colonel Sanders over General Tso's anytime and a Twinkie for dessert.

Seriously, I like New Green Bo. Love their dumplings and they have rice cakes which are never served in take out joints.

KFC. haha, there are probably more KFC's and McDonalds in China than here in the U.S. Thanks to the U.S. for fattening up my people.

spicy & tasty in Flushing for authentic chinese food.....

Often Chinese food can be served at a sit down in Flushing, faster than waiting in line at Macdonalds... and its cheaper in the chinatowns, fresher, and more balanced ( typical rice dishes).

Many Chinese restaurants round out up the tax so if it seems a little high it probably is and you can't do anything about it. As for charging for using a credit card that's illegal as far as I know. A law making it so was passed about 15 years ago. But as I see the student's in my E Village neighborhood use the cards to charge a soda, I can understand why they would want to put a minimum but it should not be more than $5 in my opinion. When you're waiting in a check out line and 10 students with a bottle of water each are using their own credit card to charge the water, it's pretty annoying. Maybe that's the purpose.

Ironic about Democrats eating sushi, since much of the US sushi market is controlled by the Rev. Sun Myung Moon, owner of the Washington Times:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/specials/chi-0604sushi-1-story,0,6260791,print.story

Oh how could I forget right here on 7th Avenue near 15th Street in the early 70s Sczechuan Seventh, no longer exists but the food was exquisite especially the Moo shoo crab, something I've not seen on a menu since but then I no longer eat other than take out in the neighborhood (some of which is not bad).

Oops, I mean St. Marks Place.

I don't think I like any Chinese food in this city. If I had to vote for best though, I'd probably say Grand Szechuan on Astor Pl, even though I wish they would get closed down for trying to cheat people for a few extra dollars when they use their credit cards.

To this day I have to say the best Chinese Food I've ever had (and I am by no means a Chinese food expert and never ate in China) but the best I ever had was in Fuengirola, Spain (near Malaga), in 1981. Yes, that was a long time ago but I never forgot that restaurant and food. I wouldn't be surprised if the the vegetables were pulled out of the soil when i placed my order, they were so fresh. Mmmmmmm.

On a past Leonard L show there was a discussion of umami the 5th taste. What many new yorkers and even quite a few chinese are not aware of is that genuine szchuan food has to have " Hua Jiao" that tongue numbing spice called prickly aspic.Hua Jiao is an essential compliment to the firey chilies that are the delight of real Chong Qing style Szchuan food. Ma Puo Dou fu isnt really Ma Puo Do fu without it. To taste authentic CQ Szchuan, I recommend the Golden Monkey in flushing. I don't want my secret spot to get overly "gentrified" by the wnyc crowd (like the jackson diner has become in queens for indian food) so you will have to search it out for your self!. ,, oh and remember really chinese style szchuan food is VERY oily..:P

I've read ms. lee's work in the NYTimes for years & have always been curious about the "8" as her middle initial. could you please ask her?!
thank you. bk

Hi Brian
Why aren't Chinese restaurants required to provide a receipt in English? Have you ever gotten a receipt that you thought was more than it should be, gone through looking up prices on the menu trying to match up prices?
If I went to a German restaurant I wouldn't expect to receive a receipt in German!

Thank you, we love your show.
Rick Lanza

I wonder if Ms Lee agrees with those who trace the origin of the fortune cookie to the Japanese Tea Garden at the 1894 San Francisco Midwinter Fair, in Golden Gate Park.