Good Chinese Food Outside of Chinatown? Sammy’s Noodle Shop & Grill – West Village
Sammy’s Noodle Shop & Grill
453 6th Avenue
(at 11th Street)
New York, NY
(212) 924-6688
Outside Photo of Sammy's Noodle Shop & Grill
Have you ever had a craving for Chinese food or noodles but didn’t feel like going downtown to Chinatown to get it? I know I do and sometimes, I just don’t have the time or the patience to go over there. Be advised that you must bring a fatter wallet than you normally do because Sammy’s is not only not located in Chinatown, but they also do not charge Chinatown prices. Think about that! Located in the West Village, Sammy’s is the sure quick solution for your my Chinese craving!
Char Sui Bau (Steamed & Baked Roast Pork Buns) Comparison
So after reading that article from David Carr about Char Sui Baus, aka Roast Pork Buns, it just made me want to go get some. Thats just what I did this weekend. Since I live near the Flushing, Queens area, there’s a slew of bakeries to choose from. There’s the bigger names in bakeries like Tai Pan and then there are just very local/family owned ones. I prefer the local ones of course rather than the chains. Their prices are usually cheaper (of course the ones in Chinatown in Manhattan are still cheaper compared to Queens) and some times their food is just higher quality. I passed by this Bakery named Maxin Bakery and I’ve been meaning to stop in there to try it out. Its not a very big place with only 3 tables or so but the food looks great.
Now the real reason why I stopped in there is because of my Char Sui Bau craving. So I went and bought a bunch because one is just not enough for me. There’s two types of these Pork Buns, the Steamed ones and the Baked ones. Its so difficult to choose until you taste the difference and really its more of a matter of personal taste than anything. Some prefer steamed and some just prefer baked.
Char Sui Bau (Roast Pork Bun) Steamed
Char Sui Bau (Roast Pork Bun) Baked
More after the jump!
Char Sui Bau (Steamed or Baked Roast Pork Buns)
Now this is an idea from David Carr I should have thought of. I’ve already done a few dissections of Bor Lor Bau. My other favorite bun is the Char Sui Bau. For those who do not know what this delectably meaty bun is… its a Roast Pork Bun. It comes in two styles, the White Steamed Pork Bun and the Orangish Baked Pork Bun. Its a tough choice to see which is better but I’m also biased for both as I grew up eating it. I will have to get both and take pictures this weekend and while I’m at it, dissect the buns for all to see. Stay tuned!
Steamed Spare Ribs w/Rice Noodle Rolls
My favorite dim sum dish of all time is this spare ribs/rice noodle rolls! This is also known as Pai Gwut Chern, in Cantonese, and it’s quite common in your local dim sum restaurant or Chinese bakery. On the weekends, my mother would buy me this from the bakery on Avenue U, Century 21 Bakery Cafe and I would feast on this like a wild animal! I personally think it’s great that the Chinese bakery serves hot foods as well as baked goods. I will do a review on the bakery itself another day, but for now let me tell you how tasty this really is!
Spare ribs w/rice noodle rolls
Spare ribs w/rice noodle rolls
There is something so terribly delicious and addictive about this dish. Usually rice noodles are plain unless accompanied by soy sauce, and luckily this was drenched in sweet soy sauce! The rice noodle rolls are soft and a little chewy to eat, and the flavored enhanced spare ribs from the soy sauce are just about the two best combos ever to compliment this dish! It tastes so good when it’s nice and warm and is not advised to eat the next day because the rice noodle gets hard and loses it’s flavor!
Anyways, I am going to finish this dish, but in the meanwhile please tell me what your favorite dim sum dishes are!
- FCG
Pineapple Bun (bor lor bao) & Pineapple Comparison (Why’s it called Pineapple Bun?)
So you want to know why Pineapple Buns are called such? It’s a simple explanation but it seems sometimes it is lost in translation.
Pineapple Bun (bor lor bao)
Pineapple (courtesy of timesonline.typepad.com)
The original way of creating the crust of the Pineapple Bun is to make diagonal cuts across the surface. After baking, it looks like the surface of a Pineapple. This method is sometimes lost due to individual bakeries. The bakers probably don’t bother and slap the crust on since most bakeries make it so cheap (under $1 usually) and lots of it, where as high end bakeries will charge 3-5x more for it.
