A Glutinous Affair

FINALLY, after weeks and weeks of salivating just at the thought of eating some half-decent Chinese food, Amar and I went to Spicy and Tasty in Flushing last night. I've been to Flushing a few times, whenever my parents are in town. I think it's the eating in Flushing aspect of the trip to New York that excites them, not the precious time they get to spend with their only daughter. Sigh. Anyway, so I've only eaten around the further end of Main street, near the library. I've never ventured off onto the side streets before. Spicy and Tasty is located at the corner of 39th and Prince Street. I had no idea that Prince Street is a corridor of Asian epicurean heaven! Walking from the car the restaurant, we passed by two noodle shops, a malaysian restaurant, a seafood restaurant, a few standard chinese restaurants and a bubble tea salon. I was wild with hunger and desire.

Spicy and Tasty was everything I had hoped for...the food was spectacular. And I never use the word spectacular to describe anything. The cold dishes are prepared by a chef near at a food station near the front entrance. It's a great way to pump up customers waiting for a table. I practically had to ask for a tea cup to use to catch my drool. Clearly, as you can see from the picture below, I got a little too excited about the food. We ordered enough food for 4 people. Oops.
The appetizers were all excellent. I was a bit disppointed with the dan dan noodles. The noodles were a little too mushy and congealed. And the presentation was definitely a little lackluster. The shredded cold chicken and chengdu jelly were both outstanding. The name chengdu jelly is misleading - it's actually rice noodles, which just look like and have the consistency of jelly. The chili oil in both dishes were extremely fragrant and tasty. The shredded tofu and celery was very good as well, a cooling relief from all the spiciness of the other dishes. The tofu and celery dish had an after taste of whole peppercorns and some sort of herb - either dill or fennel (i think?) It filled the roof of my mouth with flavor.

Onto the main dishes. The Gong Bao Ji Ding (General Tso's Chicken) was pretty good. But, General Tso's Chicken is like Beyonce to me: OVER IT. The Fish in Chili Oil was extremely tender and not too oily, given that it is drenched in oil. I was expecting a whole fish swimming in a bowl...actually more like a basin of chili oil, which is how the dish is served in China. But, the dish is composed of fish filet. The sauteed pea sprouts was excellent - tender, soft leaves, with an extremely delicate flavor. The waitress recommended it as the best vegetarian dish.

Everything was amazing, but I think the appetizers were the superstars of the meal. The leftovers are in my fridge right now and every time i hope the fridge door, the amazing chili oil scent wafts out. They should bottle that stuff and call it "Eau'd Chinois". Or maybe "Szechuan" by Stella McCartney. Dab a little bit of it behind your ears and the girls will come chomping.