GET A LOT OF HOT POT AT SPRING SHABU- SHABU

“Unique” would be the word to describe Spring Shabu-Shabu, a “hot pot” restaurant in downtown Flushing.  “Hot pot” is a style of food preparation at many Asian eateries where you sit at a table and cook your meal in a broth.  Let me just share my experience.

Spring Shabu-Shabu is located at 136-20 38^th Avenue and Manager Jay Lang is skillfully in charge.  It is on the second floor of the building known as Queens Crossing.  Quite large but I hear that it can get quite crowed at peak hours being wonderfully popular, particularly with the Asian population.   There are several eateries in this building, so you have to follow the signs.

I went with a friend as it may be difficult to dine alone.  First step…we chose a broth. Soup bases are: dashi, dried fish and vegetable stock; spicy dashi (spicy radish strips added); pork bone; spicy pork bone – chili oil, red chilies, and Chinese herbs; vegetarian- mushrooms and vegetables.   I opted for the pork bone while Nancy chose the vegetarian. 

Your proteins are ordered off the menu (if you so desire). Here are the prices.  Chicken – 7 oz.  $4.  Other meats - fatty beef, non-fatty beef, prime beef are $4 for 5 oz.  $6 for 4oz. ribeye beef, $6 for 4 oz. pork, tripe, 4oz- $4, lamb 5oz.-$4.   Seafood options include shrimp - 8 pieces for lunch for $5 or 12 pieces for dinner at $7.   A 14 oz seafood combo of shrimp, clams, squid, baby octopus, whitefish and crab is $5 for lunch. Shrimp is more like prawn with the heads on…which we placed on our list.  All meats are thinly sliced and meant to be cooked a short time.  We ordered chicken and prime beef.  Crabs were another item that I couldn’t resist.  But wait!

Off to what was the longest buffet of vegetables, noodle products, tofu and dumplings.  I have not even experienced seeing this amount of a variety of vegetables at any Asian grocery.  Just to get an idea…white sweet potatoes, lotus root, Kabocha squash, various cabbages and a variety of mushrooms.  Thank goodness they are labeled and more importantly, fresh.  Nothing wilted, etc.  I grabbed a plate walked around and filled it up for the first run.   There is another area just for sauces both mild and spicy.  You grab a bowl and can mix up a few if you want.  

Back at the table to cook and enjoy sharing a small bottle of sake.  You are given a large spoon and slotted spoon along with chop sticks or fork and knife if you wish.  Placed some of the cooked food on my curved metal plate, dipped into the sauce using my chop sticks and the flavors of the combination of soup that is produced along with obviously fresh meats and fish is beyond ones idea of savory food.   

This is an all you can stuff yourself buffet which means I could not only keep going back but try produce that I don’t usually eat.  We both took advantage of this opportunity to “exercise.” With the buffet having dumplings that contain meat, I realized that it was not necessary to order other meats or seafood but certainly fun and great tasting.  Crabs (heads removed and cleaned) are just about large enough to get a decent amount of meat and easy to crack.  Nancy found them to be messy.  More for me.

 

A Shabu-Shabu experience here was certainly not without service.   Our server brought and replenished the broths (which cannot be changed in midstream).   He saw to it that the used dishes were removed and both tea and water glasses/cups were refilled.  As for leftovers….the restaurant does not use plastic which means that you cannot take the soup home to your “dog.”  They will, however, bring an aluminum container so you can scoop out the solids.   Ate them the next day….cold!  OMG! Soft ice cream is the only dessert….fine with both of us! 

Interesting to have found out that the tea is not made from tea leaves but a combination of barley and corn from Korea (oksusu-bori-cha.)  I guess it would be classified as being “herbal.” Aside from the never ending tea…beer, wine, sake, soju (a Korean alcohol made from rice) and soft drinks are available.  With assistance from our server, I opted for 300ml of cold sake in the category of Junmai, called Kaga Setsubai described as, “pure rice sake that is aromatic and light with a smooth finish.” Sake can be pricey as wine would be.  Here the cold sake prices range from $15 to $31 for 300ml; $31 to $73 for 750 ml.  

Meal prices? Lunch special weekdays - $11.95, 11:30am  to 3pm ; weekends and holidays, $15.95.  Everyday dinner - $16.95.  Lunch on a weekday is a bargain at $13 that includes the tax.  If you are thinking, “Why would I pay $13 for lunch?” Change your habit for the day and think of lunch as “dinner.”   Open until 10pm.  For further information call: 718-395-8076.  No…they do not take reservations. 

SAIGON RESTAURANT HAS A LONGER NAME

River Japanese Cuisine, located at 61-44 Springfield Blvd. abuts another Asian restaurant with the name "Saigon" most prominent.  One might assume that Vietnamese cuisine is the bill of fare.  Look closer and the words, "Asian Cuisine" better describes an eatery that not only emphasizes food from Vietnam, but that from Thailand and China as well.

I went there more than once in order to sample the various cuisines.  Chopsticks, a fork, a table spoon and a knife are given depending upon what you order. One of the most popular items is their Grilled Pork Chop.  They begin by cutting the chops really thin and marinading them.  I have no idea what spices are used as I think it's "chef secret".   I was able to find out that garlic is used and I'm not much on having garlic in my food.  However, these were the absolute best pork chops I've ever come across. Aside from the seasoning, they were extremely tender and served with slices of raw onion and a piece of cucumber.  That seems to be a pattern in the food.  I think the cucumber is the "cool off" veggie for "spicy".  Although a dipping sauce was included I didn't need it. 

Iced cold Vietnamese coffee should be perfect with the meal.  Sweetened condensed milk is placed at the bottom of a glass cup.  A coffee powder rests in a metal container as the hot water is poured into the top allowing the coffee to "drip".   If you want hot coffee, just remove the cup.  For iced coffee, a tall glass of ice is presented. 

Signature dishes are my favorite.  I started with the the Cubed Beef Steak that uses the flank cut.  I requested to leave out the garlic.  The steak is cooked in a butter sauce with onions and there's that piece of cucumber!  Although I loved the flavors, the beef wasn't as tender as the pork chop. 

 Duck is another favorite of mine. In this case it is Braised Boneless Duck.  The meat is braised in a brown sauce and served with a circle of baby bok choy.  The slight bitterness of the bok choy works well with the duck that has a slightly sweet taste. 

The menu reads, "Live Lobster".   It doesn't mean that you get one flopping around on your plate.  I am told that there is a tank downstairs rather than using an already cooked and frozen lobster.  There are choices of how you want it cooked.  I requested ginger and scallions.  The lobster dish is presented with the head and end of tail with the lobster cut up in its shell.  

Crispy Whole Fish is another signature dish.   Snapper is used for this savory selection.  It's a perfect size, meaty, comes off the bone easily and has a fresh flavor in itself.  Not wishing for the spices, I chose to have it crispy with a sweet and sour sauce with bell peppers, carrots and pineapples. 

Chicken with Lemongrass sauce didn't sound to be too spicy for me.  The lemongrass gave that great both lemony flavor with a bit of heat.  The chicken strips are sauteed with red onions, green and red bell peppers and just enough red pepper flakes.

Returning for another tasting, I first sampled the two typical Vietnamese appetizers; that of summer rolls and spring rolls.  Summer rolls are a cold appetizer with a rice sheet that wraps shrimp and raw scallions.  They are served with a peanut sauce. 

Spring rolls are quite different.  Think of it as smaller egg rolls, with a beef filling.  This one is served with lettuce,that piece of cucumber and a dipping sauce that is both sweet and spicy. 

Having loved the grilled pork chops, I was interested in having them in a different style with a Peking sauce, which seemed to be a sweet and sour  red sauce with lots of onions.  Kind of like a Chinese version of a barbeque sauce. 

I had wondered what the difference was between having lobster Cantonese style vs ginger and scallions.  I believe that "lobster sauce" is this composition which is chopped pork, peas, eggs, and garlic in a white sauce that is thickened with corn starch.  I would suggest saving the sauce for a "to go" box and using it over white rice as a second meal. 

Vietnamese Prawns in Orange Sauce captured my eyes and taste buds.  This menu item is not sweet is made with red and green bell peppers, pineapple and resting on fresh tomato slices.  Surprise. No cucumber.

What's Vietnamese food without Pho?  A large bowl of noodle soup would fill you up for dinner.  Beef stock for this famous soup is made from soup bones that cook for several hours.  You get rice noodles, various thin sliced cuts of beef and bits of scallion.  It is served with a dish of bean sprouts, cilantro, a wedge of lemon and thin slices of jalapeno pepper.  I thought the pepper was extra scallions and wondered why the soup had a peppery taste....yes, I dropped a lot into the soup.  I asked if the broth was made with black pepper and was informed of my mistake.  You can substitute basil for cilantro if you wish.

Ordering the noodle soup with grilled pork chops will have you indulging in a chicken broth with slices of white onions.  Same accompaniment.

For a completely different soup choice, try the sea food soup.  It's kind of like having egg drop soup with various cut up seafood other than "fish" such as  shrimp and squid.

There are condiments on the table for those who want to add "hot", salty, etc.  I passed on all.

Liquid refreshments are far from your average can of soda.  This second time I was here I went for a cold Oreo Cappuccino.  I don't even need to explain.