A taste of Egg Slut... Finally

Heard about Egg Slut for quite some time. Been to the Grand Central Market several times but the line for Egg Slut was always so long that I've always opted for the other food stands there rather than wait in line. By the way, the soft tacos stand giving out free samples of its carnitas tacos is delicious, and its jamaica (hibiscus) drink for a dollar is the best I've had.

This past weekend, my daughter and I braved the long line and waited to finally get a taste of the Egg Slut. Wow! It is good. An egg on a bed of buttery mashed potatoes, slowly poached, or "coddled" to perfection in a small glass jar was absolutely heavenly. But at $9.00 a pop, it's a bit expensive considering the ingredients probably cost no more than 50 cents. Now I'm going to try making it at home and save a few bucks.

Grand Central Market.

The downtown LA Grand Central Market is in the midst of transforming into a more upscale food market. It is currently a mix of foodie hangouts such as Eggslut, Wexler's Deli, C and G Cafe, and many ethnic, been there forever food stands. Hope it stays that way. You don't want the upscale yuppy foods to drive out the traditional Chinese, Salvadoran, or Mexican stands. 

When I Crave Childhood Comfort Food.

In my case, childhood cuisine means Taiwanese or Chinese style food. Even though I've only lived in Taiwan for about a year and have never been to China, I've visited Taiwan several times, and mom cooks Chinese food, so I consider Chinese style food my comfort food.

 When I have a craving for cuisine I grew up with, I head out to the San Gabriel Valley, a hotbed of all kinds of Asian cuisine.  Yesterday, I had a craving for Chinese dumplings, so we went to the Mandarin Noodle House on 701 W Garvey Ave, an establishment that has been around for decades. The food there may not be up to the standards of the new expensive foodie craze sweeping over California, but it is basic northern Chinese food that hits a spot.

We ordered boiled pork dumplings with leek, fish dumplings, and pot stickers with pork and cabbage.
For sides dishes, we had marinated cubumbers, julienned seaweed, beancurd strips, and tofu with preserved eggs - all comfort food that we haven't had for quite a while.

After lunch, we had shave ice at Shau May Restaurant at 104 N Garfield Ave. in Monterey Park. We ordered one to share because even the 3 items combo shave ice is quite large. We had the combination of red beans, mochi balls and grass jelly topped with shave ice and condensed milk. Fantastic way to cool off on a hot summer day.