stephenc

I love Indian food, but I really do think better Indian food is found outside the city. Inside the city, I found Karma to be good. Cafe Spice in Old City is also surprisingly good. Both are much more expensive than the suburban Indian places I've been to (Khajahuro, Sultan, Amon, Desi, Jaipur, ) South Indian is much more difficult to find around here than Northern Indian cooking.

Mostly pasta dishes or whip up a quick stirfry

Slice eggplants, the long thin kind Fill with a stuffing of chopped shrimp or pork, green onions , a bit of soy, starch, garlic, ginger whatever. Lightly coat with flour if you want, throw into a fry pan filled with peanut or canola. Fry those suckers up. Top with a sauce made from soy, sweet bean paste, chiles, white wine, corn starch and water. Green onions.

Best Indian food in the suburbs is at Amon's, at the corner of 202 and Germantown Pike in West Norriton. Go there. The owner, the tall guy with beard/turban, rocks and cooks up a storm. Go spicy. My friends and I are regulars at the Saturday lunch buffet.

I would plate this using a bowl. Maybe a japanese soup bowl or italian pasta bowl or something.

Eating just before bed isn't bad for you. In fact, it could be good for you. Eating a full meal and then going to bed is bad. A snack of nuts, fruit, and milk is very good for you. The most important thing to remember is that eating a big meal right before bed is a sign of an unhealthy eating pattern. 6 small meals and snacks spread throughout the day is better than 2 gluttonous meals with much time in between.

I use one of 3 old chinese cleavers that I bought at the asian market.

I leave 20% for good service and 15% for normal service. I'm not rich and can't afford to tip 30-50%

Yup. Just like any other bar. Best bet are the downstairs tables in the front bar, because of the high turnover.

i've gotten good breakfast/lunch at Nodding head. They usually have a jazz band playing.

I've been to ocean harbor a zillion times for dim sum, and though its not the cleanest place in the world (what place in chinatown is?), I've never gotten poisoned. So in my opinion, it's probably a rare incident that got you.

Stephen, The best Sichuan place I have every visited is in NJ, called Szechuan Ace, which I posted about a while back. Where is this place in Exton, I would love to visit (today if possible)? As for Mandarin, some of us went there for the Chinese New Year dinner. ← I believe the Szichwan place in Exton is called Tifco's China Bistro. Ask for their chinese/szichaun menu, because it is completely different from their regular menu.

Good news. Because Sarah Moulton and her show were both terrible.

indifferent.

Hahaha. Don't worry. You'll make parking fine.

Planet Hoagie makes a really good chicken cutlet hoagie.

That's because all the food writers obviously read the boards.

Write-up in citypaper more at http://citypaper.net/articles/current/food.shtml

I pass by all the time, but judging from the Bentley parked outside, I don't think I'll be going there until I become some sort of bigwig.

If only 2 people, I'd go to Fork. More than 2, go to Buddhakan

For touristy stuff, I still love walking South Street after all these years, especially on a nice day. For upscale food, you can try La Croix, Striped Bass, or Morimoto. All are well reviewed. I'm not too pretentious when it comes to cheesesteaks, so I usually just get a "mushroom cheese with" and a can of budweiser from Jim's. My out of town guests have always enjoyed Belgian beers and pails of mussels of Monk's. The place gets extremely crowded on Thursdays and weekends, so watch out.

Hong Kong supermarket up on Rising Sun had them last time I was there, which was about a week ago.

It sounds like "Doe meow," with a quick and almost undetectiable "ow" at the end. Tonally, say the "do" like you would, saying "Go!" to someone. The "miao" has an upward curve to it. Tonally, it's similar to saying "huh?" in confusion. Do it quicker, but with the word "miao".

If by soup dumplings, you mean "shao lung bao", then the best place to get them, again, is out in the 'burbs. Margaret Kuo makes a mean dumpling for dim sum. She has like a billion restaurants, but I'll go to the one in Malvern if visiting folks out there. The aforementioned good Szechuan is called Tifco, out in Exton. Incredibly spicy stuff, you gotta ask for their "chinese menu", unless you're chinese. Hmm, dunno where to get lion head meatballs, since I rarely order them when I go out, but I can easily make them for you if you give me half an hour.

North Sea for seafood. Lakeside for cheap ass rice dishes. A lot of places can make you bitter melon/ fuzzy melon dishes. Just ask them if they have it...... Chinatown is almost 100% cantonese. For Szechuan, theres a place on Arch next to Joe Poon. Sorry I don't know the name. For the very best Szechuan, you gotta go out to NJ or the 'burbs. Theres also a couple places owned by Taiwanese or Fujian owners, but not many. There is not one Shanghai restaurant in Chinatown as I recall.