We're gonna be a little short on hot nightlife to recommend around here this week. You know: holidaze. Stuff is closed. People are expected to be actively Christian and/or spending time with their families. But if you're childless and godless like the Scenics, this week is just another week, only colder and darker. And broker after reluctantly going along with that gift-buying ritual. We'll certainly inform you if we do hear about any action, but in the meantime we'll just recommend one of our favorite Xtian holiday (or any day) activities: Asian cuisine!
I've written before of a compulsion I feel to eat noodles with chopsticks. Maybe it's just because I'm so good at it and need to validated about something. In order to satisfy this need, these past few weeks I've indulged at a couple of new-to-me venues: New Haven's York Street Noodle House and West Hartford's Vietnam Restaurant.
A couple weeks ago I was ready to stay in for the night when nobody was available to go see drag queens with me, but I fearlessly dragged myself off the couch at the last minute - not going to let other bums ruin my night, damn it! So I headed out solo and past my usual dinner hour, and arrived in New Haven hungry and looking for a good place to eat quickly, cheaply and not too pathetically by myself. Luckily, York Street Noodle House is just next door to the bar I was headed to and happens to be casual, fast and reasonably priced. Their menu is actually pretty diverse, but is mostly variations on a big bowl of noodle soup, with pan-Asian influences. I had a bowl of coconut curry chicken soup and a Thai style ice tea, which were just great and ready in minutes and totaled under ten bucks. I'm definitely looking forward to a return visit - maybe next week before the GWAR concert? I do wish there was such a noodle house closer to headquarters.
Vietnam Restaurant wasn't entirely new to me, but I've only eaten there once before and I've eaten at my other two favorite Vietnamese joints about a zillion times each, so it may as well have been. Regrettably though, I must relay that Vietnam won't be unseating Pho Boston or Pho 206 in my heart any time soon. I got my usual (for scientific objectivity) - iced coffee, egg rolls and pho. The iced coffee was served impressively - in a glass topped with an individual filtering device and a side cup of ice. This looked cool, but the result of pouring a fresh brewed serving of hot coffee over ice was (as you'd expect) watered down coffee, which, in spite of a generous blob of condensed milk, lacked the flavor and sweetness I'm used to in my Asian iced coffees. Boo. The soup had issues as well. There was just a hint of liquorice, almost more a smell than a taste - but nevertheless, enough to make each bite a little unpleasant. Sadness. On the plus side, my partner-in-overeating and I decided to try an additional appetizer, fried wantons, where were very tasty and served with a delicious sauce (not sure what it was but it tasted like the plum sauce you get with moo shoo dishes at Chinese). I also especially liked the pot of thick hot sauce included with the condiments on the table.
I've written before of a compulsion I feel to eat noodles with chopsticks. Maybe it's just because I'm so good at it and need to validated about something. In order to satisfy this need, these past few weeks I've indulged at a couple of new-to-me venues: New Haven's York Street Noodle House and West Hartford's Vietnam Restaurant.
A couple weeks ago I was ready to stay in for the night when nobody was available to go see drag queens with me, but I fearlessly dragged myself off the couch at the last minute - not going to let other bums ruin my night, damn it! So I headed out solo and past my usual dinner hour, and arrived in New Haven hungry and looking for a good place to eat quickly, cheaply and not too pathetically by myself. Luckily, York Street Noodle House is just next door to the bar I was headed to and happens to be casual, fast and reasonably priced. Their menu is actually pretty diverse, but is mostly variations on a big bowl of noodle soup, with pan-Asian influences. I had a bowl of coconut curry chicken soup and a Thai style ice tea, which were just great and ready in minutes and totaled under ten bucks. I'm definitely looking forward to a return visit - maybe next week before the GWAR concert? I do wish there was such a noodle house closer to headquarters.
Vietnam Restaurant wasn't entirely new to me, but I've only eaten there once before and I've eaten at my other two favorite Vietnamese joints about a zillion times each, so it may as well have been. Regrettably though, I must relay that Vietnam won't be unseating Pho Boston or Pho 206 in my heart any time soon. I got my usual (for scientific objectivity) - iced coffee, egg rolls and pho. The iced coffee was served impressively - in a glass topped with an individual filtering device and a side cup of ice. This looked cool, but the result of pouring a fresh brewed serving of hot coffee over ice was (as you'd expect) watered down coffee, which, in spite of a generous blob of condensed milk, lacked the flavor and sweetness I'm used to in my Asian iced coffees. Boo. The soup had issues as well. There was just a hint of liquorice, almost more a smell than a taste - but nevertheless, enough to make each bite a little unpleasant. Sadness. On the plus side, my partner-in-overeating and I decided to try an additional appetizer, fried wantons, where were very tasty and served with a delicious sauce (not sure what it was but it tasted like the plum sauce you get with moo shoo dishes at Chinese). I also especially liked the pot of thick hot sauce included with the condiments on the table.
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