More Fun Playing with Lunch at Wonton Gourmet

Today was a cold, rainy, dreariness - a harbinger of the winter days to come here in Cleveland (and all too soon, I expect). So - how brilliant was our friend Tom that he invited us for lunch to our Cleveland Asiatown favorite - Wonton Gourmet - several days ago! It provided the perfect antidote for the weather.

Instead of starting with soup this time, I suggested a Jook or Congee - rice porridge that is a staple of Chinese breakfast and Dim Sum. I was intrigued by the "Thousand Year Egg Lean Pork" listed on the menu.


Thousand Year Egg Lean Pork Congee





This is a close up of a bit of the "Thousand Year Old Egg," which has a gelatinous, almost puddingy mouthfeel. The congee was richly flavored from the eggs, pork and yellow chives. A drop of soy and a pinch of chili oil yielded a richly comforting and tasty start to our meal.


Chive Potstickers





I wasn't wild about these the last time I had them - but today, they were perfection on a plate! Slightly smoky, supremely fresh - simply wonderful.


Turnip Cake

What can I say about these that I haven't said before - best damn turnip cake I've had anyplace in the world - period.


Roast Duck Over Rice

Another Dim Sum staple - perfectly seasoned and expertly cooked - I finally understand the "BBQ" in this restaurant's name. We inhaled this plate.








Goat Casserole



The English menu description of this dish did not come close to doing it justice. The goat meat was exquisitely tender, and almost beef-like in flavor. Though none of us found the skin very palatable, we appreciated what it rendered into the dish. And the bean curd stick sucked up all of the lovely flavors - the guys joked as we left that instead of picking out the last bits of meat as we prepared to end our meal - they were picking out the tofu!





Wonton Gourmet remains our favorite Cleveland Asiatown spot - and in these tough economic times - the cost of playing with all of this food (which fed four of us, and there was a bit of stew left over) was under $40.

More Fun Playing with Cantonese Food at Wonton Gourmet

June 15 was Fathers' Day. For Bob, whose dad passed away many years ago, it was a day for gardening. My Dad is in New York, nearly 500 miles away. So, Father's Day wasn't even on my radar when I selected the date for a lunch at Wonton Gourmet. Though we started out with nearly a dozen people planning to join us - once the reality of the day set in, they started to drop out (understandably). By the time we got to the appointed day and time (Sunday at 1:30pm), our group was down to four people. But that was probably a good thing, considering that the place was packed when I arrived, and that they didn't want to reserve a big table for us because of the holiday.

Wonton Gourment has become my favorite Cleveland Asiatown restaurant. I knew it was a good sign, the first time I ventured here, that I observed Michael Hong, Chef of the wonderful Siam Cafe (3951 St. Clair Ave., Cleveland, OH, (216) 361-2323) dining at a nearby table! Wonton Gourmet is located at 3211 Payne Avenue, Cleveland (no website, (216) 875-7000).

Some of the servers remembered us from previous visits, and the owner, Thomas, stopped by every table to ask how things were; he seemed genuinely delighted that we enjoyed the food so much. We dug into the menus, and decided to order one course at a time, so that our small table wouldn't be buried in plates! We started with a selection of Dim Sum items. Though the selection is small, Wonton Gourmet does them extremely well.


Chive Pot Stickers





These fried pockets were stuffed with fresh Chinese chives, shrimp and just a little pork. They were served wok-hot and had a bit of a stiff texture from the shrimp. Yum!


Turnip Cake



I've had Dim Sum in NYC, San Francisco, Chicago, Toronto, New Jersey, Guangsho (China), Hong Kong and Cleveland. This is, bar none, the most exquisite turnip cake I've ever experienced. As I wrote about it here, it is crispy on the outside, and incredibly creamy on the inside - more like a pudding than anything else. It does not need any condiments (turnip cake is usually served with Hoisen sauce - but Wonton Gourmet wisely serves it just as it is).


Steamed Cilantro & Scallion Rice Roll



This ubiquitous delicacy is usually presented (and is available at Wonton Gourmet) stuffed with shrimp or beef. The rice noodle is rolled around the filling and served over a slightly sweet, soy-based sauce. Something just told me we needed to try it without the filling - and that something was right. The taste of the fresh herbs and the chewy noodles was accented by the sauce - and each mouthful was a delight.


Sui Mai (Steamed Pork and Shrimp Dumpling)

Sui Mai is another of those ubiquitous Dim Sum items served by any restaurant that serves Dim Sum. I usually don't care for them - too much frozen shrimp for my palate, and not usually at the freshest. We were determined to order them - as happened last time, the server warned that they take 15-20 minutes - but we were not in a hurry!



This version was topped with a bit of roe (not sure what kind). It had a firm texture - probably from the mushrooms that seemed to replace a lot of the shrimp. I actually liked it better than most Sui Mai, despite the mushrooms, because of that firm texture, deep pork flavor, and, especially - it was so amazingly fresh!



We followed our Dim Sum with a soup course.


Chinese Chive Dumplings in Soup







The pristinely clear pork-infused broth contained little to distract - the toothsome dumplings (amazingly similar to the Chive Potstickers - it wouldn't surprise me if they were the same dumpling), Gailan (Chinese Broccoli) and scallions. A simple, brilliant dish.

We decided that two entrees would be plenty for the four of us, considering the volume of food that we had just consumed.


Wet Black Pepper Beef & Spaghetti





No kidding - the menu has a whole section of dishes "Over Rice or Spaghetti," though this dish came from a wall menu (thank you Stuart for the translations)! Stuart had warned us to expect a very wet dish over rather mushy spaghetti. But this dish was sublime! An unidentifiable, Western-seeming pasta cooked al dente, tossed with tender beef, chunks of onion, scallion, bean sprouts and coated with a brisk Hong Hong-style black pepper sauce that moistened, but did not drown the dish.



In order to get the full effect of the pepper, you really have to eat this dish the Chinese way - out of a small bowl, which concentrated the aromas and flavors, and with a fairly large bite at a time (everyone at the table finally got the pepper rush - it just took the others a little longer because they ate it from a flat plate in daintier fashion). Black Pepper Sauce is one of those Chinese foods I crave, because few places make it (or make it well).


Oil Fried (or Wok Tossed) Grouper Balls



I was expecting something more dumpling-like - but this dish did not disappoint on flavor, texture or freshness. Chunks of fresh fish were battered and deep fried, then wok-tossed with crisp vegetables, a light "velvety" sauce, and lots of garlic. This was a perfect contrast to the spicy noodle dish!



This meal delighted all four of us, and we agreed to return for more soon! It is a real treat to be able to play with authentic Hong Kong style food right here in Cleveland, in a clean and friendly restaurant.

Three of us visited Koko Bakery (3710 Payne Ave, Cleveland, OH, (216) 881-7600, link to menu here) after, since Tom and Kay had never been there before. I left my camera in the car, but wished I hadn't - the joint was rocking! Koko is a Shanghai-style bakery - to the left, a wall of traditional (and not so traditional) Chinese baked and fried buns, stuffed with everything from Char Sui pork to Ham & Eggs. Then, a cooler with steam buns, for take out. The front counter cases carried elaborate Western-looking pastries, and a few Eastern surprises (pork bread?). The menu includes a selection of rice plates, sandwiches and salads, and Taiwanese and Korean desserts. There is a large selection of Bubble Tea and Shaved Ice. I was pleased to see them so busy; Cleveland has lost a couple of Asian bakeries in the past few years, and this one is locally owned and operated. Koko deserves our support.

I picked up a package of Cranberry Cookies for after dinner and wished I could think enough about food to get something else - but Wonton Gourmet had filled me up with goodness and there was no room left, even to think about food. I'll need a return trip to play with the food at Koko's!

More Fun Playing with Authentic Chinese Food at Wonton Gourmet

We last played at Cleveland's newest Asiatown star, Wonton Gourmet, at the end of March. Solicited by a friend who had not yet dined there, we met for lunch as a foursome on Sunday. Both our young server, and the older gentleman who kept watch from the front of the house (who I suspect is the owner) were thrilled that four Anglos went for the authentic side of the menu (actually ordering mostly from the "specials" up on the walls in Chinese characters; thanks be to Stuart Spivak for getting translations for most of them). Wonton Gourmet is located at 3211 Payne Avenue, Cleveland (no website, (216) 875-7000).

We began with a delicacy we'd enjoyed the last time we visited: Fish Maw and Dried Conpoy (Scallop) soup:




Here, a few drops of Red Vinegar have been added







This soup is amazingly delicate and complex; don't be put off by the icky sounding name. The fish maw actually lends more texture than flavor, and the dried scallop delivers with intense flavor.

Since it was Sunday lunch, we decided to try a few Dim Sum items:


Turnip Cake



This was the freshest turnip cake I've ever tasted. Creamy inside, crispy outside - it did not require any condiments.


Shrimp Rice Noodle Roll

This ubiquitous item was also very good - the rice sheet tasted freshly made, and the shrimp had no objectionable smells or tastes.


Guotie (Pot Stickers)

These were the best pot stickers I've had in Cleveland - right up there with the ones made from scratch by Annie Chiu at Sun Luck Garden in Cleveland Heights.



The bottom was perfectly charred.



And the top was crispy but soft - perfect texture.



Hard to make out the inside - but there was pork, shrimp and something yellow which I think was scrambled egg, as well as a green herbal. It was served with a very simple dipping sauce, and the combination was simply dynamite!

And now, onto the entrees:


Lap Cheong (Cured Sausage) and Pork Belly Sausage Stir Fried with Rice Cake

This dish also pleased. The older gentleman explained to our table how Wonton Gourmet makes the rice cakes from scratch - and they had the taste and texture of freshly made rice pasta. Stir fried simply in the pork fat, with crisp vegetables and a dash of soy/vinegar to finish it - it was a perfectly balanced, satisfying dish.



The top piece of sausage is the bacon-like type; the bottom is the lap cheong. The server said they make it in-house.


Salt Baked Softshell Crab

Our server was delighted that we took such delight in the "real" Chinese food - he brought one of these fellows out to our table briefly, alive and not yet cooked, to show us that we were getting the rare treat of live rather than frozen softshell crabs. It was simply delicious! Not greasy, but perfectly crunchy, with a little spice and lots of garlic.




Stir Fried Ong Choy (Chinese Green Vegetable) with Garlic

This dish helped to round out our meal. Our friend Tom exclaimed that this lunch was worth an hour's drive from Akron - healthy praise indeed!

We are lucky in Cleveland to have a good sized Asiatown, and Wonton Gourmet is a fabulous addition to that community. You don't have to be able to read the characters to be able to order a fantastic meal here, and you can play with food that is as authentic as your palate dares.

After lunch, we visited the newest Asian grocery to open in Asiatown: "Park to Shop", 1580 East 30th Street, (216) 781-3383. This large, sleek, modern store was a delight to shop in. Prices were very competitive with the other Asian groceries in town, and the selection was very good.

Bob and I stopped at the cooked meat counter and pondered roasted duck, roasted pork, char sui (BBQ Pork), pork parts of every description, roasted fowl and roasted squid. We wound up getting char sui and and roasted pork to accompany our lunch leftovers for dinner. Sorry - no photos, but take my word for it - they were delicious!

The fish counter looked (and smelled) very nice; there were some live items (including frogs) and the already dispatched ocean dwellers looked fresh and tasty.

And so, we experienced another great Cleveland option for playing with authentic Asian food, whether you want to be served by an expert, or play with it yourself.