Dino's Chicken & Burgers

After reading Jonathan Gold's LA Weekly review about Dino's in LA, the chicken mentioned in the article piqued my interest. When I heard that Dino's was opening a second restaurant in Azusa, which is practically around the corner from me, I booked on over the first chance I got to see what this chicken was really all about.

When I walked into the place, which formerly was Ted's Gourmet Fast Food, the chicken wasn't even on the menu yet. I had to ask the counter person specifically about how I could order Dino's chicken and of course, she helped me out. For my order, I got the half chicken which came with french fries, tortillas and coleslaw. I opted for a to go order.

When my order was done, I walked out, got into my car and sped home. What I found interesting was that even though the chicken was in a closed container inside a plastic bag, there were these pleasing, albeit faint, smells emanating from inside the bag that were tantalizing my nose. Something so mouth-watering that I stepped on the gas even harder.

Once I got home, I plunked my bag on my kitchen counter, opened it up, opened up the container and wow, I was assailed with these strong, pungent smells that made me dizzy with anticipation. Than I looked down at the chicken and gloried in its flesh and skin reddened by the chili and spices used to marinate it in. The french fries, also red-orange, and drenched with the sauce and juices from the chicken also commanded attention. When you look at the chicken close-up, you can see how the spices and pieces of red chili adhered to the meat. Now this was serious stuff.

For a minute, I just stood there and stared, taking in the whole sensory experience of the sight and smell before me. Soon, hunger called and I picked up a piece of chicken and took a bite. One bite was an explosion of flavor of pepper, lemon, chili and a host of other spices. It was amazing. I didn't feel the heat right away but after taking a few more bites, I could feel a litte bit of fire at the back of my throat and it was a fire I welcomed and enjoyed. Eating the french fries, soaked in the fiery sauce, also added a little more fuel to this fire.

This truly was the most amazing chicken dish I ever had. I have no clue what kind of marinade was used, but the various layers and melding of flavors really made this chicken sing. Eating Dino's chicken is akin to a mariachi band for me. Both are colorful. Both are "loud." While one can be loud in regards to the music, the other is loud in regards to flavor. With one note or with one bite, both can get immediate attention.

Having this chicken so close to home is one of the best things of the New Year so far. Perhaps 2007 will hold even more culinary prizes as well. I'm certainly hoping for that to be the case.

To see pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157594494829059/

Dino's Chicken and Burgers
843 Arrow Hwy
Azusa, CA 91702

101 Noodle Express

On the last day of 2006, I finally got to experience the food at 101 Noodle Express. I liked it so much that I went back a week later, so basically, this review is based on items eaten at both meals. For my first visit, my group and I sampled 7 dishes and of the 7, I'd order 4 of them again.

Of the three that weren't on my hit list, two were dumplings. After seeing the variety of dumplings available on the menu, I was really excited and was thinking that I also found a new dumpling hangout. Unfortunately, I didn't care for their particular style of dumplings. The dumpling skin was too thick, which may have been okay if the filling was good; however, I found both the vegetable dumplings and the pork fried dumplings uninspiring. Both were just bland.

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I also didn't care for the Dan Dan Noodles. Although I liked the spiciness of the sauce, the noodles were just too starchy for me and I didn't like how they stuck together.

There was still plenty to be happy about especially with the 4 dishes that made me a very content diner indeed. Of course, there was the Beef Roll which is basically the restaurant's signature dish. The crispy texture of the wrapper with the tender beef and peppery greens was a wonderful melding of flavors.

We also enjoyed the Shang Dong Chicken, which was a cold chicken dish that had a nice balance of flavor because of the salty and sweet soy sauce that it was marinated in.

To warm ourselves up, the Oxtail Noodle Soup did the trick and also made our palates happy with the rich, meaty-tasting broth and noodles that still had a nice medium texture to them.

The last of this meal involved the House Pan Fried Cake. We actually had no clue what this dish was but ordered it anyway. What we found was a dish that consisted of the wrapper from beef roll that was sliced and pan-fried with bean sprouts and green onions. The texture of the crispy wrapper and the slightly juicy bite of the sprouts went well together.

Overall, it was a great lunch and a week later, I went with a friend to have dinner there because I really craved that Beef Roll. :) With only two of us, we ordered 5 dishes. Of the five, the Beef Roll was again a pleasure to consume. 2 of the 5 were interesting in that the menu description didn't quite match what actually arrived at our table. Shredded Tofu, which we thought was a hot spicy dish, was actually cold tofu "spaghetti" with carrots and green onions. The tofu was tossed in some kind of oil which may have been mixed with something else. I wasn't completely sure, but I just remembered that there was something nutty about how the tofu tasted.

The Leek and Egg Omelette, which we thought was actually leek and egg omelet, came out looking like an empanada which was stuffed with chopped leeks and scrambled egg. The pasty part of this omelet aka empanada was lighter and flakier than a traditional empanada. I actually found this dish to be bland and it was only until I dipped it in a combination of soy sauce and chili sauce that it was tasting better.

My friend and I also shared two different soups. One was the Green (Mung) Bean Porridge and I'm never going to order that again. It was tasteless soup that was really watery when I was expecting a thicker "porridge" consistency.

The second soup was the Sweet and Sour Soup and wow, was that delicious. When we first saw it on the menu, we thought that it was a typo and that it should be Hot and Sour Soup. After taking the first spoonful, this soup really did have a sweetness to it that was surprising, but then you also had the the sour and also the hotness flavors to go with it, which all made for a very delicious soup.

The second foray to 101 Noodle Express had less than 50% success rate food wise, but the dishes that were good really shone.

In general, I really liked 101 Noodle Express. I enjoyed some dishes better than others, but I'd rather recommend a restaurant where there are a few really great dishes than a restaurant where everything was just okay. If you ever get a chance to visit 101 Noodle Express, be sure to order that Beef Roll. It's worth a drive to Alhambra just for that.

101 Noodle Express
1408 E Valley Blvd
Alhambra, CA, 91801
626-300-8654 ^

Dinner at Green Village - CLOSED

After hearing all the raves about Green Village, I finally made it out to dinner there last month. The "fanciness" of the restaurant interior with its gold and orange color scheme lost some of the elegant feel with the addition of flat screen TVs on the walls. What is it with flat screen TVs at Asian restaurants? Shouldn't the experience be about enjoying the food and the company as opposed to watching various Asian variety shows? Oh well, I digress; let's get on to the food.

After being seated and having settled down a bit, we were given the menu. This menu was no short story. It was an epic saga. Endless pages and pages of dialogue or in this case, various columns of Chinese characters on one side and maybe, an English translation on the other side listing the various menu items available for ordering. This was the time when I wish we had a native speaker in our midst to help decipher those items that didn't have any translations.

But we made do and proceeded to place an order for 11 different dishes. For this particular meal, there was definitely more "Yays" than "Nays," more "Oooohs" than "Boooos." Our delectable sojourn into Shanghai cuisine started with a cold appetizer, the Nan Jing Soya Duck. The duck had a soy sauce glaze that was very thick and amazingly enough, its flavor had a duality of sweet and salty. A little surprising, but quite delicious nonetheless.

After the duck came the Shanghai Sautéed Shrimp, which was a hit, but it was the Preserved Vegetables with Bean Starch Sheets that captured my interest next. When looking at the dish, the sheets looked like wide-shaped pasta noodles, but they had a light-chewy texture that really made for interesting eating with the vegetables they were mixed with.

From the Bean Starch dish, we went on to another unique-looking dish, the Hang Zhou Steamed Pork with Sweet Rice. Looking top to bottom, you see square chunks of pork (including the fat), surrounded by peanuts flattening a mound of brown rice. It was a very pretty dish although none of us had a clue as to what the dish was initially when it arrived at our table. Finally, one of us braved a forkful of meat, nut and rice and what was experienced was a first bite of both sweet, salty and savory – a wonderful melding of flavors. That first bite was soon followed by a second one, a third one and more.

After the Hang Zhou Pork dish, out came the Shanghai Fried Crab, Eggplant with Garlic Sauce and the Fish Fillet with Sweet Wine Rice Balls in quick succession. I didn't try the crab, but I sampled the other two dishes. The sauce for the eggplant was bursting with flavor between the garlic, green onions and red chili peppers while the fish fillet was mild and had a nice buttery texture, although for the life of me, I don't know where the wine rice balls were in that bowl because I certainly didn't see them.

Our tasty Shanghai travels ended with Sautéed Eels, Shanghai Style Fried Flat Noodles, Shanghai Pork Spare Ribs (House Style) and the Deep Fried Yellowtail. The eels didn't interest me and the fried noodles reminded me of Filipino noodles, so I skipped over those two; however, the pork ribs and the yellowtail were absolutely delicious.

The glaze for the Shanghai Pork Spare Ribs was spicy-sweet and the meat was cooked just right and the Deep Fried Yellowtail was amazing in that the batter was very light and yet, even with a more delicate batter, the fish meat was tender and moist and didn't get over-fried. This was dish our waiter actually recommended to us and we're glad he did.

This culinary adventure to Green Village was definitely a trip worth taking and I look forward to making a return visit so that I can taste even more unique Shanghai dishes from their extensive menu. Hopefully, you'll visit Green Village soon and see yourself that it's a restaurant being worth being "Shanghaied" to.

To see pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157594468530823/

Green Village Restaurant
250 W. Valley Blvd
San Gabriel, CA, 91776
(626)576-2228

"Ramen Quartet" - A Tasting of 4 Different Restaurants

Latter part of last year, I organized my quarterly "Quartet" dining series for my group and this time around, we focused on checking out 4 Ramen restaurants from October to December. The four places we visited were Koraku, Hakata Ramen, Santouka Ramen and Daikokuya.

First up was Koraku in Little Tokyo. While strictly not a ramen house, what was interesting about Koraku was the sheer number and variety of ramen soups being offered. There was quite a list in the menu as well as special ramens being offered just for that day. For my order, I chose one of the specials called Sutamina Ramen, which had a shoyu (I think) broth and included garlic sprouts, ground pork, green onions and mushrooms.

If you were looking for something warm to ward off a cold day or night, I'd say this particular ramen would accomplish that just fine. It was a good solid dish, if not spectacular. There were certainly misses to it. I would have preferred firmer noodles. The broth was also a little too thin and there was a layer of oiliness towards the top of the broth that could have been lessened.

Also, I don't think ground meat really is a good choice for ramen or even soup in general. The ground pork in my ramen basically weighted itself to the bottom of the bowl. I almost forgot that it was there until I was half way done with my soup and finally started picking the meat up with my spoon. Even with all those cons, this ramen still had some good flavor coming from the garlic sprouts and green onions and that at least was satisfying. Would I come to Koraku again? Yes, if only to try out some of the other options on the menu. I just wouldn't order the Sutamina Ramen again.

From Koraku, we traversed all the way to Gardena to check out Hakata Ramen and it was certainly night and day. I'm a definite carnivore because I just loved the meatiness, porkiness of the Tonkotsu broth that came with my ramen. What I also really liked was being able to customize my ramen eating experience. Firm noodles? Check. Normal soup oil? Yes. Strong soup base? Definitely. At Koraku, I ate my ramen. At Hakata, I experienced my ramen. It was just that good. The broth was rich and hearty. I really felt like I was having meal vs. just soup. I also loved the spice factor of the spicy miso ball that I added to the broth and honestly, probably could have added another one for even more action.

Along with the soup, our group also sampled each other's various side dishes, which included the rice ball (more triangle actually), spam musubi, the mini gyoza and the grounded chicken bowl. I didn't really find anything that special about the gyoza or the chicken bowl. I found the rice ball moist and I liked how they weren't skimpy with mushrooms and carrots that were mixed with the rice. Being Filipino, I was raised on spam, so I definitely felt at home with the spam musubi. I definitely had a great meal there and am looking forward to a return visit.

The South Bay was certainly putting a lot of miles on my car because our next ramen outing was at Santouka in Torrance. I have to say that of all the ramens I tried in this dining series, the shio ramen that I had at Santouka surprised me the most. When researching the differences between all the different kinds of ramen broths, shio was described as being a clear, almost transparent chicken broth. The shio broth at Santouka was rich, milky looking and reminded me more of Tonkotsu (pork-bone) broth. Of course, when I got home and read through Chowhound postings again, there was a reference from "rameniac" stating that Santouka's shio broth was actually a shio-tonkotsu hybrid, so the Ah-ha came into play at that point.

But not having that reference handy, I worked through my surprise and proceeded to enjoy my shio ramen. While the noodles could have been firmer, the broth was fantastic. What I found interesting is that the hybrid version definitely had a cleaner and smoother taste to it, similar to a more traditional shio broth, but I also appreciated the tonkotsu's contribution of a richer, stockier soup. It was practically the best of both worlds. Along with the soup, I enjoyed both the leek rice and the egg that came with my set. The leeks added a nice hit of "green" flavor to the rice while I actually enjoyed the egg on its own without even adding it to my soup.

Finally, the "Quartet" ends at Daikokuya back in Little Tokyo. Daikokuya's claim to fame is that they only have one kind of broth for their ramen and that's the Tonkotsu broth. With having visited Hakata Ramen earlier in this dining series, I couldn't help but compare their version of Tonkotsu broth to that of Daikokuya. Both broths were rich in porky flavor, hearty and definitely mind-boggingly delicious, but there was a subtle difference between the two.

To my palate, the Hakata ramen was more refined. It's the part of James Bond that is sophisticated, cool under pressure, elegant. You can taste the porkiness of the broth but it wasn't completely in your face. Daikokuya, on the other hand, was that part of James Bond that was rough and tumble, aggressive and took no prisoners. The broth of Daikokuya's ramen was more intense, more meaty and definitely made its presence known, and just like Hakata Ramen, I did more than eat this soup, I lovingly savored it. Do I prefer one over the other? No. I really enjoy both. As mentioned earlier, I'm just a carnivore kind of girl. When choosing one over the other, it would depend on whether I wanted to dine with James in a tux or with him while he was interrogating someone.

Since I ordered a combo, I also had a salad and pork over rice with my ramen. I really liked the dressing that comes with the salad. It's a creamy citrus dressing that is a good balance between a little sweet and a little tart. The pork over rice was a miss. It was mostly just fat when I would have liked more meat.

Overall, this was a wonderful "Quartet." It was really fun exploring the world of ramen and its many differences, whether it's difference in broth or in how different restaurants cook and/or present them to their customers. Growing up on packaged ramen, it was only last year that I experienced real ramen when I first visited Daikokuya, so I'm definitely stoked that I was able to check out other wonderful options. My definite favorites were Daikokuya and Hakata with Santouka close behind and while I may not necessarily go out of my way to visit Koraku for ramen, at least, I know if I did, I won't be too disappointed.

Koraku Restaurant
314 E 2nd St
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 687-4972

To see pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157594367236845/

Hakata Ramen
2015 W. Redondo Beach Blvd., #C
Gardena, CA, 90247
(310) 329-1335
http://www.shinsengumiusa.com/

To see pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157594395156529/

Santouka Ramen
21515 Western Avenue
Torrance, CA, 90501
(310) 212-1101

To see pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157594468325330/

Daikokuya
327 E 1st St
Los Angeles, CA, 90012
(213) 626-1680
http://www.daikoku-ten.com/dk_home.html

To see pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157594468402395/

Small Plates at Chop Suey Cafe

I really wanted to like Chop Suey Cafe in Little Tokyo.

With beautiful neon signage outside and cherry wood enclosures with 1930s-vintage wooden chairs inside, you're brought back to days gone by.

With its detailed restoration, Chop Suey Cafe is truly a gift back to the community - a community that once made the former Far East Cafe the main cultural center pre-World War II.

With rumors of Chop Suey Cafe being a favorite haunt of author, Raymond Chandler, one wonders what ideas he may have come up with for his novels while dining there.

There's a lot to like about Chop Suey Cafe. Unfortunately, I can't say that about their food.

Dining with two friends on a Monday night, only the small plates menu was available so we ordered 6 different dishes. We started off with the shitake potstickers which consisted of a wrapper that was too chewy and a filling that was really dry.

Unfortunately, what came next was worse - curry beef wontons that were over-fried with beef filling that had no flavor, let alone the curry flavor we were expecting.

The "Thai" Scotch eggs which were deep fried eggs with tamarind sauce was an improvement. There was a nice tang to the tamarind sauce, but the egg yolks were a little too dry.

Next came the grilled black cod with miso. One bite was enough for me. It was just too fishy.

The Jakarta hot wings had a nice spike of spicy flavor to the chicken skin but the crisp factor was missing plus the same running theme existed in that the dark meat which should be moist was again dry.

Finally, the light at the end of the tunnel was the "Green Lotus Cake" which is basically a round stack of crab, salmon, tomatoes and avocado. The presentation was very pretty plus the dish offered some much needed moisture to the meal.

It's been awhile since I've been so disappointed in a restaurant and even though I really am thankful that the current owners put so much time, money and effort in bringing this restaurant back to life, the food has to count for something, too. Unfortunately, I won't be making a return visit anytime soon.

To see pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157594441192385/

Chop Suey Cafe
347 East 1st
Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 617-9990
http://www.chopsueycafe.com/

Dinner at Phong Dinh - CLOSED

I've been hearing about Phong Ding off and on for years now, primarily for the "famous baked catfish", but also due to their extensive menu featuring more unusual meats. When I posted a dinner outing to check Phong Ding out, I jokingly mentioned that while I don't necessarily want to eat the entire zoo, I'm open to trying some new things.

Upon being seated and given the menu, we were overwhelmed with all the choices. There were various dishes that featured everything from boar to kangaroo, from ostrich to quail, from snake to frog legs and so much more. It was amazing that we were even able to settle on the 10 dishes we finally ended up ordering.

Of course, I had already called and pre-ordered the baked catfish and wow, what a feast that was. We could have easily just had the catfish for dinner without anything else. First, came out all the fixin's which included all sorts of veggies as well as vermicelli noodles and the wrapper. Soon after, the catfish arrived in all its glory and in what seemed like moments, was stripped clean.

The fish was delicate, moist and tender and I really enjoyed the group's interactive eating. There's just something about eating with your fingers and hands that seems so liberating.

We were all getting kind of full with the catfish, but there were still 9 dishes to go. Of the other 9 dishes, two really stood out for me.

First, there was the charbroiled goat spare ribs glazed with spicy bean curd marinade. I've never had goat spare ribs before and my thought that the ribs probably wouldn't have much meat to it, but surprisingly, the ribs weren't as lean as I thought they would be.

The marinade for this dish was amazing. There was a little bit of heat, but it was a sweet heat. It also had a subtle smoky flavor to it that made it even more appealing. Other than the catfish, this was one of my favorite dishes.

Second, there were the quail eggs wrapped in shrimp paste and battered with crispy sweet rice flakes and served with ginger plum sauce. Once you get over the surprise of seeing green eggs appear before you, this is a really tasty dish.

Quail eggs to me, generally have a gamier taste to them than regular chicken eggs, but the combo of the strongly flavored shrimp paste and sweet rice really cut a lot of that gamey flavor out and just left an egg with really interesting flavor profile.

Another dish that I liked included the kangaroo sauteed with black and pepper and prepared flambe style with wine. This was my first time having kangaroo and it reminded me of goat or lamb just because it had a strong taste to it. I would have preferred less wine but overall, I thought the meat was tender and cooked well.

Overall, we didn't stray too much into the real exotic meats, except maybe for the Kangaroo, but still this was an enjoyable meal and I know that if I ever want to host more of a "Fear Factor" kind of dinner, Phong Ding is the place to go.

To see pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157594429181266/

Phong Dinh
2643 N. San Gabriel Boulevard
Rosemead, CA 91770
626-307-8868

Mon Land Hot Pot City

Having enjoyed Shabu-Shabu in the past, I was really looking forward to checking out the Chinese hot pot version and for my first experience, I visited Mon Land Hot Pot City in San Gabriel with "Bon Vivant" and other members of our dining group.

Upon being seated, we were asked for our soup preference: mild, hot or both. We opted for both and what came out was this silver yin and yan bowl with one half having what they referred to as the "red" soup and the other half having the milder soup.

Both soups had an abundance of herbs, roots, peppers, gingers and green onions that were used for the broth flavoring. Both soups were great for different reasons. The "red" soup had the spicy factor and a lot of flavor. It could have been a bit hotter, but compared to the use of just plain water for shabu shabu, it was a much welcomed change. The milder soup was richer, had a surprising curry flavor to it and also had some unexpected heat.

The food we dipped in our soup ranged from lamb and pork to tofu, shrimp balls, daikon radishes and these really cool noodle bundles. The noodles were wrapped up in a nice little package. I was expecting them to fall apart after cooking but they stayed amazingly intact and I really enjoyed how the soup got caught in all its nooks and crannies.

We had 5 different sides with our soup, but what stood out for me was the lamb pancake and the lamb dumplings. The lamb pancake was golden brown and crispy and the meat inside was moist and I liked how the green onions added additional flavor. The lamb dumplings were amazing. You take one bite and get this delicious rush of broth into your mouth. Now those were juicy dumplings.

Overall, my first Chinese hot pot was a smashing success. We came out of Mon Land, feeling all warm inside from the delicious meal. I would definitely make a return trip and am looking forward to checking out Little Sheep next year to see how it compares.

To see pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157594429439793/

Mon Land Hot Pot City
251 W. Bencamp Street
San Gabriel, CA 91776
(626) 289-4889

Ebisu Japanese Tavern

Last November, after having gone on the LA Conservancy Little Tokyo Walking Tour, a few of us decided to check out Ebisu Japanese Tavern for lunch. It's an interesting space with what looks like a boat in the middle of the restaurant where people can sit around.

As for the food, I have to say that I wasn't very inspired by the lunch menu in front of me. For some reason, nothing looked that interesting. Of course, I was also fighting a bad cold at the time so that could have contributed to my lack of interest in food, but I went ahead and ordered anyway.

I ended up getting a combo plate which included a salad to start followed by deep fried creamed corn croquettes and shrimp "egg rolls." The shrimp egg rolls were wrapped in a wrapper that was different than what I'm used to and of course, I'm completely blanking on that what was.

I liked the salad. The dressing had a creamy citrusy flavor that I enjoyed tremendously. As for the croquettes and the shrimp egg rolls, there was really nothing special about them and are something I'd never order again, if I ever returned to Ebisu.

Those seated closest to me ordered sukiyaki, Japanese peppers with some kind of fish flakes and soba noodles. The peppers got raves, but the sukiyaki and the soba noodles apparently were nothing to write home about.

Overall, with all the other choices in Little Tokyo, I don't plan on returning to Ebisu anytime soon. There was just nothing there that appealed to me that much.

To see pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157594427386972/

Ebisu Japanese Tavern
356 E. Second Street
Los Angeles, CA
213-613-1644
http://www.ebisu-la.com/

Dinner at Penang Malaysian Cuisine

With the imminent closing of Kuala Lumpur, I started looking for other Malaysian restaurant options and came upon Penang, which is in the Hong Kong Plaza in West Covina. Since it was only my Mom and I for dinner, we only ordered 6 dishes to share: an appetizer, 4 main dishes and a dessert.

It was a very interesting meal such that I either really liked a particular dish a lot or I didn't.

Likes: 1) Iced Barley Tea - I liked this drink a lot. It was very refreshing and I liked having the barley to chew on. Usually the only time I find barley in soup, so this drink was really interesting.

2) BBQ Roasted Pork Lo Mee Soup (Special egg noodles with BBQ roasted pork and vegetables in a chicken broth)

**This was a great soup. The noodles were firm. The pork meat was delicious and the chicken broth was just perfect. Definitely a great soup for winter weather.

3) Lady Finger Belacan (Sauteed okra with spicy Malaysian shrimp paste sauce)

**Normally, I'm not much of an okra fan because I find the insides too gooey, but that gooey factor was missing in this dish. The okra was fried well, firm and still had a"bite" to it and I loved the pungency of the shrimp paste that the okra was cooked in.

4) Mango Pudding and Ice Cream - I enjoyed both the pudding and the ice cream and especially since both had significant chunks of mango.

Dislikes:

1) Roti Canai (Malaysian crispy Indian-style pancake served with curry chicken as a dipping sauce) - While the menu description says crispy, this roti was actually bready and chewy and all in all, not that great.

2) Mango Chicken - Sauce was just too overwhelmingly sweet for my taste.

3) Volcano Spareribs (Spareribs that were cooked with some kind of sweet honey bbq glaze??)

** The meat was tender, but the sauce was just too sweet, similar to the Mango Chicken, so a couple was morethan enough for me to consume. It was just an instance where the dish looked much tastier than it was.

I'd say that I had an almost 50% success rate when it came to choosing the right things. :) If those 4 items I had ended up liking a lot were just okay, I probably wouldn't make a return trip, but I enjoyed them so much that I'm interested in sampling other Penang dishes. With the menu being quite extensive, the odds are hopefully in my favor that I'd choose wiser the second time around and would just make sure to steer clear from "sweeter" dishes.

To see pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157594427362966/

Penang Malaysian Cuisine (in Hong Kong Plaza)
987 S Glendora Ave
West Covina, CA 91790
(626) 338-6138