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   Adrianna Tan (skinnylatte@hachyderm.io)'s status on Monday, 03-Mar-2025 00:30:30 JST Adrianna Tan

   There aren’t a ton of Chinese restaurants in the Richmond or Sunset I’d take my parents to other than maybe Riverside. Everything else is kind of too ‘rough’ or not ‘refined’ or to their taste. Like dimsum with really thick wrappers that I don’t love either. Noodles that aren’t quite to their taste (or mine). They’re open to eating other foods but my mom is at the absolute limit (4 weeks away) and wanting comfort food. I’ve also been struggling with this a bit. Other than maybe some spots in Chinatown and Oakland and Fremont, I have to make my own comfort foods.

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     Adrianna Tan (skinnylatte@hachyderm.io)'s status on Monday, 03-Mar-2025 00:32:30 JST Adrianna Tan

     in reply to

     A lot of it comes to the minutiae of I love Cantonese foods but I don’t love Taishan food which is the style around here. Everything is kind of the same as food I love but kind of way too bland. Claypot rice in Malaysia for example is super crusty and salty and flavored but it’s just kind of sad here.

     Anyway, I’m thankful to have the raw ingredients I need to make the kinds of foods that I miss. None of the Singaporean or Malaysian spots other than curry leaves bistro in Pleasanton hit quite right either.

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     Adrianna Tan (skinnylatte@hachyderm.io)'s status on Monday, 03-Mar-2025 00:37:40 JST Adrianna Tan

     in reply to

     To be clear this is already a better situation than lots of places! My original plan was to not leave home, because the food situation is so hard to beat, but since I couldn’t do that I’ve had to become very good at cooking a few different cuisines (Teochew, Hokkien, Thai, Malay, South Indian, Japanese) in order to approximate the stuff I miss

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     Adrianna Tan (skinnylatte@hachyderm.io)'s status on Monday, 03-Mar-2025 00:45:37 JST Adrianna Tan

     in reply to

     This also has to do with my theory that modern Chinese food has nowhere to grow in SF. It is very different in LA / San Gabriel valley which has a burgeoning scene of *all* types of Chinese foods from all over the world with many intersection so I often feel happy to discover new things and I am bound to find a few things that really speak to me. But in SF it’s just a very ossified version of food from one part of Toishan that’s stayed the same way. And maybe that’s good for tradition, but if you don’t like the flavors or style that’s too bad for you. I’m definitely in that camp.

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     Adrianna Tan (skinnylatte@hachyderm.io)'s status on Monday, 03-Mar-2025 02:21:58 JST Adrianna Tan

     in reply to

     • Robot Diver

     @RobotDiver yeah, i think the only places in the 'west' that could rival Vancouver / Richmond is LA / San Gabriel Valley and NY / Queens specifically

     Dol Ho is not very good anymore; I prefer Dim Sum Bistro. Oakland has better (Ming's Tasty). Fremont actually has a ton of immigrant Chinese food that I love but it's a bit of a trek

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     Robot Diver (robotdiver@starlite.rodeo)'s status on Monday, 03-Mar-2025 02:21:59 JST Robot Diver

     in reply to

     @skinnylatte

     I'm a white kid, but I think I was spoiled growing up eating fantastic food in Vancouver/Richmond in Canada. It's really hard to travel anywhere because when I get a jones I know I will be disappointed. Which is part of why i learned to cook as much food from around the world as possible as well. If you can't find it you gotta have skills!
     I've studied a fair bit of Cantonese cooking, but mainly Hong Kong style.
     Edinburgh made me cry when I lived there 25 years ago.

     I think the only meal I had in SF that was fairly solid was at Dol Ho in Chinatown about 12 years ago. I don't know if it's still to the same standard though. I was the only white person there and I definitely drew a lot of attention being a weird white kid ordering dim sum by myself, to the point that an older lady who didn't speak english came to sit with me cuz I think she felt bad that I was getting laughed at, but she wouldn't share my dim sum when I offered.
     It was fairly solid, but it still wasn't as good as what I'm used to. I think i've been spoiled with the good stuff on a multinational level. Van is a weird city and not very livable but damn, the food is next level.

     Mang Kang still made the best daan tat I ever ate though.

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     Adrianna Tan (skinnylatte@hachyderm.io)'s status on Monday, 03-Mar-2025 05:27:28 JST Adrianna Tan

     in reply to

     • James Fairbairn

     @james there’s a place in Petaluma called Fantasia! Otherwise you should def drive to Richmond haha (there’s a place called Mi, homemade fishballs and dry noodles)

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     James Fairbairn (james@mastodon.exitmusic.world)'s status on Monday, 03-Mar-2025 05:27:29 JST James Fairbairn

     in reply to

     @skinnylatte I live in Marin County and yeah. Almost impossible to get anything other than your bog-standard American Chinese food here…

     (There is a good sushi place here in Novato though, which is a blessing, though expensive)