Red Pepper attendees ... help me remember details!

[Robin Garr]

As I just told Bill V in the original thread, I need to write up a summary of the Red Pepper dinner by tomorrow for next week's LEO, and I've been so busy that I haven't started yet. I need some help!

Anyone who'd care to chime in with specific recollections about any or all of the dishes served and the overall event, please chime in with details!

OK.......hmmmmmmm

What do you get when you have 31 hungry, eager foodies sitting around 3 huge tables being served a meal fit for a King?

The cold plates were just the gentle teasers we needed. The spicy beef was just spicy enough to clear the way for the slighly sweet chicken dish.

The Lobster wasn't exactly what I had in mind, however, it was very taste. (I had presumed Lobster on the Half, butterflied).

The scollops were a bit bland, and the "fish stomach", well, it was different. (I'll try anything once, twice if I like it).

I'm sure I will think of more as I progress on the day.......I'll post 'em as I think of them

[Robin Garr]

Thanks, Bill! Keep 'em coming!

Anyone else?

My best shot:

Cold apps: Orange/ sesame beef, unique chicken, light pickled cucumber, 2 fried pork intestine. That beef was phenomenal, especially when they sent out the extra order for our joiners!

Lobster in white sauce- everyone had quite the time with their chopstick skills on that one

Fish stomach and scallop- I liked it, but was looking for just a bit more flavor intensity in the sauce.

Crispy fish with maple syrup sauce- My favorite, hailing back to my younger years. It's on the menu. She told me it was called sweet and sour fish.

Dried shrimp with bok choy- similar to the sauce on the fish stomach. Again, looking for more intensity. Good though!

Roast duck with hoisin- My lord that was SOOO good. Probably a tie for best dish IMO. Western chefs need to take notes.

5 spice beef- with the star anise and that spice we couldn't figure out. I've been thinking it may come from a tree, as it resembles dorian seeds. Unthickened sauce that, when added to rice, sang a chorus!

The beef that resembled pepper steak- Good, but with all the other great selections, it fell into the middle of the pack.

Oh, the soup- I believe it is called 2 fried pork soup. Ethan and I had it on a previous occasion.

The fruit finale

That's all I got! I'll edit this post if any others occur to me... I might have to go get some of that duck tonight. MAN that was good!

OH MAN.....Thanks Stephen for reminding me about the Duck.......it was INCREDABLE.......very tender, flavorful, and I pigged on it......

OK - it has been a few days but wasn't there a lamb dish (with a touch of cinnamon)? I only got a tiny taste because I was so full at that point I was afraid to take too much and then the plate was licked clean (metaphorically as far as I know)

[Robin Garr]

OK - it has been a few days but wasn't there a lamb dish (with a touch of cinnamon)? I only got a tiny taste because I was so full at that point I was afraid to take too much and then the plate was licked clean (metaphorically as far as I know)

There was indeed! Ginger lamb - the heavy presence of ginger really made it a standout for me. It was way down at the end of the evening when things started to run together.

OK - it has been a few days but wasn't there a lamb dish (with a touch of cinnamon)? I only got a tiny taste because I was so full at that point I was afraid to take too much and then the plate was licked clean (metaphorically as far as I know)

There was indeed! Ginger lamb - the heavy presence of ginger really made it a standout for me. It was way down at the end of the evening when things started to run together.

That's right! I mistook that dish for beef at the dinner and did it again above! (the pepper beef)

Again, about the duck. I've been eating it for years and I have to say Red Pepper's is better than Oriental House and Jade Palace respectively...

I wish I had paid more attention to the food. That was the point after all. I was just enjoying the company and beer too much, I guess.

I will say the fried fish dish that had a molasses flavor was good. The citrus beef and the duck were amazing. The pork stomach/ intestine?, cold dish was better than I though it would be too.

I'm glad I tried everything traditional but I can't wait to go back and try the Americanized stuff too. I think that is more my style

The staff were great and very accomodating. I also felt a jealous stare or two from the regular customers who whitnessed all the dishes flying out.

I think Stephen nailed it.

Thanks again.

Highlights were the Unique Chicken Smell: It remains very good no matter how many times I have had it. My favorites were the first beef dish with garlic and the Sichuan Green Beans. My bride and son enjoyed the fried fish with hints of ginger, garlic, citrus (tamarind note?). Least favorite was the Krill with Fish Stomach. The lobster was good but had a gelatinous coating. All in all mainly excellent dishes served with obvious pride.

Robin (or anyone else) -

We're thinking of having a banquet there, and I was wondering how much your dinner (which we were unfortunately out of town for) was? I realize that we'll be having a different number of people, and will not be ordering the same number of dishes, but a ballpark number would help us to decide whether to continue there or try elsewhere.

Thanks

My best shot:

5 spice beef- with the star anise and that spice we couldn't figure out. I've been thinking it may come from a tree, as it resembles dorian seeds. Unthickened sauce that, when added to rice, sang a chorus!

I think I figureds out that the unknown spice is a giant black cardamom seed. I searched all my references and the internet and that is the best I could come up with. I tried the one I spirited home with me and I can see the similarity to cardomom.

The duck rocked. I took some home and turned it into a salad with toasted pistachios and a pomogranite molasses vinaigette. I'm droolong just writing about it.

Somewhere in there was a chicken dish the lady was a little sketchy about, but referred to as "Chinese chicken."

[Robin Garr]

Andrew, sure! The way Yuan Hua explained it to us, these special banquets are a matter of you set the price, and Chef builds a menu around it. She said a medical organization had really done a nice banquet for $25 a person, so we said, "Hey, give us something even more impressive for $30."

So, that was the agreement, $30 a person, and of course that is not including alcoholic drinks (but tea is included), tax and tip. The way it worked out, we split the check 31 ways, added a good tip and actually paid $45 a head on a $30 dinner price.

As you can see from the discussion, that's a pretty good price for a sumptuous Sichuan banquet prepared by an expert chef.

Robin (or anyone else) -

We're thinking of having a banquet there, and I was wondering how much your dinner (which we were unfortunately out of town for) was? I realize that we'll be having a different number of people, and will not be ordering the same number of dishes, but a ballpark number would help us to decide whether to continue there or try elsewhere.

Thanks

So, that was the agreement, $30 a person, and of course that is not including alcoholic drinks (but tea is included), tax and tip. The way it worked out, we split the check 31 ways, added a good tip and actually paid $45 a head on a $30 dinner price.

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Thanks Robin! With the lobster et al, I wasn't sure what the base price would be!