It's been a few months since we last ate at Peking Garden, but I had to write a post on this restaurant because I keep forgetting to and this restaurant should NOT be forgotten!
This is a beautiful restaurant inside, with many vegetarian options on the menu. They also have a sister restaurant in Downtown Raleigh called Cody's, which we have not tried.
By far the best dish we've tried at Peking Garden is the Tender Crispy Tofu. It's fried, but not overly greasy or heavy. All the food at Peking Garden is fresh and light like this.
They also have vegetable egg rolls, spring rolls and dumplings.
Defintely worht a vist if you haven't tried it already! There's even a movie theater in the same shopping center if you want to make it a "date night".
This is another restaurant that we wish was closer to Cary - definitely worth repeat visits.
http://www.pekinggardenraleigh.com/
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
Shanghai - Chinese - Durham, NC
Due to the unfortunate closing of Mama Wok in Cary, we have begun yet another search for a truly good Chinese restaurant. Shanghai is out of the way for takeout if you live in Cary, but if you are in the Durham area it is definitely worth the trip.
I have to admit I had low expectations since every other Chinese place we've tried with high hopes turned out to be disappointing or just average.
Shanghai is a real, sit-down Chinese restaurant, the kind that gives you hot tea free (not common in NC in my experience). It's very close to the Chinese restaurants I remember from the MD/DC area and not just a hole in the wall with pictures of food on the wall behind the register with 2 tables to sit at if you decide to eat there.
We only tried 2 dishes - the Szechuan Tofu and the Curry Tofu, but both were very good. We also had the vegetable egg rolls (not spring rolls, egg rolls - it's so hard to find veggie ones in restaurants so I was excited) and the vegetable dumplings. The dumplings were the only in NC that I've tried so far that were anywhere close to the ones I had in the DC area. The dough is fresh and you can tell the dumplings do not come frozen from a bag. Again, I was very excited.
We will definitely be back to Shanghai restaurant to try more vegetarian dishes. They have a good selection on the menu, and even some included in the daily specials.
They even have lettuce wraps with a tofu option, so now there is another option besides PF Chang's if you want to try it somewhere else.
I only wish they were closer to Cary so that they could become our new takeout place, because I know they would.
http://shanghai.ypguides.net/page/o4ce/Select_Vegetable_Tofu_Dishes.html
I have to admit I had low expectations since every other Chinese place we've tried with high hopes turned out to be disappointing or just average.
Shanghai is a real, sit-down Chinese restaurant, the kind that gives you hot tea free (not common in NC in my experience). It's very close to the Chinese restaurants I remember from the MD/DC area and not just a hole in the wall with pictures of food on the wall behind the register with 2 tables to sit at if you decide to eat there.
We only tried 2 dishes - the Szechuan Tofu and the Curry Tofu, but both were very good. We also had the vegetable egg rolls (not spring rolls, egg rolls - it's so hard to find veggie ones in restaurants so I was excited) and the vegetable dumplings. The dumplings were the only in NC that I've tried so far that were anywhere close to the ones I had in the DC area. The dough is fresh and you can tell the dumplings do not come frozen from a bag. Again, I was very excited.
We will definitely be back to Shanghai restaurant to try more vegetarian dishes. They have a good selection on the menu, and even some included in the daily specials.
They even have lettuce wraps with a tofu option, so now there is another option besides PF Chang's if you want to try it somewhere else.
I only wish they were closer to Cary so that they could become our new takeout place, because I know they would.
http://shanghai.ypguides.net/page/o4ce/Select_Vegetable_Tofu_Dishes.html
Monday, December 3, 2007
Eden's Vegetarian - Eclectic - Smithfield, NC
We saw this place on Happy Cow and thought we'd take a Sunday drive to check it out. The owner, Alex, who is originally from St. Lucia, and has been a vegetarian himself for about 30 years, is on a mission to create healty, vegetarian/vegan food that tastes great. Being located in Smithfield, his goals are admirable.
I highly reccomend a drive out to eat at this restaurant. It's not too far from the Triangle, it took us about 45 minutes from Cary. I suggest calling first, as his hours depend on the expected business that day, although he is open at the hours listed at the end of this post. He also does a Thanksgiving dinner for those who'd rather let someone else cook.
The restaurant is in a beautiful Victorian house and Alex and his wife were very friendly. It was a very intimate dining experience, as we were the only guests in there, but it gave us time to talk to Alex and learn more about his cooking and background. Before our meal was over, a large church group showed up - so he does not lack business, but being in Smithfield, I guess it's not the first place to eat on most people's minds.
My husband and I shared plates and tried some of everything. Alex featured 2 meals that day: Curry "chicken" and chickpeas with choice of sides or "BBQ ribs" with choice of sides. Sides were spinach brown rice, beans and rice, sweet potatoes, broccoli and carrots and collards and onions. Each person gets an entree, a rice, a vegetable and salad comes with the meal.
We also tried his vegetable soup as a starter and his homemade foccacia with garlic, sea salt and olives was delicious. He also made his own iced tea which had rosemary in it, which was also very good.
He warned us not to eat too fast or fill up too much on tea and bread and we assured him we wouldn't - but he was right, by the time our meal came we were stuffed halfway through and couldn't finish. I felt bad because he had created such a lovely meal for us and we were't able to take it to go. Next time we'll have to pace ourselves better. The meal was reasonably priced for all that food and wasn't more than around $12-$15 for each of us.
Granted, it's not a trendy nightspot or a place for a quick bite, but for a catered event, lazy Sunday meal with good friends or a romantic dinner, this place is perfect. The fact that this place exists at all, let alone Smithfield, NC is amazing. Please support his efforts to promote vegetarian lifestyle.
Eden's Vegetarian Dining
709 S 3rd St, Smithfield, NC 27577 (at Holt, inside the Dupree House)
919-938-3880
Vegetarian, Vegan-friendly, Organic, International, Catering
Accept credit cards.
Open Tue-Fri lunch 11am-2pm
Sun 11am-7pm
Tue-Thur dinner 5:30-8:30pm by appointment only
http://www.edensvegetarian.com
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