Locomotoring

Even though this one is situated in the heart of Chinatown, this is not your average Chinese restaurant. You definitely can’t go by the yelp averages. Think of it as anti-thesis Chinese takeout – there is nothing fast, cheap or expected about Jai Yun. So be prepared to love it or hate it.

For us, the occasion was my 40th Birthday. What better day to treat oneself to something out of the ordinary.  We walked in early that evening to a familiar restaurant. No, it was our first at Jai Yun but their current location is where another unusually good restaurant used to be – The Flying Pan. We ate our way through an upwards of 20 dishes, all distinctly different in textures and flavors. Our server described each dish in detail without which it would have been very difficult to tell what we were eating. Pacing was superb. If I had to pick a single star item, it would be pig ear scented with five spice mix but all the dishes could be described somewhere between competent to superb. Even though each dish was quite light in itself, after the 15th or 16th dish we did get a bit tired of eating.

All in all, definitely something worth doing once – like celebrating a 40th.

Crunchy vegetables with Goji berries	Napa Cabbage
Pickled cucumber	Vegetarian goose made from soy protein
Chinese greens	Lotus roots
Tofu with coriander	Mushrooms with shark fin
Pig tongue	Abalone with egg white
Fried wheat gluten with mushrooms, peppers, and chinese lily flower	Fried Enoki mushrooms with basil
Tofu skin with edamame	Mung bean glass noodles with Chinese bacon and green onions
Sea bass with peas and corn	Pig ear scented with five spice
Loofah squash, woodear mushrooms, and gingko nut	Chicken with szechuan pepper
Slow braised beef	Chinese celery greens, onion, tofu, and pepper
Whole fried fish in Chef’s special spicy sauce	Fried eggplant with Szechuan pepper and sugar