[Food Review] A Wah's

Remember the time when Lils and I walked circles in search for a hole in a wall? It's about time we gave that place a real visit.

Like any day, my friend and I are willing to go all out on food. But we had errands to run as the Luna New Year was coming up. There was stuff that needed to be bought and things that needed to be done. But all of this cannot be accomplished on an empty stomach. In Chinatown where everything looks tempting to an empty stomach, rash decisions are easily made. Luckily this time, we locked on to an inexpensive target, A Wah's.

This literal hole in the wall restaurant specializes in bo zai fan, the rice casserole as the menu likes to call it. It is rice cooked in a clay pot and simmered with toppings of your own choice. There is a vegetarian choice for those who are unable to consume meat, but I suggest that you don't waste your time. A bo zai fan with no meat is something sad and disappointing.

We entered this small restaurant. Can it be called a restaurant even? A Wah's operates on very limited space and is really a place for the needy stomach. The lighting is dark and it feels dated. Our two empty seats across from here were placed with the chef's coats. Of course, they had asked whether they could set their coats there beforehand and we didn't really mind. But it did make me question the conditions the employees worked in. Everything was laid out for the customer to see, the cashier, the kitchen, the eating space. Service was quick and prompt. It may have been a dingy spot, but it didn't have rowdy staff.

I straight up ordered the lamb and bean curd bo zai fan while Lils got the Chinese charcuterie bo zai fan with an extra salted egg. Mine costed $10.95. Not too bad if you ask me. The "soup" we were served was barely soup. Like my friend had recalled, it was "pepper water". In it was carrots and cabbage cooked way too long in a bland tasting liquid. I took two spoonfuls and withdrew. It was something laced with MSG. When the piping hot bo zai fan came, the real show began.

The sizzling pot of rice drew a tantalizing aroma. Lamb is one of my favorite meats and restaurant-style lamb is the best way to enjoy it. The heat nearly scalded my tongue, but my gluttony would take full control. Bean curd is commonly paired with lamb and braised together in sauce as it soaks up flavor very well like a sponge. The rice I tasted was the plain white rice that was cooked beforehand and then added into the pot. If it was cooked in the clay pot, I would have died from starvation by then.

At the very bottom of the pot where the rice adheres to, I scooped it up with my spoon. There it was, a crispy layer of cooked rice. Something that a rice cooker or a deep fryer couldn't achieve. It may have been crunchy, but it wasn't greasy.  Since there was an abundance of rice than meat, I had to finish it off with some soy sauce. A Wah's uses a dark soy blend. I can live off of just soy sauce and rice, the poor man's meal.

Fo $10.95, it wasn't bad, but I think they can be a bit more generous with the meat or even the bean curd. Would I come back here? Only if I was desperate for some food to fill my stomach. Otherwise I can take my business to an even better place even if I had to pay a bit more.