The Floating Birthday

The Mysterious Chinese Woman has two birthdays every year. Here official United States birthday which is February 1st, and her real Chinese birthday, because she was born in China. Of course that one is based on the lunar calendar and, much like Passover and Easter, is never the same date two years in a row. I rely on the Mysterious Chinese Mother-In-Law to keep me posted on this one.

This year the Mysterious Mother-In-Law decided not to rely on me taking the Mysterious Chinese Woman out for a birthday lunch, she decided to treat. However the Mysterious Chinese Woman got to pick the restaurant.

I am not sure this was the one she really had in mind. I think this was one side of the restaurant next door but has now been partitioned off and opened as a separate entity. It is right on Pell Street where it ends at a candy store, kind of.

ABC Restaurant


I am not sure what the name would be in Chinese, but I sincerely doubt it would be ABC.

The Mysterious Chinese Mother-In-Law did the ordering, so we had plenty to eat. She wanted to get an appetizer too, but the waiter told her we already had more than we could eat. And, we did.

We started out with a chopped up duck with a very nicely crisped skin and quite flavorful. They served a little bowl of flavored salt on the side to sprinkle on it, but that wasn't really necessary.

Crispy Duck


We then had a nicely flavored chicken with vegetables.

Chicken And Greens


Noodles are always a must because they are indicative of a long life. You aren't supposed to cut them before eating them, but it is okay to bite of whatever dangles out of your mouth.

Long Live The Noodle


And lobster is always a must. We got two and the waiter stopped by our table on the way to the kitchen to show us our two. The Mysterious Chinese Mother-In-Law was quite distressed when I gave them names.

Fluffy And Mitten


Fluffy and Mitten came from Canada. The waiter went to some great length to tell us how the lobsters from Canada are much sweeter and tenderer than those you now get from Maine. He may be right, these were very good indeed, and at $28 for two the price was right as well.

I was hoping to get a better picture of the restaurant, but this UPS truck was rudely parked on the sidewalk and blocking the view, and pedestrian traffic as well.

Sorry About The Picture


As I was walking away I was pleased to see that the driver's crime did not go unpunished. The policeman did, indeed, ticket the miscreant.


That Will Teach You


Our lunch was very good. Old-fashioned home-style Chinese cooking. The waiter was very pleasant as well and chatted with both the birthday girl and her mother. He grunted pleasantly in my direction as well. I would certainly be inclined to go here again, and it is an interesting alternative to some of the other, better known, restaurants in Chinatown. Try it, you might be pleasantly surprised.

I am heading to Quebec on Friday for a couple of weeks to take in an International Fireworks Competition. I will probably take my laptop with me to post while I am there, but it is unlikely that you will see anything new here until Saturday or Sunday.