Hop Kee Restaurant

Being Anthony Bourdain fans and knowing his down to earth love of all things food, we had to try one of his top five restaurants in New York, Hop-Kee. It’s located in a basement, and efficiently run by a crew of elderly Chinese gentleman. For years we have hungered for the Chinese food of our youth, as it disappeared under the wave of Kung pao this and Szechuan that. Well, it’s been here all along, carefully preserved by this wonderful Taiwanese restaurant! Taking his cues, we ordered from the dishes Anthony specifically mentioned. After all, we couldn’t disappoint him, because he was looking down on us from the 30 or 40 photos of his visits there.  Wonton egg drop soup to start, which was absolutely amazing with a semi gelatinous broth, bits of yummy veg, and a surprising amount of wontons. We followed this with egg rolls, which were the size of a small burritos and stuffed with pork, tiny shrimp,  cabbage, and yummy goodness that is imported from some mythical location, and probably kept in a safe in the back of the walk-in. For our main dish,  it was the sweet and pungent pork (in the 60s and 70s in California would’ve called it sweet and sour pork.) What a delight! The pork was tender and breaded then fried to perfection then slathered with that tangy sauce. Bits of pineapple and pickle slices added just the right amount of bite to the mix. Stunningly delicious!  The portion was so generous that we took leftovers with us, and had it for breakfast the next day. As our waiter brought us yet another pot of free tea, I shared with him that I felt like I was sitting in Pasadena with my grandmother and parents in 1969. It delighted him to no end 🙂 If you’re in New York and like old-school Chinese food, you absolutely have to go to this place.  It is a cash only place, our dinner with tip, was under $50.

Decent Cantonese fare at this Chinatown institution that’s been on my list for a while. I started with a bowl of their wonton soup which was average but things improved from there with a nice salt and pepper squid and their Singapore fried noodles, which was a regular on my lunchtime rotation in Hong Kong. Not the best I’ve had but about as good as any decent spot in Hong Kong.

Growing up in New York after the clubs . Hop Kee was the spot. Food is still amazing.. still only takes cash... But they close at 9pm. My regular go to menu.. salt and pepper pork chops, beef in oyster sauce over pan fried noodles, young chow fried rice. This time I added the salt and pepper squid...but If you're feeling adventurous I recommend the snails soo good.