Lately, I’ve
been remiss in writing this blog.
Unfortunately, health issues with the King of the Chinese Buffet (my
dad) have taken priority, but I did want to discuss a few new places. In his honor, let’s talk Asian cuisine.
First, ChineseMirch, with two locations: Route 9 in
Framingham and Mass Ave. in Boston. They
have a unique spin on Chinese cuisine, merging Indian spices and flavors with
the cooking style of Chinese cuisine.
I’ve been there a few times lately, for lunch, and have been really
impressed with their delicious food and presentation. A few weeks back, Mrs. Palate and I enjoyed
dinner at the Framingham location. It
was a big hit.
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| Salt and Pepper Gobi |
We started with Salt and Pepper Gobi, which is cauliflower florets tossed
with ginger, garlic and onion. These
were some serious flavor bombs. IMHO,
cauliflower on its own doesn’t really have any flavor, but fry them up with
ginger, garlic and onion, and it’s a party in your mouth. This was a grand-slam (if I knew anything
about Cricket, there might be a more appropriate reference) and a dish Mrs.
Palate said she would order again.
For main
courses, we settled on Mirch 65, which is chicken spiked with curry leaves and
red hot chiles and Chicken Hot Garlic, which is diced chicken in a crushed
garlic and chili sauce (George likes his chicken spicy!) With a lot of exotic names, and meats, the
menu is varied, with a number of Chinese based specialties and an overlay of Indian
cuisine, all looking, smelling and tasting delicious. I strongly recommend Chinese Mirch, just make
sure you bring your own fire extinguisher…for your mouth!
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| Mirch 65 |
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| Chicken Hot Garlic |
About a year
ago, after the closure of the classy, and aptly-named “Limey’s Pub” at the
location of the former SamPan (a great source of business from my criminal
defense days), in an effort to establish a renaissance of Downtown Framingham,
“Pho Dakao” of Worcester opened their second location. I had heard good things about Pho Dakao…the
Yelp reviews (not that I usually rely on those) are generally positive, but I
had to try it for myself…winter time is a great time for Pho (pronounced “fah”
for the uninitiated, like me).
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| Pho Ga |
My dining
companion, “Critical Lisa” and I met for lunch on a cool January day. We both decided on the pho (noodle soup, for
the uninitiated, like me). I got a large
Pho Ga (chicken) and Critical Lisa got beef meatball pho. The pho is Vietnamese beef broth soup, served
with scallions, onions and cilantro. Accompanied with a plate of bean sprouts,
fresh basil, sliced lime and chili peppers (sliced fresh jalapenos) on the
side. Also, if you’re like me, please
pass the Sriracha, which they gladly did.
Served with chopsticks, a spoon and fork, it really hit the spot. A large was hard to finish, but it was
delicious enough that I forced myself.
Pho Dakao really
is in deep, downtown Framingham, but a really nice addition to the
neighborhood. It’s clear the owners
pumped some money in to redecorating, and it was bright and airy, and very
clean. The staff was friendly and
efficient; it can be hard to go to an ethnic restaurant where the food is
unfamiliar, but the staff was more than happy to describe and explain the
choices, and there were several repeat customers around us more than happy to
share their suggestions.
While I don’t
find myself in downtown Framingham often, with Pho Dakao, and the recent
addition of the Deluxe Depot Diner, there’s finally culinary reasons to venture
down there. You should go too.
