Takeout from Eastern Dynasty (Revisit)

A few months back "FOY" KennethB sent me a couple of emails regarding recent experiences at Eastern Dynasty so I was intrigued. But of course based on our previous visits, it was going to be a challenge talking the Missus into going there. In the end, we decided to do another takeout visit.

I got there just after opening and there was only one table occupied. 

I placed my order and went for a walk. Upon returning, my order was ready and the place was starting to fill up.

I ordered what I considered to be the best item I had on previous visits and the Missus was craving Her "salted fish" dishes.

First off, we got the Eggplant with Salted Fish and Pork. The eggplant was wonderfully cooked, so creamy. But overall, the dish was worse than on the last visit; it lacked salted fish and hardly had any pork.

It also looked totally different from what we'd had before.

During my previous visits, I was specifically told not to order the Salted Fish and Chicken with Eggplant, and favorite of the Missus's at Noble Chef. This dish was the complete opposite of the Eggplant with Salted Fish. It had way too much salted fish...it was very salty.

It was so funky and fishy, the Missus could barely finish a bite. Add to that the saltiness and well..... It was left up to me to try and finish this up. It took a couple of days. I recall making double sure that I sealed the storage container tightly because I didn't want any of the noxious fumes permeating in the fridge. Heating this up in the microwave was also an interesting endeavor.

I had thought that even though we hadn't enjoyed the flavoring; or lack thereof of the Pork Maw with Preserved Vegetable, the Pork Maw was stir fried nicely. So, I decided to order the Pork Maw and Green Peas with XO Sauce.

Like the previous dishes; the stir fry/cooking technique was decent. The green peas had a good snap to them; though no wok hay. The pork maw had a pleasant chewiness with a good, mild, intestine-ish flavor. However, the savory-salty-aromatic-mild spice of XO sauce was missing. In fact, this dish could have used more saltiness. I guess you could say the XO was MIA?

We also got some Roast Duck and Kwai Fei Chicken.

 I gotta say, that Kwai Fei Chicken was the best I've had in a while. Moist, tender meat, decently seasoned. The sauce, while still high in the oil to ginger, was much better than last time. Really good. Alas, the Missus is not a big fan of Kwai Fei Ji. 

As for the Roast Duck?

Man, this really lacked any anise flavor and was quite bland. The skin was hard, not crisp, though the fat was rendered out, but the flesh was dry and really tough. I tried my toaster oven "hack", to no avail.

Kind of a bummer. I'm thinking I'll have to dine in to enjoy a meal at Eastern Dynasty. I'll probably try to talk Calvin or someone else to join me.

Eastern Dynasty
4690 Convoy St. #109
San Diego, CA 92111

Thanks for the heads-up Kenneth!

Comments

[Som Tommy]

Bummer

[Kenneth]

Thanks for checking it out. The chicken was our favorite dish also. Don't think we'll bother with any return visits. I did notice that they are gradually making progress in rebuilding China Max so maybe in a couple more years....

[Kirk]

Well, one should always try ST!

Thanks for thinking of us Kenneth! We really appreciate that!

[kat]

:(

[Kirk]

Yes, a bit disappointing Kat!

[Soo]

I'll have to try the chicken next time I visit.

[Kirk]

Hope you enjoy it Soo!