Chinabites

Posted: Jun. 21, 2009

The Bai ethnic restaurant at the end of our street caught my attention when I first moved into the neighborhood. Called “Baizu Fandian“, or the “Bai Ethnic Restaurant” it looked like one of the more interesting restaurants on the block. This evening’s meal there did not disappoint. Their menu is all Chinese with no pictures and contained quite the list of house specialties, including one we ordered, the puffy fried cheese with sweet bean paste stuffing. The real stars of the evening, however, were the two fresh, seasonal vegetables that were off-menu, but displayed by the door.

There were some gorgeous yellow flowers -

which were later stir fried into this surprisingly savory dish

The knockout dish of the evening was the fresh porcini mushrooms, just in season, and ostensibly collected wild from the nearby mountains. Here is what they looked like on the way into the restaurant:

And here they are thinly sliced and stir fried with dried red chilies and garlic. This was by far the best of four dishes that we ordered.

The interior of the restaurant was a little bit run down but the food here is quite original - if you’re feeling adventurous on the eastern side of Green Lake, Bai Zu Fandian might be a good place to check out, particularly in late June / early July.