Wednesday, July 20, 2011

CONCLUSION

"Focus on the journey, not the destination. Joy is found not in finishing an activity but in doing it." - Greg Anderson

The climax of Chopstick Chowdown Challenge was more of an anti-climax. We turned up ready for the last restaurant only to realise we had already been to the last restaurant. So we went back for a third helping of chilli fish.

Now when I walk back along Victoria St, I see new restaurants have sprung up. Others have disappeared. But this is the kaleidoscopic nature of this vibrant strip which we have had the pleasure to thoroughly sample.

It only took about 16 months but we did it! We completed the challenge of eating at every Asian restaurant on Victoria St between Church and Hoddle Streets. And what an epic experience it was. We delighted our palates, we tried foods we never thought we'd try, we made some wonderful discoveries. My mouth waters again as I go through the blog and am reminded of our culinary experiences. It has also been a portrait of friendships (some transient, some enduring), social experiences and the banter that comes with a group of people sharing a meal. People may come and go but true friendships and good food remain!

However, for those who like their conclusions less philosophical and more mathematical, here are the stats.

THE STATISTICS


Participants: 29
Restaurants: 36
Dishes eaten: 196
Number of bowls of pho consumed: 19

BEST RESTAURANT

I performed two types of statistical analysis on the ratings I had from participants for each restaurants:
i) the mean of the top 3 rated dishes
ii) the mean of all the dishes minus the top and bottom ranked.

In both cases, the top ranking resturant came out the same. Drumroll please...

#1 YU XIANG LAPOPO


It seems we just couldn't get enough of that chilli fish. But Victoria St is known for its Vietnamese restaraunts, right? The runner up (or best Vietnamese restaurant) according to the first analysis was...

#2 (i) THANH HA

And according to the second analysis

#2 (ii) THANH THANH

The bronze medal winner was the same...

#3 QUAN 88

Other restaurants making up the top 10 were...

Ying Thai
Vinh Vinh
Tom Toon Noodle House
Binh Minh
Oriental Spirit
Saigon Rose
Thy Thy


Although I have allocated winners, it is only according to the results of this little experiment where ranking were often very close and scores affected by variables (such as who attended, how generous they were with their ratings, personal tastes, experiences on the day, etc). At the end of the day it is a matter of personal preference but hopefully I have managed to capture a sample of the best picks on Victoria St.

BEST DISHES

Overall the dishes which scored the highest (the mean participant rating on the night) over the course of the challenge were:

#1 Vietnamese Salad - Vi'em Cafe (9.1/10)
#2 Pad Kee Mao - Tom Toon Noodle House (9/10)
Chilli Fish Bowl - YuXiang Lapopo (9/10)
Coconut Beef - Quan 88 (9/10)
#3 Peking Duck - Binh Minh (8.9/10)


At the start of this challenge I promised to find you the best pho and a list of other dishes. Here are the results.

Best Pho
#1 Thy Thy
#2 Thanh Ma

Best Ricepaper Rolls

# 1 Tran Tran
#2 Vinh Vinh

Best Spring Rolls

#1 Binh Minh
#1 Thanh Ha
(Special mention for Quan 88's duck spring roll special)

Best Peking Duck
#1 Binh Minh
#2 Pacific BBQ House

Best Green Curry
Tom Toon

Best Satay Skewers
Oriental Spirit

Personally there are some dishes that stand out in my mind, that I continued thinking about for days after. So here are my special mentions:
  • Soft shell crab - Thanh Thanh
  • Peking duck - Pacific BBQ House
  • BBQ pork with Chinese broccoli - I Spicy
  • Whole fish with spicy sour sauce - Ying Thai
  • Szechaun mud crab - Xiao Ting Box
  • Chilli fish - YuXiang Lapopo

Thanks again everyone who participated, especially Steph (for saying "let's do this" and putting in the most ChChCh appearances) and Craig (for being our most enthusiastic and consistent participant once recruited from England).

There is a gap on Sunday nights now - a time when you want to savour the last moments of the weekend and not think about the impending working week. Maybe we can begin a new challenge...the mission to find the best Indian food in Melbourne...Curry Chowdown Challenge?!?

Thursday, February 10, 2011

#36 YuXiang Lapopo (395-397 Victoria St)

Attendees: Beata, Steph, Craig

The twists and turns of the Chopstick Chowdown Challenge continue. Just as we thought we had reached the last restaurant, it seems a new one has popped up. The rules of the challenge state that we will eat at every restaurant we pass going forward (without back-tracking to new restaurants). So in we go to Lapopo.

Steph thinks she saw a 50% special here a few weeks ago. I didn’t even notice the restaurant until we saw people standing outside when we were leaving Vinh Vinh at the last instalment. It certainly looks brand spanking new. Spacious, white, shiny surfaces – it reminds Craig of a car showroom. The décor is minimalist and seems carefully designed. White dragon statutes at the door, a golden ornament here, a wall of wooden boxes there. This place has class.

The staff have walkie talkies and ear pieces and are apologising that it is Christmas season and the place is a bit hectic.

Craig said earlier in the day that he feels like chilli. Luckily the signature dish seems to be a massive bowl of chillis. Our motto: when in doubt get what everyone around you is ordering. We ask the waitress and she says it is fish in chilli.

During our culinary odyssey there have been some dishes that I keep tasting and thinking about long after we have left the restaurant. This is one of those! We feel like we are fishing as we rescue delicious little morsels out of a volcano of chillis. My first impression is that it is not that hot (as long as you avoid munching down on the chillis and szechaun pepper seeds). But the dish seems to get hotter, as though the infusion of chillis is accumulative. It is lip tingling good. Crunching down on a peppercorn releases an aniseed flavour and gets the saliva flowing. I enjoy this szechaun speciality immensely.

We love our xiao long bao, so take any opportunity to order it. Lapopo's are very good - delicate skins and a filling bursting with hot, flavoursome soup.

We also order salt and pepper prawns from a specials menu. The batter on the prawns is so light it reminds me of Japanese tempura and doesn't have any oily, deep-fried feeling to it. The seasoning is delicate yet tasty. Another lovely dish!

This new restaurant cannot be faulted in the dishes we try and leaves us with mouth-watering memories of a giant bowl of chillis and fish. We will definitely be back again.


Ratings
Szechaun chilli fish 9/10
Salt and pepper prawns 8.6/10
Xiao long bao 8/10


Addendum


We return to Lapopo soon after to give Annabel a dose of chilli fish. They seem to have refined their service (or perhaps for the benefit of our Anglo tastebuds) taking the time to scoop out the chillis and peppers from the bowl after serving. It shows just how many chillis go into this dish as we are left with moutain of chillis in a bowl and a slotted spoon to continue the task if needs be. Despite the removal of the chillis, the dish seems hotter than last time. We persist with sweaty brows, tearful eyes and runny noses. It makes you feel alive and is still delicious.


Waiting for our dishes a young man dining by himself at the table next to us starts up a conversation. He tells us there is a deal going on where if you order the chilli fish, you can get chilli prawns for only $1.99. It is advertised in Chinese at the door. Craig, never one to forgo a good deal, orders the prawns (even though the chilli fish in itself is enough to feed us).
The prawns come out (you guessed it!) covered in chilli and, in an inspired move, on a bed of chips. It is the size of a main and an incredible deal for $1.99! The prawns are complete with heads and shells, which makes it a bit fiddly (don't accidentally rub your eyes!) but still absorb the wonderful chilli flavours (more watery eyes). I love the chips which soak up the chilli oil and are a great accompaniment to the prawns.

And just in case you haven't had enough chilli, the kind people at Lapopo give you a container of chilli oil to take with you!


Thumbs up again for Lapopo and a special thanks to our friend at the table next-door for altering us to their special offer.