Noodle Boy

My coworker and I found Noodle Boy when we were planning on eating Shin Sen Gumi on a chilly day but the parking lot was way too full and there was a long wait.

We liked the sound of Noodle Boy and decided to check it out. Even though it is a bit of a hole in the wall, the food is pretty good. It has the feel of the type of specialized food served in Asia under tents in those crowded narrow alleys amidst busy markets, though without the fear of being run over by a motorcycle. The price is very reasonable as well. You get quite a large bowl with a reasonable amount of toppings for under $6. I got the meatball, which is pork; and my coworker got the fishballs.

The staff consists of little old ladies who speak little English. They seem to be more fluent in Cantonese but they speak Mandarin as well. Fortunately I speak Mandarin and it made the ordering process easy than it otherwise would have been. When we sat down, they gave us hot water in plastic cups. The coworker wanted cold or non-hot water; they couldn't understand him so I had to translate. They apologized and brought non-hot water right away.

Our food came fresh and piping hot. The coworker wanted a cup of ice to cool his soup down immediately to make it more palatable for his enjoyment. I asked for a cup of ice and the lady came right away with it.

For the price and what it is- Noodle Boy, I would say it is a pretty decent establishment and would recommend it if you are into noodles. It might be frustrating if you can't speak Chinese, but one can always point and order Tarzan style with simple sign language.

Hsin Hsin Shau May

This is the one at the food court next to 99 Ranch.

I am amazed at how empty that food court got. Only half of the shops are doing business there.

Well, that night, it was buy 3 and get the 4th free with rice and soup. I chose the lionhead meatballs, green veggies, snow peas with tofu strips, and some kind of fish. I was disappointed with the lionhead meatballs. Maybe it was just meatballs because they were quite small. And they appeared to be mixed with 80% soy product. It was very soft and not all that flavorful. The fish was ok, though I did detect a slight fishiness in it. My term for fishiness means that the seafood doesn't seem 100% fresh. It had a really wierd medcinal taste to it. I liked the veggies ok, though they were slightly on the greasy side. The snowpeas and tofu were eh.

The soup was sweet and sour...not my fav.

The food overall wasn't all that fresh. I finished the meatballs, rice and soup; the rest I kept in the fridge. Well, next morning, I had it and the veggies had gone off; there was a sour stench to it. Still ate it, but I wouldn't recommend it.

I guess there is a reason why business had gone bad; because the food had gone bad. They leave those food out for god knows how long. I won't be going back to that food court again.

The only exception would be the one connected to the Full House Seafood Restaurant.