Nice Time Deli

◄ Back

Next ►

Picture 2 of 7

don't judge a book by its cover

I used to wonder whether it was embarrassing to be the kid of parents who own a really Chinese restaurant- you know, one that has a FOBish sort of name. “So what do your parents do?” “Oh, well, they own a restaurant [hesitates...] Nice Time Deli.” But now that I’m older and wiser, who cares about the name? All that matters is that you can boast it has great food. Of course, if I ever owned a restaurant, I’d put a bit more thought into its name.

The night after we ate at Crocodile Cafe and 21 Choices, Slo brought us to one of the best Taiwanese restaurants near her house. Anyone who eats out with me knows that I try to avoid Chinese restaurants, but do distinguish. In reality, there is no such thing as “Chinese” food. If you go to China, you’ll find hundreds of different cuisines depending on where you are. Taiwanese food is one of them (I know it’s politically incorrect) but definitely much better than Americanized Chinese food. Good ol’ Taiwanese food really hits the spot.

And so Slo ordered a good five dishes, picking out the ones we “definitely” needed to eat. “You done good,” I complimented, as I was stuffing my mouth with rice because I ate myself silly by the time we walked out. I can’t even translate these dishes, so I guess the rest of this post will be more or less eye candy.

But what I can translate is Stinky Tofu! Surprisingly not stinky and very delicious. It’s like biting into a pillow. A crisp encasing on the outside, but airy and light on the inside. Kudos to you Nice Time Deli.

You should also check out:

1. Big Wing Wong
2. Featuring the Star Anise and a Recipe for Lu Dan