Golden Steamer Big Bun with chicken, vegetables, and egg: Served in a scaldingly hot waxed bakery takeaway bag, the big bun from NYC Chinatown’s Golden Steamer takes several minutes to cool down before before consumption. Inside a fluffy and supple steamed white bun is a mixture of savory chicken, pickled mustard greens, and sliced hard-boiled egg. The lightly sweetened bun mixed with the meaty hearty filling, which steam has congealed into an almost meatball-like texture, is hard to beat at $1.25. 4.5/5.0
exceptional chinatown nyc bao bread asian goldensteamer big bun chicken vegetables egg 4.5
Lotus Foods Sriracha Arare Rice Crackers: I sometimes feel guilty when I purchase the Western version of classic asian snacks, made with likely responsibly sourced ingredients and marketed with minimalist, sans-serif packaging. But having had Lotus Food’s Arare rice crackers in the past, I had a sense that the difference in quality would be worthwhile, and it was. Black, red, and yellow rice crackers in a variety of shapes, from stars to squares, have a clear sheen from a chili-flavored glaze. They’re satisfying crunchy, and the hea... (read more) 4.0/5.0
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Trader Joe’s Rice Cracker Medley: This rice cracker snack from Trader Joe’s doesn’t taste exactly like those you get at any Asian grocery store. The crackers have a glazed coating that tastes more strongly of rice vinegar than any other rice cracker mix I’ve had before, giving it a uniquely tangy and sharp flavor. Tossed in with the rice crackers is the occasional wasabi pea. Overall, a solid snack priced reasonably - would purchase again. 3.5/5.0
recommended ricecrackers wasabi asian traderjoes rice cracker medley 3.5
Regent Pandan Cake: A half-sphere mini cake, baked-brown on the outside and shamrock-green on the inside. Has a light texture that eats a bit dry. Often paired with coconut, pandan leaves are popular in southeast asian cuisines like Thai and Indonesian; the flavor of this pandan cake fell somewhere in between rich coconut and light lemongrass. Fragrant and not too sweet, but the texture could have been more moist. 3.0/5.0
cake 99ranch asian regent pandan 3.0
Smile More Sparkling Lychee Spritzer : I’ve seen an upwards trend for vinegar-based sodas in the past year, and this Asian lychee-flavored one is sour and lightly sweetened with a faint lychee aftertaste. It’s not a drink I would want to consume in one serving though the bottle is smaller than most. If you appreciate carbonated beverages that aren’t sweet, you may enjoy it. 3.0/5.0
drinks vinegar asian smilemore sparkling lychee spritzer 3.0
Kekou Gelato House Soursop and osmanthus plum berry sorbets: Specializing in Asian flavors ranging from milk tea to peanut sesame, Kekou is a Toronto-based ice cream shop with a strong anti-stabilizer philosophy. This means all of their gelato and sorbets are not made with any additives or stabilizers to maintain their consistency. As a result, their sorbets are not entirely smooth, with some small ice chunks throughout. Their gigantic scoops are generous, and the mildly flavored sorbets I ordered were fresh though a tad too sweet. I enjoyed the tropi... (read more) 3.0/5.0
sorbet Toronto asian kekougelatohouse soursop osmanthus plum berry sorbets 3.0