In the clown car kitchen of China Gourmet in Boulder, a dozen cooks are calmly doing two dozen things. Composed but busy, the kitchen is preparing Chinese-American standards like cashew chicken, mu shu pork and Szechwan beef alongside “Shanghai specials” like cold salty duck, kung pao squid, salt-andpepper soft shell crab and “Ants Climbing a Tree.”
One gets the immediate feeling that China Gourmet is the kind of place you ask the server to bring whatever’s good. So that’s what we did.
First was a giant bowl of west lake style beef soup. A protoplasmic ladleful of the soup contained a thick, but light-tasting broth (traditional versions of this soup include cornstarch for thickening), shreds of egg, cooked-in-broth beef strips, some heat and herbs not limited to parsley. If not remarkable only for its exceptional balance with few ingredients, then it is for the fact that two cups of it had been downed before a second thought was given.
Next was a tofu and vegetable hotpot. Three bricks of tofu had been lightly covered and seared, so as to create an almost-crispy cover that encased the hot and silky tofu. Veggies in the pot included snow peas, cut bok choy, green peppers and some less vibrant role players. All the dishes brought to the table were well executed, but the hotpot shined above the rest with regards to the flavor cultivated out of each ingredient. It was refreshing to rely on the steamed vegetables, instead of a thick broth or sauce, to add flavor to the tofu in each bite.
Another plate brought to the table was “sautéed fish chunks in hot bean sauce.” On a plate about as long and curved as a rugby ball, a dozen cut filets of some mild saltwater fish were arranged and sitting in a bright red sauce. The fish was tender and the sauce was perfectly spiced, however, the dish got a little tiring after about three or four “chunks.” That is, all the flavors were there and it was tasty, but the luster of it was gone halfway through the dish.
That was absolutely not the case with the salt-and-pepper pork chops. Cut into strips and fried to create a light and crispy shell, then seasoned with black pepper and salt, it is impossible not to greasy-faced gorge on these things like movie popcorn. What they really needed was a dipping sauce (for us, the hot bean sauce from the fish dish was perfect, and soy sauce was a fine companion), because they were the slightest bit dry and the seasoning was thick. But there’s potential here for a Sunday snack overhaul — the chicken wing, the mozzarella stick, the nacho… the fried pork fritter. Why not?
There are well over 100 dishes on China Gourmet’s menu. Very few exceed $11 per dish so there’s opportunity to try out dishes you can’t get everywhere like scallion pancakes, black mushroom and bok choy in oyster sauce, and marinated bean curd sheet when you go. In fact, the affordability of these dishes complements the understated dining room and the cafeteriastyle service, and it creates the perfect atmosphere in which to both test your taste buds and indulge in clean renditions of goopy standards. You may find the service a little cold, but the connection between patron and cook is strong enough in each carefully prepared and uniquely designed dish — without excessive frill or flourish, and just enough risk to keep you guessing, the food is the thing at China Gourmet.
Respond: letters@boulderweekly.com
