Congee Village
It’s a gloomy Thursday afternoon here in NYC today after about 2 successive sunny weeks the weather is about to turn. I haven’t been able to make more trips downtown for the past few weeks as I’ve been super busy with a few other projects lately, but I felt that I need to start capturing the cuisine at this part of the city more.
Traffic is starting to grow all over the place and the streets are starting to look like the pandemic never happened. The Subway system is now back as the best mode of transportation unfortunately, even for a bus goer like me. The long journey of taking the F train downtown commences on this cloudy day and a perfect time for some Chinese cuisine.
Congee Village has been a staple in the neighborhood for many years now and we’ve been coming here as a group for the past four years or so. It’s honestly one of my favorite places to go to for lunch and we used to eat here at least once a week back before the pandemic struck. I haven’t been back here though for at least sixteen months and was happy to see the wooden front door still open.
The façade of the building is very old school NYC chinatown and something that you can find as a backdrop of a local 80’s film. The food here though can speak for itself as it’s been on Michelin Bib Gourmand list for quite some time now.
I sat at our usual table which is the very first table after the cashier’s stand and the dining room vibe reminded me of my previous trips here. The hot tea was the same as how I remembered it and the décor and staff has not changed altogether as well. It was nice to see the old menu intact with all the items still being served.
I started the meal like how I always do with an order of sauteed razor clams with black bean sauce. This is probably my favorite dish here and the item that I always order every time we dine here.
The salted fish and chicken fried rice followed, and this dish always reminds me of my college days in Manila when we used to order Chinese late nights after clubbing.
Sweet and sour pork was next to arrive, and this dish is another childhood favorite that got carried over to adulthood.
The sauteed Chinese spinach with garlic and bean paste was our choice of greens for today and it was a tasty option.
Our main course was the pan-fried whole flounder which is my 2nd favorite item from the menu. This dish always comes out perfect with the meat nice and soft while the bones on the side are crisp.
It’s good to be back and see the neighborhood opening up again ☺.
#KULINARYATRAVELS is off to Salvaje next…