I find it so hard to find places that are good all around. So, here's another example. The products here are pretty good and tasty, but you may be played a little along the way or hustled, depending on the era from which you hail.
Primarily, they offer jerky of a bunch of varieties. While you may be used to the beef jerky that is more common place at grocery stores and convenience stores, the jerkies here are quite different. Most have been dehydrated by some process or another, but there is more of an emphasis on spicing and marinating the meats. While the normal jerky in American stores is dehydrated, smoked and seasoned with primarily salt and pepper and some other spices, these jerkies can be of the dry and slightly more moist variety. In addition, they also offer different meats instead of just beef and occasionally bison. They also offer pork which is red in color, sweeter and savory at the same time and much more moist than your typical jerky. The beef also comes in a more moist variety which has a sweet fruity taste to it. I tend to be partial to the drier more "curry" flavored beef jerky. However, on top of this, they also have a variety of sea animals that have been jerkified for your pleasure. Squid and fish are a couple of other animals that they have dehydrated for your dining pleasure. I didn't actually try the squid and fish here. Used to be able to eat the dehydrated sea animals, but as I grew into adulthood, their more "fishy" taste is less and less appealing to me.
The great part about this place is that they are more than happy for you to sample any of their mummified meats. I've always been partial to the drier form of beef jerky and the moist red pork jerky, and both of these did not disappoint. The more moist beef jerky was also good, but the slightly fruity taste was a little disarming to me. It almost had the taste of the dried plums. We also picked up some dehydrated tofu which was also a nice change, though not as flavorful as the beef.
So, here's the hustle/played part and something you will need to prepare for before you come in. The ladies there (one taller alpha and a smaller beta) were very nice and complimentary, but they do hustle you a little when it comes to buying their products. For instance, when we decided on the jerkies that we wanted, they just started to bag the items without asking how much we wanted. I'm still not sure how much we ended up buying. As a warning, the items are pricey and you can quickly spend $100 on snacks, but if you're a player than that's how you should roll. There's also a bit of the sleight of hand trickery here. While the one lady was busy helping us pick the items, the other lady was running around bagging everything. So things get bagged up quickly before you realize that they put a pound of product in when you might have only wanted half a pound. Like I said, they were very nice and helpful, but you should be clear about what you want and how much you want, otherwise you may end up spending more than you wanted. Also, at the end, when we were getting the dried tofu "jerky", we said we wanted only like a pound, but the container they had was around 2 pounds or so. The lady kept saying "Oh just take it since it's only 2 pounds", so we ended up getting the entire two pounds when we only wanted 1 pound (This conversation was of course in Mandarin). So, a little used-car salesman tactic on the way out.
I checked my pant pockets twice upon leaving the store to make sure I didn't get fleeced along the way, though of course, I had already been in the store.
So, if you enjoy a different kind of jerky (which you really should try at least once in your life because it will change your perception of what jerky can be), and you don't mind being played by a couple of older Chinese ladies, you should give this place a try. Sitting at home, everything tastes good, and the only that hurts a little is your pocketbook and perhaps a little bit of your pride as a grown man was played by a couple of nice older Chinese ladies. Bravo bravo to you both for the show. Think of the experience as a dinner theater experience, you get a bit of food which ain't half bad and you get the well-orchestrated Chinese hustle that is this particular pack of Chinese ladies. read more
