My previous review seems to be missing ... so here goes again! Roots has gone through its ups and downs in the last year and a half that I've been going. These days, it seems to be somewhat on the upswing in terms of consistency and flavor. It hovers between 3 and 4 stars, but my recent experiences have bumped it up. Pan-Asian restaurants typically make me quite hesitant, but Roots does a decent job at making fresh versions of classic dishes from a variety of cuisines, plus adding some of their own twists. It's not what I would call "authentic" food (and most customers are not Asian), but it's often lighter than their original counterparts. The space is rustic modern in a positive way, feeling expansive and well-lit without being glaringly so. They could use some sound insulation, though, as all the hard surfaces can create a very loud atmosphere when it's packed. And it does get very busy, especially on weekends and the odd weeknight, so why not call ahead and make a reservation just in case. During lunch you order at the counter and take a number to your table, while at dinner they have table service. Their menu is pretty expansive, and even unexpectedly includes freshly pressed juices and crepes. Now that they've upped their spice game, their Korean offerings seem the best in terms of flavor, with some of their noodle dishes being tasty as well. The Tall Man is a fan of their drunken noodles and kimchi fried rice. My parents gave the scallion pancakes their ok (not too greasy), although most of their dimsum options are tasty but much more expensive than other Chinese restaurants around. I have been eating grain- and soy-free these days, so I tend to order the more basic items on the menu. But the staff has been great about accommodating my needs, even if I sometimes have to repeat several times that yes, I just want a sauce-free protein with veggies in a bowl without a starch. But they come through. If you're just gluten-free, they do have quite a few dishes that are labeled so, and they have tamari as an alternative to soy sauce. Half their menu is sushi. Their more basic rolls are better than the highly-decorated original-sounding rolls, which look much tastier than they actually are. But a big plus is that you can get both the sushi and the bowls made with purple rice, which is an unusual but tasty option (basically the same as black or forbidden rice, a little stickier than brown rice). You'll find Roots in the congested strip mall shared with Whole Foods, although it's usually always possible to find a spot not too far from the restaurant. The sign is oddly not properly illuminated at night, but you'll see it as a dark spot near Jersey Subs. read more

Beautiful spacious and modern restaurant in the strip mall anchored by Whole Foods. For lunch, go straight to the front and order at the counter. Pay and take a seat wherever you like and your order is brought to your table. Service was very friendly and fast. They have a massive menu with everything from salads and sushi to ramen and dim sum. They even have a juice bar! While I like that there are so many options to please everyone, I think it would be better to focus on making a few items really great. Me and my husband came by for lunch. We shared the Vietnamese street noodles and the drunken noodles. We also ordered the pork belly buns, fresh pineapple mojito and homemade (unsweetened) iced tea. Everything was good but not amazing. The sauce on the street noodles was a little too heavy. In an area so close to so many authentic Asian spots I probably wouldn't return. My favorite was the pineapple mojito (no alcohol, just fresh pressed juice). A solid 3.5 stars. Definitely not the best or most authentic Asian food you'll have but not a bad choice either. read more

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Heard good things about this from a friend, so went to eat there. I ordered the Drunken Noodle because I've been craving Thai. If I'm honest, it didn't taste anything remotely like Drunken Noodle or close to any Thai dish I've had before. The cook was very generous with the soy sauce for the base and the noodle didn't taste like rice noodle. The other ingredients were high quality: beef and tofu tasted great. But overall, it tasted as if the person who made it believed that all Asian dishes only used soy sauce. Maybe it was the wrong dish to get, but I am cautious about a second visit... read more

I hate to say this as I used to be a big fan of Roots, but it seems like the quality here has dropped since my first visit last spring. The main draw for me was the purple rice, and it was far too mushy and overcooked on my last visit. It's usually very crowded here (even for weekday lunch), and I can see some of the appeal. The interior is bright, clean, spacious, and trendy, and there are some healthy-ish options. It's definitely very fusion-y and not authentic though, and the sauces are quite sweet. The last time I went however even the fusion dish I got was not good. On my last visit I ordered a garlic eggplant vegetable bowl with purple rice. I liked the sauce and eggplants, but the purple rice was extremely soft and overcooked and mushy and texturally it felt like overcooked white rice. I didn't love the vegetables either - there was zucchini, green beans, baby carrots, mushrooms, potatoes, and broccoli, and they were just standard stir fry and reminded me of frozen bagged vegetable mix (even though I do believe that they were fresh). The main issue for me was the rice though, as that had previously been the main attraction. The fried tofu was soft/soggy but fine. The dish wasn't unpleasant (other than the rice), just fine. My friend ordered a Taiwanese noodle bowl. I had previously gotten the Taiwanese bowl on rice and the topping this time seemed the same (the vegetables were nice and the sauce was good!) but the noodles were very overcooked and soft, and they were just the boxed kind you can buy at any Asian grocery store. The meat is pretty salty. It's still a decent lunch spot. The bowls are the best deal on the menu here I think - they're just generic Americanized stir fry - but I'd avoid the dim sum and ramen. I didn't have any issues with service - the staff was very courteous and if anything service was better than some previous visits where the bill was forgotten, etc. read more

Roots - Garlic eggplant bowl w/ vegetables + purple rice and Taiwanese noodle bowl ($11.50 each) - Asian Fusion Near Me - Princeton, New Jersey

Nice and casual Asian fusion spot right near Whole Foods. My friends and I shared food family style. The pork dumplings were crispy and juicy. I also enjoyed my bowl of hot and sour soup, it had just the right amount of spice and good consistency. The kimichi fried rice was not bad, but I couldn't really taste the kimichi. However the Thai coconut chicken noodles were delicious! I love the creamy sauce read more

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Service was a bit overwhelmed the evening we went. I've had better ramen and was really disappointed as it's not something I have often but would if I could find a good place. read more

Not great Asian fusion. Nice looking place but not a great taste. Taiwanese beef noodle soup wasn't very good but the beef was tender. The eggplant and garlic rice bowl was too salt but the beef slices were thicker than I excepted. The rock shrimp appetizers was get good, get that. Maybe come for sushi and not rice or sushi read more

Ordered takeout, and everything was ready in 15 minutes. Very fast and accommodating. If you need gluten free options, you can ask them to make dishes gluten free even though they are not listed as an option on the menu. A lot of the times, it just means they use the GF soy sauce. The Pad Thai does not heat up well. By the time we got home, it was all bunched together. I've had that in their restaurant, and while not authentic, it tasted good. On the other hand, the drunken noodles is excellent in-person and as a takeout. My friend ordered a shrimp bowl with Thai Basil sauce, which was great as well. Lesson of the day: do not order Pad Thai as a takeout. read more

I have been here once for dinner and once for lunch with the family. Both treats each time. From the outside it really doesn't look like much in the shopping plaza. Don't be scared. It's clean and modern. It's an Asian fusion restaurant. No worries, I checked the restroom and it's clean. No horror stories unless you're scared of two unisex restrooms. Now to the food. It's a fusion so they have a little bit of everything. Thai tea, Pho, and dumplings just to give you an idea of the spread. The menu is broken down to sections. There's a separate menu for dinner and lunch. Dim sum is one of the sections. It's not a full dim sum menu but enough to give you the staples like shrimp dumpling (haw how), my favorite. The Pho is good but this time went with the roots ramen. The broth is good and the portion is a good size. The ramen was way I like it. Firm, Al dente and egg noodles. The pork was good could have been cooked a little more and in slow and long. There was also some bok choy which I enjoyed as well. It could have used some mushrooms or some type of fungus. The egg was great but a little tricky to eat since it wasn't sliced in half. No worries. This is fusion so there are some liberties taking. Overall this place is great for a quick bite. But if you want a nice sit down service this place is great too. Especially with a group or for dinner. So give this place a try and check out all the different dishes. You'll have lots to come back for. read more

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What can I say about Roots!? If you don't come here.... you are missing out on perfection. Having lived in Taiwan for 3 years as a westerner I truly miss the food. We found this place by happenstance from a friends referral as the name itself doesn't speak "amazing sushi, dim sum, curry, etc...." We had a 45 m wait on a Friday and it was well worth it. The dim sum, sushi, bowls and dessert crepe were all outstanding and authentic to Taiwanese flavors. We will be regulars going forward and can't wait for our next visit. read more

Roots - Remnants of a strawberry banana crepe - Asian Fusion Near Me - Princeton, New Jersey

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I have now come here for years. I moved out of state and every time I am in town I make a point to come back! Great service, great food. Always fresh. Very clean, can be casual or fun date spot very cute atmosphere and byob! read more

It's important to consider how good the asian food is around the Princeton area when leaving a review for roots. Yesterday, I came here and had chicken drunken noodles, pork dumplings, a char sui bao, and also tried some of my dad's pad thai. Overall, the food was pretty decent. The drunken noodles were pretty tasty, but the pad thai was lacking in flavor (and peanuts). The pork dumplings and char sui bao were okay too- but probably not worth their prices. However, this place is one of the few good restaurants that offer asian food in the area, so it's definitely worth checking out when you're craving some asian cuisine while in town. read more

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Quality and consistency between 4-5 star, price point is a little pricier at 3 star but I knew what I was getting myself into since I've eaten from roots more than 20 times. First time reviewing the restaurant since I haven't ordered from them in a longer time. Due to covid, they only do take out or delivery now. We got drunken noodles ($18), 12 pirate sashimi ($14.50), and a Jurassic special roll ($14). All price has gone up a lot in comparison to when it was a sit down place with more staff overhead. The drunken noodles were usually great if you eat in, it did not heat well bringing home (all stuck together in a bunch and we had to cut with scissors). The beef was tender and tasty as I remembered. Sushi and sashimi are super fresh and always delicious even though we drove 20 mins home. The foods are solid if you eat there but some dishes I wouldn't order again to take home. read more

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Princeton really needs a great sushi spot, but I suppose Roots is the best we have for now. It's pretty tasty, but don't expect it to be amazing. read more

I had a pretty high expectation for this place since the first time I tried coming here with my fiance it was packed! (*Definitely make a reservation if you're coming here Friday/weekend especially for dinner.) SERVICE - I ended up coming here for a late lunch with my mom and my sister and the place was quite empty so we were seated right away. Friendly staff. DECOR/AMBIENCE - Very modern and chic with some nice paintings on the wall. Preppy casual. Very clean and spacious with different types of seatings. FOOD - Everything we had was VERY clean & green & healthy, which is what I love and great! But if you're used to "authentic" Asian cuisines this fusion style is definitely on the LIGHTER (and bland) side. Even with all the good ingredients these are overpriced. [SUMMER ROLL] - $11.99/5 or 6pcs - Very refreshing with the mango. Delicious! [PHO] - $15 - Our mistake for ordering such a simple dish... SKIP THIS and get something that's actually fusion :p [ROOTS RAMEN] - $15 - This is a very healthy and boring bowl of ramen. Very bland broth. Pork was not good. The only thing I liked about this was the egg... [SPICY WHITE MISO RAMEN] - $14 - Not spicy at all. Good mix of veggies and tofu. Broth with good flavor. Best entree that we ordered! read more

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This was once our favorite fusion Asian restaurant in this area, and prior to the pandemic, we ate here regularly . Poor service and declining quality of food have left a bad taste in my mouth, literally. They need to hire more waiters if they want to balance their takeout and delivery business with restaurant. Also their dinner menu omits many items that they offer. Please fix that, or at least remind the guests about that. read more

Brought my date here before a jazz concert. She was highly impressed. Food was delicious, ambience was great, decor was beautiful. It was a vibe. Highly recommend. read more

I hadn't eaten at Roots since it first opened about 2 years ago. They have quite the Asian Fusion selection of foods to choose from. Everything from sushi, Thai, Dim Sum, Pho to oddly enough Crepes adorn their menu. I've only ordered off the Asian menus, but would like to try the crepes one day. For a casual, order at the counter lunch spot, their prices are a bit on the higher side. I met a friend at Roots for lunch on a weekday at 1pm and the place was packed. There was hardly an open table. I ordered the Thai Basil Vegetable Bowl with Purple rice. The portion size was more than adequate and the flavor and spice created a tasty meal. The purple rice was a nice touch; I liked the taste and the slightly harder texture of the rice. My friend ordered the Teriyaki Shrimp Bowl, which was also very tasty. For dinner, Roots changes over to waiter service. I took a look at the dinner menu and it seemed quite pricey. I'm not sure if I would come here for dinner, but I will definitely be back for lunch. read more

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5 stars for the sushi and interior set up, but the rest of the food is not really stellar. I've been here about 5 times, and still enjoy coming back given the variety of Asian dishes that are hard to find in this area, but don't find many of the noodle soup (ramen, Taiwanese beef noodle soup, Pho) or the appetizers really tasty. The sushi is great! Even with brown rice, it's well made and tasty, and the two maki rolls for $11 is a great price, I always get sushi when I come here. The juices look fresh (prepared in front of you), but they are a bit expensive. At $7 for 16 ounces, I have found cheaper juices in NYC. The ramens are a bit bland in flavor, but the ramen noodles themselves are delicious. If the soups were a bit better spiced or salted, I think it would be solid ramen. But since it's $10-11 for ramen, which you can pay for at more true ramen spots, it may not be so worthwhile. The Taiwanese beef noodle soup had a tasty beef broth but not really the true soup base, and the noodles seemed to be spaghetti. The pho base was okay, and the beef was overcooked in it. Hopefully, I'll come back to try more. I haven't tried their other non-noodle soup dishes or crepes, so I'll be sure to get to that next time. read more

Roots - Cute inside - Asian Fusion Near Me - Princeton, New Jersey

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Have been several times now and have been impressed with the consistent food and service. The portions are decent size for the price. It's BYOB which is great. In addition the decor is modern and kept clean. read more

Horrible experience. I came here with 7 of my friends a few Saturday's ago, and reserved for a 7:30 dinner time. When we arrived, our table was not ready. We waited an extra 15 minutes, and then when we finally got our table (2 circle tables pushed together), they only had 6 chairs available. They got 2 chairs from the waiting area to provide to us. We ordered edamame for the table which was alright - nothing special. I ordered Pad Thai for dinner and it was subpar. SO BLAND. No matter how much soy sauce I added to it, it was absolutely horrible. The two things I liked was that it was BYOB and we ordered two crepes for dessert which were delicious. Nope. Never again. read more

great space and friendly staff. food was delicious and prices were reasonable. i would come back again. if going saturday night, make sure to make reservations read more

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Food was good, service is fast and friendly, and atmosphere is modern fast casual with sleek decor. My boyfriend and I split 3 dishes for lunch: - Char siu baos (2): 5/5, I loved that this came in a bamboo steamer (though not sure why it's on top of lettuce because then the lettuce is annoying to pick off). Super fluffy baos with giant chunks of pork inside! - Roots roll: 5/5, we really loved this roll! Great mix of textures and flavors. - Street noodle: 4/5, we wished there were larger pieces meat and mushrooms because most of the time, we were just eating plain noodles. I like having multiple textures and flavors in one bite! Would definitely come back and try more from the menu! read more

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We went here on a Friday night, the place was quieter than what we had expected. We did not order any appetizers/deso can't comment on that, but the entrees were delicious and clearly felt made from fresh ingredients. The portions were quite nice and surely filling. Since it is an Asian fusion place, they tried to include a bunch of popular items from various regional Asian cuisines (Korean/Vietnamese/Japanese/Thai). Loved the purple rice. Ramen soup was too thin and watery although the waiter said the broth will be thicker. I'd say it's a bit pricey for the place and that'd be the only reason I may not frequent it as often. read more

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I like this place. But, it seems a little confused. Walking in, has pictures of Terhune orchards, giving a feeling that this is a farm to table atmosphere. Reclaimed wood (or faux) is around the place. Has a little dimsum, ramen, Thai, sushi, and more. Kinda too much. They even have crepe's (!?!?). Don't get me wrong, food was very good and I'll be going again. Enjoyed my meal. Sushi rolls were a little on the pricy side - around 6 bucks to start. People waiting are separated by a barrier but the folks were wandering into the dining area to look at menus which was a little annoying - should just remove the barrier to put up more tables and have ppl wait outside. Little tables were outside but it looks like that was more for show as ppl were not sitting there. A little understaffed - 2 waiters along with the hostess and a busboy. Should add one more waiter. At lease have bigger water glasses. read more

Roots - Asian Fusion Near Me - Princeton, New Jersey

Most of the food at Roots is good! I have tried something's that are just okay. The environment is nice. The service is good. I come back often because it is a good place for groups after work. read more

Roots - Asian Fusion Near Me - Princeton, New Jersey

I haven't done sit-in dining at Roots lately, but takeout here seems to get worse and worse every time. Food is ready quickly, which is nice. However, my experiences with the food have not been great. The noodles in the pad Thai are always stuck together and the dish is basically a block of noodles with some chicken. Sushi has always been pretty mushy and not good. I haven't tried everything here but what I've had hasn't met my expectations. There is much better Asian food in the Princeton area than Roots. read more

Huge portion, really tasty! Service could of been a little better, never got checked on see how everything was but other than that I love the decor, it's a cute little place! Had Pho Bo, & a thai iced tea! read more

Roots - thai iced tea - Asian Fusion Near Me - Princeton, New Jersey

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A good place to eat a quick dinner with friends before hitting the nearby movie theater. The bowls are great, particularly a fan of the drunken noodles and Terriyaki. Dumplings and pork buns are aces as well. The wait can be a bit of a pain during busy times but other than that, there's not much to not like about this place. read more

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Love loved the salmon with the buckwheat noodles!! Very healthy. The next time I am here I definitely want to try their smoothies, as the smoothies are freshly made out from real fruit and veggies right in front of you. read more

Roots - Asian Fusion Near Me - Princeton, New Jersey

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Been here 3-4 times for lunch. Their pork bun was juicy, their specialty rolls were fresh and delicious. Drunken noodle and pad thai was good but salty. I do not like their ramen noodle soups since the noodles come out overcooked. Pho bo was good. The chicken teriyaki bowl was very salty so they gave me a new one with teriyaki sauce on the side. If you can't eat salty food, ask them to put less sauce when you order at the counter. The decor is very modern and sleek. The waiters bring out the dishes when you order at the counter. Their service was attentive. Actually their cappuccino was great. read more

Roots - Asian Fusion Near Me - Princeton, New Jersey

One of my go-to general/fusion Asian restaurants in the area, Roots serves a whole variety of different cuisines in its cozy interior. Next to a Whole Foods and Staples on the side of US-1, its location is very convenient, especially when going on grocery runs, and lots of seating. Its food is also delicious, offering normal fare, detox smoothies, and crêpes. My favorites at Roots are definitely the make-your-own bowls (from a meat base and various different kinds of sauces) and the bibimbap. They aren't very generous portion sizes, but still taste pretty good. They have sushi rolls, which are decent although not always fresh, but I prefer the hot dishes. Especially for the chicken noodle soup, these are great for colds. The interior is very clean and has a nice minimalistic vibe. The service isn't very strong and takes a long time, especially during busy hours. The location is good, but I wish Roots would increase their portion sizes and wait staff to make the experience better. read more

Horrible service and rudeness Found hair in the ramen noodles soup Will never order here again read more

I have a love / hate relationship with Roots. On one hand there is some really good food here including many of the dim sum appetizers. On the other I sometime find the service to be rather forced or not very polished. That and the sushi is not very fresh here. The shrimp har gow and the veggie dumplings are really delicious here. The main entrees including the Pho and Taiwanese noodles with beef are really good. The ramen and drunken noodles are ok. There were a few instances where the sushi was NOT fresh and mainly because of that I've stopped going to Roots as often. I don't know why I would even try sushi at a place not know for their sushi. The first few times I did order weren't bad, but the last three times, the fish smelled, well, really fishy. Not a sign of good sushi. The service is also a sore point as it can feel rather gruff, short and rude but that's mainly limited to one individual on staff. I'll still visit from time to time because it is one of very few places in the area that actually do Asian cuisine well but sometimes I regret it. read more

Roots offers excellent Asian fusion food made with fresh ingredients. Roots is located in a strip mall housing Whole Foods and Staples right on route 1. Their menu has a great selection of items from Sushi, dumplings, Pad Thai, Vietnamese bowls and soups and Crepes. we tried some vegetable dumplings, drunken noodles and spicy eggplant bowl. Everything tasted good and freshly prepared after placing the order at counter. This place is also BYO. We loved it and will go back! read more

I like this place quite a lot. Their warm, deep-fried sushis are the best when you want to treat yourself. They also have huge and tasty noodle soups if you like that. It's a lovely fusion restaurant. An underrated restaurant in the area, imo. read more

I love this place for lunch. Never been for dinner. It's super cute and the high tables (where I usually sit) have super comfy chairs. I love those chairs. I want them for my house! Roots is the type of a setup where you order at the counter and they bring the food out to your table. Iced water is complimentary and is brought out for everyone. Huge plus. The food is pretty delicious, although I was recently pretty disappointed with the pork belly bao buns. They were dried out and lacked flavor. Would not recommend those. The prices are not cheap, I mean it is Princeton, but with that said, you get a very decently large meal. I recently ordered drunk noodles with shrimp (additional $$), there were 5 or 6 very large and very tasty shrimp on the order. I do think the price is worth it. Overall, I would recommend for a casual lunch. read more

I had high hopes for Roots, but they were quickly dashed after my first taste of what they call Ramen. Unless their other dishes are far better, I cannot fathom how Roots can possibly be rated 4 stars. The ramen itself was a bowl of bland chicken broth. My homemade chicken soup is far better. If they want a benchmark, they should try Morimoto's Ramen which is made with a chicken base but has real flavor and substance. The chicken was tender at least...the only reason Roots received 2 stars vs 1. As far as veggies, there were 3 lonely pieces of bok choy in the Ramen, but no fish cakes...also disappointing. Whomever created this recipe has never ever had a bowl of quality ramen in NY, Tokyo or Honolulu or has no taste buds. Honestly, instant cup of soup had more taste to it. On top of that, I loved (not) how they charge $2.49 for a cup of hot water and a tea bag (no refills on the hot water). Unless you want to be seriously disappointed I would run far away from Roots! read more

Roots - Asian Fusion Near Me - Princeton, New Jersey

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I have been to Roots many times, but deeply disappointed with the service today, and don't think I will go again. Simple things I want Roots to understand: 1. Learn at least to apologize, and show some consideration to customers when it's their fault 2. When a customer is paying, at least have respect to bring what they order. Mistakes can happen, but they should know how to deal with them politely and with empathy What bothered me so much was: 1. First of all, the waiter made faces when we were inquiring about the dish while ordering 2. Second, he didn't even apologize for the mistake when he brought a wrong dish. He was very inconsiderate 3. Third, when I shared my feedback towards the end to the lady at the reception, she was equally inconsiderate and made statements to support the waiter. Her question to me was: "Oh, you don't like the "dish you got"? How does it even matter when I didn't get what I had ordered? read more

Simply wow. My wife and I went here for a date night just to get EVERYONE off our backs that can't stop talking about this place. Now I get it -- this place is among one of the best restaurants in Princeton, without the Palmer Square price tags. My wife got the Thai Red curry bowl, and I got the Thai basil. This was the freshest and most delicious tasting Thai food we've had since we visited Bangkok a few years back. We had the pork buns and dumplings for a first course and they were delicious, even though those serving sizes were small. The entree serving sizes make up for that however -- they are huge. The only downside is the difficulty of getting a table at peak hours. I'll be making reservations next time, which is a testament to their success. read more

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