Joyce C.
Yelp
This store FEELS like what Chinatown is & what's to come for the future. I've walked by the storefront many times, but was never interested to go in until I saw a Food tour on the social medias. I can see why they have been awarded Michelin stars.
It's a small shop but extremely well organized and there is someone freshly cooking the jerky on a grill set up at the front windows, two huge displays with at least 10 different kinds of jerky. There's also very fresh looking butter, cookies, eggroll cookies, those fried Malaysian flower lacey cookies. A small fridge to the left with a few limited drink options - water, Vita chrysanthemum boxed tea, lemon, iced tea.
It was a little overwhelming, the customers ahead of me bought half a pound a spicy chicken. I think half pound was $10, quarter pound $7. I asked for a quarter pound and if I could mix and the worker said yes. I got three pieces of the beef (on the right side, and spicy pork (also on the right). They told me the difference between the left and right cases, I think the ones on the right were juicier. Left may have been just smoked ones? I'll have to go back and do a real comparison taste test.
They packed the jerky up very nicely in separate wax bags with new but retro (play on old school Chinese product) stickers - very nice branding! And then put it in an acetate plastic sleeve. The thought and care at the shop really shows, but still in a very humble, homey, non-shiny Chinese space.
The jerky was still warm! I ate two slices right out front of the shop. The marinade is a kind of sweet, soy sauce, marinade, very typical of Cantonese cooking. Very strong! I couldn't really taste the difference between the regular and spicy at the time. The next day I tried the jerky again to compare, and I didn't taste any spice from the pork. Both still tasted about the same. However, I prefer the pork over the beef. The beef definitely had more of the meat flavor coming through. I think, pork, and maybe chicken; is a lighter cleaner, jerky experience.
2-3 groups of tourists stopped in quickly as I was eating. I guess jerky crosses all cultures.