All set for Friday

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Foursheets was meeting a business contact for lunch today, and for some reason the person really wanted to meet me. Since Yong Fu (甬府) was chosen as the venue, I happily tagged along as the food was always going to be pretty tasty.

After trying out the set dinner a few months ago, this was my first time having their set lunch - which serves up 10 courses. We collectively made our choices for the dishes.

Homemade fish cake with spicy oil (辣拌自製魚餅) - this is their usual fish cake that I like, but they have dressed it up in a light, spicy oil to tingle the tastebuds.

Slow braised shiitake mushrooms (卤焅花菇) - we each get two halves of a mushroom. Simple and comforting.

Yellow croaker fish and Chinese water plantain thick soup (莼菜黃魚羹) - we had cauliflower fungus (繡球菌), finely diced stems of chrysanthemum greens (皇帝菜), as well as water shield (莼菜) from West Lake (西湖).

Bombay duck spring roll (水潺春捲) - always love their spring rolls when they execute it right and the wrapper stays crunchy. I was initially a little annoyed with the kitchen, as they served these while we were still in the middle of having our soup. I was worried that the wrappers would get soggy, but thankfully that didn't happen.

I do love Bombay duck (九肚魚) for their fluffy texture, so I'm always happy when I get it.

Stir-fried river shrimp with dried green vegetables (萬年青河蝦仁) - ordering de-shelled river shrimp seems like a no-brainer here...

The shrimp came with finely-diced Ningbo specialty called 萬年青菜乾, which is made with the tips of young canola (油菜). Someone was very happy to clean it all up...

Stir fried thin-shelled clams with French green beans (法國豆角蘿蔔乾薄殼米) - Senhouse's mussels (薄殼) are a delicacy beloved by many, and the kitchen has taken them out of their thin shells. They've also used spicy pickled radish (辣蘿蔔乾) and plenty of white pepper to help neutralize the strong flavors of the mussels.

Double-braised pork ribs with chestnuts and dried cuttlefish (錐栗魚鲞燒仔排) - I didn't the dried cuttlefish came shaved as flakes on top... but having chestnuts braised with meat is always nice during autumn and winter. In that way I'm reminded of mom's chicken with chestnuts. Once again, someone was eager to clean it all up...

Stir-fried purple caitai (清炒菜苔) - it's been a few years since I last had this veg here, and I do love how sweet it tastes.

Wok-fried rice cake with pork and seasonal greens (時蔬炒年糕) - I've been eating Shanghainese stir-fried rice cakes since I was a kid, so this was always gonna be a comfort dish for me. I was still pretty surprised by how much I enjoyed this dish. It's a little more wet than the standard versions at other restaurants - and mom's version - but the soft Napa cabbage somehow really did it for me. The occasional slice of fatty pork was good, too.

Homemade Ningbo sesame glutinous rice dumplings (寧波湯圓) - this is ALWAYS, always a highlight. These two seemingly simple, round, soft balls. The glutinous wrappers are thin and delicate, and the magic of the black sesame paste inside is unleashed once the balls are popped. Pure bliss.

Hong Mei Ren (紅美人) - these Benimadonna (紅まどんな) are grown in the Xiangshan (象山) area of Ningbo (寧波), and are very tasty. Juicy without a lot of sugar.

A very filling lunch, and one that made me very happy. They switch to their winter menu next week, and already PR8 is nudging me to go back next week...