Carol’s Bun
Carol’s Bun
Delivery: Yes
Take-out: Yes
Bike Parking: Yes
Good for Kids: Yes
Price range.
$ Price range Under $10
6 reviews
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Carol’s Bun
Carol, or whoever the friendly woman behind the steam table, was exceedingly friendly. She knows how to charm a man; I doubt anyone who tries this line on me – "Your Mandarin is better than mine!" – will get less than three stars from me. (Although "Carol" has a somewhat southern accent, I'm sure her Mandarin is leagues better than mine.)
Carol nominally features Northern Chinese fare, but really it's a hodgepodge of dishes from the west, south and north of the country. I went with the chili oil dumplings – hong you chao sou – a standard of Sichuan food. I should have known that someone from so far south in the country wouldn't bring the numbing spice to anywhere close to an acceptable standard, but it was still disappointing when the nearly flavorless sauce was placed over the small dumplings. They looked the part, however, and were clearly freshly made, which means something.
The rest of the food looked far better, and honestly I should have known to order a Sichuan dish at such a Cantnonese-Fujianese place. I'm cautiously optimistic that something closer to their bailiwick would yield a better result.
Consider me cautiously optimistic and/or very susceptible to flattery.
So authentic Chinese food. This place is paradise. Any guys wanna try authentic Chinese dapaudang(food), come to this one. That was how Chinese people roll. They offered great volume of food. Price was affordable and tastes great.
It was a cold, snowy afternoon in Chinatown, and I was in search of dinner to take home. After walking around aimlessly, I saw this place from across the street. It was hard to see inside since there was steam on the glass, but from the outside, I could tell that this place was where I was going to find dinner. I walk inside, and its pretty small, basically a hole in the wall. In the front counter, there is a steam table with over 20+ choices. I glance at the menu, which for the most part is written in Chinese. It may be a bit hard to maneuver the menu in this place, but the lady was nice at the counter, so it was pretty easy to get what I wanted. This is what I ordered:
2 lunch trays (rice, 3 choices, and soup for $3.75!)
1 scallion pancake ($1.50)
So for the choices, I got braised pork belly, pig ears with peanuts, green leafy vegetables, chinese radish, fried pork ribs, and a dish that I don't know the name of. Everything was cooked well but I wasn't a big fan of the pork ears. I prefer it served cold.
This place is unassuming and likely caters to the Fujianese immigrant population, but, if you are in the area, and you're hungry, I would venture inside and order by just pointing 😉 They also sell frozen dumplings by bulk. But I didn't try any. Next time…
Just like love, food has no boundaries.
I stood there for 5 minutes and the lady served 3 people who came after me and completely ignored me. Maybe they don't serve you if you're not Chinese… Or maybe it's just if you look like me.
I love this place when I have only 5$ on me and desperately craving a mixture of Chinese fast food. For 4.75 you have a choice of 3 options with rice or 2 options with noodles/fried rice. The portions are so generous here (if the two ladies with the bandanas are serving you). They usually switch up their meat and vegetable options. This place is definitely a visit if you're broke, hungry and need a quick, filling meal.
Ladies are nice there. Even asked if I wanted more rice. I'm a big fan of big food. A ridiculously abundant selection of choices for the 3-choice rice option. Also a good menu for things to order. Love coming here. Good food and great prices.
They even speak a little bit of English for the non-Chinese.