Tonight we hit up Tian Tian Chinese restaurant with friends and family, and what started as dinner turned into a full-on feast. We kicked things off with dim sum and kept going with Peking duck, fried whole fish, and eel. Every dish was so good. By the end of the meal we were completely stuffed and nobody was complaining. It’s always nice to get everyone together around a table like that.

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Today we went to try a new hot pot spot for lunch. Soupleaf has been around for a while, but we’d never checked it out until a friend said we really should. I was excited to see what the hype was about! The best part is that everyone gets their own little hot pot and can pick their favorite broth. The only tricky part is that it’s not as easy to share and taste all the different flavors.

The meat selection was great, and the seafood, veggie, and noodle bar was packed with good stuff. We definitely ate our fill. So satisfying!

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Last night, we tried a new all-you-can-eat hot pot restaurant, Happy Lamb. They offer two tiers of meat. The regular level looked good, but the higher level was only $5 more per person and included premium cuts like wagyu beef and ribeye, so we upgraded. The selection of vegetables and seafood was also impressive, and both broths we chose were delicious, though I especially enjoyed the spicy one.

I’d definitely recommend Happy Lamb. It’s delicious, and the all-you-can-eat dinner is reasonably priced at $29/$34 per person.

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Trying to learn some stir-fry skills! It tasted okay.

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Mapo tofu is one of my comfort foods! I sprinkled a bunch of Fly By Jing Mala seasoning on it for a little more kick. Yummy!

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For the second night in a row, I have enjoyed some leftovers that Mariko brought home from a friend’s party. The Chinese dishes are from Bamboo House Austin 竹苑 and are so good! I love the cumin beef… it’s similar to toothpick cumin lamb, but many people don’t like lamb, so this is a good option.

I also recommend the spicy fish (not pictured), which has a good amount of heat and Sichuan pepper for that mala flavor. It’s great if you like spicy food!

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Here are a few photos from a farewell dinner we had at Asia Cafe. My favorite dish “Spicy Fish” is the last photo. We got a double-order!

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Tonight I made some Chinese-style seasoned ribs and Oyster-sauce greens for Mariko’s birthday. She didn’t have a specific request, but I offered to try a new dry rub recipe on a tried-and-true baby-back ribs cooking method, and she said that sounded good. The ribs turned out great!

At the same website where I found the ribs recipe, I found a recipe for the greens and they also turned out nicely:

I hope Mariko enjoyed her birthday dinner!

Here are the recipes:

• Chinese Dry Rub Ribs
• Chinese Broccoli with Oyster Sauce

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I braved the freezing weather to pick up a few dishes from Hunan Bistro, which is a Chinese restaurant we really like. Our favorite dish is Toothpick Lamb, but we also got mabo tofu, Sichuan eggplant, pork with tofu, and fried rice. For Lunar New Year, we usually travel down to San Antonio to celebrate at my cousin’s house, where she throws a huge party. But because of COVID-19, we’re spending a quiet dinner at home. Hopefully next year we’ll be able to travel to see more family… crossing fingers!

Anyways, here’s to a prosperous year of the Ox!

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