As part of my expansion into other lunchtime venues now that the Drag Quack's has breathed its last, I decided to give Manga another shot, almost a year later--after all, they're in my general neighborhood. Well. They're *still* not clear on some of the concepts. Appetizer was the eggrolls stuffed with pork sausage. While in no way traditional, I give them a high rating. Spicy but not too spicy, and an interesting dipping sauce that the menu claims to be sweet-and-sour but which is most definitely not the sickly sweet sticky glossy substance that normally flies under that name. Main course was another matter. I got the Tuna with Jade Salad, and there were serious problems. The tuna is seared and then placed atop a spinach salad which, the menu claims, is dressed with cilantro pesto. Now I, unlike some recent posters, am a *big* fan of cilantro, and have been known to consume my home-made baked potato fries with a bowl full of Texafrance Cilantro Pesto. The stuff at Manga seemed to be completely lacking in the three most important ingredients for a good cilantro pesto: cilantro (well, there was something green, but it sure didn't have what fantasy author Diana Paxson has characterized as that "fresh-ironing" smell/flavor), pine nuts (looks like they substituted almonds instead), or flavor (it didn't seem to taste of anything in particular). It would have been a very bland salad indeed had not the tuna been unacceptably salty, as though it had been rolled in sea salt before searing. Recommendations: do not salt the tuna; do not sear the tuna, but serve it as a sashimi atop the salad; do *something* to perk up the alleged "cilantro pesto." Then we come to the beverage service. It was lunchtime, so instead of a beer I got green tea. Now in every other even marginally Oriental joint I've ever been in, here, San Francisco, San Jose, Seattle or wherever, you ask for green tea, one of two things happens: you get a mug with a bunch of green tea in the bottom, hot water already in, or you get a whole teapot, ditto, mug waiting on the side. Tea leaves floating round in the bottom of your tea? No problem. These are expected. What Manga delivered me was a mug, one of those tea-eggs-on-tongs things with the tea inside, and one of those incredibly stupid metal lidded mini-jugs full of hot water. All much too fussy, and false-genteel, but I would have done OK except for what happened when I tried to pour the water out: most of it ended up on the table rather than in the mug, because the design of the jug (very shallow lip) ensured that water could not pour out in a directed fashion. The water had already cooled off because the jug was metal. (It also only had a one-cup capacity, which completely obviated any possible need for it as a water-storage device.). Recommendation: just toss the tea leaves in the mug, pour the hot water in, and serve. It's really less trouble for the server than all the preparations required for their current tea service, and the ceramic keeps the water hot. The waitperson was reasonably brisk and focused. The chairs remain uncomfortable, and the air conditioner duct in the ceiling dripped cold water on my arm twice during the meal. Bottom line: Stick with the appetizers, drink beer, pick your location carefully.
Austin, TX
Manga, Re-Redux
G'day John M. wrote: > The U Fried Rice could be brilliant if it had any seasoning > at all--a little sriracha and Thai basil would make it a killer dish. There are several Fried Rices to choose from at Manga. From my trusty takeaway menu collection: U Fried Rice: peas, carrots, scrambled eggs stir fried with your choice of chicken, pork or tofu [I presume there is rice in there too] Manga Fried Rice: stir fried rice with raisins [sic], pinenuts, scallions, egg, peppers, garlic and toasted sesame seeds with a Vietnamese chili sauce. Now it may not be exactly "traditional" fried rice, but Manga Fried Rice has been one of my to-go foods of choice this past semester. I ask for them to go "low on the grease/oil". It still is a little oily, well it is fried, but the chili sauce adds a good amount of warmth and all the yummy additions make it very tasty. It doesn't have the meat/tofu in it, which makes it $2 cheaper than the U Fried Rice. Thumbs up. (That's not to say that a little Thai basil wouldn't improve it - mmm good idea.) Joann wrote: > Tuna with Jade Salad Haven't had this yet, but had been glad to see it on the menu after recommending to them that they should have a tuna dish. > Now I, unlike some recent posters, am a *big* fan of cilantro I go through stages - there was a period when I was cilantroed out, but fortunately I got over that. I'm going to look up my trusty "On Food and Cooking" this weekend. I'm almost sure there is some genetic reason why it tastes different to some people. Same as why some people find their post-asparagus indulgence urine to smell bad, and others don't. > Texafrance Cilantro Pesto. Must try this. > The stuff at Manga seemed to be completely lacking Well - I can vouch for their cilantro pesto. They must have been having a bad day. Not the greatest I've eaten, but I've enjoyed their Firecracker Dumplings in the past, which have cilantro pesto for dipping in. I'm going to have to look it up to be sure, but I've certainly seen many other "pesto" recipes that don't use pine nuts. I've seen recipes with just about every other nut there is. There's a good question. If it isn't the classic Genoese pesto, then is it still pesto ? > Recommendations: do not salt the tuna; do not sear the > tuna, but serve it as a sashimi atop the salad; do *something* to perk > up the alleged "cilantro pesto." Yow - sounds like complete disaster. Although tuna sashimi is my favourite and I try to make it often, I'm not sure I'd trust anyone else serving it to me other than a sushi chef. I still so want to like Manga. I wish it was good as it promises. We stick with a few dishes that haven't disappointed us (E.g., Manga fried rice, Crispy Calimari, Spring Rolls, Zazai Ramen, Tokyo spaghetti) and try to give feedback about what we wish could be changed. They at least thank us politely and appear to be interested. DrRuth -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ruth Shear (prev. McKay) as ci [email removed] Dept of Chem & Biochem imapofa http://vivace.cm.utexas.edu/ University of Texas ustrali Ph: (512) 471-5755 Austin TX 78712 a Fx: (512) 471-0985 =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
NNTP-Posting-Date: Fri, 09 Jul 1999 11:21:07 CDT X-Trace: sv1-xAOXO711ci2oWh+vDHpa1TL2ky6WfpUxFHsDXTZWJAC+ X-Complaints-To: [email removed] X-Abuse-Info: Please be sure to forward a copy of ALL headers X-Abuse-Info: Otherwise we will be unable to process your complaint properly Date: Fri, 09 Jul 1999 11:28:10 -0500 Xref: alexander.INS.CWRU.Edu austin.food:5038 Joann Z. wrote: > Bottom line: Stick with the appetizers, drink beer, pick your location > carefully. There are a few dishes they do well. The pork potstickers are pretty good. The Mu Shu U is quite good--not really a traditional Moo Shi but tasty nonetheless. The U Fried Rice could be brilliant if it had any seasoning at all--a little sriracha and Thai basil would make it a killer dish. Service, in my experience, is uniformly awful, and the food takes forever. If anyone here has ever been to Jae's Cafe in Boston, you know what this sort of restaurant -could- be like...