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David Golombek\\
21F.030\\
Journal \#5\\\\
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Of all the restaurants in Boston's Chinatown, Asian Garden reminds me
the most of Hong Kong.  You enter it by descending down a steep set of
stairs, down under a set of regular stores at street level, and are
immediately greeted by a wall of fish tanks, filled with prawns,
lobsters, eels, and various types of fish.  The nets and scoops
sitting on top of the lids make it evident that you may be looking
right at your dinner --- although I've never tried, I'd suspect they
follow the Hong Kong policy of allowing diners to choose their fish.
After walking past a small waiting area, you enter into the main
dining room, a decent sized room packed with tables, some large and
circular with lazy susans, others small and square.  The large tables
are {\it always} filled with Asian families, no matter when I arrive,
anywhere from 10am till 3am.  The walls are covered with pictures of
dishes, awards the restaurant has won, and wooden carvings.  But
perhaps the most noticeable sensation upon entering the main room is
the noise; a wave of Mandarin and Cantonese washes over you as you step
in, for although Asian Garden is not terribly loud, the acoustics are
harsh, and the diners loud and talkative.

Bringing a large group to Asian Garden is an absolute necessity,
because most people can never settle on a single dish to order.  The
selection is very nice, listed inside a menu that is primarily
Mandarin, with English subtitles.  They also do a large business in
specialty dishes not on the menu custom ordered, as evidenced by many
of the fancy creations that show up on other tables, or when you go
with a relative of the owners, as I was able to do on one occasion.
My friends and I have adopted a $N-1$ strategy for ordering --- that
is, one fewer dishes than people, because the quantity of food on each
platter is tremendous.  The dishes are always nicely arranged,
increasingly elaborate with the fancier dishes, reaching extremes with
the custom dishes, with very elaborate flowers carved out of
vegetables.  The colors are bright and contrasting, with green
vegetables on the same plate as burgundy beef, or white noodles
underlying a dark peanut sauce.  

Despite the impressiveness of the surroundings, nearly all else is
forgotten when the food arrives, because the flavor is so good.  It's
impossible to describe the flavors, because there are so many of them;
ginger leaps out from a light braising on shrimp, anchovies add a
salty bite to fried rice, bits of spicy peppers scare you within the
Kung Pao Chicken.  Conversations slows a bit (for my friends and I at
least) as we concentrate on the food for a while, not wanting to let
our favorite dishes disappear without grabbing our share.  Waiters
refill water glasses frequently, and bring new tea cups whenever a lid
is propped up, usually quiet and efficient (although having native
speakers along certainly helps).  

At the end of the evening, the bill is surprisingly small, and
everyone is stuffed.  Asian Garden is my favorite spot in Chinatown,
and I try to return at least once a month.  They specialize in
incredible food, but the atmosphere is also nice, and the wait is
never long.  It is not as fancy a restaurant as China Pearl or many of
the larger establishments, nor as fast as the small take-out style
places, but I think the food is better than the competitors, and it's
a nice place to relax.

In the United Stated, Chinese dining has been separated into two
categories, the quick, cheap fast food type, and the fancy, elaborate
type.  Chinese delivery or take-out places have sprung up everywhere
in the country, and although many have added extensive seating areas,
the cooking style is still aimed towards speed rather than quality.
However, in areas with large Chinese populations, fancy restaurants
have formed to serve a taste of home.  Japanese restaurants are almost
exclusively of the fancy and expensive variety, many specializing in
Sushi, others with fuller menus.  Japanese restaurants have spread
widely, usually one of the few fancy exotic restaurants you'll find
through much of the country.  Korean restaurants have been slower to
spread, still being centered around large Korean communities such as
Los Angeles, but the originality of much of Korean cooking is likely
to make it a popular cuisine as restaurants spread.  Another quick
spreader is Vietnamese noodle shops (specializing in Pho), which have
recently been popping up all over the country.  Boston recently
acquired two new Pho restaurants (in addition to the two original
spots in Chinatown, which are much better), Pho Republique and Pho
Pasteur.  

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