The Dumpling Inn and Shanghai Saloon is one
of the buzzing spots down on Convoy Street; it
has a happy hour at the bar only, and that's
where we go. It's an odd arrangement, with
the two enterprises sharing a kitchen and a
staff, but the menus are different, and you
can get only some items from one menu in the
other place. the oddest part is that there
is not a clearly defined division; it all is
in one large square room. One's head spins,
and after being caught out once, we have
decided to go to the bar part only, at happy
hour time by preference.

We got pork dumplings, which were pretty
standard, a bit clunky, as if there had never
been a Chinese grandmother in the kitchen
(most of the staff looks white or Hispanic).
The flavors were good except for a slight
fizziness that I associate with not quite
freshly minced pork. The ginger-scallion soy
sauce tasted authentic enough. We got this
for Lilli's sake, but he had only a couple,
claiming nonhungriness, so I called for
some hot sauce (it came as ladoban, so too
salty for me) and Chris nd I ate the rest.

Pork belly steamed bun sliders caught my eye:
the meat was not as luxurious as I like,
probably gringified; the braise was not quite
long enough, so the meat was a little tough
and a little stringy. Very sweet mantou.
Scallions, okay, pickled Vietnamese style
turnip and carrot julienne, okay, and cilantro,
lots of it, less okay.

Chris jumped up and down like a little girl
when she saw pig ears on the menu. These were
sliced, floured, and fried, pretty basic, but
not crisp enough - accentuating the gelatinous
nature of the dish, so she gave up after a while,
leaving me to finish the rather large serving,
which I did, all the time wishing that I was
eating fried something else.

On the wine list were various rather excellent
deals, which were all sold out. The bartender
claimed that they were changing the inventory.
I noted that what was on offer was all the old
wines that weren't a great deal, points against.
We ended up with the mediocre Sterling Cabernet
for too much money but not quite extortionate.
It was young, grapy, a little too sweet, a
little too obvious. The girls liked it.

=
Cotixan is a local chain of 24-hr Mexican fooderies
- it's most notable for being the place Lilli took
refuge after delivering me to the emergency room
a year and half ago. It's halfway between a fast-
food joint and a restaurant, clean but frillless.
Doesn't bother me. There are good frying smells
coming from the kitchen, which is right behind the
cashier, so semi-open. As with many such places, you
order, pay, and wait. They call you pretty soon.

Lilli got the combinacion #1, a machaca taco and a
cheese enchilada, rice, beans, and salad. She
pronounced the taco excellent and gave me some of
the shredded beef, which was plain but good. She
hated but ate the enchilada, saying it was cold.
She also finished off the pretty large serving of
rice and beans, both of which were of a good
standard, but the beans were made with oil instead
of the proper lard. The whole plate was covered in
lots and lots and lots of lettuce, of which she
ate not much. I was very happy she ate as much
food as she did.

I got a fish taco for $4 something with rice and beans
for an additional $2 something. A couple ounces of
fresh, juicy fish fried in a delicate batter with the
usual lettuce, tomato, and mayo-and-MSG-based sauce.
It was some of the best fish I've had in years. When
I go to a regular restaurant, I'm likely to get
previously frozen fish of whatever quality. I was
pleasantly surprised to say the least.

No alcohol - there is a Coke machine out back.
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