Le Ching tea house shoppesville Greenhills.
Anyone who are familiar to Greenhills shopping center would certainly knew Le Ching tea house. It's been a mainstay of the place since who knows when.
Like most Chinese tea houses, you don't come here for the tea but for the food. But unlike the usual Yamcha menu that is synonymous to tea houses, Le ching is more a Noodle and Rice bowl establishment.
I've been dinning at it's restaurant since I was a kid. It was originally called "North Villa" or "South Villa", actually I quite forgot about it. I think there were two competing stores serving the same menu that over time they then merge into one entity. That's why there are are two independent stores inside Shoppesville. (Le ching 1 and Le ching 2) facing either ends of the mall.
Their Beef and Wonton noodles comes in these small bowl that's seem readily overflowing. It looks like a small dish but the noodle are tightly packed when served that one will find that they're a heaping helping of noodles when untangled.
The soup is salty and as much possible one shouldn't consume. It absorbs the yellow color and shrimp flavor of the thin Hong Kong style noodles. Just let it soak and heat up the noodles.
Eating these noodles remind of a scene from Jackie Chan's Drunken Master film.
When one eats at Le Ching one should order their Spare-rib rice. Much like a Burger is to Mcdonalds or the Gyudon to Yoshinoya, their spare-rice is Le Ching signature dish. That dish alone lays Le Ching's reputation. It's been touted by quite a few food reviewer as the best spare-rib rice in the country. Though such distinction is debatable, Le Ching's a good contender. I myself imagine that it's emergence in the mid- 80's brought about it's popularity to the menu of other small shop Chinese restaurants in the country.
Now mind you I've been eating this stuff for a long time, and even though my taste to it might be a little prejudiced, I've got to admit the quality of the dish sometimes varies from time to time, possibly from the temperament of the cook on that day.(the food are already pre-cooked off-site)
They sometimes use cheaper cuts meat instead of the tastier by the bone spare-ribs piece. And, the rice they use is isn't something to write about. Still when they got it all right, it's unbeatable as a satisfying hunger buster.
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