Drunken Tiger

I can't remember the last time I got sick from eating at a restaurant, but unfortunately for both my friend and me, we both had very bad gastro issues the morning after dining here. I gave this two stars because I appreciate places that dare to be different. The gritty concept and graffitied walls appeal to the New Yorker in me, and it is often the hole-in-the-wall eateries that are gems. This was not the experience we had.

We ordered the fried Mandu potstickers with spicy mayo, the Padak popcorn chicken with green onions and two sauces, and the Pork Belly Salad with house sauce. The potstickers were the most appealing of the three appetizers we tried, but they were overly deep-fried and the spicy mayo had no discerning flavor.

Next was the Padak popcorn chicken. These greasy, dark meat pieces of chicken were fried in what seemed to be a corn meal breading. I wish they had declared that the meat was dark, as white meat is our preference, however, I have had dark meat chicken that I've liked, but the quality of this meat seemed low, and once again we found the dipping sauces to be lacking in flavor.

Finally, we were looking forward to the Pork Belly salad for a crisp, fresh break from all the fried food. The salad was a disappointing mound of finely shredded cabbage with about five small, dark, dry slices of pork atop. As much as we didn't care for the popcorn chicken, the pork on this salad may have been what made us sick. The meat was dry and lifeless, another red flag that the meat was expired. The house sauce and green onions did absolutely NOTHING to make this salad come together, and again the sauce was flavorless.

When it came time to go, we declined the waitress's offer for a box to take home the leftovers. I generally have a Teflon stomach, but I actually get queasy when I think about this meal. I’ll still seek out and try unique eating establishments, but the Drunken Tiger experience has definitely made it so that I’ll approach these places with less curiosity and way more caution!