Tasty Takeaway

Cheap, flavourful, and fast.
Well, it’s not that cheap per se. But the Shengjianbao aka fried pork buns are at least. They sell 4 of those mouth watering delights for a mere $ 4.50
There are many Fried pork bun imitators out there around Auckland’s busy Chinatown aka Dominion road. But none of them measures up to this tiny little shop in Mt Albert.
The base of the pork buns are fried to a perfect golden brown, with a satisfying crunch when you bite into it. The filling isn’t overwhelming in seasoning and provides just enough feedback to let you know that it’s made of minced pork.
This place has got to be one of my little guilty pleasures. I would actually just drive there sometimes by myself and order up 2 portions of the fried buns and a side of shanghainese wontons. It’s not a big shop, they only have seating for around 12 people. So it’s not meant for a dinner party or big gathering. And sometimes I do wonder how they manage to keep an A grade. (The last comment is purely related to the unkempt décor in the shop and not meant for the cleanliness of the kitchen area.)
One quick note though, the owner insists on payment in cash. They don’t have a eftpos terminal for the those plastic lovers.

Yet again it is one of these dining experiences I love. Small, nothing fancy and priced not too bad. It’s run by a Shanghainese couple and so the menu consists of mainly Shanghainese cuisine and it has the policy of pay when you order and by cash only. No eftpos or credit. The menu on the wall is in chinese and of quite a good selection, but don’t worry if you don’t understand it as they do have a menu in english.
My favourite here is the Shanghainese fried bun, 生煎，really delicious and of which I can eat so many until I am near to bursting (or 吃饱了, as the chinese would put it.) Another favoured is the pork and green bokchoy wonton, 菜肉大馄饨。 I even know of some Shanghainese living here who reckon the bun is of the same standard if not better than of what you would taste in Shanghai. Well done to this couple for being able to produce the dishes so well that they taste just like or better than back home and at a decent price. Great place to go if you are into this delicious cuisine!!!