Every week, I document another dish that impressed and satiated me during my food adventures around New York City
Some restaurants that opened during the pandemic never fully opened. I recently stumbled upon Public Village on that very hip border between the Lower East Side and Chinatown.
This modern Sichuan restaurant opened during the pandemic but only for takeout or delivery. You have to ring a bell for an employee to come out to take your order. While relaying the details, you can peek into the small dining room that will hopefully one day be fully realized for old-style good times.
But for now, the good times can be found in these traditional dishes from the Sichuan region of China.
There is much to be excited about on the rotating menu here. Many of the dishes were unfamiliar to me and so I had to ask for a suggestion.
I did decide on my own to try the housemade beef jerky. Very happy to have experienced this sweet and spicy sensation covered with crunchy sesame seeds and chili pepper.
The cashier also recommended the Wan Za Noodles saying it reminded him of his childhood. The ingredients sounded intriguing and since he assured me it was spicy, I went with it. Glad I did.
This bowl of hearty noodles can be served cold or in hot soup. He suggested cold and since I was eating on the go, I figured a brothless bowl would be a much easier proposition.
The base is green spinach egg noodles that easily soaked up all the other ingredients, including hot and numbing ground pork, spinach,and the surprising addition of smashed yellow split peas.
When I googled to find some info about this dish, Wan Za comes up as Chongqing, named for the city where these originated.
They were very unique and delicious. The creamy earthy peas balanced the bold spicy pork. Not sure what dietitians would say, but this felt like a healthy guilty pleasure with all the intensity of the expected dishes from Sichuan.
Happy to eat it on the go or however Public Village is willing to serve it. Price: $15
| PUBLIC VILLAGE |
| 23 Essex Street (between Hester and Canal Street), Lower East Side (646) 476-7501 |
