Royal Buffet Now Open

In what used to be Ryan's Buffet right and near the Hana World Market, Royal Buffet has now opened.

It is a standard Chinese buffet offering a sushi bar as well as a Mongolian grill station.

Royal Buffet
1813 W Parmer Lane
Austin, Texas 78727

(512) 837-7888

Din Ho Chinese Bar-BQ: Yummy!

Today, I joined three of my best friends from work at Din Ho Chinese Bar-BQ. I had eaten there a long time and enjoyed it very much. Due to the distance from my old place of employment, I wasn't able to go there.

Since I'm unemployed, I had no excuse not to eat there. Plus, one of my friends, Scott, loves Din Ho and said that we had to go. He invited Robert, a guy who doesn't really like Chinese, and Ken, another one who would not chose Chinese as his first choice for dining.

We got there about 12:30PM and we had order a big bowl of Hot and Sour soup, 2 orders of the Bar-BQ pork, General Tzo's Chicken and Beef with Snow Peas. The soup was very hot (temperature hot) and very good once it cooled down a bit. Needless to say, I really enjoyed it a lot. The guys who normal aren't fans of Chinese enjoyed the soup. One of the things I enjoy about the soup is the spicy nature of it. I have noticed that most Chinese restaurants will not make the soup very spicy which is a disappointment to me. Well, Din Ho hit the mark in balancing spice and taste perfectly.

The rest of our meal came out quickly. The pork was absolutely great and had the classic Chinese Bar-BQ taste. Perfectly glazed with the sauce that you would die for. The General's Tsu's chicken was a little disappointing. Most of the time is served a little spicy, but this time it was off a bit. Good, but not great like it usually is. The beef and snow peas was absolutely delicious. Robert and Ken fought over the dish and they loved it.

The place has changed a bit since I have been there. It is bigger and looks great. We were seated near the seafood tanks and the kitchen. Not a great location, but still fairly comfortable. When you enter the restaurant, you see the ducks having in the window. This reminded me a lot of family-owned Chinese restaurants that I have eaten many a meal in New York.

The wait staff was on their toes today. They made sure that we were fully taken care of. My tea glass did not run empty and I didn't have to ask for anything. So, the wait staff gets an A for their hard work. Thanks, guys!

Well, I will definitely be back to enjoy another meal. I need a fix of duck and pork. With the enormous menu, I am sure you will find something wonderful to enjoy.

The address is
8557 Research Blvd # 116
Austin, TX 78758
(512) 832-8788

Church Potluck on 9/14

When I have time to cook, I do enjoy it. As I begin my preparation for the church potluck, I think about all of the times I have prepared meals. To me, it is a wonderful moment in the kitchen. The reward is seeing the smiling faces when they enjoy a great meal.
I will be preparing the following items for the potluck. As my salad course, I will be preparing an Oriental cole slaw and a fresh fruit salad. My main course will be a chilled shrimp salad and a Chinese Chicken Chop Chop salad. As my sides, I will prepare a chilled sauteed green bean salad oriental style and a macaroni salad. For my dessert course, I will preparing a fruit cocktail cake.
I will be adding the recipes shortly. I just need to get back to the kitchen to continue my preparation for tomorrow's cooking.

Love Eating Oriental Food!

I love to eat Oriental food. Since my mom was Korean, I grew up eating Oriental food. Finding places around Austin, Round Rock and Cedar Park is too difficult. So, here are a couple of places that my wife, Karla, and I enjoy going to.

Great Wall
1906 S Bagdad RdLeander, TX 78641(512) 528-8146

Try the Hibachi Beef or Chicken. My wife and daughter love the Jumbo Rainbow Shrimp.