Needle - Silver Lake

NYCtoLA · January 3, 2021, 5:38am

Ordered quite a few things from the menu tonight. Beef curry and almond jello (not shown) are must orders for me. Also pretty fantastic are the shrimp chips. $3 for a box - and like everything here, perfectly done. Thanks for the nudge @PorkyBelly

Char Siu (fatty) the use of Peads and Barnett here is genius and IMO is worth the added cost vs what they were using before. The fat seems sweeter. Luscious, rich, sweet, savory, smoky pieces of char siu.

Pork Chop Bun

Scrambled eggs and shrimp

Tofu Claypot

Wood Ear this was a great dish - a hint of spiciness (chili oil?) accents the tender yet slightly chewy texture

PorkyBelly · January 3, 2021, 5:54am

didn’t realize ryan met mei working at ink.

moonboy403 · January 3, 2021, 6:20am

Thoughts on the dish? Looks like the broth has more viscosity and coating the ingredients much better here than when I had it.

PorkyBelly · January 3, 2021, 6:46am

peads and barnetts pork belly char siu (fatty)
not much more to say. best char siu in the city. I may or may not have licked the plate clean of the delicious glaze and liquid pork fat.

shrimp chips
just like the almond jello, you’ll wonder where it all went after you eat the entire thing in one sitting.

100x better than the “best shrimp chips in the world. no contest.” malt vinegar shrimp chips I recently tried at mister jiu’s

almond jello 2.0
I’m liking this version more and more.

PorkyBelly · January 5, 2021, 3:31am

@moonboy403

moonboy403 · January 5, 2021, 3:51am

Can’t wait. I have something similar where the sauce had gone through multiple batches of chicken and duck wings already.

moonboy403 · January 6, 2021, 6:31pm

jidori chicken wings, soy sauce, burdock, scallion
Tasty and perfectly cooked. Snappy skin and moist flesh with a bite.

JeetKuneBao · January 6, 2021, 7:14pm

How was the penetration of the sauce into the meat?

(That sounded pretty dirty huh)

moonboy403 · January 6, 2021, 7:18pm

Haha. The wings soaked up plenty of flavors, but in general, most flavors come primarily from the outer layer of the wings.

PorkyBelly · January 7, 2021, 1:31am

JeetKuneBao · January 7, 2021, 2:13am

And it’s now sold out

moonboy403 · January 7, 2021, 2:15am

Who grabbed the last order?!

PorkyBelly · January 7, 2021, 2:37am

still available

J_L · January 7, 2021, 3:22am

The King of Flavor.

PorkyBelly · January 28, 2021, 5:56am

another delicious and perfectly executed meal from chef ryan. loved the dried shrimp in the fried rice for extra umami and the cauliflower for texture.

beef was even better and more tender than before.

not pictured, almond jello and shrimp chips.

jidori chicken wings, soy sauce, burdock, scallion

sz ranch free range organic eggs, shrimp, scallion

first light grass-fed wagyu bavette, onion, scallion, bell pepper, oyster sauce

shrimp, egg, cauliflower, bamboo shoot, dried scallop, scallion

moonboy403 · January 28, 2021, 10:38am

How’s their wok hei? I think they got a legit wok range now! They’ll probably need to get used to their new toy to maximize it though.

J_L · January 28, 2021, 11:44am

Last time I ate their beef & onion (like 1-2 weeks ago), Chef Ryan’s wok hei was outstanding.

TheCookie · January 29, 2021, 6:21pm

Been sticking close to home. Lotsa’ cookin’. Thanks for the vicarious food porn.

PorkyBelly · January 30, 2021, 4:47am

much improved from my previous visit.

Dommy · January 30, 2021, 5:41am

While being in quarantine for over a month… I said… One of the first things I’m getting when I am free and clear… was the Silky Eggs and Shrimps at Needle…

TODAY WAS THE DAY!!

I loved… loved… loved… it! YES. I did put ketchup… but does it make you feel better that it’s Kagome Japanese Ketchup? We also got the Cauliflower blossoms. And they were wonderful! The sauce was great… plenty of cashews and scallion. Really a wonderful dish that could stand on its own… and can confirm… excellent Wok Hei

And of course, had to order the Char Siu. This was my first go at Needle’s Char Siu and went all in by order a fatty cut. It totally lived up to the hype and the nuance of the sauce was great. The five spice, the savoriness with the sweetness. I recently tried to make Char Siu using the recipe from the Nam Wah Cookbook. MEH. Using sauce and using the lacquering technique with a bottle of Noh is better. But this one really special. Next time I will try the regular because I think this sauce would be wonderful with a juicer meatier cut as well.

I also got the Tofu Clay Pot dish, but will have that to lunch tomorrow. I look forward to because I love Tofu and clay pot dishes. Gotta make these few trips out count!