Chinese porridge at Luk Yu - Monterey Park, Los Angeles

I was first introduced to this mom-and-pop Chinese restaurant when I was a freshman in college, ate there a few times during the rest of college, but had not been back since. So it's a good opportunity for me to revisit and introduce it to my little sister (Fatmoomoo) who is now a freshman. I always remember this to be a porridge place, and it still is. I also remember it having no service, but I was wrong about that, the waitress - the same motherly aged Chinese woman who has been working there since I first visited is all smiles and even opened the door for us. Then I remember, hey, I think I left a big tip last time because she was very nice to us.

As with any college kids who have not eaten authentic-anything (except for authentic dorm food) for a while, we ordered a bunch of plates so we could eat til we drop. Usually when your belly gets bigger, your wallet gets smaller. Not in here! We had the thousand-year-old-egg and pork porridge, fish fillet porridge, ja-leung (I'm still trying to figure out how this fried delicacy is translated) and chow mein with soy sauce (not the typical chow mein), all for about $20, and still had plenty to take home for an encore). The chow mein with soy sauce was not the spectacular plate that I was anticipating, but the porridge really delivered. They are so flavorful that they don't taste like they were made plain and extra ingredients were put in just before serving. (and if they were, kudos to them, certainly didn't taste like that).

Bottom line:
It's an authentic Chinese place, no gimmicks. It's no wonder why I remember this as a porridge place.

Type of food:
Chinese

Price range:
$2-5 or so per plate (simply affordable)