When I write about restaurants on Instagram, they’re usually brief takes accompanied by a photo or two. (You can see my feed right here on ethnojunkie.com, updated almost daily, by selecting the “Instagram” category from my home page – no signup required.) But because of Instagram’s character count limitations, it’s often necessary to break up a review into several parts. This one originally appeared as five posts, published on November 22, 25, 27, 28, and 29, 2017.
Taking a break from Thanksgiving cooking to give thanks for the exquisite cooking at Private Kitchen, 36-35 Main St, Flushing, Queens. You’re going to hear a lot more about this place – trust me. Here are a few of the delicious dishes we tried:
(Click any photo to view in glorious high resolution.)
Braised Dongpo Style Pork Shoulder
Tempting Braised Dongpo Style Pork Shoulder, a red cooked Hangzhou dish served with airy steamed bao, garnered murmurs of anticipation from our eager group…
Braised Dongpo Style Pork Shoulder
…as the warming flame beneath the serving dish glowed with the promise of lusciousness.
Braised Dongpo Style Pork Shoulder
After being expertly carved by our server…
Braised Dongpo Style Pork Shoulder
…we rolled our own: a little bit of meat and a little bit of fat yielded a big bite of rich flavor.
Clams and Baby Bok Choy with Scrambled Eggs
Another tasty dish from our feast and one you don’t see everywhere. Clams and Baby Bok Choy with Scrambled Eggs can be found in the Vegetables section of the menu. Simple yet satisfying, almost comfort food.
Grandma’s Mixed Cold Dish
This delicious appetizer is Grandma’s Mixed Cold Dish and oh, how I wish my grandma could have cooked like that! Easily one of the most appreciated items that we ordered, it’s at the top of my list for the next time I bring a group to Private Kitchen.
Dry Stir Fried Squid Tentacles
True story from the day we went to Private Kitchen, 36-35 Main St, Flushing, Queens:
I tasted one. “Oh, man! These Dry Stir Fried Squid Tentacles are bangin’!” That’s all I said. That’s all that needed to be said. The rest was an ecstatic blur.
Braised Duck and Bamboo Shoots with Special Beer Sauce
That’s the way the menu describes it, but I’ve always seen it simply as “Beer Duck”. Braising any meat long enough will render it languorous and defenseless against your chopsticks and choppers but the beer only helps to further tenderize the duck (not to mention adding a piquant flavor). It’s a dish worth trying if you’ve never done so, and Private Kitchen does it rather well. Bamboo shoots, bok choy, and a bit of spice were the other significant components. Wish I had more of those steamed bao to soak up the extra sauce. Or perhaps a straw.
Private Kitchen is located at 36-35 Main St, Flushing, Queens.