Wowza! Well it's been awhile .. a very long while. And I'm finally going to do another review! Yay! Even though no one ever reads this (except my dear boyfriend), I guess it's important to keep food-blogging. For my own memory. Lately, I've realized how difficult it is for me to remember things as the years go by. I have the worst memory out of all the people I know. It's not quite the importance of the food itself, but the way I felt when I ate it and how much I enjoyed the moment and with whom. All these posts act as memory-joggers actually! :) Although I won't be cheesy and describe my emooootions, I'd most likely remember the general feel at the time. So, here's the review:

In Temple City, California .. there's this wonderful mom and pop joint called Dumpling Inn. They're Chinese-Koreans (meaning Chinese people raised in Korean), so they have customers of both ethnicities, and then some. We were there on a weekday during the lunch special so there weren't many people. Actually, we were the only ones for most of our entire visit, so service was good. The lady who owned the place was very maternal and gave us tips on how to order and what the best deal would be, even encouraging us to order less. She insisted we would not be able to finish. And true to her words, we left stuffed and carrying take-out bags.

(1) Steamed Pork Dumplings - So juicy. So tender. So delicious and home-styled! It's nothing like those tiny pre-packaged supermarket dumplings you would get at Cha for Tea or some other cafe-styled restaurant. This is the real stuff. Hardy, meaty pork and onion stuffed home-made dumpling skin. That's right -- home made dumpling skin. I only know this because I've been going to this place since I was knee-high. Apparently, they do it the old-fashioned way: pulling and tugging on dough until its chewy and thin.

(2) Steamed Fish dumplingsss. Do NOT pass these up! Stuffed with fish paste, these babies are the best ones I've had so far. They're tender and juicy and still pretty big, considering seafoods on the menu are usually served in lesser portions. Well, not these. Although smaller than the pork dumplings, they're still very packed with the paste. =) This was definitely one of my faves.

(3) A fried chicken dumpling and wonton skin that came with the lunch special. Fried isn't my favorite so it was just 'eh' to me. At least it wasn't dripping with grease like some "Chinese" places (ahemmm Panda Express). I do have to admit, it was perfectly crisp on the outside, but the dumplin skin was still chewy and tender on the inside. This I know from the plate of fried dumplings that we ordered.

(4) Fried pork dumplings, I believe. Read comments above.(5) Za Jiang Mien - oh babyyy. There's no direct translation, but look for noodles in dark sauce, or something of that sort, on the menu. =) It's not amazing, but its something I grew up with. So I have a special place in my heart for this. One thing to note about this dish is that the noodles are handmade. All the carbs (minus the rice) at this place is made right in the kitchen, with a chef pulling on dough for chewy perfection. These noodles had the right texture. We couldn't finish this so we took it to go. Note: Eat this hot! It's just not the same heated in a microwave.

(6) This was the lunch special beef and brocolli. It was alright .. just your average Chinese restaurant beef&brocolli. There was definitely MSG though, which accounts for the super savor of the flavor. To all those places that boast NO MSG, screw you! Authentic Chinese restraunts should be using MSG and lots of it -- its the wok staple. To all those Americans who are "health conscious," you all use chemically engineered chicken broth and flavoring for your soups and what not. Tell me that's healthier than MSG. Go ahead, proveee it.

(7) Fried Rice that comes with the lunch special. Its .. fried rice? Nothing special. What a typical Asian mom would whip up in 5 minutes.

(8) Here's the Korean flava to the restaraunt. Kimchee served at every table. Not like Korean BBQ kimchee, although I am told there are different kinds of kimchee. This was on the sweeter side. The lettuce was very crunchy still -- very home-made. By the taste and look of it, it hasn't been underground or soaked for longer than a week. But it's free, so who am I to complain?

All in all, this was a good experience. Now I can cross off one more thing on my list! We left satisfied, our stomachs and wallets. We didn't have to blow big money for this meal. I believe the check came out to be about $25. One bad thing was how hot it was outside (this was during summer break) after so much food and how thirsty we were after the meal (msg dehydrates, as does any salty food). I would recommend this to anyone looking for a home-sweet-home kind of food. The experience was reminiscent of me coming home from college Friday night, and my mom expecting me to down hardy home-cooking. If you come alone or do take-out, $8 can get you 6 of those big fat dumplings in a white styrofoam smileyface box. You will not leave disappointed.