I’ve just been taking a short blogging hiatus since I’ve been back in the US. I should be back to normal speed in the next day or two. That time you couldn’t access my blog was probably due to a technical issue, which has since been resolved (I hope). If you ever have problems getting the site to load, send me an e-mail at bensinchina at yahoo dot com. But for now, we should be okay.

Not to insult your nationalism or you Tianjinism, but I must say that I was completely disappointed with goubuli baozi. The first time I went to Tianjin in 2005, my immediate plan of action was to seek out the famous goubuli. I found a goubuli shop and ordered a plate. They were virtually identical to the baozi I had eaten in Fujian, not bad, but just plane old baozi. I tried goubuli baozi at several other Tianjin restaurants, all with similar results. However, and this is a big “however,” what I did find is that Tianjin has some of the absolute best snacks and street food (I wish I had taken more pictures) of anywhere in China. Ironically, they aren’t nearly as famous as the 狗不理包子 and 麻花 that come to mind when everybody thinks of Tianjin.

Hah! Clearly you’ve spent far too much time in old Santanas and none at all in a GTI.

Maybe it is just me, or just my perception of how baozi should be eaten.

For baozi to be popular in NA, the stuffing has to be visible, like hot dog, taco, pizza or burger. You see what you are getting, so there is no surprises or mistakes. Like dumplings, every time we eat with non-Chinese friends, they have to ask “what’s inside” first before they jump in. Plus, some baozi have more stuffing than others depending on the vendor or brand, I don’t want to be ripped off by finding out so little meat inside only after I pay for them. My son actually counts how many pieces of of pepperoni on the pizza slice. If it is less than five, “I want the other slice”. For baozi, you can’t do that.

FYI, the type of baozi in 7/11 and its friends are microwave style types that you can buy in the grocery shops and eat at home too. Though I don’t think I’ve seen the keema curry or pizza baozi in the grocery store though–only the meat filling ones. The pizza one is my favorite one too.

I’m not a food expert like you Ben, but I think you would enjoy exploring the food options in Taiwan someday. Also, they have an incredible number of 7/11s, but I don’t remember any particularly appetizing food there.

Anyway, I used to really enjoy picking up my baozi and heading to the internet bar with a little bottle of wine from a 7/11 after work. There was a beef and pepper baozi that tasted like nothing else I’ve ever eaten.