WFXXXVII | Mass Food & Wine

Posted on March 31, 2014January 21, 2016 by Joe Giacobbe

Tom Yum with udon noodles from Chuan Shabu

The Kobe Beef from Chuan Shabu on Park Avenue in Worcester, MA

When it was announced that our March Foodies gathering would be at Chuan Shabu I was excited because I had been looking forward to trying Wilson Wang’s (Baba Sushi, Korzara) newest restaurant but had not had a chance to get there yet.

The menu, which has both Chinese hot pots and more traditional Szechuan dishes is extensive. Our “end of the table” decided to share some appetizers and order our food as a group.

We started with crab rangoons and scallion pancakes. While I did not indulge in the rangoons, they seemed to be very well received. The scallion pancakes, served with a variety of crushed jalapenos, scallions, garlic and soy sauce were delightful, lightly fried creations with a lot of flavor and texture. Both were served in very plentiful portions.

Next came our hot pots, Tom Yum and Satay broth with Kobe beef, chicken, shrimp dumplings, cod and a variety of veggies and noodles to cook. I focused on the Tom Yum, spicy but not overpowering with udon noodles and the Kobe beef and shrimp dumplings. The broth was outstanding, with hints of crushed red peppers, and fragrant spices. The thinly sliced beef cooked instantaneously in the boiling hot pot and took on the flavor of the broth. I added a few crushed jalapenos to add a little heat. The shrimp dumplings, which stayed moist and tender after cooking, were filled with shrimp and spices and were enjoyed with the richly flavored and bold dipping sauces. Both were outstanding.

The nicely designed space features a sleek, contemporary and open design which, when combined with the communal dining concept made our meal very enjoyable. And of course, Wilson Wang’s enthusiastic personality makes dining at any of his restaurants a fun experience.

Posted on March 30, 2014January 21, 2016 by Staff Writer

Mala broth from Chuan Shabu in Worcester

Even though it recently opened, many of my friends had already been to Chuan Shabu on Park Ave in Worcester and spoke very positively about the food and the experience – so I knew I had to check it out. The hot pot concept is simply a simmering pot of flavored broth that is usually in the center of your table. You choose various ingredients like vegetables, protein and noodles/rice to cook in the pot. Similar to a fondue concept but with an Asian flair.

Three of us decided to share a hot pot so then the task was to decide what we wanted to “cook/simmer” in the pot. Since we all enjoyed spice to our meals it was easy to decide on the Mala broth. You can choose more than one broth but we kept it simple at one. To complement the broth we went with the Beef tongue and Shrimp without tails and for our vegetables it was the button mushrooms and broccoli. We each chose our own style of noodles – for me it was the oriental noodles. All of these items come raw allowing you to cook them in the broth you choose. At first I was worried about the hot pot being on the table but while it kept the food hot you never felt the warmth on the table. We definitely chose right on the broth – it was spicy but not overwhelming (unless you piled your bowl with all of the hot peppers that came in the broth). The beef tongue came thinly sliced which made the cooking process easy and fast. Everyone can choose how they want to eat the hot pot food and all 3 of us approached it differently. For me, I set some beef tongue, shrimp, noodles, and some veggies into the broth and after a very short time used the small utensils to grab the food out and into our my own personal bowl – of course I grabbed some broth to make it more of a soup.

It was a fun adventure and good way to try new foods while having fun with friends. Reasonably priced. For me it was the right portion of food but I always knew that if I still felt hungry I could simply order more veggies, protein or noodles. Chuan Shabu is definitely a nice addition to the Worcester food Scene – so be sure to check it out!