Pork. The Middle Kingdom has secret reserves. It’s the sun around which Chinese cuisine circulates. It’s “the other white meat” that basks in Asian adoration. The menu of Gary Wang’s recently renovated and revamped space, The Grumpy Pig, is an ode to the fine swine. Feeling the fare at his venue (formerly Kin Cafe) didn’t live up to expectations, Wang has brought in Vietnamese-American Vinh Nguyen, who put together a short list of fun offerings that’ll be music to meat-lovers ears.
House special The Grumpy Sandwich (RMB55) epitomizes what the team is trying to showcase. Pork is slow-cooked, shredded into succulent mouthfuls, drizzled with tangy bacon vinaigrette and smeared with smoky bacon-onion compote. There are some pickled vegetables in there somewhere, but what shines is the purity of flavors in every tender bite. It’s a sandwich that relies on the clarity of its ingredients instead of sauces, cheese or messy toppings.
Making eyes at other parts of the menu, old favorite tonkotsu ramen (RMB45) is still available and – if anything – even better than before. The unctuous chicken and pork-based broth has depth and heft, the noodles are chewy and the toppings well thought out; thick wedges of stewed bamboo shoots, bean sprouts, intense rounds of pork belly cooked to fall-apart softness and half an egg with a vibrant, creamy yolk. Those on a health kick probably shouldn’t be eating here, but a light and tangy papaya salad (RMB40) topped with batons of pink watermelon set over a bed of baby greens will please anyone at the table.
For snacks to munch on with your Red Seal Ale (RMB45) or vegetal celery martini (RMB55), try an order of pork street toast (RMB35), a take on the classic Vietnamese street food. Ground pork and mashed and shredded sweet potato get piled on top of a baguette round. Dusted in rice flour and deep-fried, it’s at once chewy and crispy, savory and sweet.
The Grumpy Pig, which now features exposed brick, chunky wooden tables and elaborate wooden doors, is part of the team’s larger space; set in back of a boutique-y clothes store and beneath a DJ studio upstairs. But you don’t need to be music-lover looking for a new set of earphones or the latest beats, the restaurant is set to become a destination in itself. The pork stands alone.
See listing here.
