A few weeks ago, I noticed that Sheng Wang had posted some hand-written menus on the wall. At least some of the items were definitely new, and when I recognized the characters for zhá jiang miàn (炸酱面), I got excited - I have rarely encountered a zhá jiang miàn I have not enjoyed, at least on some level. My expectations were, in fact, exceeded. This is probably now my favorite zhá jiang miàn in New York City (at least the Chinese version of the dish - the best Korean jja jang myun is another discussion entirely), followed closely by that of HeNan Flavor. Sheng Wang's wonderful hand-pulled noodles are topped with a generous dollop of a thick sauce sweet with stewed onions and bean paste, tiny chunks of hand-minced pork, and just enough hot-pepper kick to liven things a bit up and keep it from being cloying. Comfort on a (styrofoam) plate for 4 bucks.
Also on the wall menu is 元宵圆 (yuán xiāo yuán - Lantern Festival sweet dumpling), a dish I have also enjoyed at Happy Garden Palace. They look rather like their potato balls, but whiter - the dumplings are made with glutinous rice flour, filled with the same pork filling (that's MY kind of sweet dumpling!). Like everything else here, a bargain at 10 for $3.00.
The rest of the wall menu offerings are as follows (many, many thanks to Miss Audrey Lo for her help in deciphering the hand-written characters!):
1. lǔ wèi - stewed dishes
2. lǔ yā chì - stewed duck wing (2/$1.50)
3. lǔ dà cháng - stewed pork intestine ($3.50)
4. lǔ yā zhuǎ - stewed duck feet (4/$1.00)
5. lǔ niú ròu pīn pán - stewed beef combo cold platter ($5.00)
6. chǎo lā miàn - fried hand-pulled noodle
7. mǐ fěn - rice noodle
8. niú ròu chǎo lā miàn - beef fried noodle ($6.00) This dish is not new, and has been one of my favorites here for quite a while:
9. huā gé chǎo lā miàn - clam fried noodle ($6.50)
10. dà cháng chǎo lā miàn - pork intestine fried noodle ($6.00)
11. hǎi xiān chǎo lā miàn -seafood fried noodle ($6.50)
12. yáng dǔ chǎo lā miàn - lamb tripe fried noodle ($6.50)
13. zhá jiang miàn ($4.00)
14. yuán xiāo - Lantern Festival dumplings ($3.00)
15. běn lóu chǎo lā miàn - house fried noodle ($7.00)
16. yóu yú chǎo lā miàn - squid fried noodle ($6.50)
17. niú nǎn chǎo lā miàn - beef flank fried noodle ($6.00)
18. shāo yā chǎo lā miàn - roast duck fried noodle ($6.50)
19. niú zá chǎo lā miàn - beef offal fried noodle ($6.00)
There is also a sign that advertises hot or cold mung bean soup (lǜ dòu tāng) for $2.00.
Sheng Wang
27 Eldridge St., New York 10002
212-925-0805