Wu Er by Wow BBQ in Brookline

   I recently had the opportunity to try Wu Er a new restaurant in Brookline featuring authentic Chinese BBQ, spicy pots, and tapas. Wu Er is the third venture from the behind Wow BBQ. Wow BBQ began as a food truck a few years ago, and was the first place in Boston to serve authentic Chinese BBQ lamb skewers. The food truck was so popular they opened up a brick and mortar location in Malden with over 40 different types of meat skewers all done traditionally - seasoned and cooked over a natural gas grill with volcano rocks to preserve the signature smokey flavor you'd find in China.
   The new Brookline location is the most high end and features a full bar with creative cocktails, plus several tapas and family style dishes in addition to the skewers. I ordered a mix of the tapas style dishes, but started first with these warm buns with a sweet glaze - almost like an Asian influenced sticky bun. These were delicious and also would have made a great dessert!

   Of course I had to try the skewers, and opted for the lamb that they're known for. The meat was perfectly tender and very well seasoned. I enjoyed all three dipping sauces (yogurt, chili, and carrot hummus) but my favorite was the chili which added a little bit of a kick.

   The next dish ended up being my favorite, the chorizo tiger shrimp with garlic, ginger, paprika, and butter. Warning: this dish is messy, but soooo worth it! I normally avoid shrimp with the shell because I don't like getting my hands dirty, but this came recommended and I had to try it. The sauce butter and paprika sauce with bits of chorizo was so good, I ended up scooping up all of it with the garlic bread.

   I also loved the yan su ji, bite sized pieces of five spice marinated and fried chicken. This had tons of flavor, and the chicken was perfectly crisp.

   I also enjoyed the Liang Pi (a chilled spicy noodle dish) and the five spice BBQ Asian ribs.


   I really enjoyed my first experience at Wu-Er and hope to return soon with a group to try some of the larger family style dishes like the Chili crab!