Szechuan Style Beef Noodle Soup

Sometimes I get home from work and just don't feel like making dinner. Last night was one of those nights. Fortunately, I live close to many great restaurants that offer take-out. One of these restaurants is Green Tea II. Green Tea II opened their doors last month, moving into the spot that was previously occupied by Michi Kusa, a Japanese/Sushi restaurant that once upon a time was good. I don't know why they closed, but the quality and freshness of the sushi they served had deteriorated over the last year.

In comes Green Tea II, with their outstanding Szechuan Style Beef Noodle Soup. The owner claims it's the best in Boston, I'm inclined to believe him. I've had Szechuan beef noodle soups from other places in Framingham and from a few places in Chinatown, and Green Tea II's soup is definitely the best of the bunch.

Almost as good as the soup is the description of the soup on the menu. This soup is listed on their Herbal Menu, along with several other dishes that claim healthful benefits. Here is what Green Tea II's menu says about it's:

Szechuan Style Beef Noodle Soup (Dang Gui, Sichuan Peppercorn, fructus lycii etc.) Nutritional value: This dish warms the internal organs, alleviates pain, expels dampness, and Reduces swelling. Promotes blood circulation, relieves liver damage, and improves kidney function."


This soup is very spicy, and as the menu states, contains some stuff that is supposed to be real good for you. Dang gui, also known as Angelica sinensis or Chinese angelica, is an herb indigenous to China. Wikipedia says it "is widely used in Chinese traditional medicine to treat gynecological ailments, fatigue, mild anemia and high blood pressure. Chinese angelica possesses the distinction of being one of the few good non-animal source of Vitamin B12, along with some varieties of yeast and microalgae like spirulina. It has analgesic, anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic and sedative effects. The plant's phytochemicals consist of coumarins, phytosterols, polysaccharides, ferulate, and flavonoids.

Also in this soup is fructus lycii, also known as wolfberry or goji berry. This small orangey-red berry is known for it's high antioxidant properties and ranks high among other "superfruits".

Green Tea II also has a full dim sum menu on the weekends. I'll be checking that out soon.

Green Tea II
2 Beacon Street
Framingham, MA 01701
Ph (508) 820-0006

See Michelle's review of Green Tea II at ThisIsFramingham.com
Recent Press - Metrowest Daily News

Birth of a Foodie

The date was March 21, 2003 and my birthday was a few days away. I'd had some good birthdays in the past, but this night was about to top the list.

My girlfriend J, who is now my wife, took me to dinner at Tremont 647. A "fun and funky restaurant serving up bold American food" in Boston's South End neighborhood. Do not confuse the South End with South Boston (also called Southie) which is another Boston neighborhood although not quite as gastronomically gifted as the South End, but I digress.

J had heard that Tremont 647 was a great eat in Boston, so she booked the chef's table for the chef's tasting. Five courses paired with wine all while sitting at the end of the open kitchen looking down the line. Our seats were directly facing the grill. Being up close and personal with the chefs is an important detail that will become clear later.

After having a couple signature cocktails at the bar, a Tremont Tang martini and a Pineapple Martini, both mixed with house-infused vodkas, we took our seats at our table ready for a culinary treat.

Our first course was delivered by the executive chef/owner himself, Andy Husbands. The dish was pineapple fried rice served in the pineapple shell with lightly grilled shrimp. A nice glass of [will insert name of wine later] to pair and we were off to a good start.

Salt and pepper seared sea scallops served simply with a dollop of caviar came next with a glass of [will insert name of wine later]. This makes two. The dish was created by Jason Santos, chef de cuisine.

While scarfing down the scallops J and I noticed a MAMMOTH steak getting tossed on the grill. I'm not just talking about a big steak here. I'm talking about a Porterhouse the size of an NFL football. A monstrosity that dwarfed all other morsels on the grill. A ginormous hunk of meat at least three inches thick. J and I marveled at the beast while chatting with Matt, the grill master. Tremont 647 has a great grill that's hardwood-charcoal fired, giving everything a little more of that fire-kissed flavor we all love. We talked with Matt about food and knives and techniques and whatnot. Matt could tell I was interested in food, and said, "You know, sometimes Andy has his friends come in and help out on the line. If you're interested I'll say something to him." My eyes lit up..."Sure, that'd be great!" We forgot about that giant side of beef just for a moment, we would soon find out it was meant for us.

Andy set down course three for us. It was the most fun plate of the evening. A lobster roll, rather a "Revere Beach Lobster Roll" as Andy called it. A classic lobster roll, lightly dressed lobster meat served in a buttered, split-top hot dog bun. This classic was served with a generous pour of [will insert name of wine later], and an invitation from Andy to spend a night in his kitchen.

Remember that prodigious porterhouse I mentioned earlier? It was plated and set down in front of us for course four. Holy cow, pun intended. This was the biggest piece of meat I'd ever seen and it was delicious. A glass of [will insert name of wine later] was perfectly paired up and now all that remained was dessert.

For J, a trio of sorbets rounded out the tasting. For me it was Tremont's homemade sugared donuts served in a paper bag along side some homemade vanilla bean ice cream.

The foodie in me was emerging. Five courses of fantastic food, wonderful wine, and an invitation to cook in a professional kitchen. Check back soon for details of my One Night in the Kitchen.

Sorry, no food pictures. This night happened long before I conceived One Food Guy. The restaurant pictures are courtesy of Tremont 647's Photo Gallery