but, after several visits, I think they deserve their own thread.
They’re a work in progress, and almost every time I’ve been there the menu has been slightly different from my previous visit. The hot Italian sausage is out, but the more interesting-sounding Sichuan Style Spicy Pig Feet is in. I gotta get me some of those before they vanish, too.
To move from hypotheticals to facts: their stuffed breads are always excellent. Their lamb stuffed flatbread more bun-like with a juicy lamb pattie inside, their beef pancake (an excellent rendition of guo kui) less meaty but nicely crisp. They have just added a beef-stuffed flat bread that I haven’t yet tried.
There are some “seasonal” items on their current menu. I tried their savory zongzi today, an elongated cone of rice wrapped in bamboo leaves with ham, peas and green Sichuan peppercorns. It was fragrant and filling but also very ricey. Unlike other sticky-rice-in-leaves versions I’ve had this was all rice generously studded with bits of ham, peas and peppercorns, not rice around a filling. I liked it, but I like rice.
I also had their cold noodles (hot day today) with chicken. Lovely in every way – noodles, sprouts, slivered carrots, slivered cucumber, tender shredded chicken, with a generous container of chili oil to mix in. Their prices are a bit on the high side ($17 for this dish), but, hey, Huron Village rents.
They’re the most interesting new place to have opened in that nbd for a while and they deserve support.
Let me talk to myself – luckily I can tolerate me, and nobody else can – by adding that this mishmash of Italian and Chinese appears to be a thing. Followers of my work will know that I’m a frequent visitor and documentarian of The New York Food Court in Flushing. In a stall there, too, you will find the durian pizza, etc., that FUPO offers.
So, in the pantheon of restaurants I will not patronize due to stupid names, this may be the newest entry. And Huron Village may be over-represented, as Base Crave (nee “The Melting Pot” oh wait, that’s taken…) also occupies a spot. Actually, maybe it’s Cambridge in general, as the remaining spot in what maybe should be called a “triumvirate” rather than a “pantheon,” goes to Momi Nonmi. Which I just can’t bear to say aloud. Anyone care to chime in?
Only to say that you should please not hold FUPO’s name against them. Go ahead and be as base as you want and boycott Base Crave (their food is generally mediocre), but do give FUPO a shot as you bicycle past.
A review of this restaurant was published online this morning in the Boston Globe. There isn’t a way to post a gift link so I don’t know if this will get you to a pay wall.
From the review: “Fupo means “rich lady” in Mandarin. When Qianyi Lin told a friend that she and her husband were opening a restaurant, she wished them great success and hoped Lin became rich, hence the name.”
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