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2011-05-22
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It was during the US Fleet, Carl Vinson, visited Hong Kong when we ate at Dan Ryan's. With the fleet came 6000 or so seamen, and they meant big business to the numerous bars and night clubs in Wanchai. These marine are easy to identify from the crowd: they are tall and huge, and they keep the signature 'jarhead' hair style. I guess the American cuisine gives a similar impression as the US marine: large in portion, high in starch and protein content, contains a lot of fat, delicious in a devilish
Do i agree with the negative comment on the American cuisine? Yes and no - a lot of American dishes are indeed huge in portion but empty in taste and complexity. I have watched TV programmes introducing American 'foods' so awful that would shock gourmets with their simplicity. But just as every cloud has its silver lining, America is a big country and there are delicious dishes cooked with a thoughtful chef among the big pool of foods.
Dan Ryan's - a place I have previously written reviews about and visit very frequently. Still i cannot help writing about this American restaurant I have been visiting since a very young age. The menu might be similar over the years, but we have been trying to order different dishes when we eat every time (apart from some really nice dishes that worth a re-visit), so every visit is a new eating experience.
Its business has yet not returned to its glorious past when reservation was a MUST as the place was always packed with families in for a weekend meal, yet the dim, cosy, Chicago-style restaurant was still lively and noisy with kids and babies when we arrived at 1:30. Tables were packed closely to each other, but the chairs and sofas were comfortable enough to make one not mind about their proximity to strangers anymore.
We were greeted by a cheerful waiter, the menu, and the bread basket. The first impression is important: no matter how delicious the meals might be, an awful, icing cold bread basket would definitely ruin the whole eating experience. Therefore a delicious, warm bread basket is almost a must to a meal to me. Dan Ryan's knows how to 'wow' its customers with its bread basket - the muffin, of course, is always delicious: expect to find a blend of walnuts, chocolate chips, carrot shreds in the moist and dense brownish muffin. As a matter of fact, the muffins alone is a reason why we return again and again over the years.Also in the basket were a piggy bun with a crispy crust, a wholewheat crunchy roll and a dark, rye bun which was sweeter with a 'smoky' taste. They tasted delicious with the pipped, soft butter. We could not stop eating the bread and were already half-full with all the starch we gorge in!
We did not want any pasta nor burger, so we opted for something different this time. First we had two kinds of soups.
I was thrilled to know that i could order the famous Clam Chowder in a cup size instead of the huge serving in a bread. It was cheaper too, only $38. The portion was way more reasonable for us Asians and despite its 50% less in serving, it was just as delicious as its 'full' version. It was creamy and thick: chunks of potatoes, carrots and some clams could be found in the rich, delicious soup. Crackers instead of the oyster buscuits were served with the soup, but they tasted excellent when dipped into the creamy broth. A must-have if you eat at DR!
Onion soup-$65 was baked with cheese and bread on top and the brownish, semi-clear broth carried the sweetness of stir-fried onion. It was quite big in portion so i would recommend it to be shared among two.
Buffalo chicken wings-$92 came with celery sticks and a blue cheese dressing. A traditional American fingersnack originated in Buffalo, the chicken wings were first deep-fried, then coated with the orange hot sauce. I guess the East and the West have a different interpretation on the word 'spicy' as the 'hot' sauce was not only NOT spicy but somehow sweet and sour! The wings were tough but crispy to eat; the sauce was quite refreshing but i love eating it with the salty blue cheese dressing. Yummy - if only i could eat it with a beer!
Caesar Salad with chicken - $118 is a dish we always have whenever we eat at Dan Ryan's. After trying numberous Caesar salads at Cafe Habitu, Wildfire, Hugo's and a lot other Western/Italian/American restaurants, DR's is still among the best of all (Hugo's being undoubtedly the BEST of course). We like how the lettuce were chopped into smaller pieces and tossed so evenly with the light dressing; the tomato wedges are forever fresh, fleshly and delicious; the croutons were crispy and tasty. I did not have the grilled chicken breasts but they looked good on the greens!
Louisiana crab cakes-$198 was something we ordered only for the first time. It turned out to be a right choice.The two crabcakes were made with crab meat, red pepper, celery, pepper and a lot other herbs, moulded into a burger, grilled and baked- the resultant? a Juicy, flaky but tasty patty. There were a lot of crab meat in the cakes and they were sweettttttt, but the cakes tasted quite bland if you eat them alone. A bit of lemon juice would enhance the taste by a lot and they tasted even better with the blue cheese dressing that came with the wings! I would recommend Dan Ryan's to serve the cakes with a mayo or tartar to 'moist' the thing up.
The meal was not very cheap, and the crab cake was particularly expensive. But it was worth the money as what we ordered were tasty, unlike how many American dishes are like. But Dan Ryan's do serve the notorious brainless and awful American food too - the table next to us ordered a 'steamed broccoli', and they got a plate of huge, GREEN broccoli, steamed and uncut. It looked not much different from the broccoli with stalks we see in wet markets. We were shocked.Dan Ryan's will be a nice place to chill out with your friends at, but i guess you have to be careful with what you order.
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