Back to a classic, Urban China

One of the joys of coming back to Edmonton is revisiting old friends. During my time in medical school I had the joy and pleasure of meeting a number of wonderful friends and colleagues who I consider lifelong friends. It was without question that I would get together with them when I went home for New Years. For one of my close friends, it seemed our favourite spots was Urban China. I recall having countless suppers and endless discussions about politics, current events, popular culture, and occasionally medicine. Perhaps it was apt that we ended up at Urban China for another meal.

Urban China is located in Chinatown on the corner of 101 Street and 106 Avenue. A hotspot during the weekends for dim sum and for traditional Chinese style food at night, Urban China has grown a reputation amongst the Chinese community in Edmonton.

The menu is a bit difficult to navigate. As with most Chinese restaurants, you will find a significant different between the English and Chinese menus. In fact, simply looking at the English side might give the aura of a westernized Chinese joint serving chicken balls! However, the real trick would be to go with someone who is able to read and communicate in Chinese.

We started off with a dim sum item: Turnip Cake. I have to hand Urban China a lot of credit as they consistently make some of the best turnip cake I have ever had. Perfectly fried golden brown on the outside but moist and smooth on the inside, these cakes are excellent! A bit of meat gives a nice textural and flavour contrast to the soft turnip.

We always order the Daily Soup (Lai Tong). Devilishly deceptive in its name, the daily soup is a grand amalgamation of organ meats and herbals. The clear broth looks nonchalant but is actually chalked full of flavour and essence. You can tell Urban China painstakingly brewed this over many hours as all the ingredients have imparted their flavours into the broth. Simply wonderful.
 

Our protein of the day was the Drunken Chicken Hot Pot. A half chicken stewed in a wine based broth, this also looks deceptively simple. The flavour lies in the contrast between the lean meat, the fatty skin and the wine and herbal based broth. Mixed with a bowl of rice, this becomes the ultimate exemplification of umami.

Blanched Dou Miao (Pea Shoots) with Crab Sauce was our vegetable offering of the day. Crisp blanched Pea Shoots are paired with a crab meat and egg topping. The bits of crab meat and salty egg offer a nice contrast to the earthiness of the vegetable. Again this goes wonderfully well with a bowl of rice.

Feeling a tad gluttonous, we also ordered a Fried Tofu with Mixed Vegetables. Fried Tofu is somewhat of a kryptonite for me as I love the contrast of the thick semi-crisp skin and the soft interiors of the tofu. Here they are fried nicely with an assortment of Chinese mushrooms and vegetables. Above all, the soy based sauce holds the entire dish together.

Urban China offers solid Chinese cuisine and is a staple for both dim sum and sit down dinners in Edmonton. More-over, it encompasses all the fun meals and memories I have amalgamated there and, for that, I will always hold it dear and close to me.