I just tried a wonderful dish at Mamak named Yong Tau Foo. Based on the description, I thought it would be a simple and homey dish, but it was actually quite sophisticated. As you can see from the photo, it has three distinct components. Two large cubes of soft tofu were capped with some fish stuffing. They absorbed the sauce very well and the softness of the tofu was comforting. A pair of peppers stuffed with fish and shrimp paste was at the opposite end of the scale---hot in that sneaky, wait for 5 seconds before it hits kind of way. And the pair of stuffed eggplant slices were in the middle, the eggplant nicely conveying the flavor of both the stuffing and the sauce. I really enjoyed all the flavors in this dish. And it was a very satisfying meal.
Luella's is a nouvelle BBQ outfit on the north side of Asheville. It is nestled among the trees in a lovely neighborhood. The restaurant has lots of windows for inside seating and plenty of outside seating. Service was courteous and amazingly fast. This is a combination plate with pork and brisket. Both were very moist and tender. For the pork, I tried both the mild and hot vinegar sauces. To my surprise, I preferred the milder one because it didn't assert itself too much. I enjoyed the spicy tomato sauce for my brisket. The hushpuppies were very good. The fried okra was fresh out of the fryer and excellent. The slaw was of the vinegary variety, which I usually enjoy, but this version is heavy on the white stuff and didn't have quite enough variety in tastes for me.

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