You Should Quit Your Job and Eat Amazing Things All Over Asia
Have you ever gazed at a tropical screen saver, waiting for your ten precious vacation days to roll around? I used to. And then I realized I needed to do something big, something drastic. So I quit my job as special projects editor at Bon Appétit and set off on a yearlong 16-country tour throughout Asia. I’ve been on the road about five months. That’s 150 days or, in food terms, 450 meals. Factor in snacks—soooo many snacks—and you’re looking at 600 or so things I’ve stuffed in my mouth. Some of these dishes were home-cooked (thanks, Airbnb!); most came from restaurants, bars, cafes, food courts, food stalls, roadside stands, and homestays. Other than a scarring encounter with stinky tofu in Hangzhou (acquired taste, I guess?) and unidentified boiled chicken parts at a claypot rice joint in Hong Kong, most of the eating has been pretty solid. But every country has its standouts. Here, in no particular order, are my top eats—the dishes so memorably delicious, I’d fly back just to eat them again. Follow Ashlea's travels on Instagram at @ashleahalpern and @cartogramme.
Ashlea Halpern1/19Sheng Jian Bao at Bun in Shanghai, China
I was pretty sure Yang’s Fry-Dumpling had the best soup dumplings in Shanghai—until local D.J. and The Grumpy Pig/Shelter co-owner Gary Wang set me straight. “Bun is so much better,” he said matter-of-factly. “Just trust.” So I went to Bun. For 5 RMB (80 cents), I was handed a plate of expertly fried soup dumplings: tender on top, crispy and chewy on the bottom, soupy and all sorts of porky inside. In Gary I now trust.
Ashlea Halpern2/19Lahpet Thohk in Myanmar
Burmese salads are out of this world: crunchy, tangy, creamy, and unbelievably fresh. My favorite is the most traditional: a salad made with fermented tea leaves, drizzled in sesame oil, and punched up with any combination of pickled ginger, dried shrimp, crushed chilies, roasted peanuts, hunks of fried and raw garlic, diced tomatoes, and crackly mung beans. This particular lahpet is from a roadside stand somewhere near Mount Popa, but I also dug the versions at Mar Lar Thein Gi in Bagan, December Mini-Farm in Pyin Oo Lwin, and Daung Lann Gyi in Mandalay.
Ashlea Halpern3/19Issan-style Gai Yang at SP Chicken in Chiang Mai, Thailand
I stole this hot tip from chef Andy Ricker. These little birdies are stuffed with lemongrass and garlic and roasted over charcoal on a vertical spit until golden brown and juicy. Dunked in fishy, limey nam jim jaew, it’s a game changer for anyone who thinks chicken is boring.
Ashlea Halpern4/19Egg Hoppers at Paradise Road at Tintagel in Colombo, Sri Lanka
Hoppers with curry and sambal is my new favorite breakfast. The sturdy crepe-like bowls are made with rice flour, coconut milk, and palm toddy, and served plain or with a bubbling fried egg in the center. Done right, the appam will be lacy and crispy around the edges and pancake-fluffy in the middle. Tear off an edge, break the yolk, and dig in.
Ashlea Halpern5/19Bibimguksu at Gaji’s Restaurant in Jaisalmer, India
Sometimes a girlfriend needs a break from India’s ghee fantasia. That’s when I discovered this legit Korean restaurant on the rooftop of the rundown Hotel Prithvi Palace in the Rajasthani fort city of Jaisalmer. It didn’t look very promising (backpackers lounging on floor pillows are generally a bad sign), but boy did it deliver. These spicy, icy noodles, along with tteokbokki (hot rice cakes) and homemade kimchi, were the right fix at the right time. Plus, Gaji has spectacular views, spanning both the ancient walled city and scrubby Thar desert.
Ashlea Halpern6/19Mango Sticky Rice from Mae Varee Fruit Shop in Bangkok, Thailand
A delightful dessert to-go-go! This beautiful takeaway kit had everything I needed to assemble the addictive sweet at home: sticky rice, coconut cream, toasted yellow mung beans, and the ripest, juiciest mango I’ve ever sunk my teeth into.
Ashlea Halpern7/19Noodle Soup at Kui Yaun Guan in Hangzhou, China
A big bowl of hell yes, that’s what you’re looking at here. I discovered it on a torrentially rainy night—the kind where you’ll duck in anywhere, just to get off the street. Lucky for me, I took refuge in a 158-year-old noodle institution. This soup was made with fermented greens, salted pork, and tender bamboo; I added a few kilos of Sichuan chili oil. The boyfriend ordered his noodles with sautéed shrimp and thrice-fried eel and wouldn’t shut up about it for a week.
Ashlea Halpern8/19Dahi Puri at Elco Pani Puri Center in Mumbai, India
This only looks like a hot mess. One bite and I was on my knees. Elco has been doing the puri thing since 1975, stuffing its hollow, fried shells with a spicy chickpea mash, ladling mint and tamarind chutneys over the top, drenching the whole shebang in yogurt, and showering it with crunchy mung beans and a flurry of chopped coriander. It’s worth the fat shaming to place a double order.
Ashlea Halpern9/19Khao Soi at Kao Soy Nimman in Chiang Mai, Thailand
Your first bowl of khao soi is a come-to-Jesus moment. This was my second or third, but still no less earth-shattering. Crispy and boiled egg noodles, pickled cabbage, raw onion, lime, curried coconut milk, ground chilies, fried pork—what’s not to love?
Ashlea Halpern10/19Halo Halo Cake at UCC Cafe Terrace in Cebu City, The Philippines
This is birthday cake meets Saturday morning cartoons meets Friendly’s with a Filipino twist. Here, ube (purple yam) is the star ingredient in this gargantuan wedge of iced chiffon cake. Bit players include caramelized banana, leche flan, macapuno, cornflakes, and jackfruit ice cream. Because that’s how you win at life.
Ashlea Halpern11/19Lamb Kebabs at Karim’s in Old Delhi, India
You know how sometimes you eat something so good, your eyes roll in the back of your head and you moan like you’re in a PG-13 movie? That’s what happened when I ate the lamb kebabs at Karim’s. Don’t bother with the watery sauces; a squeeze of lemon is all you need.
Ashlea Halpern12/19Buttered Toast with Condensed Milk at On Lok Yun in Bangkok, Thailand
So simple and so sublime. The first time I experienced the “PB&J of Asia,” as my Instagram pal @desireekoh13 calls it, was at this 80-year-old cafe in BKK’s Chinatown. The white bread was diced into pillowy cubes and served with a side of custardy kaya jam. I recommend washing it down with a glass of ice-cold malted Milo.
Ashlea Halpern13/19Salmon Donburi at Your Local in Manila, The Philippines
Chefs Denny Antonino and Ynigo Santos are doing magical things at their restaurant in Legaspi Village. The look of the place is very Brooklyn (Filson bulbs, subway tiles), but the menu is 100 percent neo-Filipino. This is the torched salmon donburi with ebiko and shiitake black rice. I also liked the burnt onion and chorizo jam sandwich on a squid ink bun and the pomelo salad with pickled quail eggs, wing beans, wild rocket, yuzu, nam jim, and Thai coconut ice cream.
Ashlea Halpern14/19Kulcha with Chole at Hong Kong Inn in Amritsar, India
I do not condone ordering room service. Editor-in-chief Adam Rapoport and I have gotten in numerous fights over this, as he sees nothing wrong with a club sandwich and some crinkle-cut fries after a long flight. I, however, view room service as a failure to explore the city you’ve come so far to be in. Well, @rapo4, you won this round. The buttery kulcha with spicy chickpea curry at this otherwise unremarkable Punjabi hotel was not only the best room-service food I’ve eaten, it was some of the best food we ate in all of India. (Somebody get that chef a proper restaurant already!)
Ashlea Halpern15/19Palata at Ngwe Moe Oo in Nyaung Shwe, Myanmar
My other favorite breakfast comes from an old-school teahouse near Inle Lake. It’s the kind of place you, as a tourist, have to muster all of your courage to walk into (picture the biker scene in* Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure*). I’m so glad I did. My morning go-to here was the palata, a Burmese-style paratha made with egg and served with a creamy, onion-flecked chickpea mash. Don’t forget the milk tea—“sweet and strong.”
Ashlea Halpern16/19Hard-Boiled Eggs and Chai Tea in the Thar Desert, India
It may not look like much, but the memories attached to this simple plate of campfire-toasted white bread, hard-boiled eggs, bananas, and steaming-hot Chai tea are without parallel. We rode two hours via camel into the Thar Desert, weathered a low-grade sandstorm, ate like vegetarian kings, slept under a blanket of stars, and woke up to this. Plus, how cute is that silk blanket?
Ashlea Halpern17/19Black Gold Parfait at Kyo Roll En in Bangkok, Thailand
All hail the basement food court. I discovered this gothic number at the new EmQuartier Mall in Sukhumvit. It’s black Hokkaido-milk soft serve made with Nama chocolate and soy beans, dressed with chewy mochi squares and puffed rice, and swirled high into a charcoal waffle cone.
Ashlea Halpern18/19Bonus Pick: Bar Palladio in Jaipur, India
Sometimes it’s less about what you eat than where you eat it. Located on the grounds of the luxurious heritage hotel Narain Niwas Palace, Palladio is just about the prettiest bar I’ve ever seen. Banquettes are stacked with hand-stitched pillows in tropical colors. Each room is done up in breathtaking jewel tones and features fanciful murals of flora and fauna. Burnished mirrors multiply the effect ad infinitum. The drinks and small plates are okay, too—not that you’ll even notice.
Ashlea Halpern19/19Bonus Pick: The Chips of Thailand
I’ve got a lot of love for the 7-Elevens of Asia; they’re leagues above their Slurpee-and-Slim Jim brethren in the States. The savory chip aisle is especially excellent, spilling over with such stonerific flavors as buttered corn, spicy nori, roast beef, crab fried rice, and hamburger with french fries. And don’t even get me started on the Pocky selection…
