Sandy La

After the first time we visited Sandy La, we were curious how their wonton noodles, congee and rice & noodle dishes fared.  You see, we only did the late night (da lang) menu and unlike some people (Mijune), we really couldn't order any more food.  Seeing how we had another late league game (when has 11:00pm ever been considered prime time anyways???), choices were limited.  Fortunately, with a 3:00am closing time, Sandy La was an available option.  Readily accepting the challenge for really late night eats was Sweet Tooth, Lionel Hutz, Milhouse and Gordo.

Okay, let's get right to it.  The Wonton Noodles sucked goat nads.  The noodles themselves were undercooked, slimy and doughy.  And for the wontons...  they were the all pork type and they were cold.  The texture was not bouncy at all and they had no flavour. Since the noodles were woefully undercooked, the raw taste seeped into the soup. I actually hated this bowl of noodles (which I didn't bother eating). Okay, at the very least Preserved Egg and Salted Pork Congee was more acceptable. It was thick and mildly seasoned.  There was a general lack of ingredients where I had to dig to find them.  The salted pork was okay though as it was shredded and salty.

Gordo went for his standby, being the Curry Beef Brisket on Rice.  When it arrived, he remarked that there was insufficient sauce for the amount of rice.  When he asked if he could get more sauce, the server flatly refused. The reason was that the cook would have to make some sauce especially for him.  Okay, and the problem was?  Yes, it is an inconvenience, but he couldn't eat 1/2 of his dish because there was barely any sauce.  Would that be his fault?  Just sayin'.  As for the dish itself, the flavours were mild while the beef could've stood to be more tender.  On that note, Lionel Hutz had the Beef Brisket on Fried Rice Noodles (and since he arrived later, he asked for more sauce ahead of time).  This was a fairly large portion, as you can see in the picture.  Since they used the same beef brisket, it was on the chewier side.  The sauce itself was once again mild and a touch greasy.

Milhouse wanted something healthier and got the Black Bean Beef on Deep Fried Noodles.  Arriving glistening and in a large enough portion for 2 people, it had healthy written all over it.  I tried the dish and it was alright.  There was plenty of black bean flavour and the beef was sufficiently tender.  The veggies were vibrant and crunchy.  However, the noodles could've been crispier. Lastly, Sweet Tooth went for the Ma Po Tofu on Rice.  This was another lackluster offering where it was pretty bland.  The ground pork and tofu were fine in terms of texture, but the dish was not spicy nor was it flavourful in general. As you can ascertain, this return visit to Sandy La was disappointing.  What a total contrast to our first visit.  Therefore, if we ever eat here again, it'll strictly be the da lang or at the most, a set meal.  Best to skip the wonton noodles.

The Good:
- Large portions
- Reasonable pricing
- Open really late (or is that early?)

The Bad:
- Wonton noodles suck
- Some execution issues
- Not really helpful staff