Why Zebras Don't Get Ulcers and Lulu Noodle

The view from the Hoover Tower at Stanford University.

Last Saturday was another beautiful day in the Bay Area, the sun was shining, the birds were chirping, and Stanford students were graduating. I hit up the "Last Lecture of the Year" with some friends from work. Reknowned neurobiologist, Robert M. Sapolsky, gave a talk about the differences and similarities between humans and primates. I am certainly interested in reading his book, "Why Zebras Don't Get Ulcers".

The Bells.

After the lecture we walked around Stanford's campus and caught the view from the Hoover Tower. You can see San Francisco in the distance! All of that thinking and walking made us hungry. One of my friends is more familiar with the area than I am, having gone to Stanford herself. She suggested a noodle place in Mountain View, Lulu Noodle.

Spicy beef noodle soup.

Lulu noodle is a casual eatery with noodles galore and a number of boba drinks. I am always up for a bowl of noodles and some boba, so I was pleased with the lunch choice. I usually go with pho ga at noodle places, but decided to try the spicy beef noodle soup. The broth was rich and spicy, but not spicy enough in my opinion. I added some sriracha for an extra kick. The beef was fairly tender with large pieces of fat swiming in my bowl. The broth was flavorful, but a little too oily.

Mixed Combination Chow Fun

My two friends ordered the mixed combination chow fun with chicken, pork, shrimp, and mixed vegetables. While the service wasn't always the most attentive, they sure are serious about their food. A stray shrimp fell off the platter and was promptly replaced with another shrimp on a small serving platter. You have to respect that kind of service!

Replacement shrimp.

I ordered the thai tea boba, a slightly bitter, extremely creamy beverage. My favorite part is the tapioca bubbles. I love the chewy texture. The jelly grass and bean beverage was order by my adventurous friend. The extremely sweet drink can almost serve as another meal, filled with sweet red beans and jelly sliced into thin strips.

Boba Tea.

I love dining out with friends with adventurous tastes. I never would have ordered the fried taro with egg and peanuts on my own, but was delighted to share this dish. The taro almost tasted like silken pieces of tofu. The fried egg and peanuts added depth of flavor. Dipped in soy sauce, this salty treat is the epitome of simple comfort food.

Taro with fried egg and peanuts.

Lulu Noodle serves up some cheap, large portions of asian comfort food. If you're strapped for cash and looking for something filling, you know where to go.

Lulu Noodle

Located off of El Camino between Showers Dr and San Antonio Rd,

in the Shopping Center with the Trader Joe's.

Momofuku Noodle Bar

Ah winter. As you can tell, JAM's entries and food adventures are trending more and more towards cold-weather foods, and my recent trip to Momofuku Noodle Bar was no exception.

I was meeting up with a friend for dinner, so we decided to go to Momofuku Noodle Bar for some soup and snacks to fight the colder temperatures.

My friend, Cathy, had already been there before, so she told me to order the pork buns and then some ramen of some type. I settled on the namesake, the Momofuku Ramen, and Cathy did the same. The soup arrived- rather visually appealing and smelled awesome!

The restaurant itself is small and perpetually crowded, Cathy and I were perched on small stools against a counter overlooking the open kitchen. The whole time we were just smelling bowl after bowl of ramen, so I was very excited when ours was plopped on the counter in front of us.

I mixed all the components together, taking care especially to break open the egg yolk (which was prepared in a soft-boil) and to mix the noodles with the ingredients. The ramen was good, warm and comforting, but the highlight of the dish surprisingly wasn't the ramen or the broth, but all the extras that came in the bowl. Particularly good were the strips of roast pork, the scallions, and the egg. The noodles reminded me of typical ramen and the broth was a bit salty for my personal taste. I added some hot sauce and liked it better, as it masked some of the salty flavor. All in all, 2 out of 3 JAMs. If they could turn down the saltiness, I'd gladly give it a higher rating.





We also had the pork buns, which were my favorite part of the meal. Pieces of roasted pork (very fatty, which I liked, but could see where it would not be to everyone's liking) were nestled in a U-shaped piece of steamed dough (similiar to the dough in Chinese baos or buns) on top of thin slices of cucumber (slightly vinegar marinade) and hoisin-based sauce. Really, really good, the fatty pork basically melting in your mouth contrasted with the salty/sweet sauce, the tart cucumber, and the sweet dough. Yum

3 out of 3 JAMs!
These buns made the trip worth it - and for all its hype, I did enjoy my first Momofuku experience but am looking forward to trying even better creations.