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We've been thinking of opening a small, very authentic Chinese eatery in NH. We live near Hanover now, and know there is a very small but burgeoning Chinese population (hospital/University/some business) there. We've narrowed our options to the Hanover/Lebanon area, or Portsmouth.
Do any of you posters/lurkers own a restaurant in the above-mentioned areas? Any thoughts? My wife is from Beijing, and we cook very authentic, very tasty Chinese food -- not the gooey glop you get at practically every "Chinese" restaurant in NH. Trust me, we've tried almost every one we see.
How many of you who live in the two mentioned areas would like to eat some very authentic Chinese food, such as:
---real Sichuan food -- not the typical "Kung Pao ___" cooked here that uses dried red pepper flakes (not used in China!) but using the fiery hot Sichuan Peppercorns that can actually make your tounge "buzz."
---Chinese Hot Pot -- a clay or brass pot, boiling with home-made broth filled with Chinese herbs/spices, in which you dip very thinly cut slices of meats/veggies/seafood (similar to Japanese Shabu-Shabu, for those of you who've eaten it, but much tastier, with various dipping sauces). You cook it yourselve at the table -- great for cold weather and lots of beer or Chinese wine.
---braised pork ribs (small) in dark Northern-style sauce. Wonderfully savory, and perfect for a chilly autumn evening.
---"meat basket" --- a tasty ground pork/veggie mix wrapped in a soft homemade bread (similar to a steamed bun) and steamed to perfection.
---many other dishes!
Give us some feedback! We've been seriously disappointed with the ethnic food availability in NH, and have been researching this for some time. Our only real concern is can native New Englanders take the real, authentic taste? It will probably blow their mind, after eating years of greasy, oily, gooey "Chinese" food.
OMG if you opened in Portsmouth I promise to come at least once a week. The state of "real" Chinese food in this part of the state is sad. I drive to Boston for Chinatown (dim sum, buy supplies)... I think there will be enough people who will come, people are not staying away from Thai, etc. so a real Chinese place should be a novelty.
This is great feedback, but are you just onesies and twosies out there? Do you have friends who feel the same way? Family members? Who drive to Boston for Chinese food? Who complain about the local availability?
It's a big decision to open a restaurant at any time, especially right now, with the economy the way it is, but we'd hope to offer reasonable portions (not HUGE, typical American portions) at reasonable prices, not the inflated $12-$15/dish that seems normal up here. If we could offer authentic, I mean really authentic Chinese food, at a reasonable price, we hope people would see the value in that -- and in saving $50 in gas and a full day to drive to Boston!
How about authentic, steamed and/or boiled dumplings? A steaming bowl with dark, Chinese vinegar for dip is a great wake-me-up on a chilly NH morning. Mmm....
I think you'll have a good following in Portsmouth. You'll get the tourists that descend on the town like locusts in summer plus a good population of local restaurant go'ers from Portsmouth, southern maine, and the surrounding seacoast towns. Most of the restaurants there think a little outside the box when it comes to menu items so I think something authentic would do extremely well.
You'll just want to make sure you somehow advertise it's authenticity so people just don't drive or walk on by assuming it's another tempura and general Tso's joint.
Word of mouth will spread fast....everyone I know talks about new restaurant openings....it's a pretty small town when it comes to locals...at least in terms of gossip and "goings on."
General Tso's.... don't get me started. We'd never even heard of this travesty of a dish until we came to NH. We tried it, ate one -- literally one -- bite, and tossed it.
We really think New Hampsherites are ready for some authentic Chinese food. I'm definitely hearing your points about Portsmouth. We currently live in the Hanover area, but every time we're at Portsmouth, we think the vibe and attitude towards food is more open-minded. We went to Portland once early this year and were surprised at how many, good restaurants are located there. Some authentic ethnic eateries, too. Why the huge disparity? We can't figure it out, since New Hampshire has large cities, more built-up "touristy" areas, etc., and is closer to Boston-metro.
We absolutely love real Chinese food and really miss it. There is a place that serves dim sum in Merrimack and while it is okay, it is just okay. I think they have a sister restaurant in Manchester. The newspaper article they have hanging on their wall says they cater largely to Asian students. They offer the usual stuff Americans like (sweet and sour chicken, beef and broccoli etc) as well as more authentic fare.
I would LOVE to have an authentic Chinese option on the Seacoast, but does that mean your restaurant would thrive? After all, if every Chinese restaurant in the state serves florescent red, deep-fried glop there must be a reason. Maybe that's what most people want. I don't want to believe it, but the Lilac Blossom in Nashua has been named "best of NH" and it's mediocre on a good day. The restaurant business is tough and I think a lot of people seek comfort in familiarity rather than wanting to try new things.
On the other hand, we've been able to find really good Vietnamese and Korean in Nashua, so maybe there is a market for really good Asian food. I hope so...let me know if you do open!
We are in Pittsfield (east of concord). Yep, have to go to Boston for real Dim Sum.... Would be wonderful to have it anyplace in NH. Suspect Portsmouth area would have larger draw/customer base as it would draw folks from Concord, Manchester and even Maine in.
My fiance n I would like to chime in that if u opened a REAL chinese place we'd frequent as well... as it stands we drive down to boston's chinatown to get good food... or up to portland for korean food... we miss authentic asian food and think that pan-american chinese food is a sin LOL
we're still looking for a good place to get pho...
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