Nothing's happened to me so far, but I can't the shake the feelin somethin will. Be fair though, who doesn't feel like that on the East Side? Risking my car though, it's worth that Tiger Roll. So New Fu Lim it is then.
Now before I get ran up on, here me out: East Stockton ain't nothin but dirt and stray dogs. The dogs aren't violent or anything; they're just unsettling. Like imagine waking up at 2:00 a.m. on a Wednesday night. For whatever reason, you look outside. You open the blinds and there's a pack of chill'ren walking around without adult supervision. They aint doing nothin; they're just out there. You can't tell me you wouldn't feel uncomfortable. Well, that's how the strays on the East Side make me feel. Shiiiit, that's how East Side Stockton makes me feel.
On a side though, as much as like to trash on the East, it's really an interesting part of town. My side of Stockton is like home to mainly middle-class aging white people. I'm happy about that too. They're good people. But we also have all the fast food and big chain stores here. It's cool for shopping, but East Stockton has some legit culture out there. Shouts to you. It's like in that one part of town, you get everything, good and bad, that Stockton has to offer. If you don't care about that, go at least to get something good to eat.
On a side though, as much as like to trash on the East, it's really an interesting part of town. My side of Stockton is like home to mainly middle-class aging white people. I'm happy about that too. They're good people. But we also have all the fast food and big chain stores here. It's cool for shopping, but East Stockton has some legit culture out there. Shouts to you. It's like in that one part of town, you get everything, good and bad, that Stockton has to offer. If you don't care about that, go at least to get something good to eat.
One of my favorites is New Fu Lim. So outside of an ugly exterior, the interior ain't much either. It's not dirty or anything, but it's old and kinda beat. Not like inna up-scale, Bay Area, rustic kitchen sense, but inna "This my aunty's apartment. Yah, the one that comes over to wash her clothes at my house." Chipped Paint, accidentally cream walls, sticky menus, but the place is usually busy. That's because New Fu Lim knows what it wants to be.
The staff are friendly. I think the place is family owned, because it's always the two same women working as servers. I love you all, but I especially love them. Never had an issue with my order, but if I did, I know they'd wait to get to the kitchen before they talked trash about me in Mandarin. Naw, but really, they're friendly, quick, and conscientious. Always happy to see them. I like the older one, cause you can tell she's got the attitude. So the food.
Pretend it's Traditional and Enjoy
New Fu Lim doesn't have any right to be as good as it is. Look, if the atmosphere bothers you, grab Dave Wong's. If you can't afford that, grab Panda. If you can't even afford that, then damn, I guess we're eating that Food4Less Chinese Express, my guy. New Fu's food don't have any love for the other Chinese places in Stockton: it's ruthlessly delicious -- and cheap. Buy the foil chicken for like six dollars, buy the garlic chicken for the same price, buy a lunch plate for the same price, buy a tiger roll, for the same price, they're all great. Most of the plates here are gonna run you six, maybe eight dollars. That's a deal.
I ate sushi, twice before eating here. I hated it both times. After eating it, I had to purge the fishy odor from my mouth through Curry and Taco baptism, but here? Naaaw. My favorite dish from here is the Tiger Roll -- and it's six dollars! My girlfriend's got shellfish allergies, and she'll risk her life each time we come here for that Tiger Roll. Other good items to grab are the Broccoli and Beef, Mongolian Beef, Sweet and Sour Chicken, Kung Pao Chicken, and Orange Chicken. They also do half-and-half for the rice and Chow Mein. Don't make yourself choose.
New Fu Lim's cheap, it's kind of dusty, but it's my favorite place to grab Chinese (or at least, what my insular Stockton-American mind knows as Chinese) food from. Get it. Eat here.
Something Interesting: If you ask to speak to Daffy, you can meet the midget cook. He's great.
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Atmosphere: I see Jesus in the paint chips/ 10
Service: It's like having two Chinese aunties/ 10
Parking: Son, keep the doors locked/ 10
Food: Your dad was really buying milk at the store/ 10
Yah+
Yah+
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