So much of what I love about New York City food is connected in some way to Chinatown. Mott Street both above and below Canal Street must be my favorite place to wander in all five boroughs– it’s a kaleidoscope of experience, different every time I visit. It’s a real sensory assault, but one that never fails to remind me of how much there is to see, taste, and smell in this world. My favorite bubble tea shops are on this stretch, and so is my hole-in-the-wall Chinese cafeteria of choice. Bayard Street bisects Mott Street just south of Canal in a messy, crowded intersection that features a Haagen Dazs that looks as out of place here as would a spaceship, but heading East on Bayard is the key to some of this area’s best Shanghai cooking.

We visited the renowned New Green Bo after reading about it for months on Chowhound.com and on several other websites. The consensus seems to be that it’s possibly the best place in the city for Shanghai cuisine, and that as long as you stick to the menu’s strengths, you won’t be disappointed. I can attest to the wisdom of this advice.

I’ll also say this about the portions at New Green Bo: they are huge. After reading about all of the dishes we wanted to try, both HungryMan and I thought it would be wisest to order two appetizers and two main dishes, thinking that we’d be able to go back for soup if we were still hungry. Ha! This scallion pancake you see to your left is one of the reasons why that never happened– $1.50 gets you full in this place. Not only was the scallion pancake cheap, it was pretty outstanding: flaky on the outside, with just the right amount of moistness on the inside. It was light, pungent, and ever so slightly chewy: exactly what a good scallion pancake should be. The dipping sauce was simple– mostly soy, but it was perfect, even though these pancakes needed no accompaniment.

We also ordered the Crispy Eel as an appetizer ($6.95) and am glad we did this instead of opting for the main dish portion, because as you can see, there’s a lot of food there. I should preface any discussion of this dish by admitting my passion for eel: I’ll order unagi at a Japanese restaurant every time I go, and I’ve been known to head right for the paling in Belgian delicatessens. But this dish was eel in a different incarnation– it was very narrow strips of eel meat fried into crunchy curlicues and then coated in a tangy, sweet brown sauce that was a little like barbecue sauce and a little like a balsamic reduction. This was then piled into a neat mound and covered with shaved lemongrass and cilantro leaves. The aromatic garnishes worked beautifully with the sweetness and saltiness of the eel. In short, it was heaven. Even HungryMan, who looks at eel with not a little squeamishness, declared, “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but it’s really tasty eel.”

For HungryMan’s main dish, he chose the Stewed Pork with Dried Preserved Cabbage ($8.95), primarily on the recommendation of the Chowhounders who raved about it. They were right, too. For anyone who has never had rice cakes (and not the dried, puffed rice disks), they’re a lot like noodles in their texture, but compressed into poker-chip sized rounds that add bite (and starch) to a dish. The rice cakes in this dish were saturated with the pork gravy and were just toothsome enough to make this feel like a full meal. The preserved cabbage was briny and tart, and reminded us both of vinegary collard greens, which makes sense, given its pairing with the pork. HungryMan really loved this dish. Again, there was a lot of food here– more than one person could eat, so be ready to take some food home with you.

My own main dish was the Yellowfish with Dry Seaweed– at $12.95, it was the most expensive thing we ordered (and one of the more expensive dishes on the menu), but after all that I’d read about this place, I had been waiting to try this for weeks. I was not disappointed, either. I think the best way to think about this dish is as an Asian gloss on traditional British fish and chips. They might look like fish sticks (aka fish fingers), but that’s where the similarity ends. First off, these are whole pieces of fish, not chopped, minced, and pressed fish. Second, these are crunchy and delightful and bear just the faintest touch of umami from the dried seaweed that flecks both the surface and the interior of the pieces. A small bowl of black vinegar and grated ginger is served alongside, and if you look carefully, you’ll spot the tiny mound of Chinese seasoned salt on the edge of the plate. The spicy condiments really enhance the flavors of this dish, and you’d be foolish not to use them liberally. If I could eat this every week, I would.

Service at New Green Bo is fine– it’s a very busy place, so be prepared to wait at the door, to be seated with people you don’t know, and at the end of the meal, be ready to flag down a waiter when you’re ready to pay. It’s all part of the success of the business, so embrace the bustle and try something new. Maybe even some eel.

New Green Bo, 66 Bayard St., NY 212-625-2359