When one thinks of Asian cuisine on Boulder’s Pearl Street Mall, one either thinks of Japanese or Indian in terms of choices. With the opening of Zoe Ma Ma, Pearl Street now offers authentic Chinese cuisine. Edwin Zoe, the owner, opened Zoe Ma Ma because he wanted to introduce a style of Chinese cuisine that most Americans have never tasted. He wanted to show that Chinese food doesn’t have to be served by the scoop, and that authentic Chinese restaurants don’t have a hundred variations of sweet-and-sour-this, or kung-pao-that. He wanted to introduce the Chinese cuisine that one would find in the streets of China, and the kind he grew up on at home. He felt that the palates of Boulder foodies were sophisticated enough to appreciate the subtleties of authentic Chinese food. When the space became available, he jumped at the opportunity, opened up shop, and affectionately named it after his mom, Zoe Ma Ma, who also happens to be the Executive Chef.
As soon as you walk into the door, you get a sense that Edwin is a fun guy to hang out with. From the “Kung Fu Hustle” movie poster on the wall, the school cafeteria style, red serving trays, and the table tops covered in Chinese newspapers, which Edwin Zoe designed himself, you quickly realize this is not your typical Chinese restaurant. The menu not only shows the northern and southern Chinese influence of the cuisine, it also reveals that Boulder itself has had an influence as well. Having lived in Boulder for over twenty years, and having graduated from of the University of Colorado-Boulder, it is not surprising to find that many of the foods are made with local ingredients, organic unbleached flour, all-natural meats, and cage-free eggs. They don’t use MSG, and many of the dishes are gluten-free. To make the Boulder influence complete, the restaurant is run on wind power.
What makes the cuisine stand out is how the food is prepared. Whether it is a small order of Baby Shanghai Bok Choy, or Ma Ma’s Chicken Soup Noodle, everything is made fresh everyday, and the noodles are made to order. Because the kitchen is open to viewing, you can watch Zoe Ma Ma and her staff make the dumplings, and noodles right in front of your eyes. Watching Zoe Ma Ma is a treat in it of itself, whether it be watching her make her meaty Original Potstickers – based on a secret family recipe – or teaching her staff how to make them. After having Zoe Ma Ma’s Original Potstickers, I am literally boycotting any restaurant that serves frozen potstickers.
By the way, since this is authentic Chinese cuisine, don’t expect a fortune cookie at the end of your meal. Fortune cookies were invented in a Japanese teahouse in San Francisco. And this is not the type of Chinese food you’d want to leave in the fridge for a couple of days. You’ll want it hot and fresh, trust me.
Each day, there is a different special of the day. On Mondays and Tuesdays, for example, is Edwin Zoe’s own Sichuan Braised Beef Noodle. They also have Congee, and Roast Duck and Wonton Soup on the other days. On this particular day, the special was a Chinese street vendor dish known as Zong Zi (pronounced “zong zoo”). As soon as you open up the bamboo wrapper, you can smell the sweetness of the marinated pork belly mixed with sticky pearl rice, juicy shitake mushrooms, and soft lotus seeds. Even though I’ve never tried this dish before, I found the dish comforting.
Another dish worth trying would be their version of Old School Hot and Sour Soup. It is a hearty soup, mainly because they don’t skimp on the ginger, mushrooms, and tofu. They also added a little white pepper so it has some kick at the very end. For the vegan in you, the Vegan Potstickers, which are made with a gluten-free rice wonton wrapper, are just as good as Zoe Ma Ma’s Original Potstickers. The filling has a quiche like consistency, and the tofu almost tastes like eggs. This combination of small dishes and specials makes Zoe Ma Ma a great place to either grab a quick bite to eat, or to have a hearty home cooked meal.
As Edwin Zoe points out, “I can taste the love that was and was not put into food. I wanted to make sure people could taste the love that my mother puts into these dishes.” The saltiness of the pungent spicy bean sauce, and the warm noodles in their Za Jiang Mian, for example, instantly transported me to when I was a kid eating a Korean variation of this called Ja Jang Myun. The comfort of a warm bowl of noodles, and sound of Zoe Ma Ma laughing with her staff and patrons made me miss the food that my mother and grandmother used to make for me as a child, and almost brought me to tears. Even if you’re not Asian, you will taste the love in every dish.
Zoe Ma Ma is perfect for foodies who want to taste and experience authentic, home style, old school Chinese cooking.
Zoe Ma Ma
2010 10th St.
Boulder, CO 80302
Executive Chef: Zoe Ma Ma
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Good journey and experience!
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