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Chinatown (Orange, Silver)
Boylston (Green, Silver)
South Station (Silver, Red)
Mon-Sun. 11:00 a.m. - 3:00 a.m.
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(review dated 2/08):
typical cantonese restaurant. cheap eats, good quality, reasonable price. reasonably clean place. worth a try.
it's well hidden in basement level. you just have to look at their canopy and go down the steps.
:)
Woohoo! This is my 100th review in my first month!
I don't know why they call this place "Peach Farm". I don't recall seeing any dishes with peaches in them. However, this is an amazing Cantonese styled restaurant. This place looks like a hole in the wall type of place. Nothing Special on the inside, but the food, oh the food is spectacular. Prices are also reasonable. I recommend any of their seafood dishes. They maintain an aquarium of live seafood that absolutely guarantees that their fish is fresh. They have also won so many awards for their cooking as well. Best of Boston. Their lunches by the way are really cheap. Gourmet Authentic Chinese food for less than $10 including tip? YES!
A real gem on Taylor street in Chinatown Boston.
Everything and then some is amazing. My favorite is the great wait staff that knows what you order every time you come.
If you ask you will receive an amazing Chinese dessert at the end. Sort of a pudding/soup but definitely to die for.
I was looking forward to my trip to Chinatown, mostly because I wanted to visit Peach Farm. After reading all the great reviews, I was so excited to eat here.
When we first walked in the hostess/cashier opened the door for my party & I and we were seated quickly and with ease. There were only five other tables being used when we sat down. So far customer service was top notch. But boy did that change fast.
Once seated, we glanced over the menu and made our selections. It took our waiter around 15 minutes to visit our table and take our drink & meal orders. The waiter wasn't very friendly at all, we had some questions about the menu and the waiter seemed upset that we were asking questions.
I wanted to look past this minor set back and was so excited to eat our food. The food arrived in a timely matter but it was bland to say the least. I could have gotten better tasting food at any mall food court. There was nothing extremely amazing about our food.
Our waiter simply delivered our food and then was never seen again. Once we had finished our meal, we were on the look out for our waiter to ask for the bill. But after not finding him, I walked over to the cashier and asked for our bill, which she gladly handed to me.
Even though our waiter had been horrible and provided us with very little to no customer service, I left him a 10% tip on the table because I felt sorry for the guy, not because he deserved it.
Before heading out of the establishment, I made a quick stop at the bathroom at which point our waiter comes up to me and hands me my 10% tip and tells me "its customary to tip 15% at this location." I tried to keep my cool and not tell him what was really on my mind and opt to tell him, he was lucky to have gotten a tip at all, he came to our table a whole TWO TIMES, one to take our order and the second time to deliver our food. Honestly at this point I wanted to take my tip back. The waiter didn't say anything to me after this, he simply utter something to another waiter and walked away. Don't get me wrong, I'm usually a really good tipper and I understand that it's customary to tip 15-20% at restaurants but when the customer service is non-existent, I shouldn't be bullied into tipping someone for NOT DOING THEIR JOB.
I came to Peach Farm with the expectation of great seafood and got bland food, and horrible service instead. Luke A. said it best I don't see what the hype is all about with Peach Farm.
Smaller restaurant than expected, but decent food. Service was surprisingly good for a chinese restaurant (im chinese so i can say that). Seafood soup is a favorite. They have really good frog legs prepared with lots of garlic if you're adventurous. Otherwise, the food is pretty typical of cantonese dishes. Normal amount of flavor, and grease that requires tea drinking...yet still comfort food.
Great seafood dishes, fast service and always packed!
Best place in Boston to get Chinese seafood. Yes there isn't much to the decor and it's in a basement but that's half the fun of it. My family and I have been going there for years for special occasions. great for birthdays.
Things I love about it:
-it's a family run business. much of the staff has been there as long as i can remember.
-the food literally takes 5 minutes and before you know it you are in a battle to grab as much as you can off the lazy susan before the guy next to you gets it.
-it's open really late.
- prices are reasonable.
- always filled with...
- most importantly the food s great and VERY consistent. everything tastes as it should every time you're there.
things i recommend ordering if it's your first time:
-steamed sea bass (if you can handle seeing the whole fish)
-spicy salty squid
-pea pod stems
-oysters with black bean sauce
-lobster in ginger scallion sauce
-wanton soup
-roast duck (a little intense for some but pretty flavorful)
that should be enough to get you started. enjoy!
I love Chinese food. As a matter of fact, I love food.
I've been to this place a couple of times and I have to admit the food here is great and the price isn't so bad. This place is big enough to hold a lot of customers.
One thing I dislike about this place is its service. The waiters/waitresses here are horrible. Very rude. Also, after you are done with your food, you are pretty much forced to get out of the place. If you don't, they give you dirty looks until you catch on and figure out they just want you to come in and eat and pay and then go.
Honesty I do not recommend this place.
If you want some good food and have fun with your friends, I would recommend Victoria Seafood located in Commonwealth Ave. right next to BU.
But if you happen to be around in Chinatown and you just want to grab some lunch or dinner and pay no more than $15 for you dish, then this is the place you might want to visit.
Had dinner here with the family last year and it's good quality Cantonese cuisine at a reasonable price. I'd avoid any of the fried noodle dishes though, especially late at night - greasy and disgusting.
This is our go-to place for consistently excellent Chinese food served family-style. Seafood and chinese vegetables are particularly strong. You MUST try:
- Fried flounder
- Fried Tofu with shrimp
- Clams on the half-shell with green onion, minced garlic and vermicelli
- Lobster
- Steamed sea-bass
- Fried calimari (tentacles only, please)
...always with heaping bowls of white rice.
I don't go to Chinatown nearly often enough, and I'm missing out on places like Peach Farm. My family came here on Christmas Eve, and it was packed was like-minded people (aka Jews), all happily chowing down on delicious, spicy Chinese food. We shared orange chicken (which was unreal--not anything like the sticky mass that usually passes for orange chicken), pan-fried noodles with pork, shrimp, and spare ribs. One thing was better than the next!
There is no ambience to speak of, but the service is extremely efficient, and when the food is this good, ambience is not really necessary. I enjoy a leather banquette as much as the next girl, but there is nothing like eating good food, surrounded by others who are similarly chowing down.
I came into Peach Farm with a group of five and high expectations -- it had been on my list of restaurants to try for a while now.
Surprise no. 1: Good service. The waiter was patient with us, made solid recommendations, repeated the order to make sure it was right...this was very unexpected (in a good way).
Surprise no. 2: Prices. More than expected. I came in very excited to try some fresh bass and other seafood delights, but at $15/lb for the fish and other high prices for many of the dishes I wanted to try, I just couldn't do it.
So here's the dish breakdown:
Scallion Pancakes: so-so. I mean, they're fried and the sauce is good, so it's hard not to enjoy, but they were greasier than most and not enough scallions for my liking.
Moo Shu Shrimp: I wouldn't usually order this, but my friend was dead set on it so we did. It was good in the way moo-shu is always good. Nothing special.
Spicy dry-fried salted squid: absolutely delicious, and a deal at only $9.50 for a heaping plate. These were by far my fave. Only thing that would have been better is if the spicy was in the batter and not in the jalapenos scattered on the plate -- but still great.
Watercress: so-so. A little oily, which I can deal with, but only when balanced with a flavorful sauce, which was missing.
Cantonese-Style Lobster: I ordered this on the recommendation of some Yelpers. The portion was generous: two large, meaty lobsters for $26.95. I thought that the sauce was just so-so, though. Maybe that's what it's supposed to be and I just prefer lobster w/ginger and scallions.
So, overall, it was good and I would go back, but only if other options weren't available. I think there are better choices around.
A guy took me out here quite a while ago for dinner. It was quite nice and I remember thinking that their food was pretty good, but that it was pretty standard Chinese food. Most of the stuff on the menu can be found elsewhere in Chinatown as well.
The great thing is the fact that few people know that this place exists so while there's a huge parade outside of Chau Chow and other restaurants on late nights, I'm sitting at Peach Farm with little disruption or pushing from others entering the door at the same time I do.
A true chinese restaurant that specializes in seafood. I see a lot of reviews based on typical Americanized dishes, which means you're ordering the wrong things here.
I had the lobster, geoduck, shrimp cocktail, oysters, and various steamed fish dishes etc. Being asian, I can say these are true authentic flavors, especially the Canto-style lobster. (This is also a true authentic Chinese restaurant atmosphere: loud, crowded, no decor). Cannot comment on the service, since went with a group that knew the owners and didn't wait in line. Reasonable prices. Liked the traditional dessert soup.
Food (8.5/10)
Atmosphere (2/5)
Value (4/5)
Peach Farm is the kind of place where you can tell that the owners and staff actually work hard and are commited to running a quality restaurant. Our server was very nice and patient and we had a great conversation with him.
For our appetizer, we started with the scallion pancakes. These pancakes were fried just perfectly and not greasy. The onion taste was just right and not over-powering. Delicious!
My wife had a udon noodle chicken dish which was so tasty and flavorful! The noodles were cooked just right and sauce and spices were just perfect.
I had the jumbo dungeoness crab (which I saw a picture of in another Yelp review, so I had to try it!) with scallions and ginger. This giant crab was fried perfectly and the scallions and ginger provided wonderful flavor. Obviously, it was not a lot of food, so if you have a big appetite (like me), it's probably not the best choice. But, I did it for the experience, and it was excellent! I had no idea how to approach this thing, but our server was patient and kept coming over to check on us and provided me with some help.
Another great thing about Peach Farm is that the menu is huge, so even if you keep coming back, you are not likely to get bored with your meals! We hope to return soon!
My Yelpers do not lead me awry! We came here for a quick lunch on Tuesday and left overfed yet blissfully happy. For under $6 for a HUGE combo platter, this could potentially be the best lunch deal in the city. Our food was delicious, fresh and came out quickly. Did I mention it was cheap?
Ambiance is minimal if not lacking altogether. Plain walls with minimal decor and best-effort lighting make for a dining area that's hardly stimulating. On the other hand, the place is relatively clean, service is lightening quick, and the music is so low it makes for a nice environment in which to chat (or eavesdrop...if you're by yourself).
I've come, I've seen, I've feasted. Now it's your turn.
There is something undeniably wonderful about a Chinese restaurant. Save for possibly a Greek Diner or two, no place can offer such a melange of dishes using such a myriad of ingredients in a tiny space. Though Peach Farm is certainly not the only place with a large menu, it is one of the first I've been to that managed to nail a dish with every protein we ordered, which is truly a testament to the quality of the place.
Though it was way too much food, I'm glad that our party of four ordered as much as we did. We got peking duck, complete with crispy skin, crepe-like pancakes, and hoisin, crispy-spicy fried shrimp with the heads on, pork sauteed with Udon noodles, lobster sauteed in ginger and scallions, and our whole black bass fried. The peking duck, frankly, was righteous. The entire platter of crispy skin could easily be served on its own, and only serves to make the small duck burritos that include crispy rice noodles, stir-fried vegetables, rich duck meat, and the duck cracklings all tucked in the crepe pancakes ethereal. The spicy fried shrimp with the heads on were crunchy, juicy, and flavorful. The spice was in no way overwhelming or even super powerful...but it did leave a nice tingle on the palate that lingered throughout the meal.
The portion for the lobster was shockingly generous; the plate looked like a collection of no fewer than three lobsters chopped and coated with the savory/sweet/spicy glaze from the ginger. The dish requires that you outright gnaw on the lobster shells to suck out all of the succulent meat. It is not necessarily for neat-freaks or proposal dinners but at midnight, after a few beers, this is carnal food pleasure at its best.
It is worth noting here that the food comes out in traditional Chinese style...the dishes come to the table when they are ready. This allows for more of a continuous feast rather than an organized meal. Again, though in some settings this may be irksome, this is part of the experience you come for. It is an ideal environment for good friends, good food, and good wine if you feel like bringing your own (we did).
After this, we received our whole pass, a whopping five pound fish with mounds of delicate fried flesh for us to pick at. The meat easily slid off the bones and was beautiful in both the hoisin and the ginger/scallion glaze from the lobster. Last but not least came the pork with udon. Unfortunately, all of us were quite full by the time this dish arrived so we couldn't finish it...but it was still awesome. The noodles were well cooked and the pork was rich and flavorful.
After two hours and $130, which included a corkage fee for our wines (they charged for only two even though we brought four), we all left incredibly full and incredibly happy. The only thing holding me back from five stars was an unnecessarily aggressive sales pitch for a king crab meal when we sat down. We had been there 30 seconds before being verbally assaulted and having a placard displaying the dish to us. Could have done without that.
Otherwise, anyone and everyone should make the trip to China Town and come to Peach Farm. It has all of your authentic favorites, a few surprises, and you're sure to enjoy yourself (we did).
The decor is nothing more or less than you would expect. Boring walls, cheap pink tablecloths, fogettable stemware and silver. Upon walking in, there is a large fish tank where you can in fact choose a live fish to be cooked for you table (we did).
Was in town for a conference, and went to Peach Farm twice. Bare bones atmosphere, but the food made up for it. Dungeness with ginger and scallions, Lobster with ginger and scallions - excellent. The server brought out the 3.5 pounder lobster to make sure it was wriggling enough for our satisfaction! Beef teriyaki was good, fried shrimp was overbreaded, spicy salted shrimp was very tasty but too salty for an entire entree.
What is with the hype around this place? I'm reading these reviews and I can't believe how many people think this place is really that good. . . Maybe I didn't order the right stuff or something but I really don't feel like going back to this place when I felt so let down the first time.
This is also my first Chinese Restaurant review on Yelp. . .
When I first came here, I had heard lots of good things about this place, and upon entering I was conveniently greeted by a splattering of magazine reviews and features framed up on the entrance way walls. So obviously, I was expecting great things!
Well then reality set when I had to wait 20 minutes to get my order going. Now I don't mind slow service, and I know its Chinatown so its expected, but not when the restaurant is practically empty and the only other table is a family of 6 (which had finished eating when I came in). I must have come at a bad time, considering the staff seemed to be very busy eating their lunch, while I was very hungry waiting to order mine. . .
Aside from that, I finally got to order some Peking Dumplings, Beef and Vegetable Chow Foon, while my girlfriend ordered sweet and sour soup.
The dumplings were average at best, very oily, and when I was dipping them in the soy sauce, i started to notice fat droplets forming in the soy sauce. That's pretty disgusting, seeing liquid fat floating in your dipping sauce. . .coming from the food you are eating. I could only eat 3 before I started feeling sick from what I was seeing and realizing i was eating it too. . .
The beef chow foon was standard, sub par, modest portion, okay price, nothing to really praise. The Sweet and Sour soup was the best thing, good taste, good amount. . . Good soup at Peach Farm! But thats not a good reason to go.
I also left not feeling too good, must have been the dumplings. . .
For a Chinatown establishment, I found it to be like most other Chinese restaurants there. . .prototypical food, quality and price, as it makes sense since they are so many businesses competing in that area. I had better meals at Vingh Sun, New Shanghai Garden, and China Pearl, and none are really that great. . .
Average.
Yum Yum Yum!!!
Arrived Late in Boston (around 10pm) and this is one of the only FEW options for me to eat..and I followed what other yelpers recommended, and its GOOD!
First of all, they open very late (like 1 or 2am?) Thank you so much.
Second, they have very good & fresh lobsters for 20ish bucks (two lobsters)
Third, they have the BEST seafood soup I had in US (its so delicious that I wish I can take some back to LA).
Fourth, They have fresh grilled or steamed whole scallop for $2 each!!! I envy those who lives in Boston who can enjoy seafood for a fraction of its price than LA/SF.
The service is very good and attentive. I would give this place 5* if they can make their atmosphere more attractive but this is a typical Chinese hang out place and you'll see many Chinese family eating here anytime of the day. This is what you see in Hong Kong at any given day. If you like Chinese food, you will not be wrong eating here.
I feel bad giving Peach Farm one star. From all of the reviews I read on Yelp, I was very excited to go, and looking forward to a really memorable and delicious experience. It just so happened, though, that my party of two was seated immediately next to the main kitchen door, not in the dining room, and I simply saw WAY TOO MUCH of what should have been going on super secretly behind closed doors, and preferably not at all. You know, things like seeing a waiter sneeze into his hands and then grab plates of food coming out of the kitchen and delivering them to a table, without first washing his hands; waitstaff, cooks, delivery guy - everyone was eating. They were eating with their hands from communal plates near the kitchen and then delivering food to tables, etc, as it came out to them. All sorts of other comings and goings between the kitchen and the outside world...it was just too much. No diner should know that much about how a restaurant is operating, and the gross, weird things going on...I'm not strong enough. My experience was ruined as soon as I saw the sneeze into the hands followed by zero washing. Call me crazy. Say what you will. I cannot even think about it.
Of what we did order, the seafood soup was unique and tasty. There were unidentified proteins in the soup that gave me cause for reflection and deepened my adventure into the bizarre all the more. The rest of the food we ordered, your standard American-style Chinese food, was bland and boring. I realize we should have branched out more, but it was a wild ride as soon as we walked in the door and were escorted to the weirdest table in the Chinese food industry. On a brighter note, we saw massive plates of steaming, glistening, food coming out of the kitchen. The tables that received this food probably deeply enjoyed it not realizing that the waiter who delivered it to the table had just sneezed into his hands, right after he ate some finger food right off a plate in the other room.
Hopefully someday someone with great powers of persuasion will convince me to come back and rethink Peach Farm. Until then, I'll be eating Chinese food somewhere else!
Went to Chinatown last night for the earliest late night noshing I've ever experienced in Chinatown, that is around 1030 - 1100 pm. The glowing Peach Farm sign stood out as we parked: we must try. We entered cautiously, as it was a few steps down from street level and, well, we were tipsy.
Eeee ... the first room smelled of seafood, but the second room was so filled with laughter and yelling and talking and good fun (big parties) and a bottle of Hennessey that I quickly forgot about the strange smells.
I couldn't help but stare at the plates of food being distributed amongst the tables with the big parties: steamed prawns piled high, crab legs served over rice noods, and other stuff that I couldn't place ... I almost pounced! I would have ordered "the same" had I arrived with a party of 10. Alas, we were 3, and ordered wonton soup ($5), chicken stir fry over fried noods ($5), and scallian pancake ($3), which was just the right amount of food and money for the gleefully buzzed -- we three. I'm sure prices vary depending on what is ordered. But hey, the beer was cheap. I think $3 per tsing tao (butchered the sp? probs). I think the party probably brought their bottle of Hen. Jealous.
Our food was okay, but I must return with my party bus and an appetite to nom nom on those shellfish. If I can fatefully find it again...
I didn't like it.
We were sat just in front of the door near the aquariums and people waiting to be seated probably could have been considered one of our fellow diners, that's how tight it was.
Food wasn't very good, although maybe we ordered the wrong stuff (tofu and szechuan shrimp). Scallion pancake was good, but not good enough to make me want to try this place again.
Give it a shot if you're curious, but my fav in Chinatown is Dumpling House when I'm sober, and Chau Chow City when I'm not.
You are here for the food , not the atmosphere . Although it is typical of a busy chinese , china-town spot..
The servers might come off as rude , but that's how they are in some parts of Asia too. Don't take it personal. They sometimes have large parties ...
Spicy Soft Shell Crab --- EXCELLENT and crispy . Always get em
House rice - a very god rice with diffrent things in them ( think pork
fried rice but way less greasy )
Crispy fried chicken - Asians have a thing about eating meat with bone attached to it because it means the meat is moist. .. And with reason . This is NOT your average fried chicken@
The food is served family-style .
If you are around here,hungry , looking for China-town grub and don't come in , YOU SUCK
A solid, cheap lunch. They offer HUGE lunch specials. I think between my boyfriend and me, we spent $10 and had leftovers out the wazoo.
The food is tasty and the service attentive. A fine pick in Chinatown.
My dad had just arrived in town and we were excited to try this place because of its reviews on Yelp so we didn't mind when there was a 20 minute wait. But in in the end the food really wasn't very good. My girlfriend (Beijing native), my dad and me all agreed that the food was bland and the sauce was too thick. We got the Buddha's delight (China Pearl across the street makes a great version), scallops and mixed vegetable (the scallops were overcooked and flavorless) and marinated duck with mushrooms (sauce was very thick and flavorless). Very disappointed.
Pretty good - decent service
We had frog/garlic hotpot - not just frog legs but paraspinal muscles, skull w kermit's eyeballs with 40 cloves of garlic ! It was yummy
Oyster and BBQ pork hotpot quite good as well - great w rice
Geoduck... yum
Sl greasy but typical cheapo chin food but quite satisfying - v reasonably priced
If you speak Cantonese, awesome!! Just say something to the "host" about your mom and you'll skip the 30 person line of non-Cantonese speakers. But be prepared to wait in line for an hour if you're the average shmo just trying to eat.
I attempted to eat at Peach Farm with a few friends. We were excited when we heard there was a 20 minute wait and we were first in line. Unfortunately, our good faith in mankind kept us in line for 50 minutes despite the fact that 5 (count it, FIVE) tables were seated before us. I kid you not, they said something about their mom to the host, and BAM!! Table appeared!! Ridiculous. I don't care if the food is orgasmic (I'm sure it's not); I won't go back.
I find it amusing that instead of thinking of a farm with peaches and orchards when I hear the name 'Peach Farm', I think of basement level, and thus cavelike underground Chinatown-decor, and seafood. Lots of seafood, Chinese style seafood.
Sure some dishes can be really greasy. Sure it isn't exactly a fancy or schmoozy restaurant. This is no frills but it's what I expected before ever going anyway despite the sunny fields of joyful greenery and frolicking implied by their name. The staff is nice enough, and the seafood is pretty decent, especially if you're looking for things like steamed whole fish or other Chinese specialties at very reasonable prices. But one thing that makes my appetite sing is those shrimps. Oh yes. Spicy, salty, fried whole shrimp. Chinese style. Delicious. If the heads freak you out, pull them off and shove the rest of it in your mouth. It's delicious. You won't regret it. Follow with some hot green tea. Rinse and repeat.
One of the few good chinese restaurants left in chinatown.
At first this place was hard to find because it was snuggled under all the shops and apartments, kind of like it was in the basement. But nonetheless it made good use of its space. There's a long wait so be prepared, and the waiting area is small. But during the wait the manager was nice to us since we spoke Cantonese, and he told us where he gets his seafood from and what the specials of the day were and how I go to college over there.
We were finally seated after about 45 minutes next to the kitchen... Very noisy. But that's how it is. So we ordered about 4 plates. There was nothing special about each and it was a little bit pricey for the quality of the food.
Only go here if you're desperate for chinese food near downtown
Please accept my big applause for you, dear little peach farm.
Your seafood is exceptional. I mean your lobstor, wow~
But guess what I like the most about you?
The Fuzhou Fried Rice!!!!! I mean, yours is the best ever I've ever tasted. I am serious!
You really have brought me back to all the sweet memories in great seafood restaurants back into my hometown. Thank you for the food and memories.
Love You,
Miss Q
This is where I bought my Thanksgiving feast! A take out container of beef in black bean sauce (that I snuck into the movies). YUM.
I stopped into Peach Farm just around 11AM last Thursday seeking some nourishment. I had woken up around 6AM to volunteer and had yet to eat anything. Peach Farm seemed to be open and I vaguely remembered it being one of my bookmarks. After scanning the outside menu and seeing some decent prices, I headed down into the restaurant.
Alright, so this place definitely has a distinct smell (intense seafood). And it'll probably remind you of your grade school friend's rec room. But the staff was very nice. 3 people greeted me as soon as I walked through the door. After settling on some crab rangoons and the beef in black bean sauce I went to pay.. and OY.. they don't take credit cards for small purchases. My awkward dimpled smile graced my face and I told one of the guys that I didn't have any cash. He just smiled and said it was fine. He'll let it go this time. Don't know if it was because it was Thanksgiving or if they're normally that nice.. but I really appreciated it. I've definitely been forced into buying things/food before to meet CC standards (faux CC standards).
I sat down by the register and waited 10-15 minutes (more of the latter) while I saw them set up for the day. A few people came in and placed big orders. Nice to see some holiday loyalty. Finally, I grabbed my food and hopped off to the movie theater.
The crab rangoons barely made their way over. I was far too hungry and noshed them right quick. I was disappointed though since there was hardly any filling. The container of the beef with black bean sauce had a LOT of sauce and was most definitely spilling by the time I got to the theater (I'd probably ask for a double bag if you're traveling far or hardcore walking). Yikes. Anyway.. the dish was pretty damn good. Minus the borderline soggy rice, the sauce and the veggies and the meat were delicious. So tasty. It definitely made me forget about the turkey thoughts that had been dancing in my head.
I'd go back to try more. The portions were HUGE and the prices are just right. I would definitely get the rice in a separate container when you're able. That rice tasted like baby food all soaked. Alas.. I'm giving them 4 stars.. the good food redeemed the not so good..
Went back with my family the day after our wedding. All my favorites were delicious - fried flounder, boiled chicken with ginger, lobster Cantonese. Go with a crowd, get a lazy susan table, order lots. Yum.
When I was a kid, my parents knew the best Chinese places. They'd take me out with their friends and… Read more »
What does one do on the first freezing cold day of the year? Most would tuck themselves in front of the warm florescent glow of their televisions, but I am insane and dragged a reluctant bf out to Chinatown, risking windburn, headcolds, and frostbite. (Thankfully, the latter did not occur, but I am still suffering the effects of the two former.)
We were instantly greeted and warmed up with a pot of ridiculously hot tea and a $4 bottle of Budweiser. As Leah E. mentioned, the decor is a lot like eating in your grandparent's den. The service was very friendly, and I was surprised when the host came by to ask how we liked our meal (which has *never* happened to me in Chinatown).
We first had the salty spicy dry fried head-on shrimp (don't apply directly to the forehead), which came coated a light batter sprinkled with a mix of szechwan peppers and jalapeno pepper slices. I thought it was the perfect level of spicy, salty, and crunchy. However, the bf was not into eating whole shrimp, shells and all, so it may be an acquired experience for some.
We also ordered the sizzling ginger and scallion beef and the house fried rice (with chinese sausage, scallops, and peas). The sizzling plate was not quite sizzling, but still burn-the-roof of your mouth hot. Slices of beef were plentiful and tender with only a few mildly chewy pieces. The ginger and scallion sauce was thick, sweet, salty, and wonderfully ginger-y (a real word? Henceforth, I am coining it as such). The fried rice was the surprising standout of the night. Perhaps it's my unhealthy love of la chang that is swaying me, but the dish was excellent. The rice was fluffy, the scallops were sweet and fresh, and considering the fact that most fried rice plates are laden with superfluous amounts of oil, this dish was surprisingly light.
Peach Farm is reasonably priced. Most dishes are around $10-15, but they have a selection of rice plates around $5 and noodle dishes for around $6. Not feeling adventurous and not in the mood to dine on shell-on shrimp or chinese sausage? General Gau and Rangoon a la crab still make appearances on the menu.
I went to Peach Farm with a bunch of people from school, and boy, was it amazing. The salty-spicy squid is MMMMM. so good.
Their vegetarian options are very tasty too (some places make it bland, I feel like) and their noodle dishes are generally really really good and comes in big portions.
It's pretty popular, so expect a wait if you're going with a big group.
Peach Farm is currently one of the top picks in Chinatown these days for Cantonese-style food. I dined there yesterday, and had a wonderful FRESH meal. I went there with another sensitive palate, and ordered the following:
1. Soft-shell crab, salt-fried
2. Garlic-sauteed peapod stems
3. Sizzling scallops in black pepper sauce
All three dishes were excellent. The crab was very fresh, delicate and tasty. The scallops added a nice, heavier flavor and the kitchen was liberal with the black pepper. Don't order this dish if you don't like onions. The pea pod stems are a classic green, and did not disappoint - fresh, hot and soaking in a light stew of garlic and salt.
Service is also very good in my opinion. Keep up the good work Peach Farm!
Lunchtime on the weekends can get crowded, and I usually go later in the afternoon. The food is pretty good and reasonably priced. Their seafood dishes are really good. Dinner can get crowded as well, especially on the weekends. It's bit of a noisy atmosphere and they are located in a sub-basement. The overall environment is a bit dingy, but their service and food is very good.
Let's keep this one short and sweet (perhaps). I went to Peach Farm after Boston's rather mediocre nightlife got the 2 a.m. shutdown. The food is basically the same quality and flavor as most of the other late night Chinatown restaurants. It's nothing gastronomically inspiring, that's for sure.
My last visit to Peach Farm this past weekend, one of my friends asked for more water. A moment later, our dude comes over and fills his glass. Instead of going on his merry way, our waiter insists he start chugging his water so that he can refill it again on the spot so he wouldn't have to later. Uhhh... haha. Chug your water, fool!
- food is the same as all the rest of the late Chinatown restaurants (although 2 out of 8 crab rangoons had no filling)
- service after 2 is pretty inconsistent based purely on how crowded it gets
- after 2 a.m. patrons are a trip! if anything go for the show.
- if you're lucky, just maybe you'll be able to chug your water and get instant refills.
Like many authentic Cantonese restaurants in Boston, Peach Farm has had its good years and its bad years. My family sticks to one restaurant for a while (sometimes up to a few years) until it starts going downhill and they revisit old favorites that had gone to the wayside. For awhile now, my family had been going to Victoria Seafood so much to my surprise, we went to Peach Farm which we hadn't gone to in years. The matriarch of my family (my silver chopstick wielding maternal grandmother who has almost 90 years of Cantonese cooking and eating to her credit) is the main influencer of which restaurants we patronize so when she says it's excellent (or in this case, excellent again) we don't think twice.
Our dinner at Peach Farm was celebratory as my youngest sister and my cousin both graduated from the same high school. This was my aunt and uncle's first child to graduate so I knew we were in for a seafood feast with many delicacies. The food was as much of a 5-star experience you can get at a Cantonese restaurant. The service is typical - pushy, loud waiter but efficient service. This is a simple, basement level restaurant with a few cloudy fishtanks. I really can't factor in those other aspects when rating Chinese restaurants because all of them - even with 5 star quality food - would be given 3's and you'll be hard-pressed to find an authentic restaurant that meets all the criteria that you would use to rate a 5-star American restaurant.
My recommendations (backed by the seal of approval from my parents, an aunt and uncle, and two grandmothers):
Boiled Steamed Shrimp with Head: This is peel 'n eat style so ditch the chopsticks. The main attraction of shrimp with the head still on is that you get to suck the red brain juice out of it. It's certainly an acquired taste that I love. The only food allergy that I have is the scratchy throat I get after sucking out shrimp brains but it's so good, I continue to have it in spite of my allergy. This dish is served with several sides of spicy, scallion soy sauce to dunk the shrimp in.
Giant Clam sashimi: Thin slices of this crisp delicacy, it is heavy on the fishy-seafood flavor so this dish is most suitable for hardcore seafood lovers only who have acquired the taste for giant clam
Salt & Pepper Giant Clam head: I originally thought this was calamari because it is fried, takes the same shape and has the chewy consistency of calamari. The thin fried coating covered with salt & pepper was so good. This was my first time having this dish and now I'm a big fan.
"Ging Do Gwut": Not to be confused with the crap you find at your neighborhood Chinese takeout place, Ging Do Gwut is an authentic sweet & sour pork dish. Thin slices of bone-in pork is cooked in a flavorful and tangy, gooey sauce. If there's extra sauce, it must be spooned over the white rice. If you've ever wondered why Chinese people would eat fried bits of pork covered in a highlighter-pink sweet and sour sauce with pineapple chunks, it's because we don't. If you want authentic sweet & sour pork, ask for the Ging Do Gwut. I've never had a dinner out with my family without this dish.
"Dau Miu": I have been craving Dau Miu (yes I crave this one veggie once in a while, give this carnivore a break). Dau Miu is a snow pea shoot (leafy tendrils) and when stir-fried is tender and delicious. It was cooked in a very light garlic sauce. I've noticed that Dau Miu tends to have an oiliness to it which might be natural reaction to being cooked - not sure on that one but just a warning that this is not a light, healthy veggie dish.
Lobster Cantonese Style: Cantonese Lobster is the antithesis of the steamed lobster we're all accustomed to having. It's deep-fried and covered in a thick, savory sauce of garlic, ginger, scallion and soy sauce. It's messy to eat but it tastes great.
Salt & Pepper Dungeness Crab: The crab was large and meaty. I love crab innards and I don't let any part of any seafood go to waste, so I went straight for the crab head. I hit the jackpot because it was meaty. Eat at your own risk, crab innards are for serious seafoodies only. The flavor is bitter and probably unpalatable for most people. It was divine and I certainly felt my cholesterol go up a notch.
Fish & Veggie Soup: Only the flavorful clear broth was served and the ingredients that the broth was boiled in were brought out on a separate plate - fish and various veggies
Frog in Hot Clay Pot: I'm not a huge fan of frog but this amphibian casserole was a hit at the table.
Steamed Fish: I didn't catch which fish we had but it was huge. The fish will be served bone-in, skin-on and head and tail still attached which in my opinion is the only way to have fish. The fall back preparation is to steam and serve in a scallion soy sauce.
I ate to my heart's content that evening. Red Bean Soup "tong sui" dessert topped off another night of blissful feasting Cantonese-style.
This place is pretty damn good. We ordered steamed sea bass, sizzling black pepper beef, and sauteed vegetables -- how do you say da dou miao in English?
All three dishes were delicious; the steamed fish was very fresh, the beef was tender, and the vegetables crisp and flavorful. And the waiter was very friendly. Immediately he commented on how awesome I was for boxing and made light conversation with our table. His demeanor was so amicable that even my white friend had to laugh along for the ride.
Neighborhood: Chinatown
Category: Chinese
Neighborhood: Chinatown
Category: Seafood
Neighborhood: Chinatown
Category: Chinese
Neighborhood: Chinatown
Category: Chinese
Neighborhood: Chinatown
Category: Chinese
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