FRANKENSTEIN'S RESTAURANT
Ok.. I know... On first look this doesn't sound like a very appetizing restaurant... at all. BUT like most say, don't judge a book by its cover! Although it says Brain Factory, don't worry (they won't take your brains)... they sell much more than just pig brains. Located in 南锣鼓巷(Nan Luo Gu Xiang), this restaurant is a hot commodity on weekends! I believe it's the very west of the area, but you can ask most store owners on how to get there - everyone knows since it's so famous! Another landmark is Ice Story (blog coming soon!) which is also very delicious. P.S. If you're squeamish or vegetarian (plant-based diet) please don't read any further! But for the adventurous foodies out there, read on and find why China is known to be one of the best yet sketchiest food places on Earth! |
LOL LET'S LOOK AT THE MENU SHALL WE~ For all the foreigners out there, there is a downside to the Brain Factory... The menu is only in Chinese BUT DON'T WORRY! There are many staff members that speak English so just ask them to translate... The starred items are the most famous so be sure to try them! On the other hand, the drink menu is in ENGLISH (yay!). All the drinks are interesting (there's no other way to explain them...). The day we went, they didn't have anymore "Goodbye to Titanic" or "Scream" so we went and ordered Pirates of the Caribbean (see below).
NOW let's talk about the "Pirates of the Caribbean" drink! So it's kinda like a sour patch kid except in reverse. This first taste of it is sweet but after a few seconds, the sourness hits you like a giant truck. However, the sweet pudding in the skull and cross bones really helps offset the sourness in the drink. I would definitely try it though since it's really a unique flavor that you can't stop thinking about.
On the right, it's simply winter melon and ice (and sugar lol).It's delicious and so amazing, but now that I think about it hindsight, it would be better served as a dessert as the ice and refreshing taste offsets the meaty taste in the following dishes. Definitely order it though - it helps make you so refreshed soon after!
On the right, it's simply winter melon and ice (and sugar lol).It's delicious and so amazing, but now that I think about it hindsight, it would be better served as a dessert as the ice and refreshing taste offsets the meaty taste in the following dishes. Definitely order it though - it helps make you so refreshed soon after!
The salad on the right has bacon, fried brain, and sausages with romaine lettuce leaves and a deliciously amazing sauce... I absolutely love this salad as it incorporates everything - I would eat this as a meal by itself if I could! Definitely get this as an appetizer and share with everyone around the table as it's a really nice starter to the main meal.
On the left, is one of my personally favorite soups... It's a really common dish in China - it's basically in every restaurant that sells authentic Chinese dishes. It contains eggs, tomatoes, with this rice-four mix base inside (it's like noodles shaped like rice lol). It's delicious and really nice to drink something warm along with the pig brains. DELICIOUS ( I would recommend trying either the salad or the soup, but try one for sure since both are relatively cheap ($5-6))!
On the left, is one of my personally favorite soups... It's a really common dish in China - it's basically in every restaurant that sells authentic Chinese dishes. It contains eggs, tomatoes, with this rice-four mix base inside (it's like noodles shaped like rice lol). It's delicious and really nice to drink something warm along with the pig brains. DELICIOUS ( I would recommend trying either the salad or the soup, but try one for sure since both are relatively cheap ($5-6))!
This dish is MANDATORY!!! It gives all the different flavors of the pigs brain and tofu. The top left, top right, and bottom right are all non-spicy and are personally my favorite (as I don't really eat spicy stuff)... BUT ITS AMAZING AND DELICIOUS AND ALL OF THEM ARE WORTH YOUR TIME AND MONEY! They don't taste extremely salty or different, the texture is just like eating a sausage, but the taste is just absolutely amazing! The sauces are very common replicas of Chinese dishes so personally I love it, but if you don't really like the taste of garlic/spring onions/and garnish, I would recommend you to try it but maybe share it instead of eating it all (like I did - lol I love these dishes)...
Enlarged picture of my favorite pigs brain sauce combo. Also, remember to eat the oats at the bottom because it's delicious and provides much needed vegetables in the meal after all the meat.
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Beef Skewer - not that great to be honest (kind of bland) - other restaurants are better in flavor
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Fried marshmallow - Relatively cheap ($1) but it's reeaalllyyy gooey and SWEET! I didn't really like it because it was SO sweet, but my friend absolutely loved it and bought 2 more sticks after we finished eating.
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