Name: Asia Mei
Restaurant: Moonshine 152
Town: Southie/South Boston
Background: Moonshine 152 is a vibrant, modern interpretation of a neighborhood bistro that offers a dynamic and fun home to Boston’s restaurant/hospitality industry and general community. It offers Chef Asia’s inspired takes on American classics in global comfort and street food, as well as weekend brunches. From the award winning Dirty Fried Rice and Boston’s Best Fried Chicken to her famous Ron Swanson Brunch Specials, the warm and intimate food and bar scene is truly what defines this Best Hidden Gem located at 152 Dorchester Avenue.
Q1 What is your first or best memory of cooking and who was it with?
I NEVER cooked when I was younger. With all the constant being a nerd in school or gymnastics practice, I was always a great eater, but couldn’t do much other than microwaving food. My first cooking memory was when my younger brother volunteered to make the steamed rice for the night so that it would be ready when everyone got home–he forgot to put the water in the rice cooker, and effectively almost burned the house down. He also got yelled at. I remember thinking then, “Yea, that cooking stuff is definitely not my thing.” Years later, I sucked it up and went to go heat myself up some leftovers. I opened up some rice, and it smelled super sour, so I threw it out immediately (–pretty proud of myself, actually). Turns out, it was my mom’s treasured fermented rice for a traditional Chinese dessert… she was less than thrilled, and that pretty much cemented the deal that cooking wasn’t for me! It wasn’t until a decade later that I rolled my first sushi roll at my friend’s restaurant that I “cooked” anything, and I am so very happy that I stuck with it this time.
Q2 What is your most popular dish?
The most popular dish at Moonshine is a tie between the Dirty Fried Rice and our Best of Boston Buttermilk Fried Chicken Wings. The Dirty Fried Rice is my take on my mom’s fried rice that she used to make every time I asked, which was A LOT. It is a light and fluffy take on stir fried rice with Chinese sausage, scrambled eggs, spicy pickles, and my addition–the dirty chopped duck liver. Sweet, salty, spice, and a high quality rice… there’s nothing better or more comforting on this planet. The fried chicken wings and Fried Chicken n’Waffle plates at Moonshine are also the big addiction level menu-winners. People absolutely LOVE them!! We do a secret recipe buttermilk battered fried chicken wing using jumbo, organic, next-level tender chicken wing, and the fried chicken is served up golden-fried and crispy, over poblano ranch or a Belgian waffle with cinnamon honey butter. We have received several “Best Fried Chicken” awards over the years, and they stand up to the hype.
Q3 What is your favorite dish to make?
My favorite dish to make is the Cajun Grilled Tilapia with Fried Green Tomatoes and Sriracha-Uni Butter… I know, say that 5 times fast! I LOVE everything about this dish, because it really represents to me the type of cuisine that is unique to me and Moonshine. I am a California girl who grew up eating all the amazing street, Asian, and Mexican food on the West Coast, but I learned how to cook out here in Boston. My food reflects my bi-coastal background, and it works particularly well when I work in Southern influence. The spice level in this grilled Cajun-style dish pairs perfectly with my take on a New England “Fish n’Chips”, and is made way more interesting by working in Fried Pickled Green Tomatoes. The whole thing is then drowned in the most delicious, satisfyingly unctuous Sriracha-uni butter pan sauce. In terms of range of texture, flavor, and creativity, you’d be hard up to find anything like it around!
Q4 What do you eat when you are not working/ favorite thing to eat?
My favorite snack at home is absolutely popcorn, because it is perfect, and because butter. Otherwise, I’d say that I really gravitate for any kind of spicy food that I don’t have at the restaurant. Mapo Tofu, Szechuan Flounder, any Chinatown noodle dishes… I do get serious day-off cravings for traditional Chinese food!
Q5 Person you would most like to cook for?
I have to bend the rules a little bit, and just apply this to any friend/family on the West Coast who has never had to opportunity to come to Moonshine! My own dad hasn’t even been to the restaurant, nor have I ever really cooked for him since being a line cook. Truthfully, it seems like another lifetime ago when I wasn’t a chef, and I would get SUCH A KICK out of showing everyone what I’ve been up to. Social media is a wonderful way to keep people in touch, but there really isn’t anything like the real thing when it comes to food.
Q6 If you weren’t cooking, what would you do for a living?
No doubt, I would have moved to Los Angeles to get back into stuntwork and coaching gymnastics. Stuntwork was the first thing that showed me that if you keep your eyes open and your spirits keen, you can find a way to live off of your passions. I had always loved sports like martial arts and gymnastics, and choreography and living life on the edge was a big thing for me. Otherwise, I might be doing something that involves working with animals–I have so many pets, I call my current apartment “The Southie Petting Zoo”.
Q7 Not your own spot, what is your favorite restaurant?
I have so much respect for all the food in Boston!! It’s hard to decide, but the answer is either Taiwan Cafe or Estragon. Taiwan Cafe has so many versions of childhood favorites that they really hit spot-on. Estragon is where I met one of my favorite bartenders/friends in Boston, Sahil Mehta. They are my Moonshine. The food is consistently delightful and authentic, and the ambiance is always so welcoming and chill. The cocktails and mocktails are also some of the most thoughtful you will ever see, and really enhance what is always a memorable dining experience.
A few additional MUST TRY items according to Taste of Massachusetts:
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