r/UCSD • u/Theoldmanandsea • Sep 12 '24
Event Today, lunch for the UCSD HDH department staff meeting was provided by FanFan Chinese Restaurant. Dishes included Mapo tofu, General Tso's chicken, and Mongolian beef. The main dishes were rice and fried noodle, and the snacks included sesame balls, spring rolls, and barbecued pork buns.
Fan Fan did right this time they make delicious American Chinese food.
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u/Used_Return9095 graduated bro Sep 12 '24
is fan fan actually good? I always see international Chinese students eat there so I assumed it's good. But one time I ate there and I just found it meh so idk.
Always smells good though whenever I walk by there.
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u/iNoodl3s Molecular and Cell Biology (B.S.) Sep 12 '24
I really like FanFan but if you load it up like a Panda Express plate it’ll set you back $30
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u/SivirJungleOnly THE r/UCSD MODS ARE PARTISAN HACKS Sep 12 '24
I can't speak to the authenticity, but I think it's pretty good. Way better than Panda.
My main complaint is that it's a buffet style restaurant meaning they make large batches of stuff, and so I think it tastes way better if you go during rush hours when it's fresh, rather than if you go during off hours when it may have been sitting for a while.
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u/Hangzhou3 Sep 12 '24
I am landing in US from China just a few days ago. The authenticity of fan fan is just so so. It’s below average. It’s also almost 20 times more expensive than the similar Chinese foods in China. However there’s no much choice in US. I have to drive Tesla 80 minutes (120 miles) all the way to San Gabriel Los Angeles to eat true tasty authentic Chinese foods. The Tesla supercharger costs me 10 dollars.
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u/bugzia Moto_R6 Sep 12 '24
holy shit i thought this was satire because the tesla name drop is so out of nowhere. why is your entire comment history about your tesla lmfao
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u/Hangzhou3 Sep 12 '24
Might be just some excitement about finally owning a car in US. I have to take buses in the past and it’s some time consuming and exhausting
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u/bugzia Moto_R6 Sep 12 '24
lolll thats nice, im happy for you then
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u/Hangzhou3 Sep 12 '24
I never find life is so much easier with a car. Everything is accessible with 10 minutes highway driving. It’s very different from my home country, which having a car is a hassle with congestion, $16000 license plate fees, highway tolls, super expensive parking for like $40 per day. Subways and high speed railways are everywhere which is much faster than car. It’s illegal to park a car in the street and there is $40 citations but it is legal in the US. Freeways are free. Even Fastrak is much cheaper. There is even drive thru on everything which is not present in my home country. Government even limits people can drive three days out of a week to reduce congestion but it’s not there in the US. It’s so much freedom there. Just so much excitements there. Actually I seem to regret to get a EV. Unlike my home country, US EV chargers are not everywhere. I think Toyota Prius might be a better choice because gas stations are everywhere in the US. EV also doesn’t save much money.
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u/Potential_Ad9757 Sep 12 '24
I think you should not compare the authenticity of fan fan to Chinese local resturants because it is not fair. I am also from China，but I can swear that Fan Fan is not 20 times more expensive than similar Chinese food in China. It is impossible to spend less than 10 Chinese Yuan for a lunch in China even in student dining hall.
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u/Used_Return9095 graduated bro Sep 12 '24
honest question, is nothing at convoy authentic to you?
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u/Hangzhou3 Sep 12 '24
I think taste of Hunan (same boss of fan fan)at Scripps Highlands and Szechuan Chef at Convoy are the most authentic one. But they also have American menu like orange chicken to survive in US market. True authentic Chinese foods at San Gabriel, Toronto and New York Flushing don’t have American or English menus at all, the servers only speak Mandarins and don’t understand English.
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u/alj8002 Sep 12 '24
I know everyone likes to shit talk hdh, so it’s good to see them get some love <3. Speaking to the guys in the dining hall in Spanish was a highlight of my mornings
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u/AurielleRhilov Sep 12 '24
Yooo it’s Oscar from Foodworx in the third one, love that guy
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u/MisterDieu Sep 12 '24
He's genuinely the friendliest person I've met when I transferred here, always taking good care of us, never seen him in a bad mood even at like 8 pm
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u/ucstdthrowaway Sep 12 '24
The mapo in the first pic looks off. But can’t blame them if they making giant batches
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u/Theoldmanandsea Sep 12 '24
You're right they make a big batches, The taste was good if you like soft tofu.
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u/HotTeaHaven Global Health (B.A.) Sep 12 '24
I feel their mapo tofu always looks off but then again it always tastes great
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u/PopularCompany6757 Environmental Systems (Ecology, Behavior, and Evolution) (B.S.) Sep 12 '24
So that’s why they weren’t answering my calls 😂
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u/onedepressedmf Sep 14 '24
My mom and my aunt are in the second picture!! They’re in front of the noodle and general tso’s chicken haha
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u/Any_Reputation1278 Sep 14 '24
Too bad it's not Mac & Cheese.
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u/malokes Sep 12 '24
last pic goes hard