rssMu-Hung
Patrick is out of town, so I took the opportunity to go to Mu-Hung, a restaurant that I’ve been wanting to go to for about a year. Mu-Hung, on the main Gaien Nishi Dori street that runs through Hiroo, specializes in chicken rice.
My Thai friend, Chawadee, told me that chicken rice is essentially ethnic junk food. They roast the chicken, collect the drippings and cook the rice with the drippings. It might look healthy, but it’s terrible for you. Chaw, Patrick and I went to a Thai restaurant in Nishi-azabu about 2 years ago, and the chicken rice there was one of the tastiest dishes I’ve had. Chaw insisted that the real thing in Thailand tastes a hundred times better. We went to Thailand last year, but I never had a chance to have some because Patrick doesn’t eat meat, and good chicken rice is only sold at specialty stores, where that’s the only thing they serve.
The chicken rice at Mu-Hung in one word was disappointing. The rice had no real taste of chicken and the chicken pieces on top were steamed rather than roasted, so it tasted rather bland. The rice is served with three sauces - a traditional soy-based sauce, hot sauce and a ginger sauce — but there wasn’t much to them. The chicken rice is available in three sizes, and you have the choice of an unhealthier version with fried chicken on top. For 50 yen to 100 yen, you can order additional condiments such as pickles, fried egg, or an egg omelet with chinese pickles inside. The meal, which costs less than 1,000 yen, also comes with chicken soup, but I have a sneaking suspicion that it wasn’t made from scratch because it tasted a lot like the chinese chicken soup bouillons that I have at home.
Mu-hung also has other dishes like Malaysian Nasi Goreng (fried rice) and rice porridge with chicken. I can’t speak to how they are, but if you’re in the mood for chicken rice, I’d probably recommend walking the extra 15 minutes to go to Rice Terrace further down the road toward Omotesando.
Mu-Hung
5-2-39 Minami-Azabu
New Towa Bldg 1F
Tel: 03-5789-0177
Open 11:00-15:00; 17:00-23:00
Closed Tuesdays