Mango Mango: Sweet Temptations (Well, Three of Them)

So…last visit (out of three total to date) was in beginning of May. It was warmer and sunnier then, wasn’t it? Anyhoo:  

For an out-of-this-world dessert experience, look for Mango Mango (#18) nestled in towards the back left corner of New York Food Court (133-35 Roosevelt Ave). Chinatown used to hog most of the sweet lovin’ at the original 63 Bayard Street location. Thankfully, the (still-glossy from opening in November of 2014) New York Food Court has remedied this for Queens residents, commuters, and curious visitors.

The dude in center is camera-shy, but we wanna shame him anyway.

How does this location hold up against the Chinatown original? One Yelper noted that he “reviewed the Chinatown location awhile back and [the Flushing shop] is about the same.”* Supporting this e-critic’s observation is that there is typically a line to place orders, no matter the time of day. On top of that, patrons willingly wait ten to fifteen more minutes as desserts get ready for launch.

If it’s your first visit ever, pleasepleasePLEASE consider ordering at least three things (at the store, you can just simply ask for “Combo A”):

AKA "Combo A".

In order of least to most favorite:

Mango Mochi ($3.50 for three pieces)

Large, chewy, fresh pillows of mango. 

Snow White Mango Slush-O ($3.50 for Medium; $4.00 for Large)

Filling enough by itself as a snack beverage to tide you
over until mealtime. 

Special Mango Juice Sago & Pomelo with Mango Ice Cream ($5.95)

Lord have mercy. 

This is the rockstar of every visit. Why? Well, it's insanely yummy. Fresh mini-chunks of pomelo accompany mango, all flanking mango ice cream in the center.** The best part? The sago, hiding towards the bottom for you to unearth. Have at it.

Flushing Food just has one suggestion for improvement at Mango Mango: roll out some shaved ice dishes!

May Flushing Food suggest: all the #mango things!

Bonus story: On one occasion, I threw out the reusable plastic bowls and dishes. A janitor asked, "Um. Want your deposit back?" and fished it out for me. Point? Don't throw out your dishware if you want your deposit back. 

River Japanese Cuisine

Browsing through Yelp reviews made Flushing Food a little nervous about visiting the Flushing location of River Japanese Cuisine. As of March 23, 2015, forty-eight out of a total ninety-six (50%) indicated that service needed the most improvement.** There were eighteen one-star reviews. Eleven out of this disgruntled fifteen (61%) cited service as the primary reason.  

Yikes! But Flushing Food owes it to our readers to check out each and every eatery with an open mind. 

Service was better than expected. As you probably guessed, this is mainly due to (1) visiting during off-peak hours (late weekday lunchtime), and (2) negative bias from browsing through online reviews. Five waiters and waitresses walked the floor while two sushi chefs and kitchen staff hustled at their assigned stations. Soothing genmaicha (or hojicha; didn’t have my tea A-game on this day) arrived immediately and was refilled in a timely manner. 

Don, a manager from Fujian province, cautioned that weeknights and weekends are another story. “We started out Friday night with five buckets of Mr. Green Tea ice cream. Two-and-a-half gallons (twenty pints) of ice cream in each tub. On Monday? Gone."

As for ambience, River’s décor offsets this Chinese-owned Japanese restaurant’s basement-level location. Carpeted stairs and an automatic glass sliding door entrance punctuate where Main Street ends. As you settle in for lunch or dinner, you’ll note first that the interior gives a calming, inviting effect. Bright lighting highlights warm wood finishes: 

However, the eclectic playlist leaves room for improvement, especially for all-you-can-eat patrons. All songs featured uncomfortably fast tempos, which clashed with the more laid-back surroundings.*** More importantly, this might subconsciously get diners to rush through their meal, raising the chances of a later upset stomach for some!

Onto food. Instead of all-you-can-eat sushi, I asked for a $19.00 sashimi deluxe.**** This entrée came with a choice between complimentary miso soup or garden salad. I picked garden salad, and received this small bowl within two minutes: 

Counting down from when the salad arrived, fifteen minutes had passed when my sashimi deluxe arrived in an exquisite presentation over a bowl of ice and freshly-cut orchid:

The winner of today’s sashimi meal was the white tuna (shiro maguro). Low-fat tuna (akami), red clam (akagai), and yellowtail (buri) were decent in taste and freshness. Last place was the salmon sashimi (sake), because it arrived still a bit chilled, yet left a fishy aftertaste.

Don insisted on trying out $4.00 mochi ice cream (green tea flavor) to cap off the meal. Whether you visit or order, don't miss out on green tea desserts! Sensitive teeth be darned: 

May Flushing Food suggest: trying the green tea mochi!