Can Hewitt do Asian food justice?

In honor of Lunar New Year, Hewitt hosted a special Lunar New Year Lunch from 11 am to 2:30 pm on January 29, 2025. Collaborating with the Barnard Baddies (an Asian-interest club), they served traditional Asian dishes like sponge cakes, mapo tofu, and eggrolls. As self-proclaimed Asian foodies, Kathleen, Carol, and I decided to put the dining hall to the test.

Mapo Tofu

Rating: 3/10

I was most excited to see mapo tofu on the menu because it’s one of my favorite Chinese dishes. However, when I reached the front of the line, I was sorely disappointed to see bricks of tofu slathered in a suspicious pale orange sauce. Rather than the spicy numbing flavor that I expected, I was left with the taste of… nothing. The “mapo tofu” was basically a remix of the tofu Hewitt serves daily.

Broccoli

Rating: 5/10

As someone who isn’t a big fan of green vegetables, I liked this! The broccoli texture was nice and soft. It also didn’t detract from the distinct broccoli flavor, and the seasoning was just enough to let the flavor shine through.

Egg Roll

Rating: 6/10

The medley of textures and flavors in this one was surprisingly delicious. With the combination of softer vegetables—including carrots and greens—and crunchy exterior, the egg roll was deservedly one of our favorites. In comparison to the other dishes, it was also quite heavily salted, which we appreciated.

Beef

Rating: 2/10

While the meat appeared relatively harmless on the outside, don’t be fooled. The amount of chews it took to swallow the meat made for an unfortunately unpleasant eating experience. Flavor-wise, I thought it was just okay—you’re better off with the stews that they usually serve in Hewitt.

Sponge Cake

Rating: 8/10

In short, these cakes were amazing! So fluffy, light, and not too sweet. Flavor-wise, our ranking was: Original > Green Tea > Ube > Strawberry. For some reason, the green tea and strawberry sponge cakes were oddly reminiscent of Pocky. Altogether, these cakes were the perfect  finale to our new year’s lunch.

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