HOUSTON – If you’re not from Houston, you would never expect to find some of the greatest desserts and flavors on Bellaire Boulevard. Also, known as China Town, where you’ll find a number of supermarkets, unique cuisines and the one and only -- BingSu-Chungchun restaurant.
Originally located in Katy, BingSu brought some of its unique desserts in the heart of China Town, providing customers with one-of-kind sweets and treats. Its menu features bingsu, rice dogs, cheese dogs, taiyaki and so much more.
Not your typical hot dog
Before BingSu made its way to Bellaire, people were having to make rice dogs at home from scratch. Well, at least that’s what a few customers said after asking them if this was their first time eating the hot dogs. For me, this was a first, especially the squid ink dog. I was given five hot dogs to try, a Volcano, Squid Ink, Sweet Potato, Ramen Noodle and Mozzarella rice dog.
I had no idea what to expect from these rice and cheese dogs. Turns out, they taste similar to corn dogs, except with more of a crunch and a bit of sweetness, if you add sugar to them.
Watch as I try a Korean hot dog for the first time
My favorite was the Volcano and Sweet Potato dog. The Volcano had a spicy dog in the middle and a good crunch from the breading. As for the Sweet Potato, it was filled with lots of Mozzarella cheese and the batter was just to die for. As for the squid ink, it wasn’t bad, there were no actual squids in the recipe, but the batter was made out of squid ink, which is used in a lot Japenese and Mediterranean dishes and has potential health benefits.
Black Sesame Bingsu, anyone?
Turns out, Bingsu is actually a popular Korean dessert made from milk shaved ice and top with ingredients such as fruit, condensed milk, sweet toppings and red bean paste. At BingSu, it makes delicious desserts out of organic milk and has a variety of toppings to choose from.
For me, I scratched the Oreos and fruit and chose their black sesame seed topping.
First all, the bowl was massive. Not only does the restaurant serves its dessert in a large bowl, but it has three layers of the toppings and it’s stacked as tall as a mountain! As for the Black Sesame topping, it was a unique flavor. Wouldn’t say it was my favorite, but glad I got to taste it. However, I did love the milky shaved ice. I think next time, I’ll stick with the Oreos topping.
Overall, I left more full than I expected.
The restaurant’s owner, Steve Hong, and his team gave incredible service during my visit. Steve made sure that I tried everything on their menu and more. I was only expecting to try two items and somehow ended up eating more than I could imagine.
Korean Street food is delicious and I think I found my new form of dessert. If you haven’t tried a rice dog, get in your car and head down to China Town.
BingSu is opening its second location on Saturday with Chungchun at 9798 Bellaire Boulevard. You can visit their original location at 23119 Colonial Parkway in Katy, Texas. For more information click here.