Another sad, fallen star

A friend is in town from the Big Apple and wanted, naturally, to have Cantonese food.  As there were only 3 of us tonight, there were few places where we could have enjoyed a proper meal.  Therefore I defaulted back to one of my old recommendations for out of town visitors - Tim's Kitchen (桃花源).  It's been a few years since my last visit, and somehow I had grown less fond of the place over the years... especially since I started visiting my favorite private dining facility.

I took it easy and didn't pre-order anything.  There were, of course, a few things that weren't available to us tonight.

Braised pomelo skin with shrimp roes (蝦籽炆柚皮) - not something that one can easily get in the States.  Tonight this was noticeably bitter, although the sauce was delicious as ever... and we greedily spooned it over some steamed rice.

Sautéed pig tripe with pickled vegetables and bamboo shoots (七彩炒豬肚尖) - probably the worst execution I remember from this place.  The stomach tip was overcooked, as were the other vegetables which resulted in them "sweating".  The pickles were also more acidic than expected.  Bamboo shoots weren't crunchy - were they actually marinated or the kitchen used canned shoots?

Steamed whole fresh crab claw with winter melon (冬瓜蒸原隻鮮蟹拑) - pricing for this dish has steadily gone up over the years, but I guess it's still worth ordering.  Tonight the winter melon was, I felt, slightly underseasoned... which showcased the natural flavors of the gourd but it just seemed a touch on the bland side.

Roasted baby pigeon (紅燒頂鴿皇) - our friend looooves pigeon, and must get Cantonese-style roast pigeon whenever he is in town.

Sautéed rice rolls with minced beef, bean sprouts in satay sauce (沙爹牛肉炒腸粉) - I've always loved this dish, but I had forgotten that Hello Kitty doesn't care for it... which meant that I had more than my fair share.

Leaf amaranth in superior broth (上湯莧菜)

Overall the dinner was OK, and most people who come here probably are quite satisfied.  But having dined here over the years, it's a little sad to see the quality take a dive - especially considering that this place once had the distinction of holding two macarons... and subsequently downgraded to none 4 years ago.  I guess I'll only be back the next time I need to entertain a visitor without grabbing a whole bunch of people...