Kat's 9 Lives

A great new place to set your mouth on fire! Who doesn't love a flavorful savory dish at a reasonable price? Upon a friend's recommendation, I sought out the Lucky Noodle King for their infamous Fagara Spicy Pot. It's hard to imagine that I would find a new tasty dish that can turn my head. I enjoy that it is a small mom and pop shop offering lots of tasty traditional Sichuan dishes.
They have a simple decor and limited seating so it is best to go during down time to get seated easily. First off they serve some starter snacks, Roasted & Salted Peanuts. Great to much on and begin the savory journey.
To start off, we had to have my current favorite spicy dish of Boiled Fish and Intestines. You can always choose one item or have a combination of items. I normally get fish but my love for chewy fatty intestines has been rekindled and I just have to have them in every dish. Ms. Lin concurs with me that the intestines were super tasty in this particular dish.
I thought the spicy flavor was there and it had a nice kick. The fish was not bad but the intestines were definitely the star of the show. Overall it was definitely a solid dish. Normally I would think that this would be my favorite dish until their infamous Fagara Spicy Pot came out.
At first I didn't know what to expect. I only heard the name Mala Tang (麻辣燙) and I was sold. Sounds like a fun new dish to try and who can turn down eating spices that will numb your tongue! Little did I know that it was an assortment of unexpected vegetables, meat, and seafood.
Who would have thought to put real seaweed with potato slices and making it work?! Well, it does and I like the funkiness of this dish. They also have tender pieces of shrimp that is boiling away as the dish is brought out to you. Be sure to take the out and soak in the flavor fast because you don't ever want to eat overcooked seafood. My only qualm is that they are not peeled but I guess that preparation has its own special flavor. I peeled all the shrimps with my teeth only since I was lazy and didn't want to get my hands dirty.
While the fire is still going, be careful of the popping oil from the heat. Constantly stir up the dish a little bit to make sure that nothing burns on the bottom. Take each bite carefully because the items tend to be piping hot and may burn your turn. You have to keep those tastebuds functioning until the end. Full of flavor and spice, this dish is definitely their signature dish! Worth the drive just to try this new spicy culinary concoction. We brought the left overs home for the family and they reveled in the taste. Going to be back this Wednesday to satisfy the craving again!
We started off with the best dishes of the house, so we got a bit greedy. Other dishes that people recommend here is the Pot Stickers and I didn't think they were anything special. They looked pretty but not quite the way I would want pot stickers to be pan fried. The skin was not quite right and the stuffing lacked flavor. I prefer the ones at Luscious Dumpling a lot more.
Before the pot stickers came out, we thought that everything spicy here must taste really good since the first two dishes were so superb. Don't fall for this deception by ordering the other highly recommended dish, Authentic Sichuan Dan Dan Noodle. Normally we'd enjoy a super flavorful dan dan noodle but the one here really fell short. Maybe the first two dishes gave us too high of an expectation that this dish fell FLAT.
The noodles were a bit overcooked and lacked the al dente touch. It wasn't spicy at all and lost the savory essence that dan dan noodles should have. We barely touch this dish and took it home. I say stick with the Mala Tang (麻辣燙) and Boiled Dishes. Those were the stars and if you can only choose one, then take the Fagara Spicy Pot that is number 39 on their menu. Be sure that you plan to get a nice milk tea or shaved ice to finish off a spicy meal!

Lucky Noodle King
534 E Valley Blvd Ste 10
San Gabriel, CA 91776
(626) 573-5668