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Restaurant ReviewRural Restaurant (Flushing NY)
| (718) 353-0086
| 42-85 Main Street,
Flushing, NY 11355
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Reviewed by: Michael Gray
Summer Volume: 2011 Issue: 18(2) page: 23 and 24
 This Rural is new and a replacement for an eatery named Hong Yi. A Shenyang couple are now in charge. Know not Shenyang? It is the birthplace of the Qing/Manchu Dynasty and the capital city of the Liaoning Province. Centrally located in this province, it is one of the three that make up the northeast or Dongbei region of China. Shenyang is one of China's largest northeastern cities. More than seven million people live here and many more come to visit the Xinle Relics, artifacts of the earliest settlement in the area, circa 7200 BCE. Want to look it up, Shenyang was known as Shenzhou in earlier times.
Ms. Li handles the front while her husband cooks up waves of deliciousness. Rural, now the fourth Dongbei restaurant in Flushing, is like the Russian-built Liaoning rail station, a quiet place where all should stop to enjoy its local food. Although Chef Liu definitely has the wok-chops and is a technical master, he may have actually toned things down a bit for us--intimidated perhaps by more than a dozen strangers who took over Rural (in a nice way of course!) one Sunday afternoon. Rural does a very steady take-out business, its Chinese customers call and/or drop in often as seen during our two-hour occupation. Actually, they trickle in all day and evening; as we noticed on other visits. They are smart to do so.  While there that Sunday, we tried the usual Dongbei delights: Sweet and Sour Squirrelfish, Tiger Vegetables (related to the herb coriander), Cumin Lamb, Pork Aspic, and La Pi. Each was hearty and bristled with good taste. So were other major hits such as their Savory Cumin Flounder, Hot and Spicy Frog, Dry Bean Curd with Spicy Pepper, Beef Tendon Home-style, and Sour Cabbage with Vermicelli. Ms. Li says they pickle their own cabbage, and it takes one month to get the flavor they want. Might seem strange to westerners, but all rural folk in the city they come from and in all Dongbei provinces do likewise. A meal without sour cabbage is missing an important Dongbei taste.
Several other winning dishes were not on menu. Do not be shy, ask for them and other lovely local dishes including Garlic Tips with Scrambled Eggs; it is a recommended winner, the garlic tips arrived fresh just before we did. Given a choice of being stir-fried with pork or with eggs, we opted for the eggs and are glad we did.  Crispy Intestines--the Chinese name--translated--for this dish is 'Fifth Watch Intestines.' It was not spicy enough to keep us awake between three and five in the morning as they say it does, but it did perk us up that late afternoon. Candied Potatoes were delivered at meal's end and were a great match for the sprightly innards.
On the menu, sometimes the word 'Sarony' appears instead of the word 'savory' but pay no mind to this item and to the one potherb that you will see. These are new immigrants who may have troubles with spelling but not a single problem cooking their great Dongbei dishes you will adore. Firthermore, Chef Liu and Ms. Li do help you order; we did appreciate that. We also enjoyed pigging out for seventeen dollars each including the very healthy tip we left for a very healthy meal of local Liaoning dishes. Other things we enjoyed at this Rural Restaurant, their Corn Noodle with Dumpling, Beef Tendon Home Style, Crystal Pig Skin, Frozen Tofu Casserole, Spicy Frog, Scallion Cucumber, Dry Bean Curd with Spicy (its heat is hot peppers), Fish Two Style, and Sarony Cumin Beef. 
On the menu, sometimes the word 'Sarony' appears instead of the word ‘savory’ but pay no mind to this item and to the one potherb that you will see. These are new immigrants who may have troubles with spelling but not a single problem cooking the great Dongbei dishes you will adore. Chef Liu and Ms. Li do help you order, and we did appreciate that. We also enjoyed pigging out as we did for seventeen dollars each including the very healthy tip we left for a very healthy meal of local Liaoning dishes. Other things we enjoyed are their Corn Noodle with Dumpling, Beef Tendon Home Style, Crystal Pig Skin, Frozen Tofu Casserole, Spicy Frog, Scallion Cucumber, Dry Bean Curd with Spicy--its heat is its hot peppers, Fish Two Style, and Sarony Cumin Beef. Common to all Dongbei eateries, the Leek Dumplings here are superb, likewise their Pork, Beef, and Celery Dumplings. Each of the dumpling orders can feed a large crew because they come twenty to each and every portion. 'Lunch over Rice' for those here Monday through Friday comes with free soup and a choice from a list of twenty-one main dishes. The tab for any one of them is four-fifty. The main menus lists twenty-one cold dishes including several made with jellyfish and some two hundred other items under headings of Cold Dishes, Chicken/Pork, Beef/Lamb, Vegetables, Seafood, Casserole/Soup, Noodle/Dumpling, and Dessert. With so many items to choose from the Rural menu, eating here is tasting a city's worth of dishes that Liaoning and the entire Dongbei region are known for. In the region of New York City called Flushing, seek it out. You will, as we did, have trouble making menu selections. Despite that effort, every one of us is glad we did; you will be, too.
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