So. Happy Chinese/Lunar New Year. Today begins the Year Of The Dog. I can tell you one thing: it certainly isn’t the year of the cat. Not of this cat, anyway. My neighbor’s nine-or-ten-month-old kitten, whom we have been babysitting, managed to get his leg broken today. On our watch. Quite probably with my help. Tonight his main pass time appears to be hopping backwards while growling at his cast. Wonderful start to the new year, that’s all I’ve got to say.

Our plan was to go to Jin Chan and see what they were up to on this auspicious day. Our plans got a late start because of the newly necessary trip to to the vet, but damned if we weren’t going to stick to them. Unfortunately, all the Lion Dancing was going on elsewhere. Jin Chan was up to not much more than buffet as usual.

For those interested in what “buffet as usual” means and other dining impressions, proceed below the break. For the rest of you, well, y’all can go find something else to do in Boulder, I s’ppose.

OK, so, Jin Chan’s buffet. It was missing fried rice. I am deeply disappointed that this staple of the American Chinese food experience was missing. However, there was shrimp cocktail, so I’m willing to call it a net gain. Also these little doughnut dumplings all covered in sugar. Some other unusual items (as in, unusual for a Chinese buffet (in my experience, anyway)) would be the stir fried string beans and the long strips of seaweed that make it impossible for anyone to take me seriously at the dinner table. Our friend, the one with the broken-legged kitty, declared the vegetable egg rolls divine. I was very fond of the sesame chicken. However, the deep fried chicken that wasn’t the sesame chicken, being absolutely tasteless, was a waste of space in the tummy in an all-you-can-eat situation.

My husband decided to forgo the buffet. He doesn’t trust buffets. For him, it was the family style tofu with vegetables from the lunch menu. No complaints there. It included a generous variety of veggies and mushrooms, and the tofu was nicely “crispy fried.” It’s worthwhile noting that this item was also present on the buffet. I bet the menu version was fresher, though.

My impression of the service was fairly positive once calibrated for how busy they were. Apparently we weren’t the only ones with the idea to go have Chinese food on the Chinese New Year.

My fortune cookie told me that I will receive something nice in the mail soon. I’ll be sure to report if postal niceness manifests. Be a nice change from events this (Lunar) year so far, wouldn’t it?