next question! MSG at China Village, Albany?

Question

You guys are great; thanks for the help with my Ethiopian food question.. which I had thought would be the cuisine of choice this evening. But not! Instead, Chinese is to be the evenings sought for meal. I'm thinking of going to China Village, seeing it's pretty highly regarded here, and I live nearby. But, 
I'm kind of sensitive (not allergic but sensitive) to msg... does anyone know if China Village uses msg in their food? I'm fearing that, due to it's authenticity, they likely do... a little is fine, but, well, me, I can tell the difference from 'a little' msg and 'a lot'...
 
thanks again,
 
Cyndy

Answer

MSG is an honored condiment in Asian cuisine. To suggest that a good chef doesn't "need" to use monosodium glutamate is tantamount to suggesting that a good western chef doesn't "need" to use sodium chloride, er, salt. I think it's demeaning to ask a chef to use less MSG or no MSG. Would you be so presumptious as to ask Thomas Keller to please use less salt?
 
I don't want to start another MSG flame war, but I think the scientific evidence of people being adversely affected by MSG is pretty slim.

Answer

I have a simple answer to the original question, "Does China Village use MSG?" (as opposed to "should they" or "should anybody" etc.).
 
The first time I went to China Village was with my father, who has a terrible response to MSG. The slightest amount of it will give him a migraine headache. We asked the waiter if dishes could be prepared without it, and he said yes, with only a very few exceptions. Certain appetizers, such as potstickers, are made in advance, and will always have it.
 
My father had no averse reactions to his dinner, so the kitchen clearly made good on its no-MSG promise.

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