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Adventurous Eaters' Next Conquest? 'Saucy Intestines' in Chinatown

By Casey Cora | August 8, 2014 5:48am
 The pork intestines at Seven Treasures in Chinatown will set you back $4.
The pork intestines at Seven Treasures in Chinatown will set you back $4.
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DNAinfo/Casey Cora

CHINATOWN — The servers at Seven Treasures Cantonese Cuisine warn diners that the saucy pork intestines are a dish served cold, as if that might stop the brave diners of the Adventurous Eating club from diving in.

The group has taken on all sorts of weird and wild foods since forming a few years back: There's been outings for rattlesnake tacos, pigeon heads and deep fried caterpillars, a culinary experience that member Megan Hudgins described thusly:

"You know those Gushers candies? It's kind of like that but instead of fruit juice it's bug guts exploding in your mouth," she said.

Casey Cora tried the pig intestines ... and it didn't turn out too well:

The group on Saturday returns to Chinatown — a frequent stop — for a dinner highlighting the saucy pork intestines at Seven Treasures, a no-frills Chinese BBQ restaurant at 2312 S. Wentworth Ave.

The dish is pretty much exactly as it sounds: a small pile of pig intestines coated in a mildly spicy sauce. It costs $4 per pound.

If that sounds gross to you, consider what Hudgins and other members of the group say about dining out on a limb — it's more about keeping an open mind than embarking on a dare.

"The thing is, we all have to eat. That's a fact of biology. You can either eat something you've always had or you can have fun with something you wouldn't normally have. I've very rarely regretted it. And even when I have, I've left with a story to tell," she said.

And who knows? You just might like it.

Hudgins, 27, of Uptown, has taken a shine to intestines since first sampling them at Chinatown's Emperor's Choice restaurant.

"It was a cosmic experience. I don't know if it's because I was a couple cocktails deep or what, but ... it's honestly like eating the best hot dog in the world served on pickled vegetables."

The Adventurous Eating club discusses weird foods and organizes group dinners at their site on Meetup.com. Saturday's outing begins at 7 p.m.

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