Crowded but decent Taiwanese Pork Hock Place (Uncle Lu Richmond Review)

From the outside, you can immediately tell that Uncle Lu's is Taiwanese by the flower patterned external decor. The location from the outside look pretty average with just enough parking spaces for its customers.
 I came to Uncle Lu's with my friends as we were in Richmond to hangout. We were in a group of 4. As we arrived inside Uncle Lu's, we noticed how cramped the restaurant was. The tables and chairs were very close to each other that you can smell what the people around you are eating and if they took a shower last night or not.
When the waitress arrived, she brought us to a table that was sandwiched between two other tables. Because it was our first time here, we didn't really know what to get.
 From going to Taiwanfest a few years back, I met Chef Lu (who is their owner) and he was from a place in Taiwan that was famous for pork hocks. I decided, because the pork hock vermicelli was on special for about $8 and the portion seems pretty good, I decided to get that. In the menu, they had many of the classic Taiwanese foods such as three cups chicken and crispy chicken rice.
 My friends decided to get the crispy chicken rice instead of the vermicelli. After a few minutes, the vermicelli arrived and the portion was pretty good. The only downside was that the pork tasted slightly dehydrated. I am not sure if I am correct, but I recall that the pork hock is shipped here from Taiwan via air tight packaging. That said, the taste was still pretty good and the portions were good too.
 Overall, I would say the food and the price here is pretty decent. The only downside is that the place can be on the crowded end. Also, note that they do not take reservations between 7PM-9PM on Friday nights and weekends. Other than that, I would probably come back and visit again.