![]() Spicy Stewed Pork Intestines ($11.45): One of my particularly adventurous photographers ordered this dish. Don’t make the mistake of eating the actual dried chilies they’re just for fragrance. La Zi Ji ($11.95): The badass cousin of Gong Bao Ji (Kung Pao chicken), La Zi Ji is a simple, dry stir-fry of chicken and red peppers. But this serving was too overwhelmed with ma la for my tastes. Order plenty of rice to survive the inevitable hell.įu Qi Fei Pian ($6.95): This cold appetizer of strips of beef tendon and meat, garnished with fresh cilantro, is one of my favorites. Ask politely for less spice you’ll only be mildly judged. I found myself in a good amount of pain, though I had grown up on the cuisine. Eating through a meal of Sichuanese food is not recommended for people who can’t take their spice. The staple combination of garlic, chili oil, dried red chilies, ma la oil, and cilantro forms the foundation for countless hot and cold dishes in the region of Sichuan. Lao Sze Chuan’s food pretty much has the same flavor profile. The staff is undeniably Chinese, but forced to cater to non-Chinese for economic survival, which is the overwhelming theme of this neighborhood.įu Qi Fei Pian, a cold appetizer, is tasty when dressed in moderation. Don’t get me wrong, if you visit Cai often enough with large parties, you may foster relationships with the staff-the best part of being a dedicated diner at a Chinese establishment, with benefits including off-menu regional gems, a massive upgrade in service, and occasional complimentary alcohol. Chicago suffers from being in the middle of the country, and picking out flesh from this lobster was unrewarding.Ĭai’s business model is much like that of Phoenix Restaurant and other predominantly Cantonese restaurants: serve dim sum, then a vastly varied dinner menu that caters to the Westerners who want to feel “exotic” as well as to the Chinese who just want to grab their favorites for the occasional night out. Lobster (Hong Kong style) (MP): Don’t waste your $35 on this hot mess. ![]() ![]() Jiao Yen Yu Pian (Deep fried fish fillet) ($9.99): The batter wasn’t too heavy and the medley of garlic, chilies, and scallion took me back for a short-lived moment of nostalgia, as the dish definitely packed on the MSG. For the inexperienced, the fragrant chicken fried rice is all fun and games until you bite into the aggressively funky salted fish. Xian Yu Ji Ding Chao Fan (Salted fish and minced chicken fried rice, $9.99): Definitely not for the weaker palates. It serves an overwhelmingly varied menu that features southern Chinese cuisine mixed with internationally clichéd dishes like Beijing roast duck. After vacillating back and forth on the quality of Chinatown’s offerings, I’ve decided that the grub does the job: we have nothing better, so we may as well get to like it.Ĭai is another addition to the Cantonese-headed restaurants that pose as staple Chinese institutions. Countless restaurants of Lao this and Lao that seek to monopolize the food options, and the lack of stellar cuisine puts Chinese-Americans like me in the dilemma of combating our cravings for childhood fare with food from sub-par establishments. The gentrified streets of Chicago’s Chinatown are little more than a highly belabored attempt at making the neighborhood authentic enough for nostalgia but palatable enough for Westerners.
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