Tag Archives: chinese cuisine

Spicy lunching

Royal Sichuan

400 N Greenville Ave Ste 6
Richardson, TX 75081

I’m a fan of Sichuan cooking, having spent many a hot, sweaty mealtime hanging out at the Sichuanese on Coit Rd and Little Sichuan on Legacy in Plano. When I heard of Royal Sichuan’s opening, it went on my list of places to try.

My man and I finally made our way across town to dine there for a late lunch. At 2pm on a Saturday the place still seemed busy, all booths were occupied, as we were led to our table. The dining room was narrow, but not cramped, appointed in soothing shades of sage and tan, decorated with calm landscapes and warm woodwork. The place was comfortable and inviting, and I saw myself coming back here for this reason alone.

Our hostesses (it seemed we were beset by two or three at them at once) took our order and we were left pondering the surprises that lay in store for us.

As a starter we tried Chung’s dumplings, which came out hot and steaming along with the lamb with cumin we ordered. As we dug into the dumplings, the eggplant in garlic sauce arrived, followed by the Chongqing chicken and steamed rice. Like most authentic places, pacing of the different courses is non-existent; for this visit, we were starved and weren’t in the mood to wait for the next course.

The dumplings were slippery yet tasty, though I expected more heat and sweetness from the chili oil they swam in. Lamb and cumin had the typical flavor I’ve come to expect of this dish, except Royal Sichuan’s version was heavily garnished with cilantro–which tamed the strong flavors. The eggplant provided a perfect counterpoint to the lamb, neutral and soothing to the palate. Being both garlic fans, my companion and I heartily approved of this dish. The chicken dish was our adventurous gamble; a fiery golden mound of battered chicken arrived at our table, smothered in red chilis and green onions. The chicken had a dry salty-peppery seasoning which supplied a different texture from our previous dishes. I also enjoyed the red chilis which lent a papery texture to the dish; though my man abstained from it for the very same reason. Of course it took only one bite of the tiny sichuan peppers (huajiao?) garnishing this dish to induce a mouth-tingling explosion that is hard to erase. But the Chongqing chicken was addicting, so we carefully picked out the pepper flowers as we snarfed down the rest of the dish.

We skipped soft drinks and went with water this round; luckily our servers were extremely attentive and refilled our glasses. The damage came to nearly $40 total, and for that price, the experience at Royal Sichuan was well worth it. We’ll visit again to sample more of their menu.

Rating by epicureasian: 4.0 stars
****

Donuts and Chinese food–on the cheap!

Luna Donuts

1630 Valwood Parkway Ste 102
Carrollton, TX 75006-8390
(972) 243-4077

Generic donut shop peddling standards such as glazed and powdered donuts, bear claws and fritters, fruit and sausage kolaches, and breakfast muffins and sandwiches. I always go for the sausage kolaches both in croissant and jalapeno varieties, and the good-natured lady running the counter always sends me off to work with a baggie of donut holes.

My rating: 2.5 stars
**1/2

New New Buffet

3822 Belt Line Road
Addison, TX 75001-4303
(972) 243-1198

If you’re looking for simple, fast Americanized Chinese food presented in a clean, friendly setting, New New Buffet won’t disappoint. Their hot line is representative of all the standards on a neighborhood Chinese restaurant menu: beef with broccoli, chicken with broccoli, sesame chicken, orange chicken, orange beef, jalapeno chicken, lo mein, fried rice, teriyaki chicken, etc. Most are solid renditions of their namesakes, and, quality-wise, are comparable to food court Chinese. New New also has a fried food section containing everything from crab rangoon (or is that just cheese rangoon) to jalapeno poppers and chicken wings; a soup bar populated by the predictable wonton, egg drop and hot/sour soups; a cold bar with california rolls and crab legs in abundance (along with drawn butter and ginger/wasabi sides); a salad bar (nothing exciting here), and a dessert bar overpopulated by cookies and cakes–no doubt purchased in bulk from a local warehouse club. Patrons who don’t like guessing what’s on their plate will be pleased with the taste and value of New New’s buffet. On a Sunday lunch visit, the hit on the wallet was $9.99 a person, plus drinks and tax.

If you’re looking for can’t-go-wrong neighborhood Chinese in bulk, this is the place to go. But if your tastes gravitate to the more authentic, the Josey/Beltline intersection where First Chinese resides is a short drive down the road.

My rating: 3.0 stars
***

November dining adventures part 1

Local Diner

120 S Denton Tap Rd
Coppell, TX 75019
(972) 393-3894

Local Diner serves up simple, inelegant, unpretentious fare. The fiance and I paid the Local Diner a visit for a Sunday breakfast. This Coppell outpost evoked old-time diners…barstools and tiled countertops, bright lighting, primary colors, and scores of 40s-60s memorabilia hanging from the walls. Our hosts were courteous and upbeat, very attentive when it came to taking orders and refills. While the Sunday church and sports crowd slowly filtered in, the fiance and I dove into our simple repasts. I ordered eggs and bacon with a side of 2 pancakes, while the soon-to-be-DH ordered French Toast with his eggs and ham. I found our meals acceptably executed, nothing too exciting or daring in the presentation…though I thought the bacon was lacking in salt. Nothing else thrilling to report about the meal…except that it was priced just right for what we got. Perhaps their lunch menu will have more tasty offerings…but one presumes too much to expect any more from this budget dining destination.

My rating: 2.5 stars
**1/2

Kasa Kolache

761 S MacArthur Blvd
Coppell, TX 75019
(972) 745-8822

I’ve been drawn to this place ever since I saw the “kolache” sign beckoning. And I was pleased to discover that this little hole-in-the-wall bakery serves some mighty fine fruit kolaches, in addition to their sausage kolaches and cinnamon rolls. I confess that the first time I arrived at 1pm during a weekday I was worried that I wouldn’t get a chance to try their sausage rolls (they had run out). But my consolation was a half-dozen cinnamon rolls which proved to be tasty. Hoping it wasn’t a fluke, I’ve returned with the soon-to-be-DH who reckons himself a cinnamon roll fanatic. We came early on a Saturday morning and sampled sausage rolls (tasty and spicy), ham & cheese rolls (good), fruit kolaches (blueberry was an excellent rendition) and their cinnamon rolls (went back for seconds). We both agreed that everything exceeded expectations…and we enjoyed the cafe feel of the small dining room (loved the mural) and the counter staff was helpful and courteous. Kasa Kolache is definitely worth stopping by if you’re craving a good baked breakfast.

My rating: 3.5 stars
***1/2

Uncle Tai Chinese

820 S MacArthur Blvd, # 112
Coppell, TX 75019
(972) 393-0415

I remember the original Uncle Tai location in the Dallas Galleria, well known for supplying North Dallasites with fine Chinese cuisine in upscale digs. I’m happy to hear that Uncle Tai relocated to smaller, casual and cozy outpost in Coppell. While I’ve only sampled one lunch dish from their takeout menu, I’m looking forward to trying out more of their menu. The tasty Hot Garlic Beef I ordered came out well prepared and cooked to order (I requested broccoli), though I must remember to stress steamed rice in the future–I wasn’t too keen on the dirty fried rice they paired with my lunch portion. I gobbled down lunch like Chinese food was going out of style–proof that Uncle Tai hasn’t lost his touch. I am looking forward to more takeout and delivery from Uncle Tai’s!

My rating: 3.5 stars
***1/2

Siam Thai Cuisine

820 S MacArthur Blvd Ste 108B
Coppell, TX 75019
(972) 462-1584

I was thrilled to discover great Thai food in Coppell. The fiance and I visited Siam Thai for dinner and we feasted like royalty here. Nearly everything we ordered was a delightful treasure trove of flavors. The fried calamari were not the typical deep-fried rings usually offered by other restaurants–ours was a plate of lightly battered toothsome squid sticks, paired with sweet chili sauce. The coconut soup was at once sweet, sour and mildly spicy, with a slight fishy-sauce aroma…the signature of a well-balanced, flavorful coconut soup. The corn patties, while filling, was the only appetizer to disappoint, the batter seemed too thick and overpowered the scattered kernels of corn. As for the rest of the dinner, we requested 4- to 5-star heat with our pad thai with pork, Thai spicy peanut sauce with chicken and their signature seafood dish on sizzling plate. The pad thai noodles was a fantastic rendition of the classic dish…and with the added heat, we found we couldn’t stop eating despite the slow burn. The Thai peanut Chicken–while nowhere near the caliber of Banana Leaf’s version–was still a crowd-pleaser, and disappeared faster than the pad thai noodles. As for the sizzling seafood, I was pleased to see many different chunks of seafood swimming in the red coconut curry…this turned out to be the spiciest of all the dishes we sampled that evening–perhaps due to its still being served piping hot. Everything turned out delicious, and we lamented that even when loosening our belts, we couldn’t stuff ourselves any fuller with the excellent meal before us. Thankfully, we’re within delivery range of this Thai restaurant and we look forward to sampling more of their exotic menu!

My rating: 4.0 stars
****

The Original Fried Pie Place

1980 Nantucket Ste. 103
Richardson, TX 75080
(214) 575-7437

The Original Fried Pie Place will be the death of me. I like fried pies way too much…and the small variety of meat and fruit pies peddled here will keep me coming back for more. And wow, now they also serve funnel cakes. There’s nothing else like this restaurant in Texas! I’m looking forward to their Spinach/Mushroom/Cheese and Broccoli/Chicken on my next visit.

My rating: 3.5 stars
***1/2