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SEPT 30 / 2002 |
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| Best Chinese Food - Fresh Food Experience Jana, Tim and I went out to dinner with our friend, Betty. We felt like Chinese Food and used the occasion to go to my favorite Chinese Restaurant, Fresh Food Experience, located at 9120 82nd Avenue. In my opinion, Fresh Food Experience has consistently served the best Chinese food for over a decade. Although not well known in terms of high profile, it certainly has a devoted following of Orientals and Caucasians alike. Without a doubt, the most featured offering is the House Special No-Name Shrimp. They call it “No-Name” because they simply do not want to reveal how it is made. Interestingly, in recent years there have been several other establishments that have added “No-Name” shrimp to their menus…they aren’t even close to copying this extravagant treat. Anyway, to commence we ordered the House Tidbit Plate, consisting of Shrimp Balls, Chicken Wings, Dry Ribs and Spring Rolls. It gives people a nice variety all in one appetizer selection. This was Jana’s and Betty’s first time here. Both said the Spring Rolls were as good as they’ve ever had. The Dry Ribs were more like battered ribs…quite juicy and very flavorful. I had not previously had the shrimp balls. But they are now on my must order list as well. We also ordered some Onion Cakes, which came with a sensational peppery peanut sauce. It was sweet, definitely tangy, yet not unpleasantly hot. As with most Chinese food restaurants, the best way to go is to order and share various entrees, along with rice. We went for Hoi Sin Shrimp and Scallops, Sweet and Sour Boneless Pork, Hot and Spicy Chicken Chow Mein and – of course – the No Name Shrimp. We also ordered the House Special Fried Rice. For a dollar more than the regular fried rice, you may enjoy a combination of chicken, shrimp vegetable adornments that make it a highlight of the meal. The Sweet and Sour Pork was your standard fare, but most delicious. I strongly recommend the boneless option, as you are clearly not deprived of meat; and it saves picking out those pesky little bones from your mouth. The Shrimp and Scallops was clearly on the spicy side. The seafood broth was nicely bittered to somewhat mute the hot spices and yet not mask the delicate taste of seafood. We all had a heck of a time getting Jana to share, since it had been her selection in the first place. As for the No Name
Shrimp…Wow. It blew the others away. In fact, we heard the next
table talking about the same thing. A family of 8 had an array of plates
on a Lazy Susan They asked if I knew other restaurants were trying to imitate them. I did. We agreed that no others are comparable. The only disappointment was the Hot and Spicy Chow Mein. Not that the plate itself wasn’t very good. It simply was not what we expected. We were expecting traditional Chow Mein. What we got was a hot and spicy dish consisting primarily of dried noodles, along with chicken, vegetables and a deliciously spiced sweet and sour sauce. We had wanted the traditional Chow Mein, and nothing on the menu indicated it would be anything else. We confirmed this was the dish we ordered. So it may be wise to double check that you want Chow Mein if so-ordering. Service is very friendly and accommodating. The décor is obviously Chinese. It isn’t elegant, but certainly comfortable and extremely clean. We had a good-sized doggy bag, to say the least, and absolutely no room for dessert. That’s too bad. Because their Toffee Banana, their Toffee Apple and Deep Fried Ice Cream are all great. Also, for $1.80 you can have a nice refreshing Lychee. The cost of the meal, including a glass of wine and two sakés for the adults, and several glasses of lemon iced tea, the appetizers, the entrees, rice and traditional fortune cookies with tea was only $77.00. We could easily have fed two more. Take off the cost of the alcohol and, well, Fresh Food Experience is a good place for value. BEST POINTS: AREAS FOR
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