After driving around Scott Street for a considerable amount of time, I finally stumbled upon the Chinese Food restaurant.
Yes, that is in fact the actual name of the establishment, which is situated in a small marketplace with limited parking on Scott Street and Shelter Island Drive.
After walking through the small restaurant I did not have very high expectations. The cramped interior, the low prices (implying poor quality), and the initial slow service, all fueled my doubt. Then after looking through the menu (there were more than 80 items to choose from) for a considerable amount of time I was ready to make my decision.
Despite all of my repugnant thoughts, I placed my order: A tofu plate with vegetables, won ton soup, and a bowl of rice; while my friend placed his simple order of chow mein noodles.
The pricing was affordable, and you definitely get what you paid for in terms of quantity. A large bowl of soup—easily amounting to 3 soup bowls—costs you about $4, alongside a large tofu plate of about $7 . After 10 minutes, I was greeted warmly by the cashier—also the waiter—with a large, steaming bowl of won ton soup, coupled with my rice bowl and tofu plate with vegetables, all served on sturdy ceramic bowls and plastic plates.
With the right amount of soy sauce, my food was excellent. The tofu was cooked to perfection, revealing a freshness and moist taste, which made it easy to bite into and chew.
While I personally like to complement the taste of traditional tofu with onions and garlic, the mushrooms and vegetables provided a nice secondary choice, which ended up eliciting a nice after-taste.
Next up was the won ton soup with the rice bowl. Of course, most Chinese restaurants can’t go wrong with rice bowls.
Being from the northwest and experiencing renowned family owned Chinese food restaurants like Wu’s Open Kitchen; I had high expectations of this place. As predicted, the rice was perfect.
It wasn’t sticky or crunchy, and the won ton soup was cooked well, blended with chopped broccoli, along with cucumber, carrot and onion slices. Everything was served fresh, which was the dealmaker for me. My friend reported that the chow mein noodles tasted good as well, on par in comparison to other similar restaurants he has visited in the past.
Overall, the Chinese Food restaurant may not be the most visually appealing restaurant you will encounter, nor does it have a fancy allure, but rest assured the food is of healthy quality. One guarantee is that you won’t leave with an empty stomach either, as I wasn’t able to remotely finish my meal.
If you like to enjoy fresh and affordable Chinese food in a quaint, casual environment, then this is the place for you. The restaurant can be found on the corner of Scott Street and Shelter Island Drive just off of Rosecrans Street across from Wells Fargo with business hours of 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday.
