Elsie M.
Yelp
This place was highly recommended to me by a client from work. Knowing that we had similar taste buds, he thought I'd like this place. So of course, I had to check it out!
This restaurant is located in a small plaza in Tempe in an area I would have looked over if not for the recommendation.
When we first went in, we noticed right away that the ambiance was nice and relaxing. Their décor simple, comfortable, and straight to the point. Nothing too fancy.
After looking over the menu, we decided to order fried dumplings and the scallion pancake as an appetizer. For our main dishes we ordered fish flavored eggplant strips, twice cooked pork, fried lamb with cumin, and sausage fried rice.
The dumplings, scallion pancake and the twice cooked pork were okay, just on the average side.
But oh, my goodness! The eggplant strips were delicious. There was a bit of a crunch to them and they were also stuffed with minced pork. A bit on the oily side but eggplant dishes at Chinese restaurants usually are. I was afraid this dish would be too spicy for me but surprisingly it wasn't spicy at all. This was the dish I was the most skeptical about liking and was pleasantly surprised otherwise.
Next, the sausage fried rice was also delicious. It was the perfect balance between sweet and savory.
Last, the fried lamb with cumin. Our absolute favorite dish we tried. The level of spice was just right. There was enough spice to leave my lips tingling but not overwhelmingly spicy to the point where my tongue went numb. Bonus points that the lamb wasn't overcooked where it was too tough to chew.
The décor inside this place might be simple but, the flavors in their dishes? Complex in the best way. Additionally, the service was fast and friendly. The only downside to our experience was that we received all of the main entrees before any of our appetizers. Which made us less inclined to eat much of the appetizers aside from a few pieces of each. Besides that, everything else was great. I see this place becoming one of my regular spots in this area.