Michael D.
Yelp
TL;DR: Food is average; service is below-average; friendliness is above-average; separate vegan menu. No non-alcoholic beer options.
We've come here twice before seeing a movie at SIFF. I really want to like this place more. We've met the owner, and she is really friendly, as are the staff. But there are two issues.
First, service. The first time we went they were slammed, and therefore it was understandable that service was slow. The second time they were empty though. It just took too long for menus to be given to us, and then for them to come back to take our order.
Second, food. Think of your garden-variety strip-mall run-of-mill Chinese food, and that's what this is. The dishes aren't bad mind you, they are just average.
Over the two times we've come here, we've had the vegan pot stickers and spring rolls, the ma po tofu, the sesame tofu, and the Mongolian tofu.
I'd stay away from the pot stickers , which have little flavor and are oily, as well as the spring rolls, which are a bit more flavorful but also very oily.
The sesame tofu and the Mongolian tofu aren't bad. Reasonable flavor, but nothing to write home about. The sesame tofu included cubes of pan-fried tofu simmered in the seasoning sauce, and the Mongolian tofu had rectangular chunks of pressed tofu simmered in the Mongolian sauce.
The ma po tofu was made with silken tofu -- i.e., soft and crumbly -- and didn't work well as a dish. I would've preferred tofu cubes or rectangular chunks.
I am pleased that they have a separate plant-based vegan menu (you do have to ask for it).
I wish they expanded their drink menu. Both times we ended up having water. No mocktails or non-alcoholic beer available.
The reason why we came here is that it's super close to both SIFF locations nearby (Uptown and Film Center). So as a pre-movie option, it's really convenient. For that reason, we'll probably be back, but this is not somewhere I'd go as a seek-out destination. It's basically a neighborhood Chinese place, with all that entails both good and bad.