(3 forks)
211 W. 22nd Pl.
312-791-0788
Hours: 11:30 a.m.-2 a.m. daily
Credit cards: A, D, M, V
Noise factor: Conversation friendly
Delivery: No
First impressions
Things don’t look super-promising when you walk into the garbage-strewn entryway that leads down to a Chinese grocery store and up to this restaurant. But the atmosphere gets much better once you enter the U-shaped dining room of the 10-year-old spot. The windowless room is divided between smoking and non-smoking and decorated with standard issue Chinese paintings and fixtures. Twenty-eight tables are topped with clean white paper. The unassuming eatery can be pretty sleepy right before 10 p.m. But arrive on a weekend after that “witching hour” and it explodes with energy as it becomes jammed with young hip Asians ready to dive into plates and plates of Chinese tapas-size dishes.
On the plate
The restaurant features four menus with a wide range of authentic Cantonese dishes that emphasize seafood. One menu lists all the food on offer, another just the house specialties, another the set-price family dinners and the last features inexpensive half-sized orders offered after 10 p.m. Only one item, the whole lobster, was more than our Cheap Eats maximum price.
Second helpings
We loved the size of the clams in black bean sauce we ordered from the late-night menu: 15 plump mollusks in pungent sauce sprinkled with green onions. The hundred-flavor shrimp stir-fried in the shell were impeccably fresh, juicy and sweet. Don’t miss the crunchy lacy lotus root stir-fried with ginger, vegetables and thick anise-flavored slices of fatty pork or the garlicky stir-fried pea pod sprouts. If you like bean curd, try the pillows of spicy salt tofu that resembles eggplant inside. Spicy salt smelts are a little heavy on the breading but delish nonetheless. If you don’t mind the work they require, the Hong Kong-style blue crabs (lightly dusted with cornstarch, flash-fried and sprinkled with garlic and dried shrimp) are a delight. Also try the steamed oysters that arrive in the shell showered with fresh cilantro.
Take a pass
Not sure what we expected when we ordered the “braised mushrooms and fish lips” but the large chunks of gelatinous flesh that were identified as “flounder lips” were neither pleasant nor tasty. And spicy salt shrimp, which we normally love, were fresh enough but completely lacking in flavor. The dish should be spicy and bursting with flavor, but someone seemed to forget both the salt and the intense chilies that usually accompany it.
Thirst quenchers
Hot tea and soda. You can bring your own alcohol without incurring a charge.
Extras
Oranges come with the fortune cookies and the bill. Sometimes sweet soups come as gratis desserts.
Price range
Appetizers: $2.15-$6.95; entrees: $6.95-$22. Late night menu entrees $3.95-$8.95; beverages, $1.
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Reviews are based on anonymous visits by Tribune Co. staff members. The meals are paid for by the Tribune.
Ratings key: 4 forks, don’t miss it; 3 forks, one of the best; 2 forks, very good; 1 fork, good
