Lao Peng You, West Chicago Ave Chinese

Lao Peng You lunch, bopping place on West Chicago Ave, loved the two Bing, cold noodles and smashed cucumbers, tasty house-made tofu. Liked the dumplings but felt they were slightly overpowered by the vinegary broth. Friendly counter-person, she seemed vested in the restaurant and was quick with knowledgeable insights and suggestions.

A terrific non-Chinatown addition to Chicago's exploding Chinese food scene. Visually interesting interior, comfortable seating, cool raised open glassed-in kitchen. Will be back soon.

Lao Peng You, count me a Fan!









Lao Peng You
2020 West Chicago Ave
Chicago, IL 60622
872-206-8624
Mon-Tue: Closed
Wed-Sun: 11am - 9pm

Three bits of information to add:

1. They have a website: oldfriendchicago.com
2. According to that website, it's pronounced "Lao - Pung - Yo"
3. A quick Google search turns up no evidence of any association with the restaurant group founded by Tony Hu, many of whose names begin with the word Lao.

“Lǎo” (老 ) just means “old”. This place is called “Old Friend”. No connection to Tony Hu.

nsxtasy wrote:3. A quick Google search turns up no evidence of any association with the restaurant group founded by Tony Hu, many of whose names begin with the word Lao.

NSX,

Thank you for the info. In the same spirit I wish to point out that my recent Mr. D's post has no affiliation with Mr. Muffler

Regards,
Gary

G Wiv wrote:NSX,

Thank you for the info. In the same spirit I wish to point out that my recent Mr. D's post has no affiliation with Mr. Muffler

Given the definition of Lao provided, I was expecting Old Country Buffet and Old Town Ale House. Maybe Bourdain found something to appreciate about the former too, who knows.

bweiny wrote:Given the definition of Lao provided, I was expecting Old Country Buffet and Old Town Ale House.

At least there isnt a multi-post digression about sundaes. God forbid we talk about the food at a newish restaurant fresh post. By the way, I almost went back to Lao Peng You today for another round of bing, they were that good.

G Wiv wrote:By the way, I almost went back to Lao Peng You today for another round of bing, they were that good.

Keep your mission to marothisu's list in mind when repeating. Bing for dessert after a local fresh place. We believe in you!

Thanks for your report. The owners of the restaurant are brothers who are half Chinese and half Russian Jewish. They had worked in the restaurant industry for awhile in Chicago and decided to open this up. I believe their Chinese side comes from Suzhou which is near Shanghai (I'll be in Suzhou in a week or two - hopefully with some good food). They grew up cooking authentic Chinese food with their family. I read an article recently where they say the food is decently authentic but not totally authentic. That's probably good enough though - authentic enough for the US at least.

I tried out the beef noodle soup at Lao Peng You with another Taiwanese friend last week. The consensus was that it was just OK. The noodles are made in house, but they lacked the distinctive shaping and chew I want in a handmade noodle, and instead just tasted like dried noodles from Asia Mart. The broth was to my taste a bit light, with a sweet note I didn't care for. I like my niu rou mein broth dark, rich, and spicy, with lots of garlic and most importantly a heavy star anise note. Finally, to me this dish has to have pickled greens garnish and lots of it, but the LPY rendition either didn't have these or had so little I couldn't find any; instead it comes with a huge portion of raw salad greens on top which are supposed to steep and soften in the broth.


The beef was well cooked and very tender but I wish there was more of it.My bowl had maybe four small pieces total.


Now it's important to remember that beef noodle soup is a very regional dish. I grew up with the Taiwanese homemade version and that's what I'm judging LPY against, but they might be riffing off another Chinese regional variation that I'm not aware of. So I'm not trying to criticize on grounds of authenticity, just that it didn't quite work for me. I like that an ambitious Chinese specialty joint is open in this neighborhood and I wish them continued success.

eating while walking wrote:I grew up with the Taiwanese homemade version and that's what I'm judging LPY against

Now I'm wondering whether you've tried the version at 527 Cafe in Evanston and how it compares for authenticity...?

nsxtasy wrote:Now I'm wondering whether you've tried the version at 527 Cafe in Evanston and how it compares for authenticity...?

Haven't tried 527, so I can't comment on that unfortunately. To me Katy's in Westmont is the gold standard for niu rou mein, and that's counting any place I've tried in Taipei, Shanghai, Beijing, and even mom's kitchen. That bowl blew me away!

eating while walking wrote:
Haven't tried 527, so I can't comment on that unfortunately.

527 apologist here. The niu rou mian was best when they first opened, but I still like it. The broth is not spicy (they make the version with tomatoes) but the star anise is strong. Lots of meat which is always very tender. Good amount of suan cai (although I prefer places that let you help yourself, where I add it to the soup in approximately 1:1 ratio). The noodles are the weak point, for sure; at some point, they experimented with handmade for an upcharge, but I don't think they have that anymore. I think the vermicelli is the best option of the available noodles.

After Shang Noodle opened nearby, I tried their version and was very impressed; the noodles really elevated the dish. Haven't had it since, though.

Theres a bunch of different versions of Niu Rou Mian in China, which originated in Lanzhou some 1400 or 1500 years ago (not Taiwan). We were just in the city of Xiamen in the last week (I'll have a China post when returning) which is across the strait from Taiwan. For lunch one day I had some Niu Rou Mian. It was a little lighter than I'm used to, so i made a comment about it. My wife shot me a weird look and said theres a million variations of this dish.

I also dont think LPY is trying to be 100% authentic with anything. Only "authentic enough." So with this particular dish, who knows. Could be a riff on one of many different varieties.

marothisu wrote:Theres a bunch of different versions of Niu Rou Mian in China, which originated in Lanzhou some 1400 or 1500 years ago (not Taiwan). We were just in the city of Xiamen in the last week (I'll have a China post when returning) which is across the strait from Taiwan. For lunch one day I had some Niu Rou Mian. It was a little lighter than I'm used to, so i made a comment about it. My wife shot me a weird look and said theres a million variations of this dish.

I also dont think LPY is trying to be 100% authentic with anything. Only "authentic enough." So with this particular dish, who knows. Could be a riff on one of many different varieties.

I agree. I remember in Beijing the most commonly found beef noodle soup was a clear broth garnished with cilantro and daikon. Usually served with hand pulled noodles at Muslim restaurants. This dish has endless variations in China.

Looking forward to that Xiamen writeup, I was there for work 10 years ago.

It may just be the picture but those dumplings look like they're drowning in the sauce and are about to go down for the count!

chicagojim wrote:It may just be the picture but those dumplings look like they're drowning in the sauce and are about to go down for the count!

They are in a broth. A very good one!

Darren72 wrote:They are in a broth. A very good one!

YMMV, as I mention in my post I thought the dumplings were overpowered by the vinegary broth. I realize its a style, and style decision, by the owners, I don't have to ardor every menu item to dig a restaurant. Loved the Bing, noodles, smashed cucumbers and overall can't wait to go back and explore the rest of the menu.

Eater, Chicago
These dumplings aren’t steamed dim sum or broth-filled xiao long bao. The Wats serve the dumplings in a hot and sour broth made with aged dark soy, vinegar, and chili oil. The soupy manner in which they’re served is called suan tang shui jiao and originated from Xi’an in Central Asia, according to the Wats. Xi’an Dynasty Cuisine, a Chinese restaurant that opened in 2019 in Lincoln Park, might be the only other restaurant in the city that serves them, the Wats said.

Had a really nice lunch here last week with my son. As is tradition, the two of us ordered way too much but we managed to eat most of it, and we took the rest home . . .


Eggplant Salad | garlic, cilantro and chili oil
A nice opener that highlighted many of the flavors we'd enjoy throughout the meal in a manner that was a bit more restrained than what was to follow.


Sliced Beef Shank | garlic and chili oil
I enjoyed this flavorful take but wished for slightly thinner slices of beef and a bit more textural variation within them. At Szechuan places, sliced beef and maw is one of my favorite dishes. This sliced beef was very reminiscent of that dish, even if it didn't entirely check the box.


Cold Chicken | peanuts, chili oil and green peppercorn
Loved this delicious, beautifully-composed take on another dish that reminded me of similar ones I've had around town. This elevated the dish in ways unforeseen and hit the bullseye directly.


Cold Noodle | aged soy, peanuts, cilantro and chili oil
Chewy, dense, flavorful and satisfying.


Dumplings | beef & green onion, pork & cabbage, pork & dill
We ordered the three variations mentioned above but since they all looked fairly identical, only one picture. We enjoyed all three variations and appreciated that even though they all looked alike, we could easily tell which distinctive fillings were which when we bit through their tender wrappers. From what I've read above (and heard irl) I know the broth is a bit polarizing but I absolutely loved it. I didn't think it was over the top or too vinegary at all. In fact, we left quite a bit of it behind and later, I regretted doing so.


Wood Ear Salad | garlic, sesame oil and fresh chili
This may have been my favorite dish of the entire meal. The tenderly-chewy texture of the wood ears was great and the heat level -- higher than any of the other things we ate -- was just about perfect for me.


Bada . . .


Bing! - Xi'an Bing | lamb and cumin bread
Dense, crispy, short and rich. This was one helluva tasty little package that delivered a disproportionately huge amount of flavor.


Condiments | chili oil, soy, vinegar
These are available, self-serve, on a side table. I took a bit of each but for the most part, I found them mostly unnecessary. I did subject a few of my dumplings to a brief dip but other than that, I never reached for them. As was discussed above, the chili oil had a nice flavor but was not incendiary in the least.

Tiny, byo storefront and I can foresee waits being ridiculous all the time sooner than later. In this case, we arrived on a Friday at around 12:30 and were quoted a 20-minute wait. We were seated in about 10 minutes, which was nice. Service was notably friendly and helpful.

=R=