South Side Chinese

Good Friday evening --

I'm meeting a friend on the South Side tomorrow for a late, long lunch.

Any Chinese recommendations in the vicinity of 8000 Kostner where we can eat and talk for awhile in a quiet atmosphere?

Many thanks,

bmahin

Not far to the west is Spicy Thai Lao in Burbank.
http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?p=469014

Tom,

TomInSkokie wrote:Not far to the west is Spicy Thai Lao in Burbank.
viewtopic.php?p=469014

Tom, which part of spicy Thai Lao would be Chinese?

Ok, yeah, clearly not Chinese--but if I was posting this, and faced with the options in this area, I would WELCOME this slightly off the grid suggestion, since it would mean good food, though obviously not the exact type I requested. Which is what we're all here for, right?

deesher wrote:Tom,

TomInSkokie wrote:Not far to the west is Spicy Thai Lao in Burbank.
http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?p=469014

Tom, which part of spicy Thai Lao would be Chinese?

I couldn't think of a good Chinese restaurant in that area.

What would be your suggestion, Deesher?

How about Vito & Nick's. They're not Chinese, too.

deesher wrote:Tom, which part of spicy Thai Lao would be Chinese?

If you look at the menu, you'll find a number of "Chinese takeout" classics such as orange chicken (with fresh oranges), pepper steak, Mongolian beef, kung pao chicken and chop suey (I think these might be holdovers from the Chinese restaurant that was there before). I haven't tried any of these but wouldn't be surprised if they're good. Keep in mind the restaurant is small so it might not be ideal for lingering (you could grab a beer at Durbin's around the corner if you have to give up your table) but that probably won't be a problem on a rainy afternoon.

While it's not Chinese and only kind of close, I would go to Birrieria Zaragoza for a late long lunch in a quiet atmosphere.

The best American Chinese on the far south side is at 95th and Kedzie: Chi Tung. It gets the job done efficiently, but is by no means authentic. It might get a bit loud, around lunch time, though.

I've had Spicy Thai Lao's kung pao chicken, and it was definitely done up a little differently (at least the day I had it) than your typical Chinese takeout, with a much more Thai vibe to it. I would not have identified it as kung pao if you didn't tell me, and would have guessed some take on a Thai peanut sauce dish. It was reasonable, but not something I'd order again given the other dishes I love there. I could swear it used to be called "Thai style Kung Pao" on the menu (or something to that effect), but it doesn't appear to be so in the linked menu, so I don't know if they've updated it, or the online menu doesn't have the same description or what.

I was going to recommend Chi-Tung myself. I'm not particularly a fan of that place, but unless your friend is a hard-core foodie, they'd probably enjoy it just fine. For middle-of-the-road Chinese/Chinese-American, it's perfectly fine. Everybody in the neighborhood seems to love it. If I were in the neighborhood, I probably would enjoy it a lot more, too. But I have better and closer Chinese options, given I'm right off I55.

mtgl wrote:The best American Chinese on the far south side is at 95th and Kedzie: Chi Tung. It gets the job done efficiently, but is by no means authentic. It might get a bit loud, around lunch time, though.

That would be my pick too.