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The best of the inexpensive Chinese restaurantsMay 01 '02 Write an essay on this topic.The Bottom Line Somewhat industrial in ambiance and presentation, but very good food and very good price. (Try the jellyfish!) Szechuan Taste has also has a vast profusion of inexpensive Chinese restaurants.It provides large portions at bargain prices. It is in a neighborhood with fairly ample parking and also at a stop on the Metro (Taraval line). 917 Taraval is just west of the intersection of Taraval and 19th Avenue (a.k.a. U.S. Highway 1), roughly midway between Golden Gate Park and Stonestown. The sign outside says the restaurant serves Szechuanese and Hakka food. This is a somewhat puzzling combination in that Szechuanese food is famous for being fiery with hot peppers and Hakka food is not spicy. Further confusing is that the waiters speak Catonese. I think the Hakka dishes are probably more authentic than the Szechuanese one, but I have not invaded the kitchen to interrogate the cooks about their points of origin (or ancestry, though I doubt any are not immigrants). The service is functional: orders get taken, what is ordered gets delivered efficiently, and checks can be obtained by the universal writing-in-the-air simulation. Not all visitors like squid or jelly fish, though those who live on the coast, whatever their ethnic background, mostly savor the Spicy Salted Squid ($3.50) and Jellyfish* with Pork ($4.50). In that Szechuan is landlocked, Szechuan Scallops ($6.50) seems an oxymoron, but it means that the dish is spicy hot. There are some dishes that appeal to few of European descent, notably Sea Cucumber with Duck Feet or Sliced Pork with Preserved Mustard Green (with the extremely fatty pork that only those raised in hunger seem to like). Menus in Chinese restaurants are always long, right? There are all the usual dishes, fried rice, sharkfin soup,, kung pao this and that, and even chow mein. Fresh crab and lobster are also reasonable (with the varying price posted at the entryway). The Hakka dishes are heavy in cabbage, and bell peppers appear in many of the stir-fried dishes. This is not the most refined and delicate Chinese cuisine, but it is not swimming in grease either. There is a range of banquets (for parties of ten, the range is $98-$168; the most expensive one includes fresh crab and fresh lobster and Peking Duck). The restaurant is usually full in the evening and can seem noisy even when half-full. At lunchtime (11 .m. to 3 p.m.) rice and soup are included at no extra charge. --- About the review's title An excellent Cantonese restaurant that is a little less industrial in appearance, almost as inexpensive, and that serves excellent food, especially seafood is Empress Garden on 9th Avenue just north or Judah (and the N-line). I am sure there are many more, and perhaps Szechuan Taste is not the very best one. * Jellyfish are taking over the world, so eating them is a blow against global domination by ocean-going terrorists! (See the current issue of Audobon Magazine. And if you've ever been stung by one, fitting revenge. On the plate they are crunchy, not at all slimy. Most Anglos who I have persuaded to try it like it even without the ecological rationale.  |
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