Being in Blaine there just are not very many Asian food options. I was up this way so I'd thought I'd stop by. How bad could it be?
So I walk in, and they have a standard serving line counter but there's no food, but restaurant supplies and boxes piled high. I was a bit confused and thought they may not be open.
I was greeted by a lady, and there were paper menus on the counter. So I ordered the lunch special Shrimp Lo Mein, which comes with an egg roll and fried rice for $7.50. I requested the fried rice to be served in a separate container because I wanted to save the fried rice for later, and I don't like my noodles touching my rice. Well she proceeded to start an argument over the dang take-out box, insisting that it all comes in one box. I reiterated my wishes for a separate container, and she argued some more, so I relented. The total came to $8.03, I didn't have 3 cents, and there was a change box on the counter. So I did what any normal customer would do in that situation: take $0.03 from the change box. Man did I get an Evil Glare from the lady something FIERCE! In my disbelief, I threw down a dollar into the freaking change box.
So the food comes, and I informed them that they lost a customer for 13 cents. 10 cents for the takeout box she wouldn't part with, and the 3 cents out of the change box. All this before I even tasted the food!! The cook from the back came up and apologized when he overheard the conversation, and he was very nice. While this was going on she gave me another cursing stare and stormed off. Heck he should have been working the front and leave the grumpy lady to cook instead.
Upon reaching my office, I opened the white box, and discovered some seriously sorry looking noodles, and "fried rice" that was just that: rice that was fried with a very small amount of soy. The egg roll looked ok, no doubt came frozen and just dropped in a fryer. Now the actual tastes were very underwhelming. No...I'm straight pissed. The Lo Mein was slightly burnt, and not in a good way. It was too salty. The "fried rice" turned out to be cooked brown rice with soy in it. I don't know which part of China they come from, but I had no idea that this was even a thing; and I am 100% full-blooded Chinese. Fried rice is supposed to have a whole lot of other things in it, not the least of which would be egg and veggies, with WHITE rice seasoned with soy. The only redeeming factor in the whole box were the shrimp which were half descent.
Oh I asked for chopsticks, and there were simply no silverware or napkins in the box. She did remember to give me a fortune cookie and a packet of soy sauce. Luckily I had one fork left in the office, otherwise so would have been eating with my fingers.
Wow. So this was a 100% fail at being Chinese Take Out: Chinese, not really; Take Out, no utensils, bad food, bad service. Sorry for being a sour-puss. I write this stuff so that no one else would have to endure this garbage. It is my hope that in the age of Google and Yelp ratings businesses like these would have to shape up or get left behind. read more