With Chinese restaurants popping up around town like so many 24-hour convenience stores, it is hard to find one with any distinctive characteristics.
Even though some of our Chinese friends recommended a recent entry in the marketplace, we remained somewhat leery. Not only had that location by the university had more than its share of mediocre tenants, but the name, Chop Suey Luey's, sounded more like a frathouse prank than a respectable eatery.But the word must be out that this small, clean and well-organized restaurant is neither a throwback to former inhabitants nor some punster's cross-eyed version of Oriental food.
Take-out trade during our early Saturday evening visit was brisk, with everything from walk-in customers grabbing a few egg rolls to dinners made up of stacks of steaming cartons, including a wonderfully aromatic chicken curry that caught our attention. Since the serving area and kitchen are close to the window seats, where we perched, we could get more than a sidelong glance on the small serving area, which, according to our friends, gets mostly used for lunch.
Ironically, when we placed our order, our hostess did not recommend the chop suey. Instead she suggested a cross section of seafood and vegetable dishes, as well as a mildly spicy sesame beef ($6.25).
We were impressed with the shrimp and vegetable ($5.95), full of crisp and colorful broccoli, carrots, pea pods and small tender shrimp. The fresh chopped (not canned) mushrooms added to our confidence as well as the flavor of the dish. The moo shu vegetable ($5.50) was also very good. The chicken lo mein ($4.25) was a heaping serving of thick al dente pan fried noodles and pieces of chicken and sliced vegetables. Like the other dishes, the sauces were light and not overpowering.
Since the soups were especially popular with our friends, we sampled all three. Each was distinctive and flavorful - even the often droopy egg drop pawned off in other Chinese restaurants had a nice richness. The hot and sour was quite spicy; the won ton a thin broth with lots of vegetables and soft pork filled noodles.
Two of the appetizers, the egg rolls (2 for $2.50), vegetable filled, and the 5 steamed pot stickers ($2.95) were also nicely prepared.
Other selections from the modest menu include moo goo gai pan, Szechuan kung pao chicken, spicy General Tso's chicken, beef with broccoli, Hunan beef, pork with garlic sauce, several sweet and sour dishes, moo shu shrimp, broccoli with oyster sauce, shrimp with cashews, egg foo young and chop suey with either crisp noodles or steamed rice. Lunch prices average $3.50; dinner prices a few dollars more. Daily dine-in express specials and several combination family dinners round out the reasonable bill of fare.
The family that owns Chop Suey Luey's also ran a similar take-out and small dining establishment in one of the resort towns of the Maryland coastline. Finding the vagaries of tourism a bit frustrating, they moved to Salt Lake last summer. It is a move that lovers of Chinese cuisine should appreciate.
Rating: * * * 1/2
Chop Suey Luey's, 1328 E. 200 South, 5811-1155; fax: 582-1313. Open Monday through Friday, 10:30 a.m. until 9:30 p.m.; Saturday from 11:30 a.m. until 9 p.m. Closed Sunday. Free delivery in a limited area. Accepts check only with guarantee card; no credit cards.