Wheelchair Accessible: Yes Good for Kids: Yes Good for Groups: Yes
Price range.
$ Price range Under $10
3 reviews
Ehtel Algarin
Located in the Waldbaum's Shopping Center, is a quaint Chinese takeout restaurant with the typical 5-6 tables to sit at. Walking into the place, it was pretty cold, just slightly warmer than the 27º weather outside. I noticed 3 of the 6 workers behind the counter had their winter coats on. Definitely take the food to go during the winter because it pretty much felt like winter.
Most of the menu items were slightly more expensive from what I'm accustomed to at Chinese takeouts. The Combination Platters were also limited in selection. We wound up ordering Beef with Broccoli ($6.80) and General Tso's Chicken ($7.20). I asked the lady behind the counter if we could swap the included egg rolls for soup. She informed us that it would be a $.40 substitution fee for Wonton Soup, and a $.60 substitution fee for Hot & Sour soup. We decided to substitute one for Wonton soup and keep one egg roll. I was a bit surprised that they would charge extra because many Chinese takeouts would be glad to substitute egg rolls for soup, free of charge.
It took no more than 5 minutes from when we put in our order to when our food was ready. That was at lightning speeds, especially since there were 2 other customers who ordered right before us, each ordering a couple dishes. I was pretty impressed, but now it's time to judge the food.
Portions were slightly smaller than the average, with about half the platter filled with pork fried rice. I usually like to see about 1/3 the platter filled with rice. The General Tso's chicken was your standard battered mysterious chicken. It was tender but it had an unusual taste, more like Orange chicken than General Tso's, no heat (spice) at all. The broccoli was slightly raw, requiring a little extra biting with the teeth. The pork fried rice had decent flavor but was mushy in texture. Thumbs down. The beef & broccoli was a bit better. The beef was tender and tasty, but the broccoli was again slightly undercooked. If a chinese take out messes up on such staple dishes, I'm afraid to try their other dishes. Even the Wonton soup was bland, and the wontons were mushy and had some lowgrade meat inside.
The last time I've been to this place was about a year ago, and from what I remember, the food was decent. But this time around, the food was very disappointing and I don't think I'll be coming back any time soon.
I'm not too tough to please when it comes to Chinese food. Wherever I go, I tend to order either the General Tso's chicken combination or the sesame chicken combination. I always ask to have the chicken prepared with a soft outer layer so I don't have to risk destroying my teeth with each bite. Joy Hing did a consistently great job preparing the chicken just the way I like it. The pork fried rice that came with the meals was much better than it is from other Chinese food spots. It actually looked fresh, and didn't have that dark, expired look that many other places tend to specialize in.
I used to go here once or twice a week when I saw clients in the area. The lady who took my order was always very nice, and after several visits, she knew exactly what I wanted when I walked in. She would ask if I wanted the same meal I always got, and would assure me that the chicken wouldn't be crispy. It's these little details that really personalized my visits here and made me feel welcome and appreciated.
I'll never forget about this place, and will certainly come here again the next time I'm in the area.
When I went in the person that took my order was watching something on an iPad…and didn't even look at me when I made my order.
I got chicken and broccoli in a white sauce…a white sauce is normally garlicy..this white sauce tasted like nothing…very bland. I was not very happy with how my food tasted. I will not be returning.
Located in the Waldbaum's Shopping Center, is a quaint Chinese takeout restaurant with the typical 5-6 tables to sit at. Walking into the place, it was pretty cold, just slightly warmer than the 27º weather outside. I noticed 3 of the 6 workers behind the counter had their winter coats on. Definitely take the food to go during the winter because it pretty much felt like winter.
Most of the menu items were slightly more expensive from what I'm accustomed to at Chinese takeouts. The Combination Platters were also limited in selection. We wound up ordering Beef with Broccoli ($6.80) and General Tso's Chicken ($7.20). I asked the lady behind the counter if we could swap the included egg rolls for soup. She informed us that it would be a $.40 substitution fee for Wonton Soup, and a $.60 substitution fee for Hot & Sour soup. We decided to substitute one for Wonton soup and keep one egg roll. I was a bit surprised that they would charge extra because many Chinese takeouts would be glad to substitute egg rolls for soup, free of charge.
It took no more than 5 minutes from when we put in our order to when our food was ready. That was at lightning speeds, especially since there were 2 other customers who ordered right before us, each ordering a couple dishes. I was pretty impressed, but now it's time to judge the food.
Portions were slightly smaller than the average, with about half the platter filled with pork fried rice. I usually like to see about 1/3 the platter filled with rice. The General Tso's chicken was your standard battered mysterious chicken. It was tender but it had an unusual taste, more like Orange chicken than General Tso's, no heat (spice) at all. The broccoli was slightly raw, requiring a little extra biting with the teeth. The pork fried rice had decent flavor but was mushy in texture. Thumbs down. The beef & broccoli was a bit better. The beef was tender and tasty, but the broccoli was again slightly undercooked. If a chinese take out messes up on such staple dishes, I'm afraid to try their other dishes. Even the Wonton soup was bland, and the wontons were mushy and had some lowgrade meat inside.
The last time I've been to this place was about a year ago, and from what I remember, the food was decent. But this time around, the food was very disappointing and I don't think I'll be coming back any time soon.
I'm not too tough to please when it comes to Chinese food. Wherever I go, I tend to order either the General Tso's chicken combination or the sesame chicken combination. I always ask to have the chicken prepared with a soft outer layer so I don't have to risk destroying my teeth with each bite. Joy Hing did a consistently great job preparing the chicken just the way I like it. The pork fried rice that came with the meals was much better than it is from other Chinese food spots. It actually looked fresh, and didn't have that dark, expired look that many other places tend to specialize in.
I used to go here once or twice a week when I saw clients in the area. The lady who took my order was always very nice, and after several visits, she knew exactly what I wanted when I walked in. She would ask if I wanted the same meal I always got, and would assure me that the chicken wouldn't be crispy. It's these little details that really personalized my visits here and made me feel welcome and appreciated.
I'll never forget about this place, and will certainly come here again the next time I'm in the area.
1 star because my food was ready in 5 minutes.
When I went in the person that took my order was watching something on an iPad…and didn't even look at me when I made my order.
I got chicken and broccoli in a white sauce…a white sauce is normally garlicy..this white sauce tasted like nothing…very bland. I was not very happy with how my food tasted. I will not be returning.