In honor of the Bow issue, The Insiders agreed to send me on an all-expense paid lunchtime trip to the exotic town of Bow. I had a hard time selecting a place to eat, since, well, many of Bow's lunchtime spots are actually in the big city of Concord.
After some research, I decided to go to Chen Yang Li Restaurant, 520 South St. Not only had I heard good things about the place, but the restaurant's website had several delectable-looking pictures of food on it. Just as I always judge a book by its cover, I often judge a restaurant by the content of its website. I immediately rang my dining companion.
“I'm going to Bow to get Chinese food. Care to join me?” I asked sweetly. One of my New Year's resolutions this year was to be kinder to those less fortunate and to gain a better understanding of those less put together. I fulfill my resolution every time I let my dining companion tag along with me.
“Chinese food? Why are you going all the way to Bow for Chinese food? Concord has several different places we could go – we could go to the mall, there's a few spots downtown, there's . . .”
“Because that's where I want to go and sometimes you have to travel for good food!” I snapped. I mean, really, I have a busy schedule to attend to and don't have time to listen to her trail on and on and on.
We eventually made our way over to Chen Yang Li, not without somehow ending up in Hopkinton first. See? This is what happens when I rely on other people. I mean, I only let her drive so I could give her a sense of responsibility.
Once in the parking lot, I was greeted by the smell of Chinese food and knew everything was going to be just fine. Right away, I was impressed by the size of the place. Chinese restaurants are often no bigger than, say, the size of my living room, making them a great place for takeout, but not so great to dine in. However, before even making my way through the doors, I knew this would be a place to not just eat, but to dine.
Inside the restaurant was even more promising than the outside. Immediately, patrons are greeted by two different kinds of bars, essential to any good Asian restaurant . . . one for drinking and the other for sushi.
Our host brought us to a table beyond the sushi bar, and I couldn't help but feel my mouth start watering the moment I walked by a glass case containing several raw fish filets. This strategic placement immediately made me yearn for an order of spicy tekka maki, but I was snapped back to reality as soon as we were seated and I could no longer gaze upon raw fish.
I was happy to see that the restaurant was neither busy nor completely dead, making it an ideal place for lunch. In theory, this meant our food should come out quickly and there wouldn't be too much of that awkward silence between my companion and me. I was also happy to see that the restaurant had cloth tablecloths and napkins, even though it was just lunchtime. Such things please The Food Snob.
Our waitress came over immediately, asking us for our food and beverage order. Since the restaurant's menu is rather expansive, I still needed a little more time to peruse my options. I continued reading the menu and was asked two more times if I was ready to order before I was actually ready to order. I suppose they must just have known I was the infamous Food Snob and wanted to be certain I was getting prompt service. Next time I'm going out in sunglasses and a headscarf.
I eventually decided upon luncheon option No. 45 (I told you the menu is expansive). For those who have not memorized the Chen Yang Li menu, No. 45 is a combination plate with ginger shrimp and scallops with string beans, crab rangoons and chicken fingers for $9.50. The luncheon plates range from $6.95 to $9.95, and all come with your choice of soup (wonton, chicken corn or hot and sour) and rice (white, brown or vegetable fried). I opted for hot and sour soup and brown rice.
My companion had a difficult time choosing between either sweet and sour chicken or General Tso's chicken. So, essentially, she was deciding between fried chicken and . . . fried chicken. Typical. I know all you readers are at the edge of your seats, dying to know her choice, so I'll relieve you of this suspense – she chose the sweet and sour variety. Poor General Tso.
Our soups arrived shortly after ordering, along with a bowl of those crunchy noodle things that often appear at Chinese restaurants. My apologies for not being able to tell you the exact name of these crispy fried delicacies (I think of them as the French fries of Chinese food), but you know what I'm talking about. I'm only mentioning them because my companion was quite excited by their arrival since she likes anything free and fried. I believe her exact words in between bites were, “I should have ordered a bowl of these for lunch!”
She might as well have. She hardly ate her wonton soup after discovering a bit of crab (too sophisticated for her palate) and just went back to mindlessly popping the fried bits into her mouth. I got halfway through my soup, which was quite good – just the right blend of spicy and tangy – when our food arrived.
I was pleased with the presentation – a heap of brown rice to the right, two or three chicken fingers in the middle with two crab rangoons and my ginger shrimp, scallops and green beans to the left. After adding a little soy sauce to my rice, I dug in.
The rice was fantastic. I understand that all it takes to make a good rice is to throw it in a boiling pot of water for the right amount of time, but surprisingly, many still fail at this seemingly simple feat. It was moist, sticky and soft (but not too soft.)
After savoring the rice, I moved over to the unhealthy bits – the rangoons and the chicken fingers. The chicken fingers were good, but I was looking forward to the crab rangoons. I have to admit, I am a crab rangoon connoisseur – some may say a rangonnoisseur, if the word existed. I'm happy to report that the rangoons passed with flying colors. For one, they actually tasted like crab (not just like a hunk of melted cream cheese) and had a great consistency to them, meaning they weren't all soggy and watery.
I would like to say that there was something on my plate that I didn't love, for I do enjoy complaining, but I would be lying. The ginger shrimp and scallops with string beans were even better than I thought they would be. The ginger sauce was subtle and added a hint of spice that paired perfectly with both the shrimp and scallops, and I much preferred the crisp of the string beans to the crisp of those fried things we were served earlier. All in all, it was among the best Chinese food I've gotten in the Merrimack Valley.
I have to admit, my companion wasn't as thrilled about her food as I was about mine – but her opinion doesn't matter. She said she liked it, but would have preferred more of a duck sauce than the sweet and sour sauce the restaurant provided for her. But then it wouldn't be sweet and sour chicken, it would be chicken tempura with duck sauce. She doesn't understand stuff like this.
She was gleeful once again, though, when our waitress handed over the check. Not only did we get cocoa fortune cookies, but on top of it were two Andes mints. “I love these!” she gasped, grabbing her mint. Like a child, she's easily pleased.
For those who are wondering, my fortune read, “Fortitude is the guard and support of the other virtues.” Well, looks like I have nothing to worry about. My companion's read, “Be careful or you could fall for some tricks today.”
I would recommend Chen Yang Li Restaurant in Bow (there is also one in Bedford, but I haven't been to that one, so I can't very well go ahead and recommend it, now can I?) to anyone who wants something above and beyond chicken tempura and pork friend rice. The restaurant does offer those things, of course, but live a little, Concord readers, and try something exotic. I mean, if you're traveling to the faraway land of Bow, you might as well have something to write home about, right?
Chen Yang Li Restaurant is located at 520 South St., Bow. (228-8508, chenyangli.com)
Hours: Sunday through Thursday, 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m.
