What has always been great about the restaurant culture here in Houston is the access we have to authentic international restaurants owned and ran by real families, and Cafe Chino would certainly qualify as that - a REAL Chinese restaurant. I capitalize REAL, because I'm not talking about syrupy goop on some overly battered and charred piece of pseduo chicken. I'm talking about the real stuff, where you can find the usual Hunan standards, though there is nothing common about the grub once you actually taste it. Compare their General's Chicken to any other restaurant, for example. I like to compare their version of General Tso's chicken with what you would normally encounter at other Chinese restaurants. On such a basic dish, you can already see how Cafe Chino sets itself apart. It would be unfair to compare their Sea Bass to another Chinese restaurant's, obviously, as I cannot even think of another Chinese restaurant that would offer Sea Bass, let alone at such a high quality. It is one of only a tiny handful of real Chinese restaurants in town, and certainly the only one within a 15 mile radius. Aside from that, the entire dining experience is casual yet easily elegant enough for a night of fine dining, and always stylish without being polarizing. And to me, the food at Cafe Chino is akin to their decor - it can be perfect as an impromptu destination for lunch on some random afternoon, or you can order the signature chef inspired dishes and make it a night of exploratory Chinese haute cuisine . Like I said, it's just pitch perfect, depending on what kind of night (or day) you want it to be.
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