A New Restaurant Series – Starting Out with a Review of “Kosher Chinglish” in Las Vegas
The regular followers of this travel blog know that I my college major is hospitality management. Coincidentally, one of my classes is “Culture and Cuisine” which is a cuisine journey around the world in twelve weeks! One of the fun parts of this course is visiting four different restaurants in four different cuisines. So, not only will my professor benefit from my reviews of these restaurants, but each one will be featured in a review right here at Jessica’s Reviews!
First up: Kosher Chinglish, right next to the Chinglish Wine Bar – all just a few miles down Charleston Bl. from the Las Vegas strip. This makes it a viable option for locals and visitors alike. Since this is supposed to be a restaurant review, we went to the restaurant, not the bar for this trip.
Background of Culture
For my first Cuisine I chose Cantonese. What you may ask is Cantonese? This is a regional cuisine of southern China, the region including most famously Hong Kong. It has a lot of the dishes that we in United States and the West would typically be consider Chinese food such as sweet & sour chicken, bao buns, and lo main. For the longest time, most Chinese restaurants in America really were focused on Cantonese cuisine. China is the most populated country in the world (or the second most populous after India) and it has a huge food culture. Because of this, different regions have developed their own cuisines, such as Szechuan, and Hunan, in addition to Cantonese.
Kosher Chinglish Review
For the first restaurant in this series, I decided to go with a friend of mine who is happens to live a Kosher lifestyle, so Kosher Chinglish seemed like the perfect option – Cantonese cuisine with a Kosher benefit, a celebration of two cultures in one! Coincidentally the Chinglish Wine Bar next door is not Kosher – so the owners seem to be targeting all demographics. They have separate kitchens of course, in accordance with Kosher cooking traditions.
Style of Service
The style of service was counter-deliver casual. You order at the counter and then they bring your prepared dishes to your table once it is ready. Also, the staff and patrons were dressed casually.
Specialty Food/Beverage Items on the Menu
Some dishes were listed on the restaurant’s website as the most popular. They are crispy vegetarian egg rolls, pish posh chicken dumplings, and scallion beef stir fry.
What We Tried
The things that we tried on our visit were egg drop soup, chicken wontons, sweet and sour chicken, and Mongolian beef. I was excited to try the sweet and sour chicken because there were blueberries in it. I had never heard of blueberries in sweet and sour chicken before, but I was excited to try it. I want to try new foods through this class.
Review
For the food I thought that the best were the chicken wontons. Ben ordered them but I tried one and they were so good. They were very crispy and flavorful. Often fried wontons wind up soggy, but kudos to Chinglish for getting it right.
The egg drop soup was really warm and comforting. I had not had egg drop soup in a long time, and had forgotten how much I love it. My friend had ordered Mongolian beef as his entrée, but I did not pick at his plate, so did not try it. However, he said it was really good. He ordered it less spicy because he does not like spicy food that much. He said he was glad that he did. He also had leftovers for the next day.
The sweet and sour chicken was also good. It had pineapple chunks, like sweet and sour chicken often does, but also had blueberries, making it interesting and unique. These added fruits tasted fresh blueberries and pineapples were a nice touch. I love pineapples and blueberries so I knew I would love it. My only complaint about the sweet and sour chicken dish was that the chicken was a little bit chewy. I think it may have been because it was kosher meat which is different from non-kosher chicken due to the rules regarding how it is processed. Since I am not accustomed to kosher meats, this was a texture that I am not used to.
The ambiance at the restaurant was really chill. There were just five tables inside the restaurant, so there were not a lot of people there. We got lucky that we came when it was not very crowded, as the restaurant filled up, but had just two other parties when we arrived. We were lucky that we got a table because we did not have a reservation. The service was also really good. We got served really quickly and the check came quickly as well. Also, everyone was super friendly. I think that it was because there were not a lot of people there.
What About the Culture?
Since this review was for a real culture and cuisine course, let’s talk about the cultural aspects, something you’ll rarely find in restaurant reviews … but why not? I learned a lot about Chinese (and Kosher culture) culture from going to Kosher Chinglish. The first thing I learned is that they eat different foods in different parts of China. I learned this when I was doing research about why the restaurant characterized their cuisine as “Cantonese”, instead of “Chinese.” Cantonese food is from the southern China region, a region that also includes Hong Kong. Different places in China have different traditional dishes. Another thing that I learned was that they eat a lot of rice in China. At Kosher Chinglish all of the dishes came with rice. I know that rice was common, but I did not know that it came with every dish. The last thing I learned was how tofu is used in Cantonese cuisine. I always thought of Cantonese food as chicken and beef. It is good that they offer some vegetarian options for people who are vegetarian. With vegetarian and vegan options everyone can have something that they enjoy.
Would You Return to the Restaurant in the Future? Why or Why Not?
I would come back to this restaurant to try some other dishes, and you should too! The service was great, and the appetizers were super good. Next time I go I will try a beef dish. I also would definitely get the chicken wontons again. The Mango Coconut Tapioca also looked like an amazing dessert to try. Overall, if you like Chinese food or Kosher food (or both) then I would highly recommend trying Kosher Chinglish.
Kosher Chinglish
8704 W Charleston Blvd Suite 103
Las Vegas, Nevada 89117
