Located Midtown Manhattan, Café China is a discreet restaurant that won a Michelin Star this year. With its 1930s Shanghai decor, this non-pretentious place serves Sichuan dishes. Service there was good, courteous and efficient, but I found the food to be ok, not that amazing to the point that I would die to go back. Is it because we did not order the right dishes? Maybe. I let you judge after you read what we had:

Vietnamese iced coffee: they do not use a coffee machine to make it, but rather let the coffee drip onto a small quantity of condensed milk. It was good, perfect if you like coffee as stronger than a café au lait, but I admit that it does not beat the Malaysian coffee at Laut, that is also made with condensed milk.

Vietnamese iced coffee at Cafe China in NYC, NY

Crystal shrimp dumplings: quite good, the shell being perfectly made.

Bang bang chicken: it is a cold dish made with shredded chicken in a sesame sauce with peanuts. It was ok, a bit spicy but not too much.

Bang Bang chicken at Cafe China in NYC, NY

Scallion pancakes: good, slightly greasy as you would expect them to be.

Scallion pancakes at Cafe China in NYC, NY

Stir-fried assorted fresh mushrooms, made with oyster mushrooms and vegetables. I found the dish bland...This was in fact my least favorite.

Eight Jewel Rice: this was a dessert that is like a Chinese rice pudding, made with sticky rice, raisins and red bean paste in the center. This is apparently typically served in Chinese banquets, the number 8 being a magic number in China, pronounced like the word that means rich or to thrive in business. It was quite good, not too sweet, with a nice texture from the rice.

Eight jewel rice at Cafe China in NYC, NY

So it was fine but not earth shattering. Other dishes like the tea smoke duck or dan dan noodles might have been a better choice. So I am a bit on the fence concerning Café China. I might have to try another time to see if I get why they obtained a Michelin Star as, after this visit, I am not sure...

Enjoy (I did)!

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Café China - 15E 37th street, New York, NY 10003

Café China in Midtown Manhattan

I Just Want To Eat!