Review: The Cape Orient

Type: Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Pan-Asian
Location: 315 Ocean St. (Washington Commons Mall), Cape May, NJ 08204
Phone: (609) 898-0088
Price Range: $9 to $25 for entrees
Take-Out: Yes
Delivery: No
Catering: Yes
Lunch Specials: Yes
Liquor License: No

We've been to this restaurant a couple of times over the years, while we've vacationed in Cape May during bird migration in Fall and Spring. Its website is here. Not many restaurants in Cape May are open this time of year, and those that are open are generally only open on weekends as of now, or tend to be located in hotels, or on the outskirts of town.

The first time we went to The Cape Orient, we found it by accident, when we happened to get hungry after trudging around trails and beaches in the sand and muck looking for birds, then returned to town to wander around for a break in the late afternoon. That was several years ago; we had Chinese food. The service was quick and attentive, and the food quite good. I forget exactly what we ordered, but it was probably a bowl of soup each, and one dish to split.

This time, it was one of the few places open on a Wednesday within easy hoofing distance from the B&B in which we were staying, so we figured why not try it again? It was just as good as we remembered.

I decided to go for Thai this time, and ordered the Thai spring rolls, plus the green curry chicken. I'd wanted the three-mushroom soup of the day, but at 6:30 pm, they were already out of it. The spring rolls made up for it. They were not at all greasy, and came with a wonderful light dipping sauce that was vinegary with herbs. The green curry was perhaps a little sweeter than I'm used to, but was very flavorful, and had snow peas, mushrooms, and baby corns in abundance, with just a few bits of red onion and red bell pepper.

Both my appetizer and entree came with some salad greens dressed in something a little more vinegary than your average Japanese carrot-type dressing, but with a touch of sweetness to balance it. I happen to like my salad dressing on the vinegary side, unless it's blue cheese or russian.

My partner in eating crime went for a Chinese combo that included soup, an egg roll, and an entree, in this case, some pork medallions, in a spicy sauce that had mostly the same veggies as mine, but with broccoli and no mushrooms. I snitched a taste of the sauce; it was spicy, but not hot enough to induce eyebrow sweat.

Neither of us have tried the Japanese dishes they offer, sushi, or otherwise. I cannot comment on those.

Decor-wise, it really is Pan-Asian. Some art is obviously Japanese, some is obviously Chinese, and one or two things are Thai. The lighting in the restaurant as a whole is not bright, but is sufficient.

Clientele-wise, it runs the gamut from couples to families with three generations. It's quiet, though. No kids run around wild, screaming, or tossing food. It appears to be popular with locals and tourists alike. The dress code is casual, but not too sloppy.

As far as the service goes, it's very prompt, polite, attentive, and not pushy in the least.

The waiter will bring your bill when you are done, but you pay up at the front desk, and leave the tip on the table. The Cape Orient does take credit cards, but we paid cash, and left a cash tip.

I would certainly go back the next time we visit Cape May. Both of us wondered why it hadn't occured to us to eat there more often. It's quite good, and certainly different from the usual pub grub, boardwalk eats, and seafood found at a beach resort town.

Garden Rice

Type: Chinese
Location: 234 Main St., Chatham, NJ
Price Range: Inexpensive

This place advertises itself on its menu as "Szechuan & Cantonese Cuisine," although it has a few Hunan dishes on the menu as well. As is typical, their lunch specials range from $5.50 to $6.15, and include your choice of rice (white, brown, or pork fried), and soup (wonton, egg drop, or hot & sour) to go with the main dish.

The dinner menu ranges in price from $6.35 for varieties of Foo Young to $12.95 for a few things on the "chef's special" section, with most dishes in the $9-11 range.

There's a $10 minimum for delivery, instead of the customary $20. Garden Rice also claims to use only vegetable oil and no MSG. Delivery is prompt; the usual half an hour they quote over the phone is normally an overestimate for delivery to my neighborhood, a town away.

Best dishes are:

• Lemon Chicken (nobody around makes this better than Garden Rice; it's phenomenal)
• Hunan Beef (nice and spicy, the way it should be)
  
• Kung Po Chicken (what you expect from this dish)
  
• Shrimp in Lobster Sauce (hard to mess this one up, but they always get it right, and never overcook the shrimp)
• Lake Tung Ting Shrimp (see above)

Disappointing:

• Szechuan Beef (it's almost all onion and pepper, and not even slightly spicy)
• Hot & Sour Soup (it doesn't have enough vinegar to give the sour flavor, and has those weird green greeblies that I pick out, as I find them, but at least it doesn't have strips of mystery meat)

Could Go Either Way:

• Pu Pu Platter (the value for the money is there, but the pork dumplings are really bland)

The pu-pu is almost all fried. The stuff that looks burned is shrimp toast. It's not burned, and tastes great. It just looks odd. The fried shrimp and fried chicken nuggets are excellent. The fried wontons are so-so, but if you're starving, they'll do nicely.

The lemon chicken is to die for. No other Chinese restaurant around here makes it better.

Normally, I'm not into battered and fried food other than fish and chips, but this is phenomenal. For $20, the pu-pu and lemon chicken is enough food for three meals -- for three people. OK, I consider an egg roll to be an entire meal, so you'll have to adjust my take on the amount of food to your own stomach size.

It's best immediately after delivery, but believe it or not, the leftovers reheat really well.

Chen's Restaurant

Type: Chinese
Location: 1268 Springfield Ave., New Providence, NJ, 07974 (just east of the South St./Passaic Ave. intersection)

Chen's now delivers. You used to have to either go there for sit-down or to pick up your phoned-in order. It's mostly Chinese, as the name implies, but it also has sushi, with a sushi bar and chef. For lunch, there are $6-$7 specials from the Chinese menu, and $7-$11 ones from the Japanese menu.

Chicken dishes run between $10 (for ordinary offerings from the Chinese menu), and $14, for half a Peking Duck. Rice and noodle dishes run around $7 or $8, even for my fave -- Singapore Mei Fun. Most seafood dishes run between $11 and $18. The Japanese stuff runs a bit higher, but not much more than a dollar or two, for what you might expect.

Their hot & sour soup is a great appetizer, really inexpensive, and doesn't contain any strange strips of "mystery meat." Get a bowl of soup each, and split an entree, if there are only two of you. Unless you're really starving, it will be enough for two, and should come in at around $15-$16, including a 15-20% tip.

I've never had a bad dish from Chen's, but the ones I like the best are "Ginger Chicken," "Diced Chicken with Hot Pepper Sauce & Peanuts," "Beef with Pepper, Baby Corn, Scallion, Hot Pepper Sauce," and "Jumbo Shrimp with Ginger Sauce." The shrimp with honey-coated walnuts is pretty good, too, if you want something that isn't spicy.

Pros: inexpensive; good food; attentive wait staff; huge parking lot behind the place; does take-out, and now, delivery (within a limited area)
Cons: No dumplings, dim sum, or any sort of japanese noodle dish like sukiyaki, or a ramen bowl