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A veggie delight
IN MIDTOWN
CASUAL AMERICAN ITALIAN | ALL FRESH INGREDIENTS | PASTA MADE DAILY
Happy Hour
Rose Garden Chinese Restaurant 1079 I Sunrise Avenue in Roseville, (916) 781-3823, www.rosegardenroseville.com Although I’ve never been to China, I’m confident that what we know as “Chinese food” here hews closer to fast food than fine dining. With few exceptions, by Ann Martin Rolke our local choices for the cuisine tend toward oily, green pepper–laden salt licks. Fortunately, there are exceptions. Lotus 8 in Folsom is a great example and Rose Garden Chinese Restaurant in Roseville is another. I may be a bit jaded, but I was curious after seeing Rose Garden listed as the top choice Rating: in the “Best spot for Asian eats” category in HHH 1/2 SN&R’s 2013 Best of the Burbs issue (see “Best of the Burbs: Best of Roseville readers’ dinner for one: $5 - $10 picks,” SN&R May 16, 2013). It turns out that it sticks pretty closely to the Mandarin/Szechuan Top 40, but it does so with finesse. Situated in a somewhat out-of-the-way strip mall, Rose Garden’s brightly-lit dining room is cheerful and welcoming with plentiful tables and an eager, friendly staff. We never went 10 minutes without someone checking our water, food or general well-being. Meals begin with the requisite tea, but with the welcome addition of complimentary fried H wontons and dipping sauce. The sweet-and-sour flAwed sauce is an alarming shade of fuchsia, but a nice HH foil for the salty snacks. hAS momentS We tried the egg rolls and pot stickers to HHH size up these standard offerings. The egg rolls AppeAlIng are compact and nicely fried. The filling of HHHH shredded cabbage and pork is fine but not noteAuthoRItAtIve worthy. The pot stickers fared better with the HHHHH same filling, encased in tender wrappers with a epIc satisfying crunch on their browned bottoms. Rose Garden offers four-course combination lunches and dinners for a good price. All of them include wonton soup, which is often somewhat bland. Not here, though. The broth is rich with flavor and the fresh, yielding dumplings would make a Jewish grandmother swoon. The rest of our combo dinner included large servings of sweet-and-sour pork, chicken chow mein and barbecue pork fried Still hungry? rice. Of the three, the chow mein is the Search Sn&R’s standout. The restaurant really does noodles “dining directory” to find local well. They are chewy and fresh, tossed restaurants by name with tender breast meat and well-cooked or by type of food. vegetables. A bit of soy sauce enlivened Sushi, mexican, Indian, them even more. Italian—discover it The sweet-and-sour pork is the least all in the “dining” section at exciting, featuring battered meat in that www.news neon-pink sauce. While it isn’t as gooey as review.com. many of its kind, the sauce suffers from too much sweet and not enough sour. The fried rice, on the other hand, is fantastic. Both the pork and vegetarian versions are full of high-quality mix-ins, but not a lot of grease. Order the vegetarian with egg to complement the colorful variety of perfectly al dente vegetables, including two kinds of peas, carrots, corn and bean sprouts. On another visit, we found more winners. Twice-cooked pork combines thickly sliced BEFORE
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tender char shiu with surprisingly delicious cabbage. The soy-based sauce flows appealingly, without a hint of starchy gumminess. Kung pao chicken arrived absolutely packed with large, tender chunks of white meat offset by crunchy peanuts and water chestnuts. Toothsome diced zucchini and a well-balanced sauce complete the dish. In fact, vegetables are a strong point. In all of the meals we tasted, they were always fresh, expertly cooked, and varied. A prime example is the broccoli with garlic sauce. The large florets retain some crunch and swim in a slightly sweet broth that’s perfect with steamed rice. Another fine choice is the moo-shu vegetables. While the pancakes are not as tender as they could be, the filling is a garden full of variety. Sauced and rolled, these juicy morsels are fun and tasty.
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NOW OPEN EVERYDAY & DELIVERY AVAILABLE HAPPY HOuR: 4-6Pm EVERYDAY • Appetizers $3 • Beer on Tap $3 • Bottle Beer $2
Special Vegan & gluten Free menu options cooked with organic tofu & rice bran oil
Vegetables are a strong point. In all of the meals we tasted, they were always fresh, expertly cooked, and varied.
Check Yelp page under “From This Business” for Daily Discounts Yelp.com/biz/thecoconut-midtown-sacramento
2502 J St | Sacramento, CA | 916.447.1855
Sunday Wings Day!
While Rose Garden isn’t starting any new trends, it makes the most of old favorites with great ingredients. It seems to have quite a loyal following, too, as the staff greeted many diners like old friends and asked after their families. Delicious food and friendly service obviously serve them well. Ω
is
No gimmicks. Just Chicken.
A meh sandwich to go, please
2790 Stockton Blvd • Sacramento (916)457-5757 Hours: Tues-Sun 11am-8:30pm
Another Subway sandwich for lunch? Yoga-mat chemical or not, from past experience, a vegan order there is likely to be meh. Totally unmeh, however, are the sandwiches at Pushkin’s Bakery (1820 29th Street). The gluten-and dairy-free joint began offering four vegan sandwiches in June for six bucks each (and house-made potato chips this month). If you show any hesitation in ordering, though, don’t be surprised if the friendly employee behind the counter looks you dead in the eye and makes the decision for you: Spicy Adult Grilled Cheese. Just go with it, because the creamy cashew cheese mingles with kicky arugula and cooling tomato on a perfectly soft yet firm roll—totally not like the soggy-prone bread at other sandwich shops that shall remain unnamed … twice. I recommend the Herbivore Delight and substituting the soybased mayo for the cashew cheese—and getting a cookie for the road.
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