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Misomen (Formerly Asian Kitchen), Lee Highway in North Arlington - The Next Contestant in the Former Tap and Vine Space - Closed


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I forgot to take a picture of the sign, but the carry out menu no longer has the "and Sushi Bar" part, just "Chinese * Japanese Cuisine," now. But the Chinese character on the menu writes "Home" which is, I suppose, the atmosphere they are trying to create.

If you have ever seen an old tea table or old Chinese chess table, you know it's pretty high, then, so picture that as the table height scattered around the restaurant. It is much lighter now in color and chi compared to Tap and Vine, with added cushy, red carpet.

The chairs remind me of my grandparents' chairs (wood carved and red cushion) back in Taiwan, although much lower, and given that gelittleman is already 42-43" tall, plus that he needs a booster to elevate him to eat at table height can give you an idea of a slight paradox in dining design (this applies only to tables; I did not notice whether booths behaved this way or not).

You can see where this is going, I hope. Meaning that if you venture here, it will be more of a competitor to Oriental Gourmet than Sushi-Zen (sort of), especially since I had a lovely time conversing with two of the servers in Chinese tonight.

An order of Chicken Stick (2 for $3) came with 3 pieces of white meat, coated in red sauce, fried and then grilled had the approval of gelittleman. It was pretty tasty, but also garlicky. Avoid accompanying "creamy mustard" sauce and eat it plain.

The standard tuna roll (tekka - $5.50) was cut in a fusion-funky diagonally-stacked way, but tasted like the fish was less than fresh. Of course, this was the only Japanese sashimi/sushi item I tried, so, I can't really say to avoid, because that would be unfair, yet...well, ymmv.

The rice and crispy beef ordered (hot and spicy beef on menu - $10.25) looked quite good, which is promising if you are in a Chinese-American Chinese food mood. I had the Tempura Udon ($10.25 - see picture), which surprised me with a full plate of tempura instead of just battered tempura shrimp atop udon. The dashi-base was clear but salty, yet is also a bit promising (but miles away from Ren's promising regarding noodle soup bases). Udon was a bit soft (so a bit overcooked), but I liked how it had shitake and napa in there (so closer to Chinese-style noodle soups).

post-2127-064449400 1281406852_thumb.jpg*

I fear the jury's still out, but the gut says to stick with cooked Japanese foods or Chinese-American stuff and you'll be happy here. (carryout, but no signs for delivery. I have a feeling someone is sol here.)

*There is a kids menu with some things + juice for $5.50 (see in the pic background) with the bonus on the back to teach you child Chinese with the actual character and pinyin. I would rate this place as family-friendly, except for the fact that I don't recall a changing table in the bathroom.

Edited by goodeats
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I went there for lunch today. Those tables were a bit awkward, I thought.

I got the lunch kung pao chicken with an egg roll and fried rice. Damn, that was good fried rice. I want to go back and just order that. The egg roll was also tasty, much better than many I've gotten recently. (I can't figure out how so many places do crappy egg rolls? I am not picky!)

The kung pao chicken was not what I expected at all, but darn, was it good. Lots of crisp fresh vegetables, large pieces of chicken, and at $7 for everything it was a perfectly sized lunch for me.

I'm quite interested in going back. I'm always looking for solid "Chinese-American" food, and this was it.

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I'm quite interested in going back. I'm always looking for solid "Chinese-American" food, and this was it.

My wife and I had a conversation about this subject about a week ago. There used to be a time when you could find the kind of westernized Chinese places where it felt like they took pride in the quality of the cooking - fine it wasn't authentic Chinese cuisine, but it was still good. Now too often the meats come out tasting more like they were steamed than stir fried in a wok, and fried rice is an abomination where the chicken is likely to be par cooked and added in at the last minute.

Thank you for the update, I will have to give this a try.
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My wife and I had a conversation about this subject about a week ago. There used to be a time when you could find the kind of westernized Chinese places where it felt like they took pride in the quality of the cooking - fine it wasn't authentic Chinese cuisine, but it was still good. Now too often the meats come out tasting more like they were steamed than stir fried in a wok, and fried rice is an abomination where the chicken is likely to be par cooked and added in at the last minute.

Thank you for the update, I will have to give this a try.

We got carryout last week and were pleasantly surprised. I ordered kung pao tofu and was pleased with the abundance of vegetables, the slightly chewy texture of the tofu, and the pleasant heat of the sauce. Much better than I had expected though I am not sure why my expectations were so low.

My wife ordered shrimp tempura rolls, california rolls, and edamame. The shrimp rolls suffered from a heavy hand on the breading, which was a bit bland, needing salt. The california rolls were not memorable but the edamame were quite nice - well salted, plump pods. Very tasty.

We'll be back. This place is a notch above the local competition based on my initial read.
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Last time I went there the chairs were MUCH more comfortable.

I got the steamed dumplings and - honestly - think they might be the best ones I've had in Arlington. Definitely the best ones I've had in a long time. And the rest of the food was just fantastic.

I tried to go there today and the parking lot was packed. I was annoyed, but that makes me hopeful for them...

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My brother always says he's worried about here, because it doesn't seem busy. It was jumping when I got there about 1:30 today, though the early dismissal from local school(s?) seemed to have helped other places. Here it was mostly adults.

The dumplings are still delicious, with a bit of spice to the dipping sauce. The egg rolls and fried rice are my favorite in this area.

Service can be a bit slow, but I feel like the food is solid.

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So it's been a year since I posted...

Lunch still seems slow there, especially compared to District Taco next door. (Maybe because despite signs, it appears DT patrons use the Asian Kitchen spots? 'Cause AK's lot will be full but there definitely ain't that many people in there!)

However, for $7.58 after tax you get a choice of a number of main dishes, plus white, fried, or brown rice, your choice of egg roll or spring roll, and a drink.

I was on the way to McDonald's because I was feeling lazy and hungry and realized "why pay the same amount for McD's when I can have GOOD food?!"

It's solid. It's not that spicy even on the spicy dishes but I might ask them to turn it up a bit next time. :D

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Lunch still seems slow there, especially compared to District Taco next door. (Maybe because despite signs, it appears DT patrons use the Asian Kitchen spots? 'Cause AK's lot will be full but there definitely ain't that many people in there!)

Oops. I did it again (last night).

Carryout.

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I was disappointed today. Well, not completely, but still a bit.

They've changed their lunch menu. With the dining room about half-full the wait staff seemed frazzled - they forgot my ice water, took a while to get my order.

They've also changed the menu. Some of the items I used to order are gone, and the lunch combos no longer include the egg roll (nor does it show up elsewhere on the menu) which disappointed me. It might be fat boy food, but man, I liked their egg rolls a lot.

So I ordered steamed pork dumplings. These were actually pretty great. There are times when I have a craving for just a metric buttload of steamed dumplings and I'll keep these in mind for those times.

For lunch, I ordered the kung pao chicken with fried rice. No, I shouldn't be eating fried rice, but with the lack of egg roll I figured what the hell and their fried rice has always been my favorite bar none.

No more. It was cold-ish by the time I got to it (it was served when I was halfway through my dumplings and I wasn't eating slowly) and just...meh. Not juicy at all, not fresh tasting. A waste of calories.

The kung pao chicken, on the other hand, was quite tasty.

And the hot tea was no longer free, but rather $2.

Sigh.

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Everyone says 5731 Lee Highway is a "location of doom," but then Asian Kitchen opened in July, 2010, and has somehow stayed the course for four full years (I would not have bet on this).

I had the worst service I can recall at Asian Kitchen about six months ago. There were no obvious signs of respiratory distress, so I assume our server was good at breathing, but he was really bad at just about everything else. Although we were one of only two tables on a Saturday night, the only way we were ever able to get any drinks or food delivered was to flag down another waitress and ask her. Even this approach was only partially successful, and we would only receive a part of the order each time. It took about six attempts to flag down someone -- anyone -- and about three hours to get everyone at the table food. We were there for a birthday party and the whole ordeal was so bad that the guest of honor eventually left a $100 bill to cover his $40-$50 tab and walked out on the rest of the party. The food was actually OK (typical "strip mall" sushi), but I can't imagine that any of the twelve people I was with would ever set foot in Asian Kitchen again.

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I had the worst service I can recall at Asian Kitchen about six months ago. There were no obvious signs of respiratory distress, so I assume our server was good at breathing, but he was really bad at just about everything else. Although we were one of only two tables on a Saturday night, the only way we were ever able to get any drinks or food delivered was to flag down another waitress and ask her. Even this approach was only partially successful, and we would only receive a part of the order each time. It took about six attempts to flag down someone -- anyone -- and about three hours to get everyone at the table food. We were there for a birthday party and the whole ordeal was so bad that the guest of honor eventually left a $100 bill to cover his $40-$50 tab and walked out on the rest of the party. The food was actually OK (typical "strip mall" sushi), but I can't imagine that any of the twelve people I was with would ever set foot in Asian Kitchen again.

:blink:

I'm not saying I *understand* why it has lasted four years; merely that it has. :lol:

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Had a sushi craving and sushi zen was closed for lunch today. 

Edamame: Excellent
Salmon and eel rolls: quite nice

Tonkatsu Ramen: Amazing! To quote my 4 yr old "I love this Mommy, thank you!" Fatty salty broth, nicely done egg, cooked in broth cabbage; and a brown egg. It's worth mentioning the egg a third time as I refer my yolk a little runnier in soup. Nice springy noodeles. My only complaint is the serving was pretty small but then again, my girl also said "I'm fuller than full."

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59 minutes ago, NolaCaine said:

Had a sushi craving and sushi zen was closed for lunch today. 

Edamame: Excellent
Salmon and eel rolls: quite nice

Tonkatsu Ramen: Amazing! To quote my 4 yr old "I love this Mommy, thank you!" Fatty salty broth, nicely done egg, cooked in broth cabbage; and a brown egg. It's worth mentioning the egg a third time as I refer my yolk a little runnier in soup. Nice springy noodeles. My only complaint is the serving was pretty small but then again, my girl also said "I'm fuller than full."

[Do you know if this is a new ownership? If so, it gets a brand new thread.]

Note in the Dining Guide that it has two websites.

Remember, Asian Kitchen was owned by Ichiban in McLean, and what Misomen is serving now seems to be very close in spirit to what Ichiban serves (Ichiban has surprisingly good ramen, and fairly average sushi (the pictures I've seen of the sushi look pretty average - here's one example: Notice the "dry" look on the salmon and tuna - to me, that screams "freezer!")) Either Kaz Okochi or Koji Terano once told me that knowing how to store sushi is just as important as knowing how to purchase it, and for strip-mall sushi shops, with lower prices, and fairly low turnover, I believe it.

MisomenSushi.jpg 

Hey, if we can do remote brain surgery via internet-and-robot, why not remote restaurant criticism via internet-and-camera? Let this be the first-ever example in recorded history.

Chorus: "And let this be the last!"

"Euripides?"

"No, no, the hole was there when I bought them."

Heh.

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Staff are the same people I saw last time we did a post hair-cut snack stop but don't know if ownership is different. The inside got a face lift. 

FWIW: Mary's barber shop is really nice. Lots of men and little kids get their hair done there plus free water.

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Third visit wasn't so great as the last few. I went first thing on Sunday. They opened at noon and I was waiting in the parking lot with another car for noon. I immediately went to the bathroom and noticed that it was very dirty and the dark shelf dusty. While sitting in the dining room, I noticed that the floor was very dirty although the tables looked clean.

This really impacts my opinion of food, especially raw fish. While the salmon and avocado roll was very good, I was unimpressed with the tuna roll. It seemed to have some sort of chemical taste. My companion and I very much enjoyed the ramen but not sure I can go back. Dirty dinning just doesn't do.

 

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