Rolling Cooking -- Americanized Cantonese on Rolling Road in Springfield

[Kibbee Nayee]

Rolling Cooking is a restaurant that has only been open since 2016 on Rolling Road near Old Keene Mill Road in Springfield. It's in the same plaza as Afghan Kabob and TCS Computer, behind Einstein Bagels.

However, this version of Rolling Cooking is only 4 weeks old, according to the hostess, meaning it changed ownership at the end of January 2018. In the past 3 days I've ordered delivery and carry out, and right now, this is the best of Springfield's Americanized Chinese restaurants.

What strikes me is how greaseless the fried dishes are -- the shrimp tempura has a heavier crust than I'm used to, but the greaseless crunch on the outside gives way to soft shrimp on the inside, and the salt-and-pepper flounder filet are delightful pillows of deliciousness. And I had this latter dish after delivery and carry out, both, and in both cases, it was delectable.

In my delivery order a few days ago came shredded pork with chili peppers and General Tso's chicken. The pork was OK, not spectacular, but tasty. The General Tso's chicken was a nice rendition, with perfectly portioned chicken cubes bathed in a not-overly-sweet sauce that had a nice kick.

In my take-out order tonight, I repeated the salt-and-pepper flounder to prove I wasn't imaging its goodness a few days -- I wasn't -- and I added the whole fried rockfish. The rockfish was a bit over-fried, so it had some dryness, and when the dryness co-mingled with the bony fish, it was as pleasant as I would have liked. This appears to be a dish to be eaten in the restaurant as soon as it comes out of the fryer. 

As I was waiting for my carry-out order, the hostess brought me a plate of warm, salty peanuts, followed by a cup of hot and sour soup, and a nice tumbler of hot tea. These treats were gratis, but inspired me to add a nice tip to the carry-out check. I also noticed a six-top occupied by a Hispanic family, and a beautiful dish of chicken fried rice in the middle of that table. A four-top with an Asian family speaking Chinese to the hostess is always a sign that the indigenous population enjoys the food here too.

I'll keep an eye on Rolling Cooking to make sure that it stays consistent, but it ranks at least a nose ahead of Springfield's other Chinese offerings at this point.