cilantro wrote:

nsxtasy wrote:If someone else knows of another Chinese place in the northern suburbs or north side that's better, I'd love to hear about it, so I can try it.

Sun Wah is not much more than a 15-minute drive. Actually, if my only choices were that or Koi, I'd be happy to walk there. On my hands.

And, don't forget China Chef in Morton Grove.

Sorry, I should have mentioned that I'm interested in Szechuan Chinese food, not Cantonese.

nsxtasy wrote:Sorry, I should have mentioned that I'm interested in Szechuan Chinese food, not Cantonese.

Koi serves Sichuan?

You can always count on LTH for sarcasm rather than constructive information.

nsxtasy wrote:You can always count on LTH for sarcasm rather than constructive information.

It was an honest question!

I only see one or two dishes on the menu that claim to be Sichuan... I wasn't sure if I was looking at the wrong place or if I'd misunderstood or if there was more to the menu I'm not seeing!

Are you referring to the new specials posted in this topic, or the complete menu on Koi's website?

nsxtasy wrote:Are you referring to the new specials posted in this topic, or the complete menu on Koi's website?

The complete menu on the website.

Ehhhh... maybe they list three or four. Out of 50 or so Chinese dishes. Hence, my confusion. I actually see more Sichuan on the China Chef menu than the Koi menu (though not much on either).

Had dim sum there on Sunday. No carts, a la carte. We chose it mainly for convenience of location, and were pleased.

Pricing maybe a bit higher than MingHin (my last local dim sum experience), but not by much. A bit surprised to see "dragon claws" (chicken feet), turnip cake, and several kinds of congee in suburbia (note we didn't order those items). They were very helpful with the meatless in our group. Service was a little slow to start but otherwise very good. Highlights were short ribs (glazed a little sweeter than a typical galbi), perfect har gow, pork belly buns, red bean sesame balls (smaller and crisper than typical but more to the serving).

[added later]I was hoping for better from their XLB -- they were small, and served not on spoons (just on parchment in the steamer) leading to a number of punctures getting them to the plate. Not a lot of flavor or unctuousness to the broth.

The Small Household Food Exchange Group visited Koi for Chinese food Sunday night. (An attempt to go to Larsa’s didn’t work out, due to staffing issues there.)

Overall, the food wasn’t bad, but noticeably uneven. The primary part of the menu is organized by eight regions of China — Chuan, Hui, Yue, Xiang, Min, Zhe, Su and Lu.


We all agreed the best dish of the night was the Lemon Chicken, Hiu cuisine from the Anhui region. Boneless chicken pieces were served in a lemon sauce with bits of apple, which helped offset the lemon’s acidity.


Coming in at second best, I described the Braised Pork Belly (Zhe cuisine from the Zhejiang region) as “luxuriously fatty.” One less enthusiastic eater simply called it “fatty.” Bok Choy mitigated the fattiness a little.


Lu cuisine from the Shandong region gave us Cumin Lamb. The reasonably tender lamb was served with lots of vegetables, and a bit of heat from chili oil.


I was disappointed with the Seafood Combination, Min cuisine from the Fujian region. Normally I’m a big fan of seafood dishes, and, to be fair, all the different pieces of seafood were perfectly cooked, which can be tricky, because the shrimp (both breaded and sautéed), bay scallops and fish can cook at different rates. But what was described as a white wine-garlic sauce was very soy-forward, overwheming the delicate seafood flavors.

We’ve eaten at Koi, both dine-in and delivery, from time to time over the past few years, and will continue to do so occasionally. I’m hoping the Seafood Combination was just the result of an off night.