First Bites: The Mandarin, Asian Cuisine
For the past several weeks, Vero residents have been flocking to try The Mandarin, a new Asian restaurant that opened on Miracle Mile in the space long occupied by Carmel’s. The turnout is testimony not only to the curiosity factor, but to the hunger that has long existed among beachside residents for a restaurant serving really good Chinese cuisine.
But based on a couple of early visits as well as comments from other diners, a good question might be whether it is fair to measure a restaurant against our community’s collective hopes -- particularly if our hopes may well have been set unrealistically high.
Those visiting The Mandarin looking for the kind of innovative Chinese cuisine long absent from Vero are not going to find it there. This is, when all is said and done, a Vero Beach Chinese restaurant – not a Chinese restaurant of the genre that draws raves in New York, San Francisco or London.
Headline news: What you quickly recognize, looking at the menu, is that most of the dishes are very familiar – the same dishes you would have found at Cantonese restaurants around the country before Chinese became the “hot” cuisine of the ‘70s, when Szechuan and Hunan restaurants began to flower in major U.S. cities.
While for the most part dishes at The Mandarin are competently prepared from fresh ingredients, they lack complexity. There is nothing exciting here. Call it “comfort Chinese,” aimed at a middle-of-the-road palate. Perhaps a further sign of this mainstream targeting is the tables are set with knives and forks; we had to ask a couple of times before chopsticks arrived.
Look & Feel: A very nice remodeling of the old Carmel’s has created a totally new, far more open appearance. Tables are on the whole well-spaced, the noise level is not bad, and as Asian restaurants go, The Mandarin – while casual -- has a somewhat more upmarket feel than other Chinese restaurants in this area.
Food: On our most recent visit, we went as a party of five, enabling us to try a wider assortment of dishes.
For starters, we tried a couple of orders of the pan-fried pork dumplings ($3.95 per order) and the vegetable spring rolls ($1.60 each). The dumplings were the better of the two – fresh and flavorful.
We next sampled the soups that are included with all entrees. The wonton and egg drop soups -- standard Chinese fare -- were tasty, and the miso soup was a slightly creamy broth with just the right amount of savory spices. The hot and sour soup, however, could have used a stir of the pot before it was ladled out, as it was swimming in a layer of sesame oil.
For main courses, we ordered three of “Chef Tom’s Specialties” – the seafood with pan fried noodles ($18.95), the grilled chicken in Szechuan sauce ($11.95), and the Mandarin duck ($18.50) – along with two “Classic Chinese dishes” – the Mongolian beef ($10.95) and the honey garlic chicken ($10.50). Along with these we also ordered a plate of sautéed Chinese vegetables ($8.75) and the special lo mein ($10.50).
The two fried poultry selections – the honey garlic chicken and the duck – were the least successful. Both were dry and overcooked, and the Mandarin duck was a tough old bird coated with a thick crust of bread crumbs. Far from the half a boneless duck described on the menu, ours had not even been severed from his backbone.
But several of the dishes were quite good. The Mongolian beef, sliced beef prepared with scallion bamboo shoots, red peppers and stir fried in a brown sauce, was tender and tasty. The special lo mein, a combination of beef, pork, chicken and shrimp in a sweet and tangy brown sauce, got high marks from all. The noodles had a good texture and the vegetables were cooked just right.
The seafood with pan fried noodles had the most interesting presentation, featuring ample amounts of shrimp, scallops, Florida lobster, stir fried with vegetables, and served on a bed of crispy pan-fried noodles.
But it should also be noted that even those dishes marked with asterisks bore little of the heat one would expect from Szechuan cuisine. Seasoning was light generally.
Drink: The Mandarin offers a full bar, and beer, wine and drink prices seem reasonable.
Service: On our most recent visit, our server did an excellent job even while juggling a number of tables.
Prices: Prices are all extremely reasonable, with dishes ranging from $10.50 up to a high of $18.95. Dinner for two with beer and wine (but before tax and tip) would likely run between $50 and $60.
Initial impressions: The Chinese dishes are made with fresh ingredients, but the preparation does not break new ground -- even for Vero Beach. We focused on Chinese dishes (Vero has no shortage of Thai and Japanese restaurants), but the sushi we observed being served at neighboring tables looked very inviting.
I welcome your comments, and encourage you to send feedback to me at tina@verobeach32963.com.
The reviewer dines anonymously at restaurants at the expense of Vero Beach 32963.
Hours
Monday to Saturday,
4:30 pm to closing.
Also open for lunch.
Bar
Full bar
Address
398 21st Street, Vero Beach, FL, Phone: (772) 257-5166
