Make new friends but keep the old. This classic nursery rhyme speaks perfectly to Royal China. As they claim to be “the oldest family owned Chinese restaurant in North Dallas”, Royal China continues to serve incredible, traditional “old” Chinese cuisine and only falters when it comes to the inexperienced, “new” waitstaff.
To begin, we were warmly greeted at the door and sat on a spacious, comfortable banquette. I must point out that far too often banquettes are crowded, stiff and render the entire experience strained. Who wants to hear the Preston Hollow Junior Leaguers gossiping about the new committee co-chair? “Not I,” chimes the chorus. I think I must have been overwhelmed by the friendliness of the greeter, because I had not even taken time to look over the recently remodeled interior.
This was our first visit, so we couldn’t accurately compare to the older interior. But as a Chinese restaurant was established in the 70’s, I have some pretty good clues: fish tanks and Chinese calendar placemats. (I’m an ox; we make great hairdressers and surgeons. No, seriously though, we do.) Back to the restaurant, the interior was refined, modern with some funky Asian accents.
As I briefly noted in the introduction, we did not have the best server in the lot. Although very familiar with the menu, she was slightly pushy and attempted the “up-sell” at several points during the meal. We began with “Dumpling Sampler” ($8), pan-seared. They were served with a soy-based garlic dipping sauce, good but forgettable. The dumplings were very good and each unique both in filling and wrapper. The favorites were the shrimp dumpling with sweet beet wrapper and veggie dumpling with the spinach wrapper. At about this point, the SigO and I noticed that we were missing the complimentary crunchy wontons; everyone else had them! Quickly, he pinned down the server and asked for “those crispy noodles with the sauces”. I found these to be boring and a waste of a lot of calories, but he, on the other hand, recalled these as a key part of the meal.
And then our main dishes arrived. I had the “Flat Noodles with Chicken” ($11) and he had the “Dry Stirred Beef” ($13). My flat rice noodles had a wonderfully smooth texture and at the risk of being too starchy, they were surprisingly light. The noodle bowl, stir fried with cabbage, onion, bean sprouts and carrots, seemed like the ultimate “Chinese comfort food.” The SO’s dry stirred beef claimed to be “the all time favorite” on the menu. And I can see why: the beef was perfectly crispy on the outside with a tender, flavorful bite in the middle. The real test, at least for me, is the “steamed” broccoli. How many times does the broccoli turn out to be limp and overcooked? “Too many!” you answer. Yes, but alas, this broccoli came crisp and clean.
I must end on a sour note, because our meal ended on a sour note. Throughout the meal, our server was aloof and flirting with the bartender. Either she had full confidence in the kitchen or she just didn’t care. Probably the latter, because it took us forever to get the check (Lady, I know how long that takes on Micros, you are not fooling anyone here) and forever to get it processed.
As I am feeling right now and as those fair fortune cookies sometimes read,
“A conclusion is simply the place where you got tired of thinking.”
Royal China
6025 Royal Lane, Suite 201
Dallas, Texas
Phone: 214-361-1771
Photo Credit: DMN Guidelive.com
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