The Mandarin

The MandarinThe Mandarin has been a family staple for me since before I could pronounce “chowmein.”  The thing about having a “family” restaurant that you grow up with is that you tend to judge all similar restaurants by it.  And here’s the thing, in all my travels, I haven’t found a better Chinese restaurant, period.

Why only three and a half stars then?  Because, I have a sneaking suspicion that the food at The Mandarin is not what any respectable person from Asia would call “authentic.”  Nevertheless, what The Mandarin does, they ‘does well.  In all my years I’ve never had better sizzling rice soup or General’s Chicken or Hunan string beans.  This is “blue-eyed” Chinese fare to be sure, but it’s the best “blue-eyed” Chinese food in town.

The Mandarin- 4321 Arden Way (at Eastern) Sacramento

Food***1/2 Service*** Atmosphere***

5 thoughts on “The Mandarin”

  1. Agree that Mandarin is a great restaurant. It’s close to where we live, and we’ve taken many. many out of town guests there and almost everyone raves about it. We remember it when it was half the size it is now.

    Like

  2. Dave and I love Mandarin. The waitress gave me the name of her hairdresser..who has been doing my hair for the past 6 years, and the food was fab. The day we were there, an older mother, about (65) and her son, about (35) were arguing about his sexuality. They were talking so loud, I thought they might be Italian.

    She was telling him that she would “take him out of her will” if he didn’t marry “Jenny” from the country club. The manager finally came over and asked them to continue their family talk outside of the restaurant. I’ll always remember ‘Mandarin’ for that…for my new-found hairdresser, and for the fabulous food.

    Like

  3. There used to be on Broadway a restaurant called the same name in the same complex and the L’Amoure sex shop. I remember many a happy family meal there as a child. At the restaurant not the sex shop.

    Like

Comments are closed.