Lunch #89: Red Lantern

Today a platoon of ten veteran and virgin MSG150 lunchers marched in to do battle once again with the noodles, soups, and noodle soups of Seattle's International District. Our mission was lunch at the alluring Red Lantern, the new, upscale tenant of the space that was previously occupied by Golden City. Although many of us mourn the passing of Golden City's $3.95 lunches we were all excited to discover what the Red Lantern has to offer.

Red Lantern, Seattle
Address: 520 S Jackson St, Seattle, WA, 98104
Cuisine: Chinese: Cantonese, Korean
Average rating: 3 chopsticks
Lunch date: 6/10/2011 @ 11:35:00
Time taken to be seated: 0 minutes
Time to take order: 5 minutes
Time for food to arrive: 15 minutes
Total lengh of meal: 60 minutes
Chopstix quality: Smoothed Wood
Do they use MSG?: Depends on the dish
Where is the owner/chef from?: The owner is from Shanghai, and his wife is Korean.
Number of tables: 25
Number of occupied tables: 6 (24%)
Number of business lunch tables: 2 (33%)
Number of "local" tables: 4 (66%)
Healthcode Score: 30
Links: Yelp!, Urbanspoon

Luncher: Emmett

Lunch: Cham-Pong Noodle - $11.95
Rating:

Emmett's Review

Red Lantern "Contemporary Asian Cuisine" looks saucy and delicious like General Tso. They go with modern interiors, sexy hot red / black motif. They have sexy hot Stella Artois behind the bar. It's also well lit, the tables are comfortably sized, the chairs are sleek on my bottom.

You're going to like the corn tea the first time cause it tastes like corn on the cob was soaked in your tea. After a few visits it starts to get annoying cause it tastes like corn on the cob was soaked in your tea. No matter, it's still drinkable, and though I wish it were plain black it pairs nicely with spicy food. Like corn.

I had the super spicy Cham-Pong Noodle, which looked appetizing and was also a winner because it came first. There were quite a few shrimp, some tiny bay scallops and a couple of mussels, along with some greens, cabbage, and tasty noodles. This was a spicy soup, and it didn't need any extra hotness. I enjoyed it nonetheless; though it would have been a better choice for a chilly January day, it works well on a chilly June day.

I also had bites of Adam's Kimchi Fried Rice, and Geary's Chow Mein. Alex's Garlic Beef also delivered.

This place hurts your pocket book somewhat as they charge quite a bit more than the neighbors. Now closed Noodle King was a block away and served the same dish a full three dollars cheaper. It stings a bit when bargains are available so close nearby. I'll definitely come back but won't put it full-on in the lunch rotation.

Luncher: Adam

Lunch: Red Kimchi Beef Fried Rice - $6.95
Rating:

Adam's Review

The Red Lantern is to Golden City as butterflies are to caterpillars. Red Lantern has been beautifully remodeled and has a very nice modern feel to it. Golden City was a great little restaurant with a little more 80's feel to it. I'm going to throw this out there though: Golden City fit better with my budget and tastes.

The food at Red Lantern is good. I had the Red Kimchi Beef Fried Rice, which had some great flavors sprinkled throughout. My pile of red-colored rice came in a large pile on the plate with a very nice looking fried egg on top, and lots of beef and kimchi sprinkled throughout. I enjoyed the meal, and even took a box for leftovers. As I was approaching my "must stop eating line," I noticed I was applying increasing amounts of hot-sauce to keep myself interested in the dish. I don't know if that means the rice was lacking something, or if I just like really spicy food. I tend to avoid introspection.

One very nice benefit, was that the server offered to split the check. This is a big benefit if your group of coworkers/friends do not go out for lunch together frequently... because none of you will have cash. Overall, a decent experience with decent food.

Luncher: Geary

Lunch: Beef Chow Fun - $7.95
Rating:

Geary's Review

Unlike many of the other ID family restaurants, the Red Lantern has an upscale, modern decor. They are also one of the few restaurants in the ID with beer on tap, although they only have Stella. We arrived early and the place was almost empty. The waitress and owner were friendly and welcoming.

The roasted corn tea was completely new to me. It had a pleasant nutty taste. Although, can you really just soak anything in water and call it tea? Who's makes the tea rules? Let me know so I can report this place.

The menu is heavy on Americanized Chinese lunch classics but there are a few items that appear more authentic. I skipped the Thai Rice Noodle (Phad Thai?) and chose the ever popular Beef Chow Fun. The H&SS was nice and pungent. B+. The Chow Fun was a slightly above average version of the classic dish with wide rice noodles, tender well seasoned beef, crisp spouts, green onions, and a healthy coating of oil. I enjoyed bites of other's dishes and the quality seemed good overall.

The Red Lantern is a nice place with friendly service and beer on tap. It would make a good setting for a business lunch or lunch date. However, the price to value ratio is a bit too high for weekly lunches when there are better cheaper options near by.

Luncher: Al

Lunch: General Tso's Chicken - $7.95
Rating:

Al's Review

Best General Tso’s in the ID, but pricey for lunch. 3 chopsticks.

Luncher: Rob

Lunch: Kong Pao Tofu - $6.95
Rating:

Rob's Review

Yay! The MSG150 train is rolling again! Glad I was able to be there for the reboot. I had just returned from six weeks in Europe, where I avoided almost all Asian cuisine, aside from some Indonesian in the Netherlands, and was looking forward to lunch in the ID. So while I was sorry to find out Golden City had closed (quite some time ago, apparently), I was interested in finding out how Red Lantern was doing in its place. The interior was definitely spiffed up, and the lunch menu included a couple tofu dishes, including kong pao tofu. My last attempt at the kung pao tofu didn't work out well, but since it was on the menu here I had higher hopes. The H&SS was very decent, with black pepper added, which I thought added a fine complementary kick. The kong pao was nicely presented, the flavor was pretty good, the sauce not too starchy, and the hot peppers easy to pick out. Not too spicy, but that was okay. Felt pretty full at the end, too. So yeah, it was all right. I'd go back if other people are going.

Luncher: Yanqing

Lunch: Red Kimchi Beef Fried Rice - $6.95
Rating:

Yanqing's Review

What I had was OK comparing to the other Chinese food in the International District. But, I have fairly high standards in terms of Chinese food because that’s what I eat every day. The lunch menu selection is boring. The only positive thing I have to say is the atmosphere is good against the competition in this area.

Luncher: Alex

Lunch: Garlic Beef - $7.95
Rating:

Alex's Review

The lunch menu was mostly American-style Chinese food. I ordered the garlic beef lunch special which came with a bowl of sweet and sour soup. While ordering we were served a corn-flavored tea. I found it very pleasant and really enjoyed it. This was a nice change from the traditional jasmine tea.

Next came a bowl of hot and sour soup. The broth was pleasingly thick and the julienned veggies were plentiful and cooked just right. The flavor was surprisingly weak. I really had to search to find the distinctive flavor that is typical of hot and sour soup.

The garlic beef came out next. Nice quality strips of meat served on a bed of strips of lettuce. The sauce was not too thick and you could see and taste the little chunks of garlic and other seasonings. It was very tasty without being overpowering. No fortune cookies were served but I won't hold it against them.

The restaurant itself was nice, with simple and modern decor. Our waitress was very nice and took good care of us.

Luncher: Mark

Lunch: Yushan Tofu - $6.95
Rating:

Mark's Review

Lunch began with a slightly clever but mostly uninspiring corn tea, all the corniness of a corn chowder without the tasty chowderyness. The soup was well spiced and nicely gooey. My meal, the Yushan Tofu, was mildly spicy and relatively sweet, with broccoli cooked to a good medium level of softness. My water glass was never more than half empty before getting filled again, but we were a big party and the place was mostly empty, so that is not particularly surprising.

Luncher: Mariya

Lunch: Red Lantern Green (Vegetables) - $6.95
Rating:

Mariya's Review

Good selection of veggies and fairly tasty even though the dish is not spicy. Pricey for what it is.

Luncher: Ken

Lunch: Ja-Jang Noodle - $11.95
Rating:

Red Lantern Photos

Red Lantern


Frontal Assault


Red Lantern Menu


H&SS


Crab Rangoon


Cham-Pong Noodle


Cham-Pong Noodle sides


Ja-Jang Noodle


Beef Chow Fun


Kong Pao Tofu


Red Kimchi Beef Fried Rice


Yushan Tofu


General Tso's Chicken


Garlic Beef


Red Lantern Green (Vegetables)


MSG150 Lunchers

Lunch #88: Sichuanese Cuisine

Hello again! We've been AWOL. Too busy eating too much good food. But we're back. Today we're at that strip mall on Jackson, right next door to our previous place Thanh Vi. This is one of our old favorites - and Rob rode his bike down to join us for some spicy food.

Sichuanese Cuisine, Seattle
Address: 1048 S Jackson St, Seattle, WA, 98104
Cuisine: Chinese: Szechuan
Average rating: 4.7 chopsticks
Lunch date: 3/12/2010 @ 12:09:00
Time taken to be seated: 1 minutes
Time to take order: 5 minutes
Time for food to arrive: 5 minutes
Total lengh of meal: 51 minutes
Chopstix quality: Nice Plastic
Do they use MSG?: Saut says: "Oh yeah...a lot"
Where is the owner/chef from?: Sichuan Province
Number of tables: 12
Number of occupied tables: 12 (100%)
Number of business lunch tables: 10 (83%)
Number of "local" tables: 2 (16%)
Healthcode Score: 20
Links: Yelp!, Urbanspoon

Family Style Dishes

• Dry-Cooked Chicken - $8.95
• Sichuan Beef - $8.95
• Fried Dumplings (20) - $4.95
• Sichuanese Boiled Fish - $10.95
• Hot and Sour Soup - $4.50
• Eggplant in Garlic Sauce - $6.95

Luncher: Geary

Lunch: Family Style - $10.00
Rating:

Geary's Review

Few other spots in the ID are more authentic feeling than Sichuanese Cuisine. No attempt has been made to try and cater this place to Americans; there are no painted lions in the entrance (How would you know it's even Chinese?); their name shows either a disregard of or a total disdain for the basic concepts of capitalism; and their storefront sign is only slightly fancier than the default yellow pages listing. It feels like this place was plucked off of the street in modern Chengdu and dropped in this aging strip mall. The interior is corporate cafeteria chic with acoustic tile ceiling, easy wipe wood paneling, plastic flower adorned sconces, and industrial tile flooring. It looked cleaner than previous visits, they must have done some remodeling recently. But we didn't come here for clean (although that's always a nice extra), we came for good food.

We sat around for a while and debated what to order while waiting for Rob. Saut recommended the Sichuanese Boiled Fish and was summarily dismissed as a loon. We knew we wanted the Dry-Cooked Chicken but the rest of the order was a crap shoot. When it finally came time to order Saut had worn us down enough that, even though we expected the worse, we relented and ordered the boiled fish.

We started with a bowl of H&SS that was the perfect blend of spicy and tangy and a huge plate of fried dumplings that were good but maybe not SNB good. The first entree to arrive was the Sichuan Beef. The tender beef was tossed with slightly crisp green onions and covered in spicy, oily and delicious sauce. It was one of the best beef dishes I have ever had at a Chinese restaurant. The Eggplant in Garlic Sauce was a familiar preparation but it's rich and tangy sauce was more flavorful than is typical. Next out was the Sichuanese Boiled Fish and as soon as it landed on the table Saut was forgiven, maybe even lauded. This is the kind of dish I want ladled over my grave when I die. I cannot overstate enough how much the name of this dish undersold its wonderfulness. The fish tasted fresh and was falling apart tender. The sauce was complex and spicy with Sichuan pepper corns that light up your mouth in the most unexpected way when chomped. And finally the Dry-Cooked Chicken was amazing. It's served with fried green beens and coated with a dry Sichuan pepper sauce with its distinctive numbing heat. No better fried chicken exists.

Don't go to Sichuanese Cuisine for healthy food or a wonderful atmosphere, but if you're looking for tasty and spicy this is the spot.

Luncher: Emmett

Lunch: Family Style - $10.00
Rating:

Emmett's Review

You are in for a treat. If I want greasy delicious Szechuan (or Sichuan - spell it however you want) - this is my go-to place. Don't let your significant other read the yelp review about how scary the inside of this and that is because the food makes up for it. And besides, this place has recently (sometime in the middle of 2009) been renovated on the inside -- and it's looking good!

The pot stickers - a tad shy of the quality of that other Szechuan place but pretty good. The Sichuan Beef was loaded with onions - green and white - and had great spice. The dry-cooked chicken - no trip here is complete without - is hot, perfectly flavored, loaded with green beans, and juicy on the inside, in spite of the dry. The boiled fish was in a rich, flavorful broth, and spooned over rice was outstanding. The eggplant was saucy, tender, and garlicky sweet.

At night the hot pot is a good choice for sharing. N.B - everything is kind of spicy. Enjoy your trip.

Luncher: Adam

Lunch: Family Style - $10.00
Rating:

Adam's Review

Sichuanese Cuisine is now my gold standard for which to judge Chinese food on. Every time I tell someone about the concept of the MSG150, about 50% of 'em will say: "oh em gee! have you been to Sichuanese Cuisine?" And now I get to reply with a gushy: Yes!

This is the first time in a long time where I can actually remember everything we ate. And I think it's because it was all so delicious:

• First off, someone had told us that we were required to order the Dry Cooked Chicken. I'm not exactly sure what "Dry Cooked" means, but it tastes friggin' delicious. It comes with dry cooked green beans too, so it's healthy.
• Sichuan Beef - exactly what you've always wanted in a chinese beef dish. Great beef flavor with some spice. The garlic, scallions, and onions just accent the amazing flavor.
• Sichuanese Boiled Fish - We never would have ordered this had Saut not been there. Delicious. Don't let the name "boiled fish" let you think: "flavorless." This dish is popping with flavor and sichuan peppers.
• Eggplant in garlic sauce - none of the eggplant bitterness; all of the garlic deliciousness. Great.
• H&SS and Dumplings - Solid but only a prelude to the amazing food you're about to enjoy.

I can't wait to get back to this place. But you don't have to take my word for it.

Luncher: Saut

Lunch: Family Style - $10.00
Rating:

Saut's Review

Best Sichuanese (is that how you spell it?) Restaurant in Town! This was probably my 5th time to this restaurant. As always, food is always good and spicy.

The dry-cooked chicken with green bean is my all-time favorite dish. But then, I like everything else… I had the eggplant dish for the first time there and it was really good.

In summary “SPICY, HOT, REASONABLE PRICE, and DAMN GOOD!”

Luncher: Ken

Lunch: Family Style - $10.00
Rating:

Ken's Review

First off, I'm giving this place 4 stars because "Sichuan Cuisine is my new definition of Asian comfort food." I am utterly certain that almost nothing about this food is healthy. MSG makes it yummy, fat is flavor, and this food had TONS of flavor.

This place is a little strip mall restaurant, with limited parking, and tight seating. It's so nondescript I think if I had driven to it, I would have missed it. It was loud and very well trafficked at lunchtime. That being said, the staff were friendly, fast, and efficient, got our orders right, and our food came out hot and delicious.

The food, quite frankly, was just fabulous. The dry cooked chicken was so flavorful it makes my mouth water just writing this review. The 20 fried dumplings were the perfect appetizer for a big table, and were delicious, plentiful, and cheap. The Sichuan Beef was hearty, spicy and delicious. The Sichuanese Boiled Fish was also incredible, tasty, rich and delicious. Some of the best fish soup I've ever had.

However, the huge surprise for me was the Eggplant in Garlic sauce. I actually don't care for eggplant, and actively lobbied against ordering this dish, but boy was I wrong! They could have called it Eggplant in Awesome Sauce and it would have still surprised you by how awesome it was. Rich, flavorful, with an excellent texture for eggplant.

I will definitely be returning here.

Luncher: Rob

Lunch: Family Style - $10.00
Rating:

Rob's Review

I think the last time I was here was five and a half years ago. Don't know why I waited so long. I remember loving it back then, and, thankfully, it was just as good this time. The H&SS lived up to its name -- quite spicy and quite sour. After countless bowls of generic H&SS at other restaurants, Sichuanese Cuisine's was a welcome shock: after an initial, stick-in-the-mud thought of "Wait, this doesn't taste like the other hot and sour soups!" I took a few more spoonfuls and then began to think, "Wait, why don't other hot and sour soups taste like this?" Sort of liberating, in a way. My first bite of the eggplant in garlic sauce tasted a bit too sweet, but I soon got used to it. Not as spicy as expected, but I had a second scoop of it anyway. The Sichuanese boiled fish was awesome. Tender chunks of fish (Good Fish, I assume) in a spicy broth with some veggies, and sichuan peppers. I love those little peppers, with their tingling/numbing effect on your tongue and lips when you eat them. And the portions were huge. I felt wonderfully stuffed all afternoon. Yum! I'm not going to wait nearly so long before I come back here again.

Luncher: Jared

Lunch: Family Style - $10.00
Rating:

Sichuanese Cuisine Photos

Sichuanese Cuisine


Sichuanese Cuisine Menu


Fried Dumplings


H&SS


Sichuan Beef


Eggplant in Garlic Sauce


Hot sauce


Sichuanese Boiled Fish


Dry-Cooked Chicken


Interior