Sino Garden Middletown Chinese Restaurant
|
Address: Sino Garden
749 North Broad StMiddletown, DE 19709 Other Delaware Indian Restaurants |
Closed
|
Sino Garden Middletown, DE : Awful Scallion Pancakes, Good Szechuan Tofu
Be warned, I'm ready to commit murder for a good scallion pancake (known as Cong you bing in Chinese).
That's how crazy I'm for these Chinese delicacies.
Among the zillion dishes offered by Chinese restaurants in Delaware, New York City or elsewhere, Scallion Pancakes remain my eternal top favorite.
Yes, I have had Scallion +Pancakes at Vanessa's and Tasty Dumplings in Chinatown NYC on several occasions.
So when I heard Sino Garden Chinese restaurant in Middletown Square Shopping Center has Scallion Pancakes on its menu, I quickly made the 30 mile round trip on a recent Sunday evening.
Since Scallion Pancakes ($2.95 per plate) are an appetizer, I added Bean Curd Szechuan Style ($7.95) to my order for dine in.
Here is my take on Sino Garden's Scallion Pancakes and Szechuan Tofu curry:
Horrid Scallion Pancakes
In retrospect, I should not have bothered to visit Sino Garden as my Scallion Pancakes turned out to be a disaster.To say that Sino Garden's Scallion Pancakes are "horrid" would be an understatement.
Eating raw sewage would probably be better than the bilge doled out by Sino Garden in the name of scallion pancakes.
It was easily the worst Scallion Pancakes to make contact with my taste buds.
When prepared well, Scallion Pancakes are spongy, thick and pack a yummy flavor of green onions.
Scallion Pancakes - $2.95 per plate
But Sino Garden Scallion Pancakes reminded me of the awful rubbery Wheat Flour Dosa doled out by some Indian restaurants in Delaware, New Jersey and New York.
My order of Scallion Pancakes included eight cut pieces and came with Chilli Oil and Soy sauce on the side.
Scallion Pancakes with Sauces
To its credit, Sino Garden's Scallion Pancakes were hot temperature wise and that is the only good thing about it.
Scallion Pancakes were way too thin texture wise, hard at the edges, oily, tasteless and most importantly packed too little scallion in them to merit the name Scallion Pancakes.
Szechuan Tofu
Cursing Sino Garden's kitchen for ruining my Sunday dinner with awful Scallion Pancakes, I moved on to my Szechuan Tofu curry order.Sino Garden's Bean Curd Szechuan Style ($7.95) is easily one of the better bean curds I've had in Delaware.
I have had Szechuan Tofu a.k.a Maputu Tofu at China Delight, Canton House, China Garden in Delaware. But none are in the same league.
Bean Curd Szechuan Style
While it is not in the class of Szechuan Style Tofu Curry available at China Gourmet on Eighth Ave in NYC, I would still put it in a good category.
Set in a medium thick tangy Soy sauce, Sino Garden's Bean Curd Szechuan Style included medium size Tofu pieces, diced Carrots and Green Peas.
It came piping hot with a small serving of Jasmine Rice on the side.
The serving size of Bean Curd Szechuan Style curry was large and overall I relished it immensely.
Ambiance and Service
Sino Garden is sandwiched between a liquor store and a Good Will store in Middletown Square Shopping Center on North Broad St in Middletown, DE.Like most Chinese restaurants in Delaware, Sino Garden has no ambiance to speak off.
Sino Garden Dining Hall
Though it is primarily a takeout restaurant, limited seating of about 10 tables are available for dine-in.
But unlike other dine-in restaurants, there is no service available for dine-in. The food comes packed in Styrofoam boxes in a tray.
As you enter you have tables upfront, and the cash cum ordering counter and kitchen are at the rear.
You pick up a menu, place your order pay for it and wait at a table for your order to be ready.
The lady at the counter during my visit was borderline rude and loud. Nothing surprising as that is my experience at most Chinese and Indian restaurants in Delaware.
Sino Garden Middletown Rating
If you love Scallion Pancakes like me, I recommend you steer clear of the ones doled out by Sino Garden in Middletown, DE.For they are Pancakes only in name, are too thin to be called Pancakes and come packed with too little green onion to be referred as Scallion Pancakes.
On the other hand, Sino Garden in Middletown doles out decent Bean Curd Szechuan Style curry. - © DelawareIndia.com
Delaware Chinese Buffets
Old Town Buffet Dover
King Buffet Dover
Chinatown Buffet Dover
Szechuan Restaurant Buffet Wilmington