Restaurant Review: Spring World Restaurant

My husband and I stopped at Spring World Restaurant in hopes of grabbing a quick bite to eat before shopping at some of the other Chinatown stores in the area. When a person first walks in the door of this restaurant, the first thing that is noticed is the simplicity of the decorations. The walls and floors are a muted white, and wall decorations are tastefully hung, and do not distract from the dinning experience. The tables themselves are also refreshingly simple, consisting of pebbles frozen in time through the power of epoxy.

It is in this setting that the food of Spring World makes its entrance. It is a well choreographed one, starting with the menu itself. Originally written in Chinese, the English translation of the menu is full of typographic errors that bemused both my husband and I as we were looking through it searching for our chosen meal. On occasion "vegetables" became "voetegables" and "chicken" became "cIIcken", but the descriptions of the various dishes were still completely understandable.

The fare consists of a mix of Yunan and Sichuan styles, and a there are a number of dishes that might seem a bit unusual to the average American taste palette. Items such as seaweed, mushroom tofu, pig's tongue and tripe sit comfortably alongside the standard fare of egg rolls, crab Rangoon, and orange chicken. There is an extremely wide array of tastes and textures on the menu, and given the cleanliness seen, I would feel extremely comfortable trying any of the more exotic dishes to my tastes.

Once we sat down at the table, a member of the wait staff came over and placed a pot of hot tea at our table and another came with two glasses of ice water. Neither my husband nor I had to ask for either, as we most likely would have at other restaurants. It was a nice change of pace, having the wait staff anticipating our needs, and we would enjoy it throughout the dining experience.

During this meal, my husband and I chose two dishes that fit well into our tastes. I requested the Empress Chicken, a spicy blend of fried chicken, chillies, and chopped vegetables. He ordered the Lamb Stew Casserole Szechwan Style. Like I said, we tend to like our food a little on the spicy side.

Within approximately 15 minutes of the food being order, our waitress came over with the Empress Chicken, two bowls of steaming hot rice, and a pair of forks. My husband and I both smiled and told her that the chopsticks on the table would be fine, and she quickly removed the forks with an answering smile. A few moments later, a large bowl of the Lamb Stew casserole was placed on our table.

As we do in just about any type of Asian restaurant, my husband and I quickly started to share our two dishes. In the case of the Empress Chicken, the first thing I noticed was the chicken. It was tender enough to break apart easily with the chop sticks, and the sauce was an exhilarating combination of smoky sweetness and spice. The vegetables were a little less in amount than I would have liked, but they still maintained the desired crispness in texture.

The Lamb Stew Casserole Szechwan Style was somewhat of a surprise. It came out as a boiling hot mixture of lamb, glass noodles, bone, broth, mushrooms, onions, Chinese cabbage, and of course lots, and lots of chilli peppers. Once the stew was cool enough to actually taste, both of us were in heaven. Not only did the heat of the chillies hit the back of the throat, but the complex array of tastes was definitely not lost. Again, like the chicken of the Empress Chicken, the lamb was tender and easily pulled apart into bite size pieces by a mere twisting of the chopsticks.

Personally, besides the wonderful food and clean restaurant area, two additional items struck me. The first was the clientele that frequented the restaurant while we ate. Nearly everyone in the place was speaking Chinese, and was of Chinese descent. Although I could not understand anything they said, everyone appeared to be enjoying both their food and the time that they spent there. It was a very relaxed atmosphere, with even a boisterous argument in the kitchen being overheard by the patrons. Those who could understand what was being said laughed to themselves at the nature of the argument, those of us who couldn't simply laughed at the fun filled atmosphere. The next thing I noticed was the ability and professionalism of the wait staff. Our waters were always full, our food was delivered hot and tasty, and our needs were met without intrusion. The wait staff at Spring World had mastered the enviable ability to be both extremely accessible and unseen, and could anticipate our needs quite easily.

Spring World Restaurant is open during the week between 10:30 AM and 10:30 PM, and Sunday from 10:30 until 11:00 pm. Prices are extremely reasonable, ranging from $5.00 to approximately $15.00 per dish, and the average cost of a meal for two is approximately $25-$45 dollars including tip. It is within walking distance of the Cermak-Chinatown CTA stop, and off street parking is close by. In addition, Spring World is also located in the heart of the Chicago Chinatown mall, so as soon as you're done eating, it's easy to do a little shopping as well.