Wan Lai
I love Cantonese food. It’s my favorite type of Chinese cuisine. Unfortunately, we don’t have very many options for authentic Cantonese here in town. Well, we just got another one: Wan Lai. The kitchen with an all Cantonese staff churns out so much good stuff you’ll be hard pressed not to come back again and again and eat through the entire menu. Incidentally, I have.
Everything here is good so you’ll have the confidence of ordering anything on the menu and having the guarantee that you’ll like what you ordered. That is, of course, if you like Cantonese food.
The specialties here are the dumplings and the casseroles. The 3 Dumplings in Soup comes with, yes, you guessed it, three kinds of dumplings in a flavorful broth. It’s one of the best versions in town. I’ve had almost all of the casseroles on the menu and they’re all delicious but two that stand out are the sweet pork and taro casserole and the ribs and taro casserole. You can either get these casseroles with or without rice. The one with rice just means there’s rice in the bottom of the pot. Take note that these take 25 minutes to prepare so get your order in as soon as you get seated and nibble on other dishes while you wait. Believe me when I say they are so worth the wait.
The garlic fried chicken is an absolute favorite of mine. By the way, most (if not all) Chinese restaurants have garlic fried chicken but the Cantonese make the best. The chicken is marinated in soy sauce and other seasonings before being fried crisp then topped with tons of golden fried garlic. It’s my ultimate Chinese comfort food. The chow fun has the requisite grease and smoky flavors and a wonderful accompaniment to fried rice. The assorted types of congee make for a perfect first course. The stir-fried veggies are fantastic, as well as the usual veggies in oyster sauce (get the Chinese broccoli). Great choices are plenty so get here now!
For more on this great find, check out JZ‘s article here.
Insider tip:
All Cantonese staff except for the Mandarin owner.
Inside the plaza where Penang, Mini Hot Pot, and Hoa Binh Supermarket are located.
The scoop:
Wan Lai
4897 Buford Hwy
Suite 104
Atlanta, GA 30341
(770) 216-8587
Technorati Tags: Cantonese food, Chinese food, Buford Highway
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6 responses so far ↓
1 Wan Lai | Eat It, Atlanta // May 21, 2009 at 10:41 am
[...] best to make up for it, any chance I get. So when Chloe agreed to take me along to Wan Lai, which she and Bliss have both written up recently, I was [...]
2 Wan Lai Restaurant Review – Chamblee, Atlanta, GA [First Impressions] | Atlanta Restaurant Reviews | Atlanta Food Blogs | Dining in Atlanta // May 21, 2009 at 7:20 pm
[...] ChowDownAtlanta On Wan Lai (05.21.09) [...]
3 Newsflash: Hong Kong House // Jul 25, 2010 at 11:31 am
[...] chef make dishes we liked to eat in Hong Kong. And boy, did he surprise us. Forget Bo Bo Garden and Wan Lai. This is real Cantonese food. Exceptional is even an understatement. Every single thing we ate was [...]
4 Rueben’s Wan Lai Boy // Sep 13, 2010 at 8:33 am
[...] Cool dude, Reuben, sent me this awesome, funny video about Wan Lai. [...]
5 Mr. BoBo: Golden House // Sep 13, 2011 at 10:12 am
[...] grand opening and Mr. BoBo’s food is as exceptional as ever. You can read more about his food here and [...]
6 Chef Danny Ting: Coco’s Chinese // Feb 3, 2012 at 10:28 am
[...] Danny, specializes in what he does best — Cantonese food. The menu is the exact replica of Wan Lai, BoBo Garden, and Golden House, except tinier. A lot tinier. The dishes are also a lot cheaper. [...]
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