Houston’s new Chinatown, a sprawling stretch of Asia-centric markets, stores and restaurants along Bellaire Boulevard, is quickly becoming the place to go for young adults with cash to spend.’
Capitalizing on this flow of money to the new Chinatown, Cafe 101 opened as a stylish restaurant with bright lights, hip music and a wait staff that used to be comprised mostly of girls.
While the wait staff is now more balanced, the bright lights remain, as well as some rather pricey yet mediocre food.
Cafe 101’s menu has grown since its opening three years ago. Originally serving dishes such as pepper steak and honey chicken with small side dishes, the restaurant now has a sushi menu.
For what it’s worth, the sushi is fine, but people who really enjoy the Japanese delicacy of raw fish on vinegared rice would be better off elsewhere.
Some of the sushi rolls get lost in a muddle of spicy mayonnaise. The experience also feels less genuine once customers realize they’re ordering sushi, a staple of Japanese cuisine, at a posh Chinese restaurant.
The original menu is still available, though that on its own carries many reservations. Dishes such as pork chop on rice and beef noodle soup taste good, but others such as the aforementioned honey chicken come out overly sweet.’
The food also comes out on fancy dinnerware, but when customers see other restaurants serving similar foods in simpler vessels, they’ll realize that the portions served at Cafe 101 are much smaller.
That is the main drawback to dining at Cafe 101. The food sounds good and is presented nicely, but when it comes down to it, you’re not getting that much on your plate.’
If you order comparable dishes at other restaurants, you’ll be bamboozled at the amount of food you get for less money.
For some reason, a request for a second bowl of rice at Cafe 101 was greeted with odd looks. Considering the low overhead for serving white rice, this reaction just felt rude.
Some may be unfamiliar with the concept of having a main dish with smaller dishes on the side, which usually range from some lightly cooked bean sprouts and egg to kimchi, a Korean specialty of fermented spicy cabbage.
These side dishes offer a nice break from the main dish and provide different flavors in addition to what customers have ordered.
Despite being a restaurant, the best part of Cafe 101 is its drink menu.’
While most would associate a ‘drink’ menu with alcohol – which Cafe 101 does serve – the drink menu offers extensive mixes of fruit juices, teas and smoothies akin to the tapioca bars that have become popular over the last few years.
The drink prices are a bit steep at around $4 each, but they’re probably the best deals in the whole place. They come with interesting names, but taste amazing.
If customers go to Cafe 101 for the food, they might end up disappointed. Its expensive dishes are decent, but pale in comparison to the multitude of establishments you can find in the new Chinatown at much lower costs.’
The drinks are a different story, however. But it’s hard to go back to a restaurant where the beverages are the allure and not the food.
