Eater LA and Time Out called it one of Chinatown's best, and tbh, I'm not sure where that one came from. The service is authentic, though not too impolite, and it's a ghost town at weekday lunch. The menu is mostly Americanized Chinese, though the dishes aren't poorly made.
Lunch specials are a better deal, and the portions are more reasonable to finish, and this Beef with Black Mushrooms & Bamboo Shoots. The beef is more tender than rubbery, the mushroom is clearly rehydrated, but the carrots and snow peas are fresh. There's also a small bowl of a simple, chicken broth with slivers of egg and veggie bits.
Mapo Tofu is served vegetarian, but it really needs the meat. It's just tofu in sauce with an undetectable amount of spice. A reasonable plant-based protein, but not one I need to have again.
Sadly, there's not much authenticity to be had in Chinatown as Union Station bulldozed the original and the highway pushed Chinese people to the valley and the north. We only ended up here because Dad wanted to check out Chinatown, and this was the easiest place to eat. I don't think I'd eat here again - I do hope there are better places nearby.
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