China House, Duluth GA

China House is one of two restaurants in the Assi Plaza that were first introduced to the blog reading public by Chow Down Atlanta. China House has perhaps fared less than than YoriJori Burger. No pizzazz factor, you see. But it has soups, soups with home made noodles. It’s easy enough to see, just walk up to the counter and watch the man in the back. You don’t even need to walk close. I can see the guy making noodles half way across the food court.

On this day I got a #6, and asked for it spicy. They tossed in 4 dried pepper pods, and the only way the soup ended up spicy was if I tried to eat the dried pods. The noodles though, were thick and chewy and worth the trouble. The seafood was there, sort of, but the noodles were the star. They weren’t as uniform as noodles from a machine and it showed in the mouth feel. You could feel the slightly irregular character on the tongue and it added to the pleasure of eating here.

I’d go back, but that’s what I’ve said about almost all the eateries here.

Verdict: Neat little noodle house. The soup you choose is immaterial, noodles star here. Recommended.

China House
1630 Pleasant Hill Road
Duluth, GA 30096
(678) 638-0995

 

Genki Noodles & Sushi, Sandy Springs GA

Genki Noodles & Sushi is a restaurant that looks good, but in ways that complement function as opposed to being pretty and useless. Not that Genki doesn’t have its pretty but needless moments (i.e. jellyfish aquariums), but it seems as if they’re trying hard for something that looks good and is great to work in. For example, the bar has glass storage for its bottles of vodka, and these open glass frames are hung from the roof. The sushi bar is immaculate, lots of stainless steel and glass, and one of the cleanest I’ve seen. White smocked staff spend a great deal of time making sure the sushi bar stays that way. Staff in general are helpful and around. Managers swoop by and ask you how your meal is going. And the net effect is a restaurant that always seems to have someone attractive sitting by the bar talking with the bartender. This is an ideal place for a young single to drop in, have a drink, chat with the other people in the bar, and generally enjoy himself, or herself.

To food: I find that noodles here are relegated to an inferior status on the menu, and that noodle dishes tend to be expensive relative to the offerings at other restaurants. Yakitori, which should be cheap, is instead a 8 item “sampler” plate about as expensive as an Outback Special. At lunch at least, I’d recommend you try one of the lunch specials, as 1/2 a chicken bowl here is still a lot of food. I don’t have a good feel for the nigiri prices, but nigiri are cheaper (per nigiri) in 4s than served in 2s.

This place usually starts you off with a small sampling of noodles and a salad, and then proceeds to the entree.

I’ve had the half chicken bowl here, and the nabeyaki udon. The udon noodles are of a smaller kind than might be served elsewhere. Instead of the kindergarten pencil thick noodles I often see at Japanese eateries, the udon here looks like a larger spaghetti noodle. They taste fine, but for those wanting a certain udon experience, you might not get it here. I’ll note they can sautee or steam the vegetables in the chicken bowl. I asked for sauteed vegetables with my chicken bowl and it led to a couple charred chunks of broccoli.  The nabeyaki udon was a better culinary experience, served in an iron bowl and quite tasty.

I’ve had salmon roe sushi here, and it was delicious.

I’ve mentioned prices before, and as I’ve recently returned from San Francisco and eating in Japanese Bay Area restaurants, I can say that Genki is $2.00 to $4.00 more expensive than the equivalent alternatives in the Bay. That said, you can get a good plate of food under $10.00 here. The half chicken bowl is $8.95 at lunch and is plenty of food.

Also to note, Genki is open after 3 pm so if you’re caught running late for that lunch, Genki can easily take care of you. The upshot is that Genki is an attractive and interesting place to eat. It may not always be perfect, but you’ll probably enjoy the experience.

Genki Noodles and Sushi
In the Prado Shopping Center
5590 Roswell Road
Sandy Springs, GA 30342
(404) 843-8319

 

Lee’s Pho – banh mi at Assi Food Court, Duluth GA

Lee’s Pho is one of the shops in the Food Court of Assi Supermercado in Duluth, and one easily overlooked in the wash of Chinese noodle shops and bulgogi on a bun. But I had a reader note that banh mi could be found in Assi, and that was enough to make me want to try the sandwich at this shop.

The sandwich I chose goes by the letter-number designation of “S3”, though that seemed to confuse the staff. “Pork sandwich” worked much better. On the take out menu it’s called a charbroiled pork sandwich and is decently sized when it arrived. They’re reasonably cheap, $3 each, and the sixth one is free if you order 5. To feed a family of six two sandwiches each would cost just $30.00.

I got my sandwich late enough I wasn’t expecting excellence. The bread seemed a little sweet and was good, but wasn’t the perfection you get when the bread comes right out of the oven. The pork was cold but tasty. There was a bit of a yellow condiment (probably mustard), pork, a white vegetable and plenty of jalapeño slices. Yes, not the perfection of a banh mi straight out of the oven on Buford Highway, but a lot of balance and plenty good. And it’s close to where I live, less than 15 minutes away by car. And if I want to bring lunch to work, this is an easy stop along the way.

Lee’s Pho
1630 Pleasant Hill Road, #A1
Duluth, GA 30096
(770) 931-8868

 

Nothing But Noodles, Sandy Springs GA

Nothing but Noodles is on Roswell Road, between Hildebrand and Hammond Roads. It’s a two story building, tall and easy to see from the road. Friends had been asking me if I had tried it, wondering what it was like. I was wondering too, so I came one day and tried it.

It’s a chain, Nothing but Noodles, and it’s already found in several states.  Once inside there is a board with lunch combinations and a menu, with prices painted over. From these, you can select what you want to eat, order at a counter. The counter has menus with actual prices. They give you a number and a receipt and you find a place to sit. People behind the cashier then cook your noodles for you.

My dish came soon enough, what they called spicy Japanese noodles. The noodles in this instance were udon, a bit darker than I recall, so fried in some kind of spicy sauce. My dish was vegetarian as far as I could see, but checking later on the Internet, it wasn’t very low in calories. I liked the spice – I asked it be made extra spicy – which was present but hardly overwhelming. The noodles were good, appetizing and thick.

Verdict: It’s not a bad place for a quick meal. Calories may be an issue. Recommended.

Nothing But Noodles
6080 Roswell Road
Sandy Springs, GA 30328
(404) 943-0091