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EXPERIENCE: A Riverside hole-in-the-wall serves up authentic Chinese food as well as an authentic experience.
By Hanna Bernbaum, Focus Editor
Any restaurant can label its menu as “authentic,” but there is only so much magic a single word can perform on the cuisine. Simply put, David’s Kitchen: Authentic Chinese Cuisine knows how to work that magic.
Nestled in a tired strip mall adjacent to UCR’s University Village, it is easy to overlook David’s Kitchen during the daytime as just another storefront adorned with Oriental characters. However, at nighttime the small restaurant turns into what its name suggests: a quaint and friendly kitchen.
Upon entering David’s Kitchen, one is welcomed by eager voices and conversation. The waiters’ and waitresses’ accents are by no means a barrier to how friendly and helpful they are to the customer. They do not just take down an order; they allow the customer to dive into the dining experience by giving the customer ample recommendations.
In contrast to the infectious energy of the employees, the décor approaches shoddiness—white walls, faded pictures of food on the overhead menu and identical reliefs of ancient Chinese palaces on opposite walls. Water, the only sign of a beverage in the place, is served in small-ish Styrofoam cups. However, one later realizes that the furnishings are meager because they bow down to their master: Chef David’s cuisine.
The accolades mentioned on the yellow printer paper menu are rather surprising; Chef David has “30 years of experience” and is a nationally ranked chef in China.
The menu offers beef, chicken, pork and seafood dishes; classic Americanized standbys such as Orange Chicken are listed betwixt less familiar dishes like Sautéed Pig’s Kidney. The menu also lists tofu, vegetable, noodle and soup options. Plates are brought out right as they are finished, so the meals are a lot fresher than stagnant scoops of take-out.
If one is not up to trying plates with titles such as Pork Intestine with Hot Pepper, Braised Chicken with Black Fungus or Crystal Shrimp, milder options are available.
The Mongolian Beef as an opener is a palette-pleaser. It holds just the right amount of spiciness and tangy glaze that does not require the entire Styrofoam cup of water as a chaser. Surely the hands that make the Mongolian Beef are much more skilled than the ones that handle my chopsticks.
A must-order is one of the noodle dishes: the Shrimp Chow Mein. It is especially tasty if one is partial to seafood. This solves the blandness dilemma of take-out chow mein with pan-seared noodles (that aren’t the color of traffic cones!). The shrimp accents the noodles rather than overpowering them.
It is best to pair the Shrimp Chow Mein with a glazed meat dish. The Three Flavor Chicken is satisfying, but somewhat cumbersome to eat due to the large amount of bones.
The prices range reasonably from $1.99 to $9.99 depending on the dish, with exceptions of the Peking Roast Duck and Life Lobster, which must be ordered in advance. Not only are the prices cheap, but the portions are also reasonably sized, especially if one orders several dishes to share.
David’s Kitchen Authentic Chinese Cuisine
3375 Iowa Ave. #K, Riverside, California 92507 (University Heights Shopping Center)
Phone: (951) 534-0777
Hours: Sunday through Saturday, 11 A.M.- 10 P.M.