Chow’s Chinese Bistro
November 1, 2006 by Eric T
As you can see, there are quite a lot of Chinese restaurants to choose from in Albuquerque. It seems like everywhere I look a new Chinese buffet or restaurant is popping up. Instead of naming my favorites I think I would rather focus on one that I have just recently found that seems to have a lot to offer. Chow’s Chinese Bistro is a local chain with three restaurants (two in Albuquerque and one in Santa Fe). It continues the trend of Americanizing traditional Chinese dishes, or as they put it “East meets New West.”
The dishes here are very flavorful and the recipes are well balanced. Now I have been eating this kind of food for a long time, who knows how many egg rolls or how much sesame chicken and sweet and sour pork. What I can tell you is that Chow’s has the best Orange Chicken that I have ever had and some of the best Sesame Chicken I have ever had also. They are both very similar recipes, but the Orange Peel Chicken seems to be the perfect balance of sweet, spicy, and orange mixed with tender chicken pieces. Both entrees are served with your choice of white or fried rice (I recommend white rice for sweet sauces). Another amazing entrée is the Santa Fe Mushu which is Beef/Chicken mixed with egg and julienne vegetables, served with a side of sweet hoisin sauce and four thin pancakes (much like rice tortillas). Two other entrées that I would recommend are the firecracker dumplings and seafood magic. The menu varies slightly by location, but you can look at each one online at the website listed above.
The service that I received at the Cottonwood Chow’s has always been good. They offer good recommendation information and make sure you are taken care of during your visit. However, my experience is that the servers here are too focused on hitting their service points and not focused enough on making a connection with the guest. Where’s the importance in that? Well it is what makes someone feel welcomed, appreciated, and comfortable. So while they may keep my glass full and are on top of getting me what I need, they lack that human connection with the table. Any good salesman will tell you that just as important as selling the product, is selling yourself.
I have only been to the Cottonwood Chow’s but judging from the website pictures they all seem very elegant. The Cottonwood Chow’s is a comfortable, sophisticated atmosphere which emphasizes modern décor. It is a one-room layout so you can see the bar, patio, and kitchen expo window all in one swoop. Judging form the pictures, it seems that the Santa Fe restaurant is more modest and traditional while the Juan Tabo restaurant looks very clean and classy.
Regardless of which restaurant you choose, Chow’s offers great atmosphere, delicious Chinese fusion cuisine, and good service. It’s one restaurant that I look forward to visiting again in the future.
Taste:
[rate 9]
Service:
[rate 7]
Ambiance:
[rate 8.5]
Overall Reader Rating
[ratings]
Popularity: 28% [?]
onaclov2000 (5)
Jenny (4)
WestsideWendy (4)
Watercanyon (3)
@iambunnyears (1)
Al Sanchez (1)
I don’t know about the Orange chicken but the Orange beef is the best I’ve ever tasted. In fact, I’m not generally a fan of Chinese food but Chow’s is exceptional.
“As you can see, there are quite a lot of Chinese restaurants to choose from in Albuquerque.”
Yeah. I see ONE on your page.
Thats true there are a lot and some that I consider better than Chows…China Luck, Pei Wei, etc. If you all aren’t going to review some others, I’ll just have to do it for you…lol. Do you accept submissions?
I live in RR and I think that Double Dragon is the BEST straight up Chinese food out here. Heaven Dragon isn’t too bad either.
All those other places like Chow’s and PFChang/Pei Wei and Banana Leaf are great but they’re just not the real thing. They’re all fusion and I want just plain old East Coast Chinese sometimes. Check those two places out. They are WORTH it.
Thanks for the tip, I live close to Rio Rancho and don’t really know what is worth going to out there.
If by Americanized you mean bland, then yes, Chow’s is Americanized. There are much better, more authentic places in town. This is a blow to the credit of Albuquerque taste buds.
I also think Chow’s is a bad fusion restaurant. I explicitly ordered silk road chicken because it was “lots of garlic”, and the peek a boo dumplings for the spicy sauce. The entree had no garlic flavor, not even garlic powder, and the dumplings were boring with a sweetened soy sauce that was not even a hint of spicy. Since this the second time eating here and not getting what the description is in terms of flavors, I won’t be going back. This is for the Juan Tabo location. P.S. the spicy chicken doesn’t have a sauce, it’s kinda good, but really dry!
I love the food at Chow’s. I am from New York and have been trying to find a good Chinese place for over two years and I found it! I had the Mongolian beef, and sesame chicken and both where as good as I remember back east.
I agree with previous comments that the food is very Americanized and expensive. There are many other chinese restaurants in town with much better food. Chopstix is my favorite. Authentic food, reasonable prices. Best chinese food I have had outside of San Francisco.
I am also a lover of Chinese Cuisine. One that I found to be outstanding is Best Lee’s on Southern Blvd in Rio Rancho (just East of Unser). I find that everything I order there turns out excellent. Just a thought!