It's a basic Chinese restaurant in the current New Orleans style--which is to say the style of 1990 in New York or San Francisco. The catalog-like menu lists every standard dish you've heard of, but nothing really ambitious. It ends with some attractively-priced complete dinner specials.
The original occupant of this restaurant, in the 1970s, was Andy Tsai's Dragon's Garden, a groundbreaker for Chinese food in New Orleans. It introduced local eaters to hot and sour soup, Peking duck, spicy Szechuan and Mandarin cooking, and a gourmet style. Until that time most Chinese restaurants here were Americanized Cantonese. This was the best Chinese restaurant in town until Andy sold it, after which it declined for decades. The current restaurant took over in 2001, performed a much-needed renovation, and brought the food up--although not to what it was in the glory years.
The dining room on the right as you enter is the handsomest and most comfortable. The decor is classic Chinese, with dark wood, large paintings, and beautiful, unclothed tables. It's just past a sushi bar that has never been in operation when I was dining there. The busy time is at lunch, with a lot of trade from the nearby office buildings. It's pretty quiet at night.
As in all Chinese restaurants, the best way to dine is with a number of people, with a lot of contract among the dishes ordered. Four entrees will serve five or maybe six.
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