Yen Ching

Posted: Mon, Sep 19, 2005

I've joked for a long time that I wanted to write a review of restaurant bathrooms. Usually when I say that, I'm thinking of the impressive interior design of P. F. Changs, with its cool stone sinks, or the bright, friendly tile and chunky silver fixtures of Chalkies. Music Mill, which Jen reviewed last week, had beautiful black marble and clean, steel stalls, with piped-in music that had me humming along. Buca Di Beppo's is playful and fun, like the rest of its interior.

Yen Ching -- not so much.

Yen Chings is a sit-down Chinese restaurant with three locations, and we visited the east Washington one this weekend for dinner. The interior is a bit shabby and very dark (I could hardly see the menu) but decorated with the standard Chinese lantern light fixtures and decor. I wondered aloud where local restaurants get the light fixtures; there must be a wholesale supply house that stocks them.

I ordered the cashew chicken with a side of noodles, an order of crabmeat rangoons, and egg drop soup, while my girlfriend ordered the chicken vegetable deluxe.

The egg drop soup was interesting, but not my favorite. I've never had it with mushrooms (including black mushrooms) and onions in it, and the change in taste wasn't to my liking.

The crabmeat rangoons were good. Of course no restaurant has ever matched the perfection of Mandarin House when it comes to crab rangoon, so it's an unfair comparison. Yen Ching's didn't have enough (barely any) crab in the cream cheese, but at least they weren't dripping with grease the way some Chinese places make them.

Then I got up to visit the restroom, and the meal took a turn for the worse. I don't want to go into too much detail and make you lose your appetite, but I certainly lost mine. It wasn't a customer-created problem, more of a "no one has cleaned the grit and grime for years" type of problem; dirty vacuum cleaners stacked in the hall on the way, plumbing fixtures that were loose, grimy light switches, soap dispensers that I didn't want to touch. Imagine the worse gas station bathroom you've been in; this was it.

I made my way back to the table, but I didn't feel like eating. The cashew chicken was very tasty, but I couldn't shake the idea that the people who prepared my food washed up in the bathroom I visited, and I didn't have the heart to finish.

The server was on top of things the whole time and was quick to refill my water and check on us, but I still felt it took us an eternity to leave, and I was glad to be gone as soon as we hit the door.

I can't say whether the other two locations (in Carmel on east 116th street, and 96th and Michican Road) are better or worse, but I'm not inclined to visit and find out.

Directions

8512 E. Washington St.
Indianapolis, IN 46219
317-899-3270

Ratings

Food/Beverages:
Service:
Atmosphere:
Price: $$

Comments

1. Oct 7, 05 12:09 PM | Aimee said:

Haven't had that experience at Y.C. Carmel or Mich. Rd.... If you're looking for a new place to try- Sichuan's (Carmel) food is very good and authentic...Great takeout place...don't know about the bathroom though:)

2. Dec 4, 05 04:08 AM | Chad Jacobs said:

We live in Western Shelby county and have eaten at the East Washington street Yen Ching on many occassions. I cannot comment on the status of their restrooms, but their food is among our very favorite. I am particularly fond of their General Tso's which is among the most crisp that I've ever tasted (although I believe that it could benefit from the addition of extra vegetables). My wife says that their egg rolls are the best she has tasted.

3. Feb 3, 06 02:08 PM | Jillian said:

I just moved to the north side after doing a stint in the wilds of Hendricks County. May I recommend the Crab Rangoons (and really, everything else on the menu) from the "Number One Wok" on Main Street in Danville. They are de-lish! Try not to let the teenaged girl working the counter scare you! :)

4. Feb 3, 06 02:32 PM | Steph Mineart said:

Jillian, I'll have to try that out. My current favorite crab rangoons are from Mandarin House restaurant on 116th and Rangeline Road. I've tried them at every Chinese restaurant I've been to in Indy, and I've never found any that compare to the ones at Mandarin House. I really need to write a review of that place. I also need to do a Crab Rangoon showdown tour of Indy, with a write up of the results. And after that, I need to do a Caesar Salad showdown article, and a Chicken Piccata showdown... sigh. I have a lot of writing to do.

5. Feb 27, 07 12:24 PM | Troy said:

I have to agree with Chad. Yen Chings on the East Side has some of the best Chinese food we've eaten (I'm not a fan of the north location, haven't tried the other). The dumplings, white cucumber pork, black bean chicken are always super fresh. In the five years we've been going there I've never had to use the restrooms, so I can't speak to that.

Is Crab Rangoon an actual food that people in China eat?

6. Feb 28, 08 09:58 PM | Katrina said:

I have to say I have never been to the Washington St location but I have been going to Yen Ching on Michigan Road for years - They have the best Sesame Chicken ever, best twice cooked port, spicy green beans (are my favorites) and I add cabbage to them all- all of the sauces are amazing! You should try the poopoo platter appetizer. The pot stickers are very good too. The other locations bathrooms are very clean and if you go to the Michigan Road location the owners are always there and ask for Ching to be your server - she is very efficient!

The best Crab rangoon in town is at the Egg Roll King on Madison Avenue they also have a location on Kentucky avenue - best egg rolls and crab rangoon around - the owners will give you samples to try before you buy!

Yen Ching

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