Asian Bistro
414 University Ave. (Hillcrest)
619-296-4119
Happy Hour: 5 to 9 p.m., daily
Come on Get Happy! | By Dr. Ink
It was a nippy Sunday night. The streets and restaurants were tranquil as most holiday shoppers had fled home to recover from their day of spending. Yet the Asian Bistro in Hillcrest was hopping, thanks to a daily happy hour that goes until 9 p.m. before verging into other food deals that conclude at 3 a.m.
Formerly Jimmy Wong’s, the restaurant dates back 70 years and still maintains its golden dragon neon sign, an original landmark confirming you’ve come to the right place for wok specialties and other Asian delights.
The menu nowadays leans more specifically toward Thai. During happy hour, a handful of prettily plated appetizers such as tofu-filled “flower cups” and crispy finger-sized egg rolls cost $3.95 per order. Fuller meals such as pumpkin curry shrimp and seafood pad Thai are priced at $11.95, but with soup and dessert kicked in.
The drink specials constitute a footnote in comparison, with a small house sake (served hot) and a small glass of beer presented in combination for $6. Outside of happy hour, they’d cost around $8.25 total. The other option allows you to upgrade to larger sizes of each, which cost $10.
Because it was a “school night,” only one person in our trio imbibed by ordering a bottle of Sapporo beer at regular price ($3.75). Otherwise, it was one of those rare happy hours where we indulged largely on solids instead of liquids.
Pork-stuffed gyozas, served six to an order, were plump and served with stimulating soy-ginger dipping sauce. Crunchier and equally satisfying was a plate of vegetarian “yummy sticks,” the bistro’s name for classic egg rolls served with sweet-and-sour sauce. We requested peanut sauce as well, which was thick, sweetly addicting and free of charge. If you’re not sharing, the two appetizers qualify as a light meal — and for under $8.
We also ordered the chilled spring rolls, but despite their eye appeal we sent them back because the translucent rice casings were too rubbery and the veggie filling lacked those customary mint leaves found in others.
Our favorite dish was from the $11.95 entrée list, a mound of tangerine-glazed chicken using leg meat and contained in a crispy rice nest. It was plated with white rice molded into the shape of a heart. Miso soup and dessert were included, the latter featuring a choice of mango pudding, a fried banana or excellent coconut ice cream that made a couple of gluttonous rotations around our table.
For visitors arriving after 9 p.m., the kitchen remains in full swing with a late-night menu of appetizers, soups and specialties that cost only a couple dollars extra compared to the happy hour prices. And chances are that you won’t be dining in a lifeless atmosphere, even if it’s past the witching hour.
RATINGS:
Drinks: 3
The drink specials involve combinations of house sake and beer only, in small or large sizes. Beer choices are limited to several selections from China, Japan, Thailand and Holland.
Food: 4
Amid a decent selection of discounted, standardized Thai fare, the “chef’s specials” offer a few unexpected surprises such as pumpkin curry shrimp and slow-cooked pork shanks.
Value: 4
Visiting during happy hour will save you nearly 20 percent on select appetizers, three-course meals or the beer-sake combos.
Service: 3
Our waiter was curt but proficient at handling the fully occupied dining room.
Duration: 5
Four hours daily effectively covers the dinner hour while obliging to those who don’t mind eating later.
