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Grand Village Chinese Restaurant
2336 N.W. 23rd St.Oklahoma City, OK
(405) 605-2647
Grand Village opened in 2006 taking over the building of the former California Cafe, and following
the same concept of offering authentic Chinese cuisine that is typically found in a west coast Chinatown
restaurant. Eric, the chef at Grand Village, explains however that the food is not like it was at
California Cafe. He comes from the "second generation" of Chinese cooks in America who believe
in making the food lighter, less oily, more healthy, and with no MSG. Although I never talked to the
owner of California Cafe to find out his philosophy of cooking, I am convinced after sampling only a
few items at Grand Village that Eric's cooking style is providing top-notch Chinese cooking.
The menu, décor, and just about everything at Grand Village gives the feeling of the "real" Chinese
restaurants that people usually have to go to big cities to find. Grand Village has kept much of
California Cafe's furnishing including several large round tables for groups to eat family style. My main
gripe about California Cafe was the customer service, but that particular shortcoming seems to have
been improved quite a bit with the new restaurant.
The food at Grand Village is southern Chinese, or Cantonese style. My reviews generally label
this cooking as "Hong Kong" style to distinguish it from the American version of "Cantonese"
cooking that serves such items as sweet and sour pork, egg fu yung, and chop suey. Grand
Village does serve sweet and sour pork on the lunch menu, and a few other items on both the
lunch and dinner menu that will look familiar to most people. There is so much more to try here,
though, that it is apparent Grand Village is not an ordinary Chinese restaurant.
Located a short distance outside Oklahoma City's "Asian District," Grand Village seems to have
dispensed with the "secret" Chinese menu that is the source of much of my frustration with many of its
competitors. Specials are listed on a board, and the regular menu seems to have a predominance
of traditional Chinese dishes to the extent that it really is the Chinese menu.
Grand Village is like most other Chinese restaurants in offering a lunch menu at reduced
prices. Some of the items, such as kung pao chicken, sweet and sour pork, and shrimp with
broccoli, are probably not what I would usually order, but at the same time it offers choices
for customers who want the most familiar items.
Fish with Black Bean Sauce, though, looked interesting enough that I wanted to try it,
especially at "lunch special" prices. The waitress did not know what type of fish was being used,
but I suspect it may vary according to what can be purchased. There were too many onions for
my taste, but the other vegetables were quite good, including fresh tomatoes. The black bean
sauce was about as flavorful as I have had anywhere, including the west coast. The chef seemed
to have added quite a few extra spices not always found in the sauce, including a liberal dose of
ginger. The black beans themselves were fresh, and it tasted as if every ingredient was purchased
from the market and the sauce was made from scratch.
Lunch specials come with Hot and Sour Soup--not quite Cantonese but it was about as good
as the one at Dot Wo (in other words, one of the best in OKC).
An item offered as a special on the board (written in English, Chinese, and Vietnamese) was
7-Hour Spare Ribs with House Garlic Sauce. While I am not often in the mood for a strictly meat
dish, the restaurant prepared a side order of Chinese Broccoli with a special dipping sauce.
The ribs were fried, and I would say were very close to salt and pepper style with garlic on top. This was
quite delicious, but I felt rather guilty eating a meat dish with such a high fat content (although thankfully
they did not supply an overabundant portion of meat as is the case in most restaurants). It was explained
to me, though, that these "pork chops," coming from the rib area, are healthier than the typical pork chops
that come from the leg or other portions of a pig's anatomy.
Chef Eric says he not only attempts to order the best cuts of pork, but the same is true with the beef,
fish, and other meats.
The Salty Fish with Tofu Hot Pot looked as if it was mostly tofu, but it actually contained
a good amount of meat. The salty fish was more for flavor than anything else, with Chinese chefs
using small amounts in most dishes to make them more interesting. Pork is usually added (as it
was here) for meat, as most people (including me) would not want to eat a whole dish of just tofu.
I could probably think of traditional Chinese dishes that would be more interesting, but I liked
this one.
A dish that souded much the same, but that I really would recommend to people who have not
tried it before, was Salty Fish and Chicken Fried Rice. This was listed on the menu under
"Fried Rice," and several of the rice dishes souded interesting. The waiter said the salty fish
version was the chef's specialty, and I found it to be possibly the best fried rice I had ever tried.
The salty fish was used in the cooking process, but the chicken was the only meat that was obvious
by looking at it. To me the secret of it seemed to be that the salty fish was used in such
small quantity, and combined with other flavors, so that it added flavor without overwhelming the
other ingredients that were used. The yellow color was what I usually expect in fried rice, but this
rice was moist and somewhat sticky rather than the hard, dry rice I many times find in restaurants.
Crab Meat with Fish Maw Soup is one that I consider a delicacy, at least when it is
cooked correctly with a good texture and flavor, as it was here. This comes in a large bowl and
can either make a meal or be shared.
The Jasmine Tea was brewed with loose leaves and was a good addition to a good
meal.
I am a big fan of the fact that the menu is loaded with traditional Chinese dishes, specials
are listed on the board, and there is no "secret" menu that they only offer to Chinese people or
other customers who ask for it. Everyone who comes to Grand Village is treated to traditional
Cantonese style food if they want it, or more American style dishes if that is their desire.
Some spicy dishes and food from other regions of China are offered, and I suppose this is one of
the advantages of having a "second generation" chef. The staff has been quite helpful in
suggesting dishes that are the restaurant's specialty, although everything I have tried has been
good. If I had any warnings to make it would probably be that lunch gets very hectic, and if you
go on a holiday such as Christmas it may be quite difficult to get a table. The best results have
been when I have been able to talk to chef Eric or the staff at some length, but the food is good
even if you go when they are quite busy. This is really a restaurant that could stand up to the
competition in much larger cities.
Fish with black bean sauce is a lunch special
7-Hour Ribs with Chinese broccoli on the side
Salty fish with tofu hot pot
Salty fish and chicken fried rice
A small bowl of crab meat with fish maw soup
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RESTAURANT DETAILS
RATING: 25
Cuisine: Chinese Hong Kong
Cost: $$
Hours: Closed Mon.
Accessible: Ramp into building, but no designated parking
Tea: Jasmine (loose leaves)
MSG: No
Smoking: No Smoking
Alcohol: Beer and Wine
Buffet: No
Most Recent Visit
Jun. 16, 2009
Number of Visits: 6
Best Items
7-Hour Spare Ribs, Salty Fish Fried Rice, Fish Maw Soup
Special Ratings
Fish with Black Bean Sauce:
7-Hour Spare Ribs:
Salty Fish Hot Pot:
Salty Fish Fried Rice:
Fish Maw Soup:
Hot and Sour Soup:
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