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Zen Asian Dining
3209 S. Broadway Ave.Edmond, OK
(405) 285-2396
Asian bistros are becoming quite popular, but maybe most of them are trying to do too much.
Zen Asian Dining does not call itself a bistro, but it had the same atmosphere and type of menu
as I have seen in bistros and Asian fusion restaurants. The menu at Zen includes Chinese, Thai,
Japanese, and Vietnamese dishes, and probably some others I did not notice. I have enough
respect for Asian cooking that I believe it should not be served unless the chef
has extensive experience with the cuisine, and preferably has grown up with it. I do not know
who is cooking the food at Zen, but they obviously have some experience with Asian food.
People do appreciate having several cuisines under one roof, and I understand that. The
restaurant was comfortable, and I felt that the staff had an enthusiam about the food and in
serving the customers. Just because a restaurant sets high goals does not mean it cannot
attain them, and it seems that in many ways Zen has raised the standard for Asian dining in
the OKC metro.
On the recommendation of staff, I ordered Dan Dan Mein (I wanted something spicy).
There is a good choice of both spicy and mild dishes, and customers only have to ask to be sure
they get what they want. Dan dan noodles is a spicy dish with soft noodles, diced vegetables,
stir fried chicken, and a spicy brown chili sauce. The price was right, and this was actually a
very good dish. The sauce was basic, and the mixture of ingredients was done well.
I have been spoiled, though, by having some of the best northern Chinese cuisine in the
country available in El Paso at Moon Day Restaurant, so my bar is pretty high for dishes such
as the dan dan mein. By this standard the one at Zen did not seem very close to being
authentic, especially with the sauce. However, compared to many Chinese restaurants in
Oklahoma City and elsewhere, the dish at Zen was very good. At least with the Chinese
food, I thought Zen did a pretty good job. It was good enough that I would like to try it again,
or the other food Zen offers.
Zen has several specialty hot teas that are very good (based on the one I tried), but also
very expensive. My dinner would have been quite reasonable if I had just ordered the food, but
with the drink it turned out about average for all the other restaurants in the Edmond area.
I did enjoy the tea, however, and it was probably worth what I paid.
With so many cuisines it is hard to tell about the restaurant when I have tried only one.
I did think the food tasted fresh, and there are definitely good possibilities for the other dishes.
Dan dan mein
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RESTAURANT DETAILS
RATING: 20
Cuisine: Asian
Cost: $$
Accessible: Yes
Tea: Jasmine
Smoking: No Smoking
Buffet: No
Most Recent Visit
Sep. 18, 2008
Number of Visits: 1
Special Ratings
Dan Dan Mein:
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