Foothill Flavors

By Antoinette May Herndon

Grrrrrrrrrooowwl! It’s the Year of the Tiger! Maybe the advent of this audacious (and auspicious) cycle slipped past you. Perhaps you missed the welcoming festivities because crummy weather or a nagging cold kept you indoors. Or maybe it was a bad case of the blahs brought on by all the hoop-de-doo that attended more familiar holidays.

Though even Easter’s hippity hop exit is a memory, 2009’s send-off still seem awfully recent. Can you wait at least a year for another bout of ho! ho! hoing? I certainly can. Enough already! But now that the Caucasian Baby New Year is safely into training pants, what about a little belated homage to the Chinese Year of the Tiger?

Things always look pretty festive around Panda in Martel. Whizzing down Martel Road that panda sign never fails to catch my eye. No words, just a big picture of a plump bear chewing bamboo. An intriguing hint of the exotic east right in our own backyard.

Why not? Charles suggested one recent evening.

Surely it’s never too late to welcome in new possibilities, most particularly a yearlong cycle with such portentous tiger-like potential.

“Grrrrrrrr,” I acquiesced.

Once inside, it appeared that a number of others had the same idea. At any rate the restaurant looked quite busy for a week night. The Chinese décor was engaging, lots of green and red, dark lacquered tables, paper

lantern chandeliers and oriental artwork. The service was immediately attentive.

Though the food is authentic Chinese—don’t go there if you don’t want Chinese because there’s nothing else on the menu—the management definitely caters to a Caucasian clientele. There’s nary a chopstick in sight.

We settled into a cozy booth and decided to toast the tiger while perusing the menu. Charles ordered his usual Tsing Tao beer. ($3.25) Beer is a wise choice at Panda. But wisdom is not always an Antoinette virtue. Usually I ask for a tiny sip before ordering a glass of wine; but, because of communications problems, I skipped that safeguard and just ordered the cabernet. ($2.25) Not a good idea.

Panda is not a wine- centered restaurant. Clearly the cab had been sitting around long enough to qualify for the wine vinegar shelf.

I tell you this as a warning. Beer’s better with Chinese food anyway, don’t you think? Nice and cold, a good foil for spicy food. Think Tsing Tao.

Charles wanted an appetizer and chose fried wonton with cheese, 12 of them for $3.25. More than enough to share. They tasted just right, both crisp and cheesy-rich.

We also decided to share a side order of snow peas with mushrooms and water chestnuts ($6.50). Quite good and very pretty. We also split an order of steamed rice ($1). For a main dish I selected the chef’s special, beef and scallops in sizzling sauce ($10.95). I found it a little short

on beef and scallops but the sauce and crisp vegetables were tasty.

Charles was pleased with his mu shu shrimp ($8.95). Still hungry, I pleaded—finally demanded—that he give me one. Not bad.

Our wait person Jenny Ye was pretty and pleasant. Fast, friendly and efficient service is definitely a plus at Panda. Price is another consideration, quite reasonable.

My fortune cookie was provocative: “YOU CAN ONLY LIVE ONCE, BUT IF YOU DO IT RIGHT, ONCE IS ENOUGH.”

I’m not ready to be quite that profound, but the thought did cross my mind that if I had but one night to live, it wouldn’t be spent at Panda. Nevertheless this is a convenient place to go when one is too tired to cook. There you are, out in the world with someone else doing the preparation and clean-up, and you still haven’t mortgaged the farm to pay for it. It’s great too if you’re in a hurry, maybe with a movie to catch. The atmosphere is relaxing and the wait time short.

Now what would that celebrated tiger think of this rationale?

Grrrr and grrrr again, but surely that depends on just how hungry he is.

VITALS: Panda, 12300 Martell Rd., Martell. Phone: 223-3474.. Open daily from 11:30 a,m. to 3:30 p.m. for lunch and for the dinner crowd from 5 to 9 p.m. Credit cards accepted.

Pictures:

Jenny Ye brings a sizzling plate of beef and scallops.

Panda’s exterior is serene and inviting.