Jim and Nancy do not disclose the fact that they will review a restaurant before they attend, ensuring their reviews are unbiased and uninfluenced by their position with the Sun Day.
After “puttering” around in the garage, Jim’s thoughts turned to springtime. He decided to dust off his old Ping golf clubs and noticed they needed new grips. He Googled “Ping” and found Chef Ping’s in Rolling Meadows. With him it always seems to go back to food…
It seemed like we were navigating an 18-hole golf course as the Mini-mobile golf cart attempted to follow the directions from our GPS. When we pulled up to the restaurant at 12:15 on a Saturday afternoon, there wasn’t a parking spot to be found, so we creatively made one. We slapped up our handicap placard and said, “We’re here!”
Chef Ping
1755 Algonquin Road
Rolling Meadows 60008
(847) 981-8888
www.chefping.com
Directions: Take Rte. 47 South to I-90 East to Rte. 53 North to Algonquin Road, East to restaurant
Estimated Travel Time: 30 minutes
We walked up to the “starter”/hostess stand, were given a number, and told we had a 25 minute wait. We looked at each other in unison and said, “This place must be good.” Let’s be honest, another way of telling if an ethnic restaurant is good is by how many people of that ethnic origin are seated and enjoying the food. This was evident at Chef Ping’s.
Our number was finally called and we “putted” our way between the tables to our seats. Our waiter brought over a pot of hot tea, which we enjoyed while we looked over their extensive menu.
We started off with an order of Egg Rolls (2) $2.95. These were crispy and tasty, but on the small size. We also wanted to try a blast from the past, namely Shrimp Toast (6) $5.95. This was triangular shaped fried toast stuffed with shrimp paste. These were as good as we remembered them from the past.
Nancy was undecided which of three entrees to have since they all sounded so good, but her “game day” decision was Orange Beef ($15.95). This was fried beef with hot peppers in a sweet and spicy sauce made from fresh oranges and served with white rice. She asked about getting fried rice for an up charge and was told that they only do this during their weekday lunch specials. The fried rice she could order would be a meal in itself. On weekends, they only offer their dinner menu, so go there with a big appetite. Her meal was a huge mound of beef and it was absolutely delicious. I stole a few pieces of her beef while she wasn’t looking.
Jim finally decided, after much consternation, to order the Hunan Beef ($13.95). This was tender beef with broccoli, carrots, and baby corn in a spicy Hunan sauce, and served with white rice. It was out of this world delicious, and I stole some of Jim’s beef while he wasn’t looking, so there!
The portions are huge, so Nancy took home a doggie bag with half her food in it. But I couldn’t stop eating mine and ate the whole thing. Both of our entrees had a chili pepper next to it on the menu indicating they were spicy. Not to worry; the heat was just right, about a 2 on my “Sweat Head Meter.”
FYI: The menu states “Everything is made to order for you, your patience is appreciated.” They are closed on Mondays, and it is not handicap accessible due to the close proximity of the tables.
This is a beautifully decorated Chinese restaurant with authentic food that is worth the wait. Reservations are accepted for parties of 6 or more. What a “stroke” of luck it was in finding this restaurant!
The price for Ping’s “hole in one” was $42.67.
Jim’s take: My meal was phenomenal and I couldn’t stop eating it. For fun, check out their “Old Time Favorites from Home” section on the menu.
Nancy’s take: A little “birdie” told me to take my bowling friends here for their lunch special. I enjoyed both of the dishes today. They were awesome!
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