You should move to the Seattle area. Whatever else that can be said about living here, the selection of Chinese restaurants is great. Within less that a mile of where I live (in the burbs) is a C.R. that has stuff like intestines, beef tendons, and so forth on the menu. Plus a lot of stuff that an American will eat and is absolutely delicious.
I once counted up and, within a circle of probably no more than a half-mile in radius from my house, there are at least 20 C.R.'s, and every one I ve tried is excellent. And I probably missed a few.
I don’t know about the East or Midwest, but I can say that you can find pretty authentic Chinese food in Houston if you know where to look (along with Vietnamese, Thai, etc…).
There are a few places in the D/FW area that are good as well- I’m partial to Jeng Chi Dumpling House on Greenville Ave. in Richardson myself.
When you get outside of the major metropolitan areas with Chinese immigrant communities, you’re almost certain to get a lot more Americanized Chinese- like buffets, chop-suey, sweet & sour pork, etc…
One thing about Chinese food is that saying “Chinese food” is kind of like saying “European food.” Do you mean German or Italian? Regional variation is huge in China- food can sometimes be completely different between one town and the next- Chongqing and Chengdu people will both swear they make the best Sichuan food, and you really can tell the difference…you are not going to get those variations in the US. If you rely on your friends from Hong Kong, you might manage to get some decent southern food. But that is just a small slice of “Chinese cuisine.”
It is possible to get a real Chinese meal in America if you do your research, but you really have to know what to order. I’ve been to some Sichuan restaurants here that have enough Sichuan dishes stashed away among the “broccoli beef” and “lemon chicken” that you could cobble together enough for a decent meal. But the chances of someone unfamiliar with Sichuan food managing to order the right thing? Next to none. And in any case, while the food may be passably authentic and even pretty yummy, it’s probably not going to come near the heights you’d get at even a high-average restaurant in China. You will never, ever, in your entire life, eat as well as you can eat in China.
While a restaurant with only white people is probably a bad sign, I wouldn’t be quick to judge a restaurant with a bunch of Asian people as automatically good. First off, there are plenty of non-Chinese Asians and Asian-Americans who wouldn’t know good Chinese food if it hit them with a stick, and secondly sometimes Chinese people want something fast and cheap (or nearby or whatever) and are willing to take what they can get. I’ve seen plenty of utterly inauthentic “Chinese” restaurants packed with Asian customers.
Do share. Any on the east side? Any real Shanghaiese? Most I’ve found have been ok but not great. the only place I get good reliable Chinese food is at home.
There used to be a “vertical mall” in a building near my office, which featured a small food court. I was always surprised by how many Asian-Americans I’d see in line at the Panda Express there.
From what I can tell from talking with other second-generation kids, it’s not unusual to view American Chinese food (aka “mall Chinese”) as a cuisine unto itself. I, for one, don’t go to Panda Express when I want Chinese food; I go when I’m in the mood for fried rice and Chicken in Goop.
