Chef Natalie Young has a “Whole Lotta Love” for Southern comfort food. Combine that with her realization of Downtown’s need for Chinese cuisine and you’ll end up at her second endeavor, Chow. Situated on Fremont Street adjacent to The Writer’s Block and positioned, fittingly, near The (soon to be re-opened) Bunkhouse and 11th Street Records, this 2,238 square-foot eatery combines both styles of cuisine on one menu served up with a side of classic rock and roll in the background.
The three-page menu is filled with an eclectic mix of dishes including staples like lo-mein, southern fried chicken, and fried rice. There are also a few twists on the classics like sriracha mac and cheese and crab rangoon dip served with fried eggroll skins. Entrée prices range from $8 to $15, so you can leave with a full tummy and not an empty wallet.
For our starter, we kept it simple with an order of veggie egg rolls ($6).
This dish featured two large crispy egg rolls sliced in half and served with a small side of leafy green salad including cabbage and julienned carrots. Also, on the side were two dipping sauces: a sinus-clearing Chinese hot mustard and a gingery peanut sauce. Both added a bold punch of flavor to the fresh ingredients of the veggie eggrolls.
For our main course we ordered General Chow’s Chicken ($13) and a Chinese (Fried) Chicken Salad ($12).
General Chow’s Chicken features Chef Young’s signature crispy nuggets of fried chicken, ginger, garlic, Chinese broccoli, soy and rice vinegar, combined with sweet and hot chili peppers. Served atop a healthy serving of white rice, this dish balances salty, savory, crunchy, and slightly sweet . Our tastebuds approved.
The Chinese (Fried) Chicken Salad was as tasty as it looks. The bite-sized nuggets of fried chicken were crispy and spicy. Offsetting the spice of the chicken was a refreshingly light mix of cilantro, bok choy, napa cabbage and sliced almonds tossed with a house dressing and piled high. Perfect!
Everything we ordered was delicious and we’d definitely return to try some of the other items on the menu. The location at Fremont and 10th may be a little off the beaten path for the average downtown visitor, but if you are in the mood to get away from the casinos, we’d definitely encourage you to support the growing downtown dining scene and pay a visit to Chow.
1020 Fremont St. Las Vegas, NV 89101 (702) 998-0574 chowdtlv.com
