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| - My partner was in the mood for Chinese food last night, so I was a little skeptical as I considered the options: fast food Chinese takeout? No. A Chinese buffet? No. Chain restaurant PF Chang's? No. An 1980s-decorated Chinese sit-down restaurant? Definitely, no. That's when he remembered seeing a new place being built in Matthews. We drove by Ming Fu to see if it was open yet. We had been at this establishment before just a couple of years ago when it was a burger place. It was very nicely decorated inside before, but walking into Ming Fu now, you wouldn't even recognize it from before. They've totally redone the inside and gave it a very modern, calming Zen-like feel. It was beautifully, yet simply, decorated, and I was already immediately impressed upon walking in the doorway.
The menu options were very diverse without being overwhelming like at some Chinese restaurants. There were decent typical Chinese $10ish meals or, if you wanted to get something a little more high-end, there were $15ish meals. We opted for the first, along with a couple of cups of soup.
Our server brought out complimentary fried Chinese noodles with a spicy mustard and sweet and sour dipping sauce, and all of these were tasty. The hot and sour soup was good, but not as flavorful, peppery, or spicy as some I've had. The Sa Cha Chicken entree (broccoli, water chestnuts, snap peas, brown sauce) was very good, too, with a "just right"-sized portion served on modern dinnerware. Although denoted as spicy, it too wasn't anywhere what I'd call spicy. I like some heat! Some sriracha or hot chile sauce/paste on the table would have been a much welcome addition. I had to resort to adding heat by using the Chinese mustard.
The service was great and friendly, and we're definitely going back. The atmosphere alone is awesome, and then you get the bonus of a very reasonably priced, good Chinese meal.
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