Smack in the middle of one of the largest Orthodox Jewish communities outside of Israel, China Glatt in Borough Park offers a massive menu reflecting a mix of cultures. Dinner guests can choose not only from kosher Chinese food, but also from American fare and sushi.
While you might not guess it, the sushi, mostly fish rolls and tempura, is very good. You won’t find shrimp tempura on offer at the kosher spot, and the crab meat is actually kani, imitation crab, but the Combo Dragon ($10.95), with kani, spicy salmon, cucumber and avocado, is sweet and refreshing. Curious diners can order the Celebration roll ($13.95) with the tagline “It’s your occasion…make it a celebration!”: It includes kani, sweet potato, spicy salmon on top and a generous sprinkle of crunchy tempura flakes. The Chinese fare itself is typical of American Chinese food restaurants. Definitely ask for a vegetable egg roll ($3.50), just one per order, that arrives hot and crunchy with fresh cabbage on the inside. The cheeky menu touts Blai Zing Beef ($22.95), “the dish that stole the show,” featuring slices of beef breaded and sauteed with vegetables (baby corn, water chestnuts, broccoli, jagged-cut carrots) in a sweet and spicy sauce (not nearly as spicy as the pepper icon would have you believe), with rice.
Not much attention is paid to the dessert menu, which lists basics like a chocolate bundt cake ($6.95) with ice cream, but the dairy-free ice cream is very good and “creamy.”
The space is presented as a fine dining room, with white linen tablecloths, stemmed glassware and pale gray walls. Even weekday evenings prove busy, with large circle tables filled with families and groups of Orthodox Jewish friends catching up over shared plates of food. China Glatt offers a dining experience that’s unique to Brooklyn. That alone, plus the eccentric menu, is reason enough to go.
BY COMMUNITY REVIEWER: JAIME BROCKWAY