McMurray, PA Edition: Benichopsticks

On our way to the South Hills Village mall, my friend and I decided to get lunch at Benichopsticks because it was on the way and had awesome reviews. It's located in a strip mall plaza, but don't let that deter you.

It was a little classier than your typical Asian joint you'd find in Morgantown - the waiters wore white shirts and ties, the decor was classic - not tacky, and it was very clean. That may be because we were the only ones in there. They have a Chinese menu and a Japanese menu, and a lunch menu for each. I wanted a little of each, so I ordered the crab rangoons, "Amazing Chicken" with an eggroll (you can get salad or soup) and white rice, and a Mexican roll.

Our meal came out in courses. First, the rangoons: Much sweeter filling than what I've had before. It was very creamy and just a little different. But in a good way. It came with duck sauce and hot mustard.

Next up was my eggroll. Pretty good, average eggroll with cabbage and carrots.

The third course was our sushi rolls. My Mexican roll said it contained shrimp tempura, crab and cucumber. To my surprise, it also contained some jalapeno - probably why it's called the Mexican roll. While the jalapeno did add a nice balanced bite to the roll, I took some of it out because I didn't need the extra spice. The six rolls had dollops of spicy mayo and eel sauce, which was really quite tasty. I really enjoyed the rolls - fresh, tasty, unique.

Finally, our main entree came out. Amazing Chicken is just really a codeword for sweet and sour chicken. It was long strips of white breast meat lightly battered and in a sweet and sour sauce. It was really quite good. Having the quality meat makes all the difference. Even for leftovers, it tasted great.

And finally, to make this a true five-course meal, they brought out mochi ice cream with our checks. I've never had mochi ice cream, and I kind of have an aversion to mochi because of the texture. It reminds me of human flesh. BUT with ice cream inside, it makes it a little firmer and quite tasty.

For all this, I only spent $20. Granted, it was lunch time, so we got some specials. But you really can't beat good food - and that much of it - at that price.

Grade: A