Which Chinese restaurants can you trust? (Orlando, Clermont: school, inspection, live in)

[poodlestix]

The reason I'm paranoid is that I moved here from Houston, and a Chinese restaurant was shut down because they were serving cat meat in place of chicken. Then there was another one that I used to frequent for their General Tso's Chicken. One day, instead of popping the little "chicken" nugget into my mouth whole like I usually did, I bit into it and saw something that didn't look like any chicken I'd ever seen in my life. I found out that somebody that used to work there (son of my co-worker) said the owner would never allow anybody to handle or see the meat until it was ready to be cooked. To me, that was suspicious behavior, so I stopped going there. I saw an Andersen Cooper a couple years ago where they were showing the things people eat in China, and it was quite clear that anything that moves can and will be considered food. So how do we keep them from serving us disgusting stuff when they come to our country? How do we ensure that when they say it's chicken, it really IS chicken?

[annerk]

PF Changs

[boy3365]

I am from South Carolina, and the restaurants there have to post their inspection grade on their front door. (It's like a school's FCAT grade but for restaurants). Unfortunately, we do not do that here, and you have to do some research before you venture out to a restaurant if you are worried. I do remember one of the local stations posting a list of restaurants with the most violations on its website, and there were a ton of Asian restaurants and buffets in general on that list. The article didn't specify the types of violations, which would range from a dripping faucet to rodents crawling through the kitchen gnawing on the meat, so there is still some ambiguity as to the severity of the violations.

[Pete C]

I don't care what snobby city a person lives in, one MUST be cautious of any Chinese restaurant. Every year in Florida cities release their health code violations list for restaurants, and every year it is Chinese, and in Orlando Vietnamese and Chinese, restaurants dominating the top 20. It's seriously concerning. I know people like to eat at locally owned Chinese restaurants where Chinese people cook and serve the food, but honestly...for this one...just stick to PF Changs. Pei Wei is owned by them as well for a faster-food version of the same fare. The food there is usually a lot better than any local Chinese joints, and the same would probably apply anywhere unless you live in San Francisco or New York City. This is one chain that I will gladly support since they have health standards that far exceed most, if not all, Asian-owned establishments.

[♥♥PRINC3Ss♥♥]

Originally Posted by poodlestix

The reason I'm paranoid is that I moved here from Houston, and a Chinese restaurant was shut down because they were serving cat meat in place of chicken.

yuck

I guess it's better to learn to cook it. How expensive can a chicken be? I'm sure it's probably more expensive catching those cats in the first place.

[annerk]

Panda Express is another good option if you want fast food.

[Dick_Buttkiss]

Originally Posted by lolitazz

yuck

I guess it's better to learn to cook it. How expensive can a chicken be? I'm sure it's probably more expensive catching those cats in the first place.

I really thought (hoped) that the cat meat thing was just an urban myth. I still find it hard to believe.

[Practice]

Yeah Chinese restaurants get busted all the time. Earlier this year some got in trouble for health code violations... not the type of meat in particular, but more like cleanliness.

I go to Jin Ho on S. Kirkman (in the Publix plaza) and their restaurant is always clean and they're friendly. I guess you can never trust restaurant food completely, but I've never had a problem or heard of one with them.

[Johnny Davis]

I really like the China Buffet in Clermont (located in the Kmart & Gold's Gym plaza). I like the food there and have never been sick from it or considered any of it suspicious.

[FL Developer]

It still taste good, right? I prefer siamese over calico; it's a little bit sweeter.

Isn't this an issue with Thai resturants too? I always see strays wandering around the back doors.