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Pearl of the Orient
- Hours:
Mon-Fri. 11:30 a.m. - 10:00 p.m.
Sat-Sun. 5:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
- Attire:
- Casual
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Private Lot
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Good for:
- Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
3 reviews for Pearl of the Orient
Tucked away in a strip mall with a tricky to get around parking, located in a tricky to get around neighborhood, well at least for us newbies to the area, Pearl Of The Orient doesn't look like much on the outside. Furthermore, with all the piles of snow, parking was a challenge, and daffywhacks driving around just make things more miserable. More on one of these daffywhacks in a moment.
Go inside, and you are greeted and served by friendly, eager, hard working hosts and servers. In fact, they seem to know the regulars very well.
The place inside can be described as casual meets classy. The place is clean and the interior design isn't overwhelming, yet not boring. Relaxing music filled the air in appropriate manner, though not what I always listen to.
For lunch, I had the steamed vegetable pot stickers, served with a side of what tasted like a honey ginger sauce. A nice, full of flavors change from the crispy vegetable rolls that Ive always preferred. Full of flavor and the honey ginger sauce was the Winter cool before the Summer hot of the entree....
The entree was Kung Pao Chicken, extra EXTRA spicy! So spicy that they included dried whole chili peppers- the way I like it! And oh yes this dish was HOT HOT HOT! I asked the server for a side of their hot mustard sauce, and this was served in a classy small ceramic bowl with spoon. For the extra heat and flavor, I drizzled the hot mustard sauce on the Kung Pao and side of steamed rice and WHOA talk about a Kung Pao KICK! :=P
The only downsides- the entree was served on a plate too small. They need to get bigger plates to hold in all that flavor! Also, the soft drinks were served in glasses too small. At least refills were free, but next time I'm going to stay with ice water and get hot tea. Last but not least, the daffy book reading lady customer who almost put me in a snowbank in the parking lot just had to be seated in a spot to stare at the rest of us trying to enjoy lunch and company.
The lunch prices were fair, actually better than what I expected for a place of this caliber. And now put another place on the list of awesome Asian cuisine places of greater Cleveland on my list!
Valentines Day idea- hot and spicy food to take your hottie mate for a spicy good time! :=D
2.5 stars...
Really quite average. They don't deliver, and recommended instead that I contact http://DeliverMeFood.com. I ordered the Triple Delight - $14.95 - billed as a "delicious combination of chicken, beef and sea scallops..." Rice was an extra $.55 for a tiny cup; a bowl of Hot-Sour Soup $2.95. All in all this is not mind-blowing food, but fairly adequate for delivery or takeout on a cold snowy night. With DeliverMeFood's fees and automatic tip, the bill came out to $26.89.
Reasonably priced... decent-sized portions... personable owner... Okay, that sums up the good points. The kung pao chicken, described on the menu as "to die for," was a total disappointment. It was not spicy at all whatsoever despite the "hot" designation on the menu. I've never understood why places indicate that a totally bland dish is "hot." People who don't like spicy won't order it, and people who want something spicy will just be annoyed. Plus, my order of kung pao arrived totally lukewarm temperature-wise. When I pointed this out to the waitress, she kindly explained that my food had been sitting out for a while because one of the other dishes took longer. Well obviously, but that reasonable explanation didn't make the food any warmer... So she offered to take it back and microwave it for me. Wow, really?? Clearly I was getting the star treatment. Oh, and my dad's fish came with peas and tiny diced up carrots that I can only assume came from a bag in the freezer. Tres gourmet!!
Specialties
Pearl of the Orient specializes in Northern and Szechuan Cuisine and have been voted Best Restaurants by different publications for almost every year of the 30 year existence. . Rocky River location has an extensive Sushi Bar, Sports Bar and Outdoor Patio. Both Shaker and Rocky River has private dining rooms, full bar service, and outside catering for homes and businesses. 10-12 course Chinese Banquets are available with advance notice.
History
Established in 1978
Pearl of the Orient was the first Northern and Szechuan restaurant in Cleveland. Menu is not limited to traditional dishes but also creative Asian Fusion entrees and appetizers. Consistantly voted as one of the best restaurants in Cleveland, Pearl has appeared in numerous publications including USA Today, Cleveland Magazine, Northern Ohio Live, Restaurant Hospitality, Cleveland Plain Dealer etc.
Meet the Business Owner: Rose W.
A mother of 2 beautiful girls, and wife of Bernard Lee, Rose graduated from Univ of Iowa with a Master degree in Design. In addition to running the restaurant and catering business, Rose also gets involve in numerous community projects and fundraisers. In her spare time, she grows over 100 kinds of flowers, give private cooking lessons, and help her family members with all their interior design and remodeling projects.
