Mei Hon Chinese Restaurant - Tucson, Arizona

There are a lot of Chinese restaurants in Tucson but not too many that have left a good impression. Out of the mediocrity I can count two that are consistently good - Mei Hon and Great Wall of China. Of the two, Mei Hon is the place I most enjoy returning to, primarily for their delicious Hunan Style Bean Curd. It's the dish that captured my full attention when I first visited this south side restaurant that is caddy corner to the Arizona Daily Star newspaper complex.

My last visit was in July with my partner. We got there before noon and the lunch rush and sat at our usual table. Our waitress was an older Chinese woman who made us laugh when she nonchalantly dropped our plates and silverware on the table, chewed a piece of gum as she took our order, smiled not a bit and clucked as she left to get our drinks and first course. She returned with a large bowl of Egg Flower Soup ($5.45) that had plenty of egg, mushrooms and bits of cabbage in a tasty broth that we topped with crispy noodles. The picture was taken after we had two bowls, it was so good.

Next came one of our two main dishes, the Hunan Style Bean Curd ($6.65), a wonderful dish of perfectly fried bean curd with a soft center, firmly cooked broccoli, mushrooms, baby corn and bamboo shoots drenched in a gloriously spicy and rich Hunan sauce. I have tried to find this dish at other restaurants but to no avail, I just consider myself very lucky to have found this gem and it always satisfies my craving.

We also ordered the Vegetable Lo Mein ($6.65), soft but not mushy noodles stir fried with broccoli, water chestnuts, green onions, cabbage, thinly sliced carrots, and mushrooms. I think our eyes were bigger than our stomachs because these are not small servings. We had enough left over to eat two more meals at home. Lovely.

Overall, this was one near perfect meal, and the price was so reasonable. You'd expect these type of prices at the mall food court but that's where the similarities end. Mei Hon is great Chinese food. Another plus is the woman at the cash register, she's been there every time I've visited, and is always welcoming and never fails to greet with a smile.

Mei Hon Chinese Restaurant
1030 E. Irvington Rd.
Tucson, AZ 85714
520-294-8739
www.mei-hon.com