Restaurant: Chef Chun Chinese Restaurant
Address: 415 Egg Harbor Rd, Sewell, NJ 08080
Price: Average
Portions: Average
Taste: Very Good*
Service: Slow
Atmosphere: Chinese Restaurant
Chef Chun got some really good reviews online, so me and the Missus picked it out to try. We had some problems.
First, the table was a little sticky. Always a bad sign. The place was crowded, but most people were doing take out. There had to be 10 bags waiting for pick up almost the entire time we were there. (Not the same bags, mind you, they just kept coming.) So obviously, the kitchen was slammed despite the fact there were only about 12 or 15 sticky tables in the place. There seemed to be enough staff to cover the table, but for some reason everyone was covering the menus and cash register. Our waitress was new and clearly overwhelmed. Why they allowed her to cover a table of 12 is beyond me. She couldn’t keep up and the real kicker was, the other waitresses looked like they didn’t have much to do. While she was trying to rush (and I say trying because she kinda wasn’t succeeding at that) the other wait staff looked kinda bored at some points.
It took forever for us to get water and noodles. Our overwhelmed waitress finally took our order and it took forever to get our food. The House Won Ton soup was amazing. Won Tons, scallions, water chestnuts, baby corn, carrot— It was delicious and worth two bowls. Next up, the chicken, shrimp and cilantro dumplings. Sublime. I was beginning to forgive all the missteps and see why it got such a great rating. The Missus got the Four Seasons. It was cooked perfectly.
Finally, I got my General Tso’s Delight and it was— Overcooked. Ugh. The chicken had be fried to Hell. The shrimp and broccoli were perfect, but the chicken was bad. I’ve just had some leftover now and it’s kinda sitting in the pit of my stomach. Clearly, the chef either dropped the ball or just go overwhelmed with all the orders. Either way, Chef Chun’s, in my opinion, could be a great take out place, but I wouldn’t recommend the sit down. The staff needs more training. They have enough people, so if they got organized the could cover it.
And I’m normally a 20% tipper, but I had to penalize the waitress and drop closer to 15%.
I give the Chef Chun Chinese Restaurant 6 out of 10 keggers. Strictly for take out, I’d go to 7 or 8. After those dumplings, I’d definitely give the food another shot, but there’s no way I’m going back to sit in that restaurant unless they announce new management or something. It really kills the vibe for me.
