China Dragon

Their menu says they deliver. I called and tried to order only to be abruptly told, «No. Can’t. Busy.» and hung up.
So, China Dragon. No. Can’t. Never.

Probably one of the worst Asian restaurant experiences I’ve had in quite a while. We arrived here on a Friday evening around 6:00 pm. The place was mostly empty, yet we just stood in the doorway waiting to be seated while an older gentleman (presumably the owner?) just stared at us like a Mexican standoff. Finally after moments of awkwardness, they indicated that we should seat ourselves. The staff seemed to disappear at that point. No one ever brought us menus or acknowledged us. Finally, one member of my party got up and walked to the counter and got menus for us. After several more minutes we were about to get up and leave when finally someone came to our table to take our order.
I ordered General Tso’s chicken and hot and sour soup. The soup appeared to be diluted and watered down. The General Tso’s chicken had no flavor at all. It was bland and had no spiciness at all. The crunchy fried noodles that we were given for the soup were stale.
The atmosphere is lacking too. It has the generic feel of eating in a mall. They were playing a top 40 radio station (in a Thai/​Chinese place???). Some Asian music and dimmer lighting would help.
And they apparently need to hire a bus boy as one table near us remained dirty the entire time we were eating.
When we got our check, there was another circus within a circus. The waiter had given us separate checks (even though he never asked if we were together). It was apparently some kind of ordeal for him to combine them. He stood at the front counter for the longest time with a calculator before bringing the combined check. Then — as if to add insult to injury — he didn’t include a pen with which to sign the credit card receipt. So we had to hunt him down to get something with which to write.

George Shu, the owner is a friend of mine from the gym, full disclosure. However, I’ve never been disappointed. Last night I had number 43, Shrimp with Garlic sauce at his suggestion. Wonderfully complex and delicious flavor, a wonderful slow burn of Thai heat, the shrimp were large and perfectly cooked. I knew from the first bite, I would not be taking any home. Just what I wanted. Great service too. Try them out, and ask for George!

Over all pretty sad.
Ordered take-​out.
Portion of rice was half the size of the to-​go box.
Asked for spicy. Did not come spicy.
Asking for chopsticks and extra soy sauce was frowned upon.
not friendly.
NOT GOING BACK!

The last visit was not good. Shrimp lo mein was good, spring rolls were small but ok, and the shrimp fried rice was horrible! I asked for shrimp fried rice with bean sprouts. It tasted like they just dumped rice shrimp and cold rice together. It had no flavor! Will not return! It’s not worth it.

The food is good but the portions are too small, I ordered the green curry tofu that comes with rice and there is absolutely no gravy to go with the rice.
I requested for some gravy and was told that it would cost be $ 3.50 more .
The soup contains chicken and they do not have a vegetarian soup, no brown rice. Basically they have a set menu that they won’t change even after customer feedback.

I went yesterday and got General Tso’s Chicken with rice and soup. It was very hot. Had to let it cool a little before eating. It wasn’t bad, just too much sauce and didn’t taste like my other chinese food place. Also I should have just ordered a half order for 4.99 instead of paying 8 for lunch that I didn’t eat all of. The egg roll was good. Maybe I will come back and try the Thai food.

Yikes, where to start. It took us over an hour to get our food, and it came out one dish at a time, 10 – 15 minutes between dishes. There were a lot about 8 of us. Waters were not brought out nearly enough. But this could all be forgiven if the food were decent. Nobody liked their dish, not a single one of us. The worst Pad Say Ew (sp?) I’ve ever had. I could barely get through the fresh spring rolls which had mayonnaise in them, disgusting. Waiter was rude and short with us. Terrible experience all around!
There was a great Thai place that used to be around here and it’s closed.

We occasionally order Thai food from here, as it is also known as he old Chao Praya. Tonight we ordered two beef pad thai’s, and Thai Dumplings. It was awful. The noodles were pale in color, the egg was not mixed properly into the dish, and was a gelatinous blob in the middle of the dish, and lacked good «pad Thai» flavor. We have never been disappointed until tonight. Definitely will not be going back there ever again.

Actually, I believe it is «Chao Praya Thai/​China Dragon» because this place may even look like just China Dragon at first glance but it is at its heart– a Thai family. That said: this is a Thai restaurant with Thai chefs — a husband and wife team.
What may confuse some reviewers is that this is a northern style Thai restaurant. The recipes are lighter both in body and in heat than their southern counter parts. YES, many people even find them a bit clear and brothy… but I know that both chefs have graduated from the national culinary of Thailand and were for a time chef du cusine for the royal family of Thailand, the equivalent of the cooks for the president. While many southern style thai dishes are prepared to be eaten as a salty/​spicy topping for the main event– the rice, these dishes are meant to be eaten just as presented on the bowl or plate. This speaks to their inherent milder nature. Thai, Laos, Burma, and Vietnamese foods are most typically less greasy than their Stir-​fry and deep fried Chinese counterparts. Healthier cooking style deriving much of their flavor from heavy use of aromatic herbs and spices and broths. So, while it may not be what you initially think of when you think of Thai food, Chao Praya is a highly refined version of northern Thailand’s food offerings. In a world where you can most certainly believe that a trip to a mexican or chinese style restaurant will only provide you with a gringo/​Memphis stylized replica of that food — here at Chao Praya you will be eating the same healthful dishes that were once served to the King of Siam! Yeah, it may not be every ones cup of tea, I find these dishes amazing! Enjoy

I’ve got to assume that Chao Praya is named after the river in Thailand with the same moniker. When it was on Ridgeway in Hickory Hill, it was one of my favorite Thai restaurants in Memphis, though I only went occasionally because it was a bit of a drive from my house. When I heard it was closing, I thought it was lost to me forever.
Then, one of my favorite dining companions, Ziggy, told me that it had returned in an unlikely strip mall in Southwind. It was a bit hard to find, because Chao Praya is now part of Thai China Dragon. If you don’t know what you’re looking for, you’ll pass right over it.
The interior is a bit dark, and the restaurant was a bit empty with only a couple other diners on a Saturday afternoon. I started with rich, creamy Thai iced tea. It’s funny; I can’t stand regular iced tea, but add a generous amount of sweetened condensed milk, and I can’t resist it.
I almost always start out a Thai meal with spring rolls. I feel like if you can’t do those right, then I don’t have faith in your ability to execute the rest of the menu properly. Chao Praya’s version is delicious, just as good as I remembered it from the old location. They were well-​fried, crisp and not at all greasy.
For my entrée, I chose Pad See Ew. I just love good noodle dishes, regardless of the style of cuisine. I give bonus points if the noodles are made in house. I’m not certain if Chao Praya does so, but this plate of food was excellent. It may not be the prettiest dish, but it’s hearty and satisfying.
I’m so glad that I learned that Chao Praya was back in the Bluff City. It’s a great addition, and a reason to travel outside of the I-40/@240 loop.

Been coming here since moving to this side of town almost two years ago now. love this place! Very low key and not a lot of buffet people around, if you know what I mean. The owners are very down to earth and the food is awesome! Give them a try you will like it.

Just not that great. Curries are decent but nothing special. Chicken was pre cooked and just heated up. I’ve tried this place several times through the years going back to the old location. Usually a large time in between as it never excites me when I eat here. I keep hoping it was just a bad day or they have a new chef but it always seems the same. Staff is nice enough and if you have a craving for Thai food and are stuck in this part of town it’s your only option and isn’t terrible.

Started off with them getting my order wrong, ended with stale fortune cookies.
I wanted to like them. .but I don’t. I did not get to try any of their Thai dishes… perhaps those are better.

I truly use to like coming to this restaurant, but now I can no longer recommend it. For me, I preferred the older managment. The food does not taste the same! The fried rice was very mushy/​burned and was like eating left over from yesterday ;P The orange chicken was ok, but a smaller portion. I used to leave there stuffed for lunch. Also, the price has been raised? Service was great, but I will not be making a return trip.

I really, really love this place. I found Chao Pyra through a friend years ago when they were located on Ridgeway. Unfortunately I moved to New Orleans and was not aware that the restaurant had moved. Alas, after 2 full years of not having the deliciousness of Chao Pyra in my life, I finally discovered they’re new (current) location.
I’m so happy to have found them again! The same super friendly owners are there every time I go. They always make sure that your food is delicious.
The pad Thai is great, but honestly I recommend all of their dishes. Over the years I branched out from pad Thai and was never disappointed.
I LOVE CHAO PYRA/​THAI CHINA DRAGON!

Good service, but I do not think the thai dishes taste exactly the same as Chao Praya Thai Restaurant (Ridgeway). For example, the chicken in the green curry tastes more like the chicken that would be used for a China Dragon menu item. It was dry and chewy compared to the tender chicken I had tasted in the past as Chao Praya. However, I enjoyed the vegetables. The tofu was a little over cooked. I enjoy steamed tofu that is quickly pan fried (see mulan bistro). Otherwise I recommend that the restaurant avoid buying pre packaged fried tofu and use fresh tofu.

This review is for the Thai side of Chao Praya/​Thai China Dragon
Here for lunch with colleague… chose Thai China Dragon because we love Thai.
First thing you notice is the Health Dept rating of 88 posted on the window. I’m from NY… don’t know if that’s okay or not, but would prefer a higher rating.
Ordered off the lunch menu. Lots of confusion with our hostess. Soup substitute became two soups served. The Hot and sour soup was more sweet than balanced.
Sauces seemed watered down… as if the owner was stretching his supply.
Dish presentation was as appetizing as a frozen Asian meal.
The Thai Iced Tea was very good… ask them to go light of the ton of ice cubes. No refills.
Décor was drab.
Lot of room for improvement.
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The owner here is a old family friend of mine. And he also used to own a thai restaurant so he combined Chinese and Thai cuisines. This is one of the best American-​Chinese place around, and the Singapore Noodles is just fantastic!

Chinese Dragon has fabulous Thai food. Spring Rolls can’t be beat. Soups, curries, pad Thai are great. The chef is from Thailand. There is a wine store next door to supplement the non alcoholic offerings. The prices are good and the service attentive.