Sometimes what you’re missing most is sitting right under your nose. For far too long, sniffing out a reliable Chinese restaurant that consistently dishes out hearty delicious meals at a fair price on the NE side of Chicago has proven frustratingly elusive.
Chicago’s Rogers Park is nowhere near Chinatown with its vast spectrum of dining choices. Skirting Lake Michigan on the far northern reaches of the city, it’s a neighborhood whose food traditions are more likely to be influenced by Latin America and the Caribbean. So what do you do when you’re craving food whose origins reach to the Far East? For our everyday purposes, the meals themselves don’t need to be completely authentic; but we’d like many if not most of the ingredients to carry important and recognizable signifiers of another culture. In this case, flavor profiles created by soy sauce, sesame oil, oyster sauce and schezwan chili peppers or their equivalent.
You’d think it wouldn’t be a problem. A city of 8 million people should have a proliferation of all types restaurants to slip into and satisfy every dining desire. Densely populated and cosmopolitan, Chinese restaurants certainly are not difficult to find in Rogers Park or its adjoining neighborhoods and communities. Great Beijing, a popular Chinese restaurant that’s so spacious it borders on sprawling, is just a 15-minute drive west in Lincolnwood. Despite its predominantly Asian Americans clientele and an approachable and broad menu, the food often lacks distinction and tends to be over salted. Other Chinese restaurant staples dotting the landscape seem to be have lost their mojo, presenting pro forma entrées with no heart.
Fortunately, the Internet search gods took pity on our plight and directed us to Dragon Gate, a tiny little eatery on a gritty stretch of Clark St. just before it enters Edgewater, looks like a Hollywood stereotype of a fast food Chinese restaurant. Sitting in relative isolation just above Devon Ave., it’s almost regal in its solitude. Completely without affectation and radiating an aura that could easily be interpreted as composed steady integrity, it feeds a grateful community.
Still in partial shutdown mode with only a couple of tables set up for in-house dining, 99.9% of the restaurant’s business is take out. Even before Covid, sit down trade probably wasn’t brisk. The atmosphere is clean, but stark; with little that could be considered ornamentation. Online reviews invariably comment on the hospitality of the woman who stands at the counter to take orders and hand over your requests. Disarmingly hospitable, completely focused and enviously patient; you’re tempted to stare in disbelief because in this kind of environment, you usually expect and get brusque and perfunctory.
Bowled over by a dish called Happy Family, the first encounter with Dragon Gate left us a little incredulous. Most of the Happy Family’s star ingredients were generously represented; especially the protein that featured beef, chicken and shrimp. Broccoli florets, sliced carrots, and water chestnuts were also added to a delicious brown sauce whose beef broth base was bolstered with soy sauce, oyster sauce and a pass of sugar to add a hint of sweetness. Served over rice, it resulted in a delicious beautifully prepared combination. The dish turns out to be one of the restaurants most popular offerings. With no way of knowing if it is, the wonton soup should be right up there with it. Falling back on Cantonese and Mandarin traditions, this version is thick and silken, filled with soft tofu nubs that rub shoulders with shitake mushrooms and an oddly shaped strand of mystery protein that was delicious if not recognizable.
A chat with the owner revealed the wonton soup happens to be one of her favorites as well. Our talk also disclosed that the same chef has been preparing the food for all of the thirty years Dragon Gate has been on Clark St. Originally, they were further north but development 16 years ago pushed them down to their present location, across the street from Uncle Abe’s Thrift Store.
Things don’t always go 100% right. Looking to see how they handle noodle dishes, a spicy lo mein with chicken and vegetables was requested one early Friday evening. Although more than merely acceptable, it didn’t feature the elusive magic found in the wonton soup or the medley of flavors and textures in Happy Family. The lo mein also quite unexpectedly sported a bounty of popcorn shrimp with only an occasional appearance of chicken. The mishap caused more chuckles than scowls and the overall quality of the entrée was enough to put another stamp of approval on the way Dragon Gate approaches food. In that earlier chat, the owner, who evidently contributes her skills in the kitchen as well, said they try to emphasize freshness and natural ingredients. Those two things and the pride in doing something conscientiously and well make Dragon Gate glitter. “We’ve had the same customers ordering the same thing for 30 years”, the proprietress laughed approvingly. With no delivery, a cash only policy and virtually no Internet/social media presence, another regular customer has just been added to their roster.
Dragon Gate
6528 N. Clark St.
Chicago, IL 60626
773-338-6061
Closed on Sunday
