Small menu keeps ingredients fresh

HC Way Asian Bistro keeps its menu simple, fresh and customizable.

“Our main difference is we don’t sell 100 dishes like other Chinese restaurants,” said Hangchun Zheng, owner of the fastcasual restaurant on Bethel Road on the Northwest Side. (HC Way has another location at 171 E. Campus View Blvd.)

In other words, Zheng said, he chose a menu featuring the most popular dishes to keep inventory fresh and promote consistency in the kitchen.

“We consider ourselves fast casual because there’s a lot of customization that can go into” each dish, he said. “I’d say for our pricing, our portions are more toward the larger size.”

Customers who want to create dishes start by choosing either steamed or stir-fried preparations. Next comes a choice of proteins, followed by six of 15 vegetables, one of 14 house-made sauces and either fried, steamed or brown rice.

Zheng recommends the spicy garlic sauce in several preparations, including a stir-fry with chicken and shrimp, veggies and simple steamed rice ($11).

Shrimp pad thai ($8.95) has all the standard attractions: eggs, Clockwise from top left, the stir-fry with garlic sauce and chicken, General Tso’s chicken, fried rice and pad thai at HC Way Asian Bistro. Where: HC Way Asian Bistro Address: 769 Bethel Road Unit B Hours: 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and noon to 9 p.m. Sundays Contact: 614-745-0150, www.hcway.com

bean sprouts, scallions, crushed peanuts, a dash of brown sugar, fragrant fish sauce and admirably sized crustaceans.

“We sell a ton of it a day,” Zheng said.

Fans of General Tso’s chicken ($7.50) are treated to chunks of

batter-fried chicken dark meat tossed in a tangy, sweet sauce that has more than a hint of ginger.

“The more eat, you more you get addicted to it,” Zheng said.

HC Way recently has started serving rolled ice cream ($5.60, or $6.75 for Buckeye madness), where a liquid dairy mix is poured on a frozen metal tablet and scraped into five rolled pieces.

Zheng recommends the taro-root flavor.

“That’s my favorite,” he said. “But the most popular is cookies and cream.”

For a crunchy starter, consider the crab Rangoon ($4.50 for six pieces), a savory option

featuring deep-fried wontons stuffed with crab, celery, onion and cream cheese, with a sweet-and-sour dipping sauce on the side.

Traditional hotand-sour soup ($2.25) is served with crispy noodles on the side

“It’s kind of like people eating crackers with chili,” Zheng said.

The Thai curry fried rice ($7.95) offers a medley of vegetables and a spicy flavor.

Zhen recommends ordering the dish with tofu, which is deepfried, firm and crunchy.

“I feel like it’s a good way to introduce tofu to people,” he said.