Rating: Two thumbs up
Date: 7/10/13
Time in: 6:20 PM
Server’s recommendations: Sesame cake with beef
What we ordered: Shanghai mini wonton soup, special house cold noodle, sarsaparilla, apple cider

Number in our party: 2
Final check amount: $24.03
Price per person: $12.02

NOTES

• Confession: I lost our Liang’s Kitchen data sheet.  I could swear I had deliberately put it…somewhere…in…my pig sty of a room.  And though I have since cleaned said room, the little folded square of paper has disappeared, which means this will be the vaguest of vague entries. *12/1/13 update: I found it in my work locker!
• This was yet another restaurant that was pleasantly surprising.  The outside looks so dark and depressing, but once you’re inside, it’s light and airy and comfortable inside.
• The menu is crazy and the numbers on the order form don’t match!  Confusing.
  The food has a homey taste, like they know how to make it all without a recipe.
  YUM, the broth in the Shangai mini wonton soup!  It was clear and full-flavored but not heavy or too greasy.  I wasn’t very hungry but I was happy to eat up this soup.
  The beef roll was GIGANTIC.  Like, twice the size of A Cafe’s.  The crispy end is really yummy.
• I wasn’t crazy about the cold noodles — they were a bit too chewy.  I think I’d like it more if they had sliced ham and eggs on it like hiyashi chuka.
  Skip the sarsaparilla and apple cider.  The former, as Jenne said, was so gross.  The latter wasn’t terrible, but it wasn’t worth $2.
  Liang’s Kitchen is like A Cafe, only it’s better seasoned and tastes more homemade.
• The bathroom is kind of gross.

RESTAURANT INFORMATION 
Address: 4681 Convoy St, Ste C & D
Phone number: 858.277.5573
Accepts credit cards? Yes
Parking: Shared lot that’s pretty tiny, but there’s decent turnover, so you can usually squeak into a spot that someone’s pulling out of.
Ideal group size: Any
Available vegetarian options: Shaved snow. There appear to be many (snow vegetable with tofu, stewed tofu skins, stewed bamboo shoots, spring onion pancake, cold noodles, etc.) but since there are no descriptions, it’s hard to know if there’s meat or fish hidden in there somewhere.
Noise level: 2.5