Our grandmother didn't have elegant place settings or opulent flatware. But when the family got together for Sunday dinner, not one of us cared about the lack of decor. Grandma was a cooking machine and her family-style servings of comforting classics was all we needed to be happy.

Maybe that's why we can appreciate the frill-less Wahsun Chinese restaurant.

Food Critic Laura Hahnefeld on Wahsun Restaurant:

One doesn't go to Wahsun for elegantly plated Asian fare in an upscale atmosphere. One goes to Wahsun to hear someone chopping the shit out of a crispy-skin roasted pork belly before they deliver it to your table glowing like meat embers and tasting like Christmas dinner.

If you're looking for flair (with a side of the familiar), stop reading this review and go to www.pfchangs.com to find the location nearest you. If you're looking for platefuls of rustic authenticity at crazy-low prices -- décor be damned -- find the strip mall on the northwest corner of 19th and Northern avenues, look for the cardboard signs taped to the windows (half in Chinese characters, the other half in stenciled lettering) and open the door to one of the Valley's Chinatown-style secrets -- Wahsun Restaurant...full story

• Chow Bella