Mu Lan Taiwanese Restaurant (Cambridge) — Restaurant in Cambridge

I've heard positive reviews about Mu Lan, so when I saw that its Google overview lauds its menu for being "veggie-friendly" I was sold. When I walked in, it was pretty busy with most of the room filled by groups of families and friends. Hearing the chatter, I was immediately transported to my childhood for a white tablecloth family meal.

Despite the bustle of the dinner hour on a rainy Friday evening, I was quickly greeted and seated by a server. Based on the Taiwanese tag in the restaurant's name, I wasn't necessarily expecting it, but some of the staff even spoke Cantonese. As in dim sum, they brought hot tea in a pot, as well as a small dish with some veggies (cabbage and carrots) as a light appetizer.

I came in ready to order the pan fried vegetable dumplings, and when I saw the menu listing "must try!" next to the spicy bean curd, I had to add it as well.

The dumplings were plated very prettily on a lace paper doily, which was an interesting contrast to the plastic spoon used for the accompanying sauce. I like my dumplings crispy, so I was happy to see the lightly seared bottoms. The dumplings were good and each bite was pretty light, even after adding the sauce.

The presentation of the spicy bean curd was not all that impressive. They're just firm tofu cubes - the skin was hard enough to give the dish some texture, but not unpleasantly so. There was a good amount of cilantro garnishing the plate, but essentially piled on, rather than sprinkled over, the tofu. Despite the name, the sauce was not hot. Overall, the spicy bean curd was fine, but I wouldn't call it a "must try" here.

Both dishes fulfilled the basic requirements of eating out - they were filling and I had no complaints about the taste - but didn't impress. I actually enjoyed the service more, which was quite the welcome change of pace from the typical experience in an authentic Asian restaurant. I was really taking my time with the meal and I didn't feel rushed at all, allowing me to really soak in the ambiance and the fond memories it...

I went to Mu Lan with a group of 5 so we were able to try a lot of dishes. We selected from the recommended dishes. Overall I was pleasantly surprised by the portion sizes but am not sold on all of their flavors.

Crispy chicken in chili garlic sauce: get this! It's a lot of chicken and it's definitely crunchy. I prefer the flavor of Chongqing dry chili chicken from other restaurants, but it's hard to beat the chicken to pepper ratio in this dish.

Pork with bamboo shoots: This is a big mound of pork and bamboo! The pork is tender and the bamboo is plentiful. There was a weird sour taste that I think came from the bamboo. The first few bites were really good (A+ texture) but the sourness got to me after a bit.

Shrimp with bean curd: the bean curd sheets are extremely smooth and hot and delicious. The sauce is a pretty typical white sauce and pairs well with the dish. I think this dish should be called bean curd with shrimp because there was not much shrimp (especially considering the price). Luckily I love tofu sheets so I still enjoyed this.

Taiwanese pan fried noodles with pork: Unremarkable, tastes like chow mein.

Eggplant with basil: The eggplant was a bit too soft for me and it was sweet with no spice despite having the pepper symbol next to it. Definitely my least favorite of the 5.

Overall I really liked the crispy chicken and enjoyed trying their offerings. As it stands I would go to 5 spices or Dumpling House over Mu Lan but I hope to get to try more of their dishes in the future! The serving sizes were larger than expected and they had a lot of items...

Mu Lan serves tasty Taiwanese food right in Kendall Square. The food here is fresh and flavorful, with a mix of traditional dishes, Chinese-American classics, and innovations.

The sour cabbage fish soup contains tender pieces of white fish nestled in pickled cabbage and bamboo shoots. The broth is light and clear, with a good combination of sourness from the pickles and spiciness from the peppers and ginger floating in it.

The smoked pork with leeks and lotus root features deeply flavored, charred, slices of fatty pork. The accompanying vegetables help to cut through the saltiness and richness of the pork, and the whole thing works very well over rice. Even though the pork is fatty, the rest of it isn't greasy, and there's not puddles of gloopy sauce either.

Pea shoots come sautéed with a generous helping of garlic. This is by far the best way to eat your greens. Forget salad: I want my vegetables cooked and flavored. This was a very generous portion, but I couldn't stop coming back for more.

We wanted to try some dumplings, and opted for the adventurous choice in the cuttlefish dumplings. The skins are dyed black with what I assume is squid ink, but are otherwise just very good standard dumpling skins: thick enough to be substantial but not heavy, and with a nice al dente chew. The filling is like a fish ball but with chives and soy sauce. The fish flavor is very subtle, and I wouldn't be surprised if they were actually part ground pork, like a standard...