Shui Asian Fusion — Restaurant in City of Rochester

(This review was written in 2013. Updates forthcoming.) Shui Asian Fusion is located in the former KFC/Panda King building on the corner of University and E. Main St. The outside has been painted a nice cream with lime-green trim which definitely makes it stand out in this decidedly gritty area.

As you enter the vestibule you're greeted by a floor to ceiling picture of some vague Indian palace scene. Walk through the vestibule and you come to a small, carpeted dining area decorated with Tibetan knick-knacks and prints. The muted color scheme and lighting give the place all the charm of a suburban doctor's office. The chest-high counter that serves as the cashier's station coupled with ambient music (peppered with the vaguely Franco Viet vocalizations that are so popular with restaurants of this type) serve to emphasize this atmosphere.

The menu is a mix of Thai and Chinese cuisines including the perennial favorites of fried tofu, pad thai, thai basil fried rice and beef with broccoli. I was pleasantly surprised to see mint fried rice as I don't normally see that on Rochester menus.

But I wasn't in the mood for mint today. Being that it was a little cooler than usual I decided to try the Tom Kha Gai (spicy coconut soup.) Tom Kha Gai tends to suffer from either too much ginger or coconut milk. Shui Asian Fusion does it exactly right. The rich broth was a perfect vehicle for gobbling up healthy hunks of chicken and mushrooms. The lime juice pulled everything together. I didn't stop slurping until my nose hit the bottom of the bowl.

I chose as my entrée the Kwyatio Pad Gai (thai chicken coconut noodle) from the lunch specials menu. This dish was a fine contrast to the soup if you like sticky sweet, al dente noodles with overcooked vegetables. The chicken saved this dish. Overall I think it could be executed better.

The service was fast and efficient; with good reason since there was only 1 other table seated. It's barely been 3 weeks since their grand opening. Incidentally, they're offering 20% off for a limited time.

Will I go again? Yes. This place has promise. I'd like to try the more traditional Chinese entrees. It's also nice to have an Asian restaurant in this part of town that isn't necessarily catering to tourists. (You know where I'm...

This is hands down my favorite Thai place in Rochester and I’ve been to almost all of them. I’ve been a fan of this restaurant before they moved and never write reviews, but feel like I have to for this place. Since moving the in service is slower, but that’s because she is the only server. That being said, she is amazing and does not move slow opposed to other places where service takes forever and you see everyone standing around! If it is busy you will wait a little for your food, but it’s amazing. Also, real Asian food like this place offers isn’t just a “10 minute “ ordeal. Asian food is also very often served family style, so dishes coming at different times isn’t that odd for the cuisine. If you’re not willing to potentially wait then it’s your loss because the food is beyond incredible and the owners are the sweetest people in the world. I truly hope they stay in business for many years to come because I don’t know where else I’d go for not only amazing Thai food, but some of the most authentic flavorful food...

Maybe I just spend too much time in the suburbs, but so much of the family dining world is dominated by conglomerates that it’s always a joy to find someplace that’s a classic family-owned place, with delicious recipes that feel designed with heart. Everything we ate was excellent, but I’ll call particular attention to two dishes. I’ve had and very much enjoyed P.F. Chang’s Mongolian Beef; Shui’s makes it seems unsophisticated by including mushrooms and toning down the sweetness to let the umami shine. It has everything I liked about the chain’s version, while feeling more interesting and complete. Secondly, we had a Chicken Volcano (with diminished spiciness), and it makes me mad that “bursting with flavor” gets used so often it sounds pedestrian, because this felt like a riot in my mouth. Even toned down, it had some heat, but everyone in our party was able to eat it comfortably, and it drew universal acclaim.

Our kids ended the evening mad at us for bringing them to explore the city too rarely, and resolved to...