The Rice Box — Restaurant in Houston

Having eaten at Chinatown a lot lately, I was in the mood for some bad Chinese. Not like bad tasting. But something like Panda Express Americanized level Chinese food. Enter The Rice Box. I had seen their menu many times passing by. And I saw they offer many Americanized dishes. I might have even ordered from here once a long time ago. I can’t remember. But it wasn’t memorable if I had. Sticking with my mission, I decided to order the General Tso chicken. I debated between Lo Mein and Fried Rice as the side. I decided the greasier the better, so I went with noodles. First off I have to say the egg roll was hot and fresh. Kudos for that. Nothing better than a crispy egg roll. Next the chicken. It was ok. Not much flavor though unfortunately. It was kinda like having COVID all over again. There were a lot of tiny crunchy bits too. I think most people wouldn’t like that fact. But I actually like those bits. It’s just like Long John Silvers which throws all those crumbs in at the bottom of your takeaway bag - I love those. And there were a lot of them too. As for the Lo Mein, I couldn’t really eat much of it. I mean, I think it tasted ok for what it was I guess. But I didn’t care for it. Maybe the fried rice would’ve been better. I know my kid would love something like that though, so I decided to take it home. I always like to try the fortune cookie to see if they’re stale. It wasn’t! Portions are solid. servers were prompt. Huge long line. But if moved fast. Very retro in feel. One of the 3 screens had on Empire - so extra star for that. Very cool. Location a bit hard to get to being in the basement of a workplace. I think they cater to the...

The biggest draw here is the cyberpunk neon aesthetic. It does look pretty cool on first impression, and the custom packaging of their to-go containers is on point, but the dim environment only illuminated by harsh neon glow not only gives one a headache in a short amount of time, but the lights themselves produce a surprising amount of heat, which contributes to the overall too warm temperature inside, especially in the Texas Summer heat, which could be somewhat alleviated by lowering the thermostat on the air conditioning but is not for reasons passing understanding.

The staff is very friendly and very accommodating, but that can't completely make up for the fact that you're being somewhat overcharged for mall food court quality Chinese food with too much sugar in the sauce, and what are probably bulk purchased frozen egg rolls and gyoza. Five dollars for a tortilla size bland veggie pancake with a comparable thickness is too much.

If you find yourself craving Chinese food later in the evening with an admittedly cool aesthetic environment, and don't mind the super mid quality food, or just don't consider yourself to have a very refined palette, then this place will probably hit the spot for you, but if you are looking for a quality dining experience with exceptional food, or need back support at your seat (as all seating is either on bar stools inside or bench seating outside), then maybe give this one a pass unless you have absolutely no other option, or just want to go once for an...

Let's go ahead and get this out if the way... expect price! The cost is high. But, after my first visit, I'm in love with the place. I had mild spiced beef with broccoli and fried rice. That with white tea was $18, but I was beyond stuffed halfway through (that's coming from a 230lb guy, so if you're not a big eater, that's 2 $10 meals after cost of parking). I don't know what their secret is, but the beef was a perfect tender: not mushy, not one single piece chewy, easy to break apart. The veggies were cooked just right. The rice is absolutely wonderful. If I just ate fried rice, this is who I'd ask to cook it for me. Reminded me of quality, off the hot plate, Japanese-habachi-like (don't kill me for the comparison... I've never been to a Chinese Habachi .