Fancy Lee Asian Bistro ‘N’ Sushi sits on Main Street, its gleaming silver facade and its long bank of window telling us instantly that the building was a diner in times gone by. But at night it’s a whole different story. With the restaurant’s name glowing in a curve of neon light and with the doorway fiercely guarded by two Chinese lions, it’s immediately obvious that this is no retro theme park, but a modern palace of fusion Asian cuisine.
Passing through the door of Fancy Lee, most of that initial intrigue dissipated a bit. Strictly on the visual, Fancy Lee is nothing special. The interior has a few nice touches of Asian décor, but that’s where it ends. Thinking of an old diner (because that’s what is once was), the counter and sushi bar line the left side of the room and the tables line the windows to the right. The sushi bar was manned by three chefs cranking out the rolls and the sashimi, to the delight of the customers at the counter. There is an additional dining area in the back that is somewhat fancier, and is a nice area for a large party or a private function.
As we were perusing the extensive Pan Asian menu, our server brought us the house special; a complimentary appetizer for our party to share. This was imitation crab meat and cream cheese in a crispy tempura batter. As we all began to have a taste, that intrigue slowly came back. Don’t let the word “imitation” turn you off before you try this tasty little snack.
It was so good, that that we asked them to charge us so we could have another plate. The soup offerings were pretty standard fare, with miso, hot & sour, wonton and tom kha gai. We ordered the wonton and the tom kha gai, which were great choices. The wonton is homemade, so it is not typical storefront Chinese restaurant fare. The dumplings were tender and filled with a generous serving of perfectly spiced pork. The tom kha gai is a fantastic coconut broth, filled with vegetables and chicken. It is an absolute party in a bowl, with a hint of sweetness from the coconut, and a nice kick from the peppers. It left us wishing we had more.
For entrees we had chicken lo mein, sesame chicken, shrimp tempura roll, salmon skin roll and a sweet potato roll. The sesame chicken and chicken lo mein were pretty standard types of these dishes, but these were some of the best examples of them I have ever had, with the lo mein in particular being cooked perfectly and loaded with a hearty variety of vegetables.
The sushi rolls were tried by everyone at the table and all agreed they were fantastic, with each of us favoring a different one. We quickly went to work on the sushi and there was very little left to continue the discussion. We were wonderfully stuffed but had to make room for a little dessert.
Unfortunately they were out of mochi Ice Cream, but they had plenty of other options. We had a delicious warm chocolate cake, served with vanilla bean gelato, and a piece of cheesecake, served with whipped cream. Both were too much after all that food, but somehow we managed to get them down. They were each fairly typical, but there wasn’t a crumb of either left when we were done. As I was told by one of the women in the restaurant, the lions outside are supposed to offer protection and bring good fortune to all who pass through. They absolutely brought great fortune to our party that night, by way of some absolutely mouth-watering food.
The Fancy Lee menu is pretty extensive offering wonderful Pan-Asian cuisine, sushi and hibachi, so there is really something for everyone. If you haven’t tried Fancy Lee in Babylon Village, do yourself a favor and go have a great meal.
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