Best Chinese in south 'burbs or NW IN?

[Warthog]

I know that the south suburbs are not exactly a hotbed of authentic ethnic cuisines (with a few exceptions), but I thought I'd ask. I'm coming home for the holidays, and hope to find some new places to try.

[markh]

You should try Fortune House on Calumet Ave. in Munster. It's where New Moon used to be, but it's under new ownership, and it's the best Chinese food I've found since moving back to NWI. To put it in perspective, if Fortune House were in Chinatown it would be considered a bit above average.

A new place just opened in Schererville (on Main St just west of Indpls Blvd) called Pita Kabab. This place has the potential to be something special, but I hope it gets enough business to realize that potential. There just isn't much demand for baba ghanouj and chicken schwarma amongst the Hoosier Hillbillies living in Dyer, Schererville, and St. John...most of whom seemingly spend their restaurant dollars at Old Country Buffet and Buffalo Wild Wings.

[MizzBee]

For Asian, I go for Exotic Thai in Highland or for more upscale, Asparagus in Merrillville . My current Chinese takeout is Panda in Hobart.
Also, try Aladdin Pita for authentic middle eastern food. Taste of India in Merrillville will also satisfy cravings for something other than pizza and burgers.

[markh]

Aladdin Pita was my go-to place for middle eastern food in the area, but no more. Pita Kabab is on another level entirely. You need to try it.

Asparagus is indeed good, but I personally prefer its sister restaurant Siam Marina in Calumet City, which has a very similar menu at lower prices...

I've wanted to try Exotic Thai, but every time I drive past it the place is almost empty -- IMO not a good sign.

[Warthog]

After driving past for decades, I finally tried Lucky Dragon Vietnamese and Chinese. It's on 30, south side of the street, about two blocks west of Indianapolis (or Teibel's, if you navigate by restaurants!).

I was *very* impressed. It had always looked from the outside like an exemplar of the "dive carry out, with a couple grungy tables if decide you must eat in" genre, but the inside is really nice now - the product of a recent remodelling, I gather. Nice decor, jazz on the sound system, very cozy.

I hade the Vietnamese spring rolls and the pho, both of which were wonderful, and compare very favorably to the best Vietnamese I've had elsewhere.

The only downside on those dishes was that the pho portion was more suitable for a large soup to be had as prelude to an entree than as the inexpensive but wonderful "meal in a bowl" that I'm more used to. That said, pho is usually judged on the basis of the broth, and this broth is wonderfully complex and delicious - easily the best I've had.
And even though it was not the meal-sized bowl I was hoping for, it was still well worth the price, given the quality of the product.

I can't yet vouch for the Chinese part of the menu, but if it's anywhere near as good as what I had, it is well worth Chow investigation, especially given that there doesn't seem to be any Vietnamese in the south 'burbs and NW IN area.

This is the sort of place that screams for Chow support.