The two chows - Ky Chow and T Chow

I've visited both of these this week, so I've put them together here. I was introduced to both by my friend Laura, and I'm now a regular visitor to Ky Chow (especially since my ex and I broke up, he really hates this restaurant!) but last night was my first time at T Chow, and possibly my last. Laura loves the food at both, but the quality of the vego menus is vastly different, and the ambience as well. Ky Chow is wood and white and noisy and lively whereas T Chow is more traditional Chinese restaurant decor. The latter is better for large groups though, which we were.

Going with the good news first, Ky Chow's has ten vego choices. And a vego fried rice. Plus 4 vego entrees. I'm working my way through the menu, so I can only review what I've had so far. The Salt and Pepper Bean Curd is garlicky, with a light crispy batter (though if you get this to take away, by the time you get it home it's a bit soggy, so eat this one in house) and silky tofu. S&P Tofu can be done badly, I've tried this dish at other Gouger Street restaurants, and can safely claim Ky Chow is the best by far. And the Shallot Pan Cakes - how I love these! Flaky, buttery, oniony, divine! My mouth is watering as I write this, I could eat one of these right now. (Ky Chow also have Veg Spring Rolls and a Veg Roll, both of which are good, but it's hard to go past the Tofu and the Pan Cakes). The Hot and Sour Vegetarian Hot Pot is hot and sour in exactly the right combination, with glass noodles and lots of green Asian veg. Ky Chow's BBC (bean curd, broad beans and chinese chutney) is, like the Tofu, the best of its kind on Gouger Street, spicy and nourishing and really well presented, the beans are a lovely deep green and the chillies deep red with lots of firm tofu. The Mixed Green Veg with Garlic is delicious - I love lots of garlic, and this has plenty, but always erring on the side of 'just right', and the Veg Fried Rice is vegetably and tasty. (One more thing, they have this plum drink, I can't remember what it's called, but it's thick and smoky and sweet - a bit of an acquired taste, but if you love Lapsang Souchong tea, you'll love this.)(And another one more thing! Be careful if you're getting a doggy bag and the other dishes are meat - I've ended up with them all in the one container, so explain to the waitress that you want separate containers.)

Ky Chow is at 27-29 Gouger Street, Phone: 8221 5411 They're always incredibly busy, but you can usually get a table, the turnover is fast.

Okay, the not so good news, T Chow. Let me say first off, they were incredibly accommodating. We had a table of 10 people, two of us are vego, one who eats seafood but not other meats, and one mostly vego. We ordered a vegetarian and seafood banquet - this wasn't on the menu, so they made it up especially for us. The waiter came over and ran through what he could include, and it was a big selection. The fact that we had a vego and seafood banquet may have been part of the downfall here - the entrees were 'cabbage rolls', 'fish balls' and 'veg spring rolls'. The 'cabbage rolls' were prawn, which I found out after I bit into it (I feel so dirty!) and the spring rolls were okay (but again, I'm not a fan of deep fried, so this may account for my reaction). The mains were BBC (not as good as Ky Chow, the presentation seemed messier, and it just didn't seem as fresh and zingy), bamboo shoots with vegetables - a flat dish of vegetables topped with a gelatinous pale brown sauce, which was kind of foamy and wet loofah-like in the mouth, vegetarian fried rice (not bad), veg noodles (not excited by these, but they were okay) and what we collectively decided was called a veg, tofu and glass noodle hot pot - this unfortunately really lacked flavour, and the tofu was dry and chewy. I feel a little bad writing all this - it's my first non-complimentary review, and I'm going against general opinion here, one web post says "Adelaide's foodies claim that this Chinese eatery is the best with good reason". But this is the difference when you eat out as a vegetarian - the restaurant is famous for their duck, but their vego meals leave a bit to be desired. It wasn't inedible, don't get me wrong, and if you go there, the BBC is your best option. The meat and seafood eaters were impressed, so you can safely go there with friends and have something decent from the menu, just don't expect it to light your fire. (Or fill you up, I was starving by the time I got home! Plan on having a second supper.)

T Chow is in Chinatown at 68 Moonta St, Adelaide - (08) 8410 1413