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18 E. Broadway,
New York, NY 10002
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Daily, 9am-10:30pm
6, J, M, N, Q, R, W, Z at Canal St.; F at East Broadway; B, D at Grand St.
$9.95-$24.95
American Express, Diners Club, Discover, MasterCard, Visa
Accepted/Not Necessary
Between the marble lobby, the elevator ride, and the acoustic-tile ceilings in the big open-floor rooms, a visit to Golden Unicorn starts out like a visit to an office building. But when the Cantonese food arrives all workaday comparisons drop. The food is market fresh, with a broad dinner menu that ranges from American-Chinese standards like sweet-and-sour chicken and chow fun noodles to items for more adventurous palates, such as shark's fin soup. Flavors tend to be subtle, as you'd expect with Cantonese cooking. That restraint is an advantage when ordering from the dim sum carts, which are the real draw here. Seven days a week, fresh dumplings and silky crepes come rolling through the dining room. Flavoring comes from judicious ginger and scallion touches, not excesses of grease. Light breading on steamed buns conceals juicy barbequed pork centers. Decadent salt and pepper shrimp are deep fried and served in their skin with the heads still on. Between the largely Chinese crowd that keeps both levels of the ballrooms loud and bustling and the obligatory glowing-eyed dragons on the back walls, you quickly forget you're in the kind of space usually filled with cubicles.
Recommended DishesSweet and sour chicken, $9.95; Chinese broccoli in oyster sauce, $9.95; jumbo shrimps in black bean sauce, $18.95
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