As my palate has evolved over the last decade or so, I have to admit that Asian food was one of the last cuisines to join the party.
For me, the most adventurous I would get with “Asian food” was the hibachi shrimp and fried rice at Shogun. Several years ago, something clicked and I basically started treating sushi like it was a form of crack cocaine. I’m addicted to sushi.
But it’s not just sushi. I’ve begun to love Asian cuisine in all its authentic forms–hence, the reason two of my top 10 restaurants (if not more?) are Asian-focused. First, I ranked Virago at number 10. And, today, I want to tell you about my 7th ranked restaurant in Nashville–none other than Tansuo, the outstanding Chinese restaurant from celebrity chef Maneet Chauhan.
I’ve got to be upfront, unlike many restaurants on this list, I’ve only been to Tansuo one time, several months ago with my wife on a date night. Obviously, the restaurant made a great first impression.
It started with our pre-dinner cocktail. The bartender was incredibly friendly and offered on-point advice with his drink suggestions. My wife selected the “crouching tiger”–made with tequila, campari, lemon, five spice bitters, mango and vanilla. I went with the “all the tea in TN,” consisting of Tennessee whiskey, Earl Gray tea and hibiscus liquor. Both choices were excellent, especially when you consider we usually go with classic cocktails like Old Fashioneds, Manhattans, etc.
Our server was one of the best we’ve had in Nashville. I wish I remembered his name. He offered to surprise us and pick out some favorites from the menu, keeping in mind our likes and few dislikes. We obliged.
For appetizers, we split the firecracker wontons ($10) with braised short ribs, chili paste, sweet soy and hong kong x/o sauce. We also shared the duck dumplings ($9) made from duck confit, blood orange, cilantro and guilin chili oil.
For our final app, our server recommended the sesame golden eggs ($11). As they included tofu, we were skeptical but tried them anyway and, holy tofu, they were outstanding. The “eggs” included soft rice dough, shitake mushrooms, silken tofu, sesame seeds and chili oil. And they were one of the best menu items we had all night.
For entrees, the wife went with General Tso’s chicken ($18). God Bless P.F. Chang’s, but their version had nothing on this dish. The glaze on the fried chicken was incredible. I chose the beef gai lan ($24), consisting of braised short rib, house made oyster sauce, chinese broccoli and crispy shallots. That dish was legit.
Finally, we topped off the meal with a fabulous dessert, again recommended by our server. It was a cake of some sort–yes, I just called it a “cake of some sort” in a review. This was before the Food Dude blog and my note-taking sensibilities were lacking. I do apologize. I’ll do better next time.
Tansuo has been named the best Chinese food in Nashville, and we realized why on our first visit. The food and service were on point, and I’ve neglected to mention the space itself. Tansuo has a gorgeous interior, unlike anything else we’ve seen in Nashville.
This is a fabulous restaurant, and well worth its spot in my top 10 list of Music City’s restaurant. Go check out Tansuo and you’ll never visit another Chinese chain restaurant again.
‘
nashvillefooddude.com 