Oriental Palace - Las Cruces

MOM AND POP CHINESE RESTAURANT. 2014 Update <br/ <br/ In September 2014 I paid another visit to the Oriental Palace and ordered the Mongolian Beef. Today the restaurant appeared much as it did on my earlier visit. It seems clean and is o.k. for a casual meal. But, the place doesn 't exactly sparkle. Nothing spiffy but o.k.  If you 're into a really nice ambiance pass it up. The service was quick, pleasant, and efficient. I did receive a follow-up. The meal came out of the kitchen in a timely manner. <br/ <br/ The fried rice was fair in quality. It was seasoned with soy sauce but had nothing added to it. The Mongolian Beef arrived in a covered silver dish. In addition to sliced beef there were shredded carrots, green pepper, and lots of onion slices (not scallions). The portion was large considering the price....a pretty good buy for the buck. The beef was tender and had a nice flavor. The sauce was a little sweet, but pretty good. The meal was advertised as 'hot ' (as Mongolian Beef should be) but there was very little heat to the meal. Overall, this was a decent presentation of Mongolian Beef but nothing spectacular. Rate the meal a 'B. ' This is fair to middling Chinese food. Not bad but not great. <br/ <br/ Original review appears below: <br/ <br/ The Oriental Palace is a small mom and pop Chinese restaurant in a little plaza on Idaho. It is certainly 'not ' a palace. It has about twelve tables and is a neat and clean little place, but offers nothing special as far as the ambiance goes. To get to the restroom you have to walk through the kitchen. Rate the ambiance a B-. <br/ <br/ The menu contains a variety of food but there seems to be a surfeit of chow mein offerings (a lot of shredded cabbage, carrots, and a few crispy noodles). <br/ <br/ The service I found friendly and efficient. The food was prepared timely and refills were offered regularly. Rate it a solid B.<br/ <br/ I found the food to be fresh and well prepared and beautifully presented on the plate. The veggies...the cabbage and carrots were cooked crisp and not overdone. The fried rice was just rice...no onion, carrot, egg, peas...just rice. The chow mein had little pieces of chicken in it. The chicken was not the most flavorful, but ok. Overall, the chow mein dish was fresh and well prepared but lacking in flavor. The food I had, while prepared nicely, was somewhat bland. Rate it a solid B however. The sweet and sour sauce was not your traditional sauce, but a little strange...it too lacked flavor. <br/ <br/ All-in-all, the food at the Oriental Palace was ok, but not something to go out of your way for. I do not find myself eager to return. <br/ <br/ Nevertheless, the prices here are most reasonable and this represents a good buy for the buck. If you are in the neighborhood...not a bad choice. Rate this bistro THREE-AND-A-HALF STARS regarding the dining experience......meaning, while not great, it is above average for a Chinese bistro around these parts. <br/ <br/ BOTTOM LINE: WILL I RETURN TO DINE HERE? PROBABLY NOT, BUT IT 'S OK.