Nanking

Nanking (this is one restaurant in a chain) serves Chinese/Indian fusion and straight-up Indian cuisine. The restaurant is reported to be halal by its staff, but it earns big demerits for serving alcohol. There is street parking available, but you probably want to leave the 1980 Porsche 911 SC in Light Blue Metallic at home. The restaurant has plenty of seating with what seems to be a decor inspired by a seedy Hong Kong casino. This author tried the sweet corn soup, made with corn, chicken, and egg ($5) which turned out to be passable but by no means superior to others he\'s tried. The Kai Chi (Drums of Heven, $6 for 4 drumsticks) were fried drumsticks seasoned in a sweet/sour sauce -- again passable but disappointing as this is one of the most recommended dishes in other reviews. The papaya salad ($5) was a letdown, consisting of giant strands of papaya with what might or might not have been a dressing -- fans of Thai papaya salad will be deeply disappointed. The Szechuan chicken ($14) was chunks of friend chicken in a sweet/salty sauce that might have as well been from a bottle -- this dish should be stripped of the honorific \"Szechuan.\" Overall, Nanking earns a passing grade, but there are better halal Asian options.