I was so excited to give this place a try!
Parking was a piece of cake and we arrived at 5:55 p.m., so we were seated right away. Â Don't get there a minute after 6:30!
We ordered the pickles, potstickers, white fish and Fat Rice.
I will definitely be back...and will do things a little differently the next time: Â
The pickles were not awesome...my favorite was the cabbage (we also ordered the cauliflower and cucumbers), but not worth $10.
The potstickers were the highlight of the meal! Â Easy recommendation.
While their signature dish is something to behold, the whole thing is confusing, overwhelming, and just not that delicious. Â I definitely enjoyed parts of it (the prawns and and the egg especially), Â there was just TOO much going on and the rice had a flavor that is best described as 'peculiar'. Â The waitress apologized that we were not instructed on HOW to eat this dish. Â I don't think that was the problem.
We had the pineapple upside-down cake for dessert.....so glad I didn't skip dessert, because it was second to the potstickers.
Will be back...at 5:55 p.m., will sit at the bar, will order interesting drinks, will avoid the fat rice.
What a great recommendation from a client! Fat rice is tasty. The server/bartender was great. The combination of flavors pulling from Chinese and Portuguese influences are delicious. The space is super cute and designed very well. We are looking forward to returning to Fat Rice very soon.
Review Source:The chicken in spicy tomato sauce was delicious and unique. Â The sauce was complex and the olives complemented the dish well. Â The appetizer pickles were good but were tad pricey at $10 I thought. Â We had to wait 90 minutes for for seating (they don't take reservations and it's not a terribly large space), but the food was well worth it.
Review Source:My associate was not especially pleased with the offering of fruity teas from Rare Tea Sellers and to be honest they were pretty bland. As far as the actual food, everything was very good and very reasonably priced. Â
As is almost always the case when I frequent an Asian restaurant with my asian friends, I deferred the responsibility of ordering to them. Â So I can't speak to any of the specific dishes, and even if I had personally ordered them, I'm not sure I'd really be able to offer any insights more than a caveman-like "FOOD GOOD", so I won't insult you with them now.
They offer a wide variety of different "pickles" and they were all pretty good. But they were pickles. Â Seems wrong to apply any amount of weight to a restaurants rating because of pickles.
Went here for the first time last night and was totally impressed with the food, the service, and the atmosphere. I went with two friends and we ordered a set of pickles, two small plates, and one medium plate, which was a good amount of food for us. If you're really hungry, I'd say you'd want to get another dish.
All the food was really complex and different from most anything I've had, which was a really nice surprise. And in all, the check only came to be less than $50 for the three of us, including tip.
The service was really good, but the place does fill up really fast. One really smart thing though-- they have a coat check so you're not stuck with your winter gear. I think my only negative comment would be that our waiter seemed to be a little pushy in getting us to order more dishes, but it wasn't really annoying. Overall, the food was absolutely worth it, and I will definitely be going back.
this is hands-down the most exciting casual asian fusion restaurant in chicago. Â and it happens to be right in my back yard. Â
why am i so psyched?  because it's portuguese & chinese fusion!  chicago is severly lacking in both cuisines.  i personally have never had the two together.  but i have spent time in goa & a few  asian countries and i can taste it all in every bite of food.
this was our valentines boxing day dinner. Â it was worth the wait. Â the bevie list is fresh, different, & for all pocketbooks. Â i had a glass of the house spanish sparkling, hubs had the very old barton bourbon neat for $4. Â cool!
this is tapas. Â you got different sizes, you share it all. Â and it's ALL excellent. Â
we got the "3 for ten bucks" pickles/bites. Â ginger lime cauliflower-very indian but not too spicy served cold, the spicy garlic cucumber-packs a strong delightful punch, & pork ear & papaya-wow!!! Â this all followed by the house made linguica with salty oilves, ginger & cabbage. Â perfection. Â and what followed was beyond perfection. Â bacalhau de vovo-salt cod w/olives, ginger & chili with hearty bread to spread it on. Â mother's secret recipe i was told. Â yes indeed. Â do not miss this dish. Â it's very special.
the 4 large dishes were incredibly difficult to choose from. Â each one serves 2 or more. Â with a side of incredible coconut rice. Â after much deliberation we decided on the portuguese chicken-Po Kok Gai with mussels - mild curry - parrano - coconut - chorizo. Â this was heaven. Â real home cooking. Â huge very high-quality mussels-delicious gravy-SO comforting! Â very mild coconut curry & fall-off-the-bone chicken.
i had no room for dessert. Â but i fully intend on returning enough times to eat my way through the entire menu. Â i'm very excited about this place! it's fresh, young, hip, comfy with a highly professional staff who understand how to make it happen.
welcome to the neighborhood! Â lets do the fat rice shuffle!!!
Called at 7pm and asked about how long is the wait for a group of six. Â Answer was an hour and a half. Â Said we are right around the corner and would call back in an hour. Â Called back - same wait time, said no problem we are walking over now. Â Hostess said they would not put our name on a list and we were fine with that and waiting once we got there. Â
When we walked in there were 2 parties of two ahead of us - so we approached the bar and were told to stand back by the door and hostess would get our drinks. Â Spots were open at the bar - but we were asked to stay by the door. Â After some time - more people arrived and our party was asked to wait outside because she needed to take care of a bunch of people that were trying to get in/on the list. Â It was a cold night - so after waiting outside and seeing a bunch of people that arrived after us remain inside, we left. Â
If you are not going to take reservations - at least have a plan for where people can wait. Â You have a bar - allow customers to sit and order a drink while waiting for a table or at least allow people to congregate around the bar. Â Don't ask people that have been waiting the longest to go outside and allow people that arrived later to stay inside. Â Train a good host/manager who won't get flustered when groups of 4-6 arrive...yes, it's really easy to keep filling open spots of two with 2 people but at some point, you might need to make them wait to get in a larger party that has been waiting longer.
Portuguese has been missing from my collection of cuisines tasted in Chicago. So when I found out about this place that offers a Macanese I did not hesitate. Macanense has both Chinese and Portuguese influences.
Our group had a variety of appetizers, dishes, and deserts. Everything was unusual and tasty. One dish reminded of Spanish paella, but looked differently.
We enjoyed our meal very much. Will be back for sure!
I love tasting ethnic foods and regularly do just that. One cuisine that have been missing from the Chicago scene was Portuguese. Â Fat Rice somewhat fills this gap.
Our group of ten descended on this place on Tuesday night. By 7pm the place filled and stay this way even after we left - a sign of a good place. I let my buddies order so I do not know names of the dishes. Every thing from appetizers, to soups, to main dishes, to deserts was very good. Deserts deserve a special mention ...
The staff is very friendly. The experience all-in-all was very good. I will certainly be back.
I went here with a friend on a Friday night. We got there right at 6pm when it opened and we were the second table in line. This place isn't very big and it's communal dining, but unlike some other places with the long tables I didn't feel like I was squished against the person next to me. Fat Rice filled up pretty quickly by 7pm and after that there was an hour wait.
There is a lot to choose from on the menu which I really liked. My goal was to eat as much food as possible, but there was no t-shirt for me to win despite my efforts which impressed a few people on the staff. My friend and I had the pumpkin soup (way too much going on in here), the fat rolls (good but not spectacular), a bacon dish which was tasty, the potstickers (OMG these are the best potstickers I have ever had), and the fat rice. For those of you who are curious, the fat rice is a big bowl with a bunch of stuff in it. It's kind of like paella. There's a rice base and then shellfish, pork, chicken, sausage, etc. piled on top. I can't say I was that impressed either. It is also $35 per person for the Fat Rice which includes a soup and dessert.
So as you can imagine with all that food we had a fat check. The food was fine, but I can't say it was worth the hype. The location isn't terrible, but it's not great. But in terms of the food and service it is A-OK.
I'm not a big asian food fan but my boyfriend is and we were both intrigued and delighted by Fat Rice. Definitely a place to revisit and explore, the concept is fun and the food is hearty and comforting without being too overwhelming. Service was very good.
Also, hands down, one of the best restaurant spaces we have ever been in. It's amazing what they've done inside. Beautiful. However, be warned the space is small and tables are easy to get as a couple but for larger groups they seem to have problems figuring out the logistics.
It's impossible to be on a diet here. Hence the name Fat Rice??
I love the husband and wife team here. They are so friendly, personable and love talking about food! The menu is a blend of Chinese/Portuguese, and very interesting.
Everything we had here was delicious. Spicy, salty, and fatty. Done!
Fat Rice was highly recommended by lots of friends. After checking out the menu on their website, however, I must admit I did not feel an urgency to go over there. The food all looked great and interesting, but the only photo of the restaurant is of the kitchen. I wasn't sure if it was more of a take-out place, or if it would be right for a nice dinner out, or what.
Well, the space is actually REALLY NICE with a couple big communal tables and a few smaller ones and a bar overlooking the open kitchen. It's small and cozy and busy. I wouldn't mind coming on a busy night and waiting at the bar, even if I had to stand, because the beer list is really great and the energy is too.
The menu is set up for sharing, which is perfect because we could not decide what to get -- everything looked so good. The Potstickers were the best I have ever had and came with a delicious bowl of garlic and spices that you have to mix with soy sauce. There was also a ghost pepper hot sauce that was so tasty and VERY spicy hot. I would be happy to spend an evening with beer and plate after plate of Potstickers.
We also had the Fat Noodles with xo sauce. So delicious! And we got a clay pot filled with Cauliflower Curry which came with a bowl of coconut rice with toasted coconut flakes sprinkled on top. Everything was just perfect, and the service was outstanding.
Great job former XmarX folks, thanks Abe & Adrienne as it was rocking!!!! Â Your Macau (Portuguese & Chinese flavors) influenced food is amazing and I appreciate you coming to the Logan Square hood!! Â
Here's the skinny on what was eaten:
Pickles - Pork Ear & Papaya (least favorite, but I'm not the biggest fan of papaya & the pork ear could've been crispy for some texture as both items were a bit slimy), smoked tofu & mushrooms (amazing & I'm not a tofu fan usually), and spicy garlic cucumber - amaze-balls!!
Pot Stickers - went w/ the pork & shrimp. Â Hands down the best I've ever had. Â There's a crispy layer on top of them that adds just that extra crunch that's perfect. Â Also the dipping sauce house made and is a perfect combo.
Fat Noodle - hand rolled chee cheong fun with x.o. sauce (the meat & vegetable version) - these noodles were fun, they were the wide noodles that are rolled up like a fruit rollup and then sliced. Â The melody of flavors were paired up precisely. Â
Po Kok Gai (Portuguese Chicken) - mussels - mild curry - parrano - coconut - chorizo. Â The combination of the crispy & juicy chicken with the mussels and coconut curry makes for a so well balanced dish. Â The jasmine rice that accompanies it was cooked amazingly too. Â
The staff was very friendly and accommodating and the place is quaint with simple decor. Â I really enjoy the open kitchen so that when you're sitting at the bar, you can watch the team work and food preparation. Â
Can't wait to come back for more mouth watering delicious food and another round of adult sodas - the callan club was a good choice!
It's tough whether to be super honest or not because the line to eat will only get longer...
But to be honest, this place was fantastic! We tried the sichuan eggplant, smokey tofu, spicy garlic cucumber, bacalhau, fat noodles, portuguese chicken, and serradura. Â It was all wonderful! Â With a wonderful blend of textures and flavors, it was an awesome and filling party in my mouth!
Our favorites were the fat noodles and the serradura - truly heavenly dessert!
Can't wait to go back and try the more dishes :)
P.S. we came 10-15 min before they opened after reading the tips and we were so happy we did because a long line was forming as soon as we were seated in the restaurant!
I am a big fan of this place and will be coming back when looking for Macanese or Portuguese food. Â I got here at 5:50 on Saturday and there was a huge line forming outside the door despite the bad weather due to the restaurant not accepting reservations.
I think prices here are very reasonable for the quality and I thought service was very good. Â My group got out of here for $44 a person while ordering a ton of food.
I liked every dish we had which is pretty unusual when I order so many dishes. Â Some of the standouts were:
-potstickers - I was pleasantly surprised by how good the meat and vegetarian potstickers were. Â They also served it with a very authentic and balanced diping sauce.
-Portuguese chicken - chicken in a slightly creamy sauce that tastes like a mild curry, but I have been reading isn't really curry
-piri piri chicken - chicken in a spicy and sweet pepper sauce
-fat rice - chicken, pork, seafood, and rice all cooked up in a clay pot
-mini side dish starters
-rice crispy treat dessert.
No reservations accepted for the hot new restaurant means that we got here on a Saturday night 20 minutes before opening and there was already a line forming. Our group tried what seemed like the entire menu, but here were my favorites:
PICKLES: I love boiled peanuts. The "Charlie's Peanuts" brought back fond memories of what my grandma used to make me as a snack when I came home from school. Â Smoky Tofu was possibly better than what my mom makes, but don't tell her I said that. The eggplant was also very tasty.
APPS: The Wintermelon soup had a great smoky bacon flavor and the addition of croutons soaked up the flavor wonderfully. The potstickers have a lovely presentation and are a must try.
ENTREES: Piri Piri Chicken was my preference over the other chicken claypot. Â The flavors were more satisfying and robust. Finally the Arroz Gordo (i.e. Fat Rice). Although the presentation was ridiculous, and it was chock full of things I like (ginormous head-on prawns, fried pork belly, grapes (!?) ), I must admit I was not blown away by the flavors. Â The rice was soggy and tasted overly porky. Â I'm a fan of pork, but there was something a little off-putting. Took the advice of our server and added some of the black vinegar/soy sauce to my rice and that helped.
DESSERT: Tried 3 out of 4 of the desserts -- all minus the fruit dessert, cuz c'mon, fruit isn't dessert ;) The "rice krispie treat" was bold. Â They had the audacity to sprinkle it with pork sung and dried seaweed strips and tell you to dip it in a bowl of caramel. Â Somehow it works and I loved it. Â Actually the other two desserts were really good too (one was a "banana pudding", and the other was "upside-down pineapple cake"). Â A lot of asian places will give desserts half a try, so I can appreciate their creativity in the dessert section.
All in all it was a good experience and enjoyable. Menu is unique. Â They are not shy with the flavors here that's for sure, and I can appreciate that. The vibe is fun and casual. Servers are friendly and helpful. And a glance at the bathroom doors made me laugh. Â I'd come back.
I've been eating at different X-Marx pop-ups for years. Â I was so excited when I heard they were finally opening a brick and mortar location! Â The opening kept getting pushed back and the wait seems like forever, but when I finally was able to get there I was not disappointed. Â
We arrived right at 6 PM on Saturday night, which was a good move. Â When we got seated, there way only 1 open table left. Â A few minutes later, it was full and after that there was almost always a line.
Our waitress was sweet and helpful. Â She seemed slightly overwhelmed at times, but other waitstaff would always step in to make sure we were being taken care of. Â
We tried a ton of different dishes and each one was a delight. Â Some of my personal favorites were the pumpkin soup and the smoked tofu. Â I also could not get enough of the pot stickers. Â They were the best pot stickers I have ever had in my life. Â I am dying to go back for more.
Like some of the other reviewers whose names I recognize from Xmarx dinners, I've been enjoying Chefs Abe and Adrienne's food for years. I was thrilled to hear they were opening a restaurant in Logan Square. I'd have been there opening night had I been able to get child care. The kiddo is at grandma's tonight, so our first choice for Date Night was Fat Rice.
The food was excellent. I expected nothing less from these folks. We started with some small bites: spicy garlic cucumber, smoky tofu, and sichuan eggplant. I'll confess that I'm not normally a fan of eggplant, but this stuff is tasty enough for me to get over that eggplant texture. The tofu was firm and had a mild smoky flavor.
Next we tried the potstickers (delicious!) and the killer x.o. oyster. The oyster was served with vermicelli, and it was a little awkward to eat, but the flavor and presentation were great.
We shared the fat noodle with mushroom and egg. Soooo good. Handmade noodles, flavorful mushrooms, and sauce that was just slightly spicy. The portion size was good--large enough to share between two people if you're not super hungry of if you're trying other menu items, but one hungry person could probably tackle this as well.
Since Date Night doesn't happen often, we decided to go ahead and order way more food than necessary, so we also got the po kok gai (Portuguese chicken). The chicken thighs were tender and covered in slightly toasty coconut, the mussels were perfectly cooked, the potatoes and carrots were tender and also perfectly cooked, and the whole thing was served with a mild coconut curry sauce and coconut rice. This is definitely a dish to share.
I'm too full to try to write more descriptively about the food, but it was all delicious.
The service was great. We arrived right when they opened and were seated immediately (by the time we finished the restaurant was packed and there were a lot of people waiting--go early or plan on being patient). Our server got our drinks and put in our small plate orders while we looked over the menu more. The food arrived quickly, but not so fast that it all piled up. We definitely had time to talk and digest a bit between courses, but not so much time that we ever wondered where our food was.
There are some small tables, but also seating at the bar and at communal tables. The tables and chairs are generously sized, so you shouldn't be crowded next to strangers at the communal tables. Also, make friends.
We spent about $50 each including adult beverages, but could have done dinner a bit cheaper. Like I said, this was a special occasion for us, so we ordered more than necessary. Next time we go back we may not go so crazy. Still, it was well worth it.
We will definitely be back.
Skipped seeing a movie to wait for a seat and it was WELL WORTH IT. Â Everything was spot on at Fat Rice - the food, the flavor, the portions, and the service. Â We waited no more than an 45 minutes at 7pm on Friday night for two seats at the bar (which are not first come first serve) and drank our wine to pass the time. Â The hostess was very gracious and thanked us many times for being patient.
Our waitress/bar tender was incredibly friendly and helpful without being pushy. Â She explained the menu and recommended her favorite dishes and then let us alone to decide. Â We started with the pickled cauliflower, smoky tofu, and pork and papaya. Â I would say skip the cauliflower as it's good but nothing special and definitely get the other two. Â Beware the pork and papaya is spicy but even with my lips burning I kept going back for more. Â The smoky tofu had a great texture and flavor.
Our medium plate was the pork and shrimp potsitckers with a dipping sauce - they were to die for. Â Really delicious, great texture, and there were five of them which was more than enough. Â I would say these are not to be missed.
Our large plate was the "African Chicken" which was excellent. Â The sauce is a tomato base with rich flavors but they're not overwhelming. Â Coconut rice comes with and we had both chicken and rice left over to bring home.
We ended with a new dessert on the menu, serradura that had light, sweet cream, bananas, guava, and cookie crumbles. Â We could have licked the glass clean - it was light, smooth, and delicious.
The chef checked us up towards the end of our meal which topped off the whole evening. Â DEFINITELY RECOMMEND THIS SPOT and can't wait to go back.
The good: decent service, cute space, easy parking, pot stickers
The average: drinks, stir-fried mushrooms and chard dish, one other small plate that involved cod
The bad: prices, the chicken in coconut curry entree (basically a bunch of fatty chicken and sweet sauce in a pot with some mussels thrown on top)
I don't get why every new place in Logan Square is hyped up to be the next great foodie destination. This place is just okay.
Welcome to the neighborhood Fat Rice...with wide open arms! Â I love this place! Â Went about a week ago and am already thinking about the next time I go back. Â In my mind, that's a sign of a great restaurant!
Lots of really great asian flavors in all of their dishes but many were very unique and things I have never tried before.
Things we tried:
Pumpkin Soup - delicious and had a little nice spice kick to it
Charlie's Peanuts- a really unique little pickled appetizer
Pot Stickers- might be the best I've ever had. Â They also do a homemade crepe around them to finish it off!
Fat rice noodle- Delicious noodles here
Coconut rice
and a Rice Crispy for dessert.
Our tummies left full and we were very happy about this really enjoyable meal. Â I can't wait to go back!
There are three kind of restaurant reviewers, hype makers, hype haters, and people from the suburbs. Take reviews with a grain of salt.
Some external factors that make certain people haters:
The wait is going to be long at a popular restaurant that doesn't take reservations. Accept this, and move on; your fear and loathing in the waiting line doesn't help anyone.
The waitstaff was competent, efficient, and left us alone until we needed water, which is all I want from a waiter. They even offered us a drink while we did the waiting in line. What else do you need?
The room is small, but unless you need a double wide seat to fit your double wide body, I think most of the population will fit just fine.
Ethnicity of the kitchen staff: I don't even understand how this is a complaint? For the record, affirmative action doesn't apply to kitchens. The ethnicity of my cooks doesn't matter unless he's applying for native American scholarship.
Finally, the thing that actually matters in a restaurant review: The Food. The Food was awesome. I've never had anything like the Arroz Gordo, but the namesake dish alone is worth the trip. It came heaping with seafood, pork belly, sausages, chicken, longiza, the rice at the bottom soaked in all the juices from the proteins and was studded with fresh grapes (wuh?). It was gift that kept giving. I've never had the same combination of flavors before; the simplicity of Portuguese food with some of the umami packed flavors of Chinese food really worked in agreeable harmony.
We went to dinner here for the first time last night and were very pleased with the meal. Â We had three of the "pickle" items to start, the wintermelon soup, Â potstickers, the "arroz gordo" for the main, and we each had one of the four desserts. Â The pickled starters and the soup were just so-so. Â I would not order again.
But, the arroz gordo was delicious. Â Essentially a huge pot for two filled with shell fish, pork, chicken, sausage and delicious rice. Â This dish was outstanding and we would come back just for this dish. Â The shrimp and chicken in particular were extremely tasty. Â Also up there were the potstickers. Â Nothing beyond what you'd expect, but very well executed.
Desserts were all  good - although the pineapple upside down cake received the lowest review.
In terms of drinks, nothing to write home about. Â But a good, if short, wine and beer list.
Interesting food and some of it is quite good, but this place is not worth the hype. First of all, there are no Asians or Portugese that work here - at least from my informal observations. That's certainly not a requirement for good food, but it usually helps.
I didn't have any issues with the communal, bench seating, but it can be (as others have pointed out) annoying being so close to your fellow diners. It's loud in there but I guess that's part of its charm.
The Portugese chicken dish was excellent but there simply wasn't enough of it. The linquica was also good but wasn't too keen on the rabbit. The desserts were excellent ( we tried all three of them).
Overall, for $50/person (minimal drinks) I expected more. Probably won't go back.
Fat rice just didn't hit the spot for me. It didn't really hit the spot when i want to pig out to good chinese food, and it didn't really hit the spot for me in terms of creative high end cuisine. The space is very cute, and its decorated like a kitschy country home in china. The menu can only be described as chinese/south american fusion. Peruvian sausage was served alongside yuchoy for instance. The food was just okay and nothing really stood out in particular. Between four people, we shared at least 3 small dishes, 1 noodle dish, and a hotpot dish. It came out to be about $50 per person, yet that only afforded about one-two mouthfuls on some dishes. I definitely left probably being able to eat a lot more. Chinese food as far as I know is about substance, and fat rice kind of misses the mark here.
Review Source:Great overall experience. Â Friendly service. Â Interesting menu with a great variety. Â Everything we ordered was excellent, from the pickles, potstickers (a must), noodles and clay pot stews. Â Would definitely recommend if you want a different Asian experience. Â
Will definitely be back here! Â Get there early as they don't take reservations and it fills up quite quickly.
I'm sorry, I need to rain on this party a bit.
I think my main complaints stem from the service, which led to mediocre food choices, and well, the food kind of grossed me out by the end. The staff really didn't know what was going on, and was not very attentive. My fiance and I were seated at one of the communal benches, and the couples on either sides of us had similar issues. It was also so cramped in that although communal tables may be trendy, it was crowded to the point of being awkward. I heard WAY TOO MUCH personal (and R rated) information about the couple to our right.
Food:
Pumpkin soup: there was some flavor in there I really didn't like. Ginger? I couldn't tell. The spice was nice, but I was not a fan.
Green vegetable: the waitress recommended this, not sure why. It is okay for a couple of bites, but a huge plate of a single green vegetable (especially for the two of us) was boring, and oily.
Fat rice noodle with X.O. sauce: We liked this dish a lot. The noodle was extremely thick, but it was tasty.
Portuguese chicken: Fairly good for the first few bites. I had one very bad/fishy tasting mussel that ruined my appetite. The chicken is also thigh, which is extremely fatty. The sauce was good, but went bland after a bit.
Pineapple upside down cake: Meh. While this seems to be a rare menu option these days which is attractive, the Fat Rice version just not that good.
Beer: I can't remember what we had, they weren't wonderful. The main problem was the 20 minutes it took to bring the beer to the table. We ordered beer when we sat down, and received it 5-10 minutes after our soup. Bizarre.
I wouldn't come again, too many better options. I felt guilty about the bill at the end of the meal because it didn't feel worth it, which is never a good sign.
This really is as good as it gets. Amazing flavor packed and extremely unique food. These folks know how to really treat your mouth to a good time! Every bite will surprise you with just how much flavor is packed in.
The food is a combination of Chinese and Portuguese food from the island of Macau (an Island off china that was colonized by Portugal, hence the combination). It has a lot of southeast asian influence so it may remind you of Thai or Vietnamese food more than Chinese food.
The atmosphere is perfect. It's family style meals. You pick some dishes from several categories to make a complete meal and then you share everything, even the soups. The lighting is low. The tables are shared. There's interesting things to look at, but the space isn't "busy". You can sit at the bar to be close to the action, share a long table with other parties, or sit at a private table.
The kitchen is visible from the dining room so you can see the kitchen staff hard at work making the delicious meals. The head chefs (Abe and Adrienne of X-Marx fame) of the restaurant are right there in the thick of it at every step.
The wait staff are excellent, helpful, knowledgeable, and friendly. Â I walked by before they opened and the whole staff were gathered together to taste the new foods for the night. Later when we asked for opinions about various items, the server had real heartfelt opinions about what was great because she's had some of it!
The adult sodas will really surprise you with their complex and subtle flavors.
Check this place out soon! You can get seating now because it's new, they did a pretty soft opening, and people don't know about it yet. But soon it'll be jam packed all the time.
After a lot of driving around, we managed to find this place. Street parking was available so that was easy.
We had the pumpkin soup, the white fish and potstickers. All very good. A bit of slight heat and even the house white was great as well. It was a rather tiny place for the amount of people who arrived. I think we were there fairly early and as the night went on, more and more people arrived and seating was tough to come by.
Our server seemed new and she was nice enough but either she was overwhelmed or whatever but she didn't even have a pen. No biggie, just sort of amusing.
We got our food pretty quickly and consumed every bit of it. Can't complain. Will probably be back again at some point.
First, I love the idea of this place. Second, I think that the execution leaves something to be desired.
The idea:
take regional Chinese food, and present it far away from Chinatown and give it some style, and some presentation, and you've got the recipe for some innovative cuisine served to the never to travel to China or not often to travel to Chinatown's side streets and hidden gems. Very cool idea here! Love it.
We ordered 3 apps, and a cross section of plates. Our food was well prepared, and tasted wonderful. The food here is top notch. There were some issues when it came to the food coming out with some sort of pattern/plan. We had the pineapple cake which was amazing. Our server was running around like a track star, but still took the time to talk to us about what he liked. There were things on the menu he did not know.
The booze selections is small, and focused. Our cocktails were so-so. I really don't know why they have beer and wine at all. This place might better use the space taken up by the beer/wine coolers and just go  BYOB with a cork and bottle fee!
The execution:
No reservations. Significant confusion. Large Parties beware!
The pros: You can be seated here if you are a party of two in about 10 minutes!
The cons: After watching 5-6 parties of two get seated before you - a party of 4 and up will probably leave and many will leave!
If you are a party of 4 or 6 you might have to wait 50 minutes to two hours! This is insane. This space is small. I get that. It is not like Revolution which opened small and now is as big as a department store. I disliked those fake 2 hr waits.
The chaos: We waited then were almost skipped, and watched larger parties leave. Another party went in and was almost given our table. One party of 3 was seated before another party of 4 and a woman complained at the table that the 3 seated persons had jumped them in line. I have never seen anyone yell at another party for jumping line, but with waits of an hour I get it! Yep. You might have to politely remind them a few times that you are in line.
The solution:
I really think that rather than just seating all the 2 person tables right away, they need to think about when the tables are turning over so that parties of two can be balanced against parties of 4 or 6. A good manager knows how to rotate tables and control table flow. Get on it.
For now:
I will say that I am excited to see an aspirational effort here, but a staff-training day is really needed for the weekend rushes, and perhaps a better focused plan for dinner (and perhaps even reservations for parties of 4-6?). I keep thinking that those nice people who waited for an hour and went home would probably give this place 1 star if any at all.
The food is amazing. But after an hour or two you might just skip the snout and go get some good Korean or Chinese food made by Korean and Chinese chefs or some taqueria tacos made by fellows from the place where the food style came from.
Best seating is at the bar. Awesome waitstaff. Jenn was super knowledgable and friendly. The open kitchen with owners is a great sign to a new restaurant. They talk with thier customers and are very proud of the restaurant and shoul be.
I loved the smoked mussels and lemongrass carrot. the pickled items are great. Balichang catfish was awesome. the couple next to us had the fat rice and they loved it and looked delish. The coconut rice was so good I ate it all by itself. And for dessert we had the coffee jello with with awesome candied nuts.
This place has a bright future. Awesome owners with heart who create great food! Best wishes
Everything about Fat Rice feels right. The wine list is confident: just one option per color (including a cava and rose), and each is a compliment to the menu items. The beer list is small but diverse and includes delicious Sri Lankan Lion Stout. Â There are no cocktails to speak of (my BF says, "gin and tonic doesn't count"). Â I say, extra points for bucking the craft cocktail trend.
From the bar we watched the chefs throw clay pots and delicate fish over open flames like we were Chopped judges. "Ooh he has such finesse with that adjustable grill." Â I still can't believe our Portuguese chicken was cooked perfectly, and I could make a meal out of just the pickled appetizers.
The atmosphere is cozy but edgy with some familiar Chop Suey place items thrown in. Â Charred woks hang above the stoves adding authenticity to the brand new restaurant, but it hardly needs it. Fat Rice is the real deal.
Five stars for the AMAZING meal. Â They clearly still have some kinks to work out with regards to service (timing, mix-ups, etc.), but I'm still awarding a 5 b/c the food was out of this world and the space/atmosphere is so unique and enjoyable. Â I had the shrimp and pork pot stickers (not your typical presentation, liked it, and delicious), the African chicken (*superb* .... spicy, complex, sauce over the potatoes was divine), and the mixed vegetables (cooked perfectly, delicious broth .... especially tasty as it was absorbed into the mushrooms). Â Cocktails also light and delicious (I had the rum-tamarind-vanilla drink.....highly recommend.
My only complaint, as mentioned earlier, was service. Â The servers were friendly and warm, but the timing was pretty awful and there were several mix-ups (both for my party and others sitting near us). Â By the time we got our vegetables, we were done with the rest of the meal, as the server had accidentally delivered our veggies to the people sitting next to us. Â We had to ask repeatedly and when they finally arrived, two different servers each brought us an order at the exact same time!
I'm looking forward to going back when they have had a little more time to smooth out the bumps. Â And I can't wait. Â It was an amazing meal.
Don't hesitate to go here! Â Ive been checking this place out for months prior to the opening and my wife took me here for my birthday last night. Â We started with the small plate apps and got the pickled cucumbers, Peanuts and the smoked tofu, which is out of this world! Â I've never had tofu with this taste and texture. Â It was like smoked gouda cheese! Â We ordered the Gourdo Salad and the Green veggies, both excellent. Â And then there is the FAT RICE dish.....WOW.....a must order. Â We wished it had more rice and made that recommendation to the owner when he came to see how we liked everything. Â We ended the evening with their Bang Bang coffee and the upside down pineapple cake, which was delish! Â
The wait staff is really friendly and the owner is attentive and interested in feedback. Â No doubt, this place will be a success....Can't wait to go back!
Many years ago in a quaint seaside restaurant in Lisbon, I pieced together badly-pronounced Portuguese phrases into a menu order much like the auditory equivalent of a ransom note made of jagged newspaper clippings. The waiter eagerly served me a gargantuan fish that could have fed an entire family, while the old sailors at an adjacent table looked over at me and laughed. "Foreigner" was the one word I understood. Then I learned that with Portuguese food, the thing to do is to share.
Likewise, many of the entrees at this heavily Portuguese- (and Chinese-) inflected joint are meant for sharing, and the communal tables make that just the thing to do. And, even in English, some of the ingredients are a bit baffling (hongos, Calamansi Conserva, padrón)- but the staff will patiently explain that a Calamansi Conserva is a fruit from the Philippines. Thank you. I would have guessed that a Calamansi Conserva was a Republican gourd, which is not normally what I eat for dinner.
I wasn't in the mood for sharing with anybody today, so I pieced together my first meal at Fat Rice with some smaller plates- pumpkin soup, linguiça, and rice crisp, washed down with a tasty Belgian "Blanche de Bruxelles" beer. The spicy and charred linguiça was truly wonderful, but the pumpkin soup (with chicken fat bread and soft tofu) made me feel like a king. The kind of king that sets the entire peasantry to work cooking vast cauldrons of pumpkin soup- for me, that I might eat continuously and cease my proletarian hobby of taking breaks between meals.
The rice crisp was the one item I wasn't crazy about. It tasted too much like a rice krispie treat for the interesting seaweed and pork flavorings to stand out. And yet, it fit the adventurous and unique spirit of the menu so well that I have only myself to blame for not trying the "African" Chicken, the Balichang Catfish, the Salado Gordo, the Mango Bebinka, and everything else on the menu. Maybe even in one sitting.
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