P.F. Chang's

This restaurant has been around a long time in Boston (near the theater district) and I'd never tried it before. More recently, about two months ago, a new P.F. Chang's opened up at the Prudential Center in Back Bay. I went there with two other friends last week.

I was not sure what to expect. They market themselves as a "Chinese Bistro." I had my suspicions. Could a place that had things such as "lettuce wraps," "almond cashew chicken" and "salad with gorgonzola and walnuts" have good Chinese food?

I was pleasantly surprised, actually. True, they gave us brown rice as default, which is quite un-Chinese. However, the food was quite tasty and the prices were surprisingly reasonably, especially considering the ambiance of the place and the location.

We ordered three dishes: Spicy Ground Chicken and Eggplant ($9.50), Tam's Noodles with Savory Beef and Shrimp ($14) -- (translation - Chinese rice cakes), and Spinach stir-fried with Garlic ($5).

All three dishes were very good. I was especially surprised at the portion size of the $5 spinach dish - it was equivalent to the size of the other two dishes, and the flavor was delicious. The addition of sesame oil and white pepper to the garlic and spinach made for a perfect dish. The eggplant dish was very flavorful - spicy and fragrant. It was a bit oily, although that is to be expected of most eggplant dishes in Chinese restaurants, as eggplants are sponges for oil. The rice cakes were fine - nothing extraordinary, but pretty decent.

Over all, the total we paid (including tax and tip) was only $36, a pretty good value for a nice, sit-down dinner at the Prudential Mall. Also, there's validated parking at the Prudential Center Garage if you eat here.