An insider's guide to Victoria since 1997.

As a kid, I used to walk by the corner store across from the Crystal pool; and sometimes pop in for a Coke or a bag of chips. The shop was converted into a restaurant-- the main storefront was turned into the kitchen; and the back became the dining area. When I came in, there was a decent number of dinners, all enjoying their meals. I made two visits there. One the first visit, the person taking the order fumbled through the order and gave $5 from a $20 for a $9 order. Maybe I can't blame him: there is a LONG list of items on the menu-- approximately 100 dishes. I got a curry roll (think spring roll filled with curry beef-- really good). And, I got the shanghai BBQ pork chow mein. It was ideal: lots of pork, nice thick noodles and the right balance of sauce and veggies.  On the second visit, the first order taker was gone. In his place, it felt like we got a graduate of Marketing 101-- kind of rare in most local businesses. She fished for my first name and my wife's name. She tried to up-sell us into the special chow mein that "had all the best stuff". It turned out that really wasn't the case. It's like that line out of the Simpsons: "A galaxy of prawns? Three prawns is not a galaxy!"-- all the good stuff included three prawns, some chicken and pork. We got the ginger fried beef and the sweet and sour pork-- two standards that you can count on. The beef was spicy-- not from the ginger, but from lots of hot peppers: almost to the point of being searing. The pork was average-- lots of veggies and a loose sauce. The two experiences combine to tell me that the place is hit-and-miss. The prices are good, but the dishe are random. If you do stop by for lunch or dinner, I strongly suggest their namesake, the shanghai noodles, and trying to find your favorite from their long menu.