Mandarin Gourmet Chinese   

If Chinese food isn't your first choice these days, then maybe you're just a little tired of take-out. Remedy this culinary ennui with a trip to Mandarin Gourmet, where you'll eat fragrant crispy duck from a plate rather than from one of those waxy containers. As you savor your Lake Tung Ting shrimp or crispy whole fish, let your eyes walk along the walls, over the black Chinese relief sculptures which contribute to the simple elegance and keep the live fish calm. Although the menu doesn't really break any boundaries in the field of Chinese cooking, its variety of old favorites, strangely named dishes (Confucius's prawn) and quiet elegance proves comfortable for even the most stressed out among us -- perhaps that's why it's so popular as a business lunch spot.