Golden Dragon Chinese Restaurant

Josué Avalos 4 months ago

I had not eaten all day, and it was already past the time when everything food-related closes here on a weekday in Raleigh. On a bit of a tight budget and fighting the laziness of a Wednesday night, I reminisced on similar nights from my freshman year of college, when the dining halls had closed, and I needed a break from my studio work. Back in the days before grand changes, like the Raisin Cane’s opening or that new glass building in the brickyard. Back when campus felt infinite, and I was certain I would never change. That I was final. In those days, facing my future and just as hungry as I was earlier today, I would frequent Golden Dragon. I would typically go alone, preferring to eat my meal listening to music in a space away from people. It has been around three and a half years since I last ate here. Maybe four? How wrong I was, yet how incredibly certain and proud. I am nothing like I was back then, but it takes liminal places like these for one to realize what a strange thing it is to change. I wonder if Heraclitus sat at a similar place when he thought about change being permanent; he would love the egg rolls here. I ordered the same dish as I routinely did back then—the chicken lo mein—and for a moment I felt just as sure as before that I am done growing, that I will be young forever. The kind man at the counter took my order diligently, same as he always would no matter how late I came through that door. I wondered if he recognized me, if he was surprised at how different my face looked. It’s as if he had been standing there the whole time I had been gone looking for myself, waiting by the register while the phone rang in the background. It was empty, I had come in near closing time. Since I came to school here, everyone I knew overlooked Golden Dragon. It’s as if it blended right into the wall of Hillsborough Street, like some strange optical illusion. Unlike them, I found it comforting. Dependable. It didn’t change when everything around me did. It stayed consistent when everything about me didn’t. I brought my crossword puzzle book with me to solve while I quietly enjoyed my meal at one of the booths, undisturbed by the doubts and questions of the world outside the glass doors. As I worked on the first puzzle, a man came in seemingly frustrated. He appeared tired and irritated, stepping slightly loud and glancing around. I buried my head in my food, hoping to blend in with the orange wall. He turned to me and called me out, so I took my headphones out. “What is that?” he asked me politely. I responded to him with a shy smile, and he told me it looked good. The man at the counter agreed with me, and we all chuckled when he decided to order it for himself. He thanked the worker when he left and said goodbye to me and another customer who had come in a couple of minutes after him. I hope he enjoyed the chicken lo mein as much as I did. Another customer came in later with a strange attitude, questioning the worker if he had been the one who had spoken with him on the phone. After some confusion, he confirmed it was him. I felt nervous, since this is not typically a great question to be faced with in food service. The man then said, “Perfect, I want to tip you with my order.” What an interesting guy. By this point, the floors were being mopped, and I had finished my meal. I closed my crossword book, cleaned up, and opened my fortune cookie. I thought about all the Golden Dragon fortunes that came true without me even knowing it. The cookie this time said, “You will soon have the opportunity to improve your finances.” Places like Golden Dragon don’t try to impress you. They don’t even try to change. Golden Dragon teaches you to judge on more than appearance. It welcomes you in with familiarity, with humility, and asks, “How have you been since you last needed me?” I shared a fulfilling meal at an affordable price with a version of me I have forgotten in the quietness of a Wednesday night. 4 stars only because I was a little bit hot.

Shannon Wentworth a year ago

Ordered for the first time and had it delivered by door dash. The food arrived on time and nothing was spilled. (We had a few liquids.) Everything was delicious. Shrimp rolls were big and plump. Shrimp Hunan had medium size shrimp and plenty for two to share and was the right amount of spicy we asked for. House lo mein was FULL of meat and shrimp. Sweet and sour chicken was enough for 4! The only thing that could have been better was the little bag of fried noodles. They are one of my favorite things. They were very light in color so could have been cooked a little longer and there was hardly any in the bag. I think we’ve found our new Chinese place! Definitely order again.

Mar Pepin 2 years ago

I came here and ordered takeout because I heard it was good, and it looked like they make their dumplings in-house which is very important to me. I'm getting tired of places using manufactured frozen dumplings. They all taste the same and it's not worth the money. So when I went in to order, I asked the person taking my order if the dumplings are made in-house. I was informed that a lot of their items are made in-house, which I was pleased with. I ordered an order of fried dumplings, and then I got a special dinner combo of chicken with broccoli, and I paid extra to have lo mein as the side instead of rice. The special dinner combo also comes with an egg roll. I realized that I ordered a lot of food, but I had been craving good Chinese takeout, and I could make the food stretch for multiple meals. The fried dumplings were definitely homemade. The meat inside was very juicy and had an interesting taste to it. It was more sweet than savory, which was interesting, but not completely a terrible thing. The chicken with broccoli was good, but had a light brown sauce instead of a dark brown sauce that I like. The dark brown sauces tend to be more flavorful and savory. The chicken and broccoli were cooked to my liking, though, and the food was hot and tasty. The lo mein noodles were delicious and tasted fantastic. The egg roll was pretty bland. Overall, the price I paid for the food and the amount of food I got was worth it. I'm always happy to support a local business, too.

Sylvia Hadley 10 months ago

General tso's chicken single handedly saved me from a bad day. Generous portions, just the right amount of sauce, great price, and came out in just a couple minutes. 100% recommend

Jason Knutsen 3 years ago

I’m not sure if they just had a REALLY bad day or if most of these customers leaving reviews have never had good Chinese take out….but my dish was terrible! I got the General Tso chicken today and it was completely soggy, pretty much all bread, and the little bits of chicken in it had pink. I could not eat it. And I ordered it spicy because they give the option and it had no spice to it. Literally the only good part was the white rice. Would not recommend to anyone. I wasted my money. (Ubereats order). The dumplings were ok but pretty greasy.