Eric Cheng, owner of Panda House in Maple Village, opened his second restaurant, Chopsticks, in Cranbrook Village next to the ABC Warehouse. The thirty-two-year old from Fujian bought Panda House about ten years ago. Chopsticks is smaller, about forty-eight seats, he says, and, except for a strip of small tables down the center, all of them comfortable booths. Painted a deep, clear sky blue with embroidered tapestries on the walls, it’s a little nicer place to sit than the winking “Chinese Food” sign in the window might lead one to expect. Chopsticks has a lunch buffet every day, but otherwise, its menu is similar to Panda House’s, he says. He also offers pad Thai, an Ann Arbor favorite that’s become practically mandatory on local Asian menus. The noodles used in pad Thai, he says, are the same ones they use back home in Fujian for noodle soup, though that’s not on the menu here.
Chopsticks, 882 W. Eisenhower (Cranbrook Village Shopping Center), 332-8789. Mon.-Thurs. 10:30 a.m.-9:30 p.m., Fri. & Sat. 10:30 a.m.-10:30 p.m., Sun. 11:30 a.m.-9:30 p.m.
