Claire BerlinIn the past few years I’ve joined a family tradition of celebrating Dan’s birthday with his mother at Lui Lui Restaurant. We enjoy celebrating together and the menu always offers a nice selection for the ocean and meat lovers in our group.
I would categorize Lui Lui as an Asian fusion restaurant, with traditional entrée options that have a bit of a creative Asian twist added by Chef Lui. The restaurant also offers an extensive wine list, hand-chosen by Grace Lui, to pair with the menu offerings. The price for Lui Lui in Vienna is in the mid-range category, with entrées in the $25-$35 range.
Interestingly enough, there is also a Lui Lui in Athens, Ohio which was previously owned by Chef Lui and Grace. While they now have a very good relationship with the new owners make sure you don’t confuse the two restaurants when you call the Vienna location to make a dining reservation. Be sure to check out my upcoming review on the Athens restaurant in a few months.
Our group had a round of appetizers that included a Kobe beef meatball and a chicken spring roll. Since I’m a pescatarian, I passed on my appetizers to the rest of my group, and the overall consensus was that they both enjoyed these options. They reported that the meatball was moist and the sauce had good flavor, although they couldn’t tell the difference between the Kobe beef and the regular beef in the preparation. The chicken spring roll had a nice crisp texture on the outside and a good mix of vegetables and chicken on the inside.
For entrées I had the sautéed diver scallops with a saffron white wine sauce, Dan ordered a 16 oz. bone in ribeye special, and his mother ordered the Lui’s stir-fry shrimp, chicken, beef medallions and vegetables with honey soy sauce.
My scallops were large and cooked perfectly, and the saffron white wine sauce added a nice amount of flavor to them without overshadowing the natural scallop flavor. Dan enjoys his steak medium rare with salt, pepper and white/jasmine rice (no vegetable sides). He was pleased with the thickness of his ribeye, the cook and seasoning of the meat. Dan’s mother had the best of both worlds in her dish, shrimp, chicken and beef. She said she enjoyed the variety in her dish, and everything was cooked well on her plate.
As a special surprise at the end of our meal, Chef Lui and Grace brought out a chocolate whipped mousse in a waffle bowl with granny smith apples for Dan’s birthday. It was such a thoughtful treat and the mousse was a perfect dessert, light and airy without being a heavy end to the meal.
So for your next special occasion or fancy date night, I would highly recommend you give Lui Lui Restaurant in Vienna a try.
Lui Lui is open in the evenings from 5 p.m. – 10 p.m. and closed on Sunday. The restaurant is located at 1515 Grand Central Ave. in Vienna, WV.