Two Stars for Ambitious Downtown Resto 3 Chefs Chinese

Victoria Pesce Elliott is jealous of her brothers because they live in states where Asian food rocks. With great expectations, VPE checked out 3 Chefs, whose "menu is vast and includes Vietnamese fare as well as a “secret menu” written in Chinese without translation (or, it turns out, a translator)." Most items, she says, "fall into the American Chinese category." That being said, she writes, "It seems 3 Chefs, which also has menu items in Spanish, is trying to be all things to all people. " What worked: steamed pork dumplings, Szechuan shrimp, tiny bok choi and "filling and cheap combo dishes." What didn't? "Flavorless mu shu chicken," "doughy" egg rolls with "flavorless stuffing," and soups "that look and taste like they came from a can or a cube." Two stars later, she writes, "Two visits are not enough to fully explore the virtues and vices of such an ambitious undertaking, but what we’ve sampled so far won’t earn me bragging rights at Thanksgiving." [Miami.com]