Asian Mexican fusion at Chino Bandido in Phoenix as seen on Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives

Friday, December 19, 2014

Asian Mexican fusion at Chino Bandido in Phoenix as seen on Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives

Statue at Chino Bandido in Phoenix

I had lunch at Chino Bandido in Phoenix as seen on Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives. Read my full review with pictures after the break.

After leaving Tucson last week (see my Tucson food reviews here), I had time to spend in Phoenix on my way home.

I found out about Chino Bandido from my Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives book. It's in a shopping mall just north of downtown Phoenix, and not too far from the freeway.

Chino Bandido serves Asian Mexican fusion in Phoenix, Arizona

You walk in and they ask if you've been there before. They can tell who the newbies are because you are standing around wondering how to order. You grab a ticket and mark it up, pay, and they'll bring your order out to your table.

The guy at the counter asked if I wanted a sample of anything. It's always nice when a place offers samples.

The way it works is, you pick one of the meats and seasonings, and then pair it with rice (or jerked rice), or get it in a burrito, or in a quesadilla.

Emerald chicken with jerked rice at Chino Bandido as seen on Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives

A lot of things on the menu looked really good (including the pollo diablo) but I chose the emerald chicken with the jerked fried rice.

The chicken was all white meat, and cooked to order. Very fresh. The spices are served on the side in a cup so that you can add them yourself. The green emerald seasoning was tasty and not spicy (hot) at all (which it wasn't supposed to be).

The jerked rice was very good. Not too hot and spicy, but just right.

And you get a hot, fresh sugar cookie! Free cookies are a good thing :)

Did you notice the statue of the Mexican panda at the top of this post? Here's the story behind at at this page. The owners had it brought from China and carved just for their restaurant. That's not something you see every day!

What's the most interesting fusion of cuisines you've ever tasted? Let me know in the comments below.