New 'concept' works well in Hingham
Asian C
48 Whiting St., Hingham
781-740-0688
Sunday-Thursday, 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m.; Friday-Saturday, 11:30 a.m.-11 p.m.
All major credit cards
Handicapped accessible
In its newest incarnation, this restaurant space near Queen Anne's Corner has gone from Italian casual -- Red Sauce -- to Asian fusion, opening in August. The "C" in Asian C stands for "concept," and the menu is two-sided: Chinese dishes on one, Japanese on the other. There are even a few Thai dishes, such as curry and pad Thai.
One might think the kitchen is spreading itself too thin, trying to cover too much culinary territory, but it's clear the proprietors know what they're doing. Asian C is owned by the group that also owns the popular Jae's in Brookline, Samba in Framingham, and Gourmet Garden in Swampscott, which, among them, offer Chinese, Japanese, and Thai cuisines.
Though Red Sauce failed to catch fire with the locals, Asian C is off to a hot start, with a busy takeout and dine-in business. "Rumor has it that this place is cursed," said a friend who lives in Hingham. "This is the third restaurant in five years."
But maybe the third time's the charm. On a recent Friday night, the place was filled with families as well as couples, and the vibe was casual, the prices moderate. Those used to paying $12 for a cosmopolitan at Boston restaurants will be pleasantly surprised to find they're $6.95 here. (But try the Asian C Special instead: rum, brandy, and lots of fruit juices, $6.50).
There's also a decent wine list in the moderate price category, as well as a few high-end choices such as Cakebread chardonnay, Silver Oak cabernet, and Dom Perignon. But really, we like to wash down our Chinese food with a Tsingtao.
Start with the crab rangoon ($6.95), small crunchy packages with tender centers that actually carry a taste of crab. The vegetable spring rolls ($4.25) are filled with fresh, crisp veggies and served with either a spicy mustard sauce or sweet duck sauce.
We turned the menu over and ordered a little sushi and sashimi. The hamachi sashimi (yellowtail, $6.95) and the hirame (white fish, $5.95) were very fresh. But sushi and sashimi are very much about presentation, and the presentation was not pretty. "It looks as if it's been plopped on a plate," remarked our friend.
But the tuna tataki ($8.75) was beautiful, garnished with a small orchid. It was also delicious: velvety fish wrapped in rice, topped with scallions, and served with a spicy soy and wasabi sauce.
Asian C marks its favorite dishes with the words "must try." So we tried the imperial couple ($14.75), shrimp and scallops sautéed with fresh ginger and scallions and served with snap peas. Thanks to some pepper and chili flakes, it had a nice kick to it.
The star of the show, however, was the Peking duck ($17.95 for half, $31.95 whole). The whole duck serves four easily. It was moist with crispy skin, and here the presentation was perfect. They do all the work for you. Our waitress wrapped each pancake neatly, filling it with duck, scallions, and hoisin sauce and presenting the finished product to us. Those of us accustomed to making a dripping mess out of the dish were pleased to be so served.
The one low note of the meal was the pad Thai ($9.95), which was way too sweet for our tastes.
Not many people order dessert in Asian restaurants: They're too full, and the offerings usually aren't very tempting. In fact, our waiter brought the check without even asking us if we wanted dessert. We did. The fried ice cream ($4.95) sounds like an oxymoronic mess, but it's actually quite good. Here, a ball of vanilla ice cream is dipped in cornflakes, quickly fried, and served with whipped cream and chocolate syrup. How do you say "burp" in Chinese, or Japanese?
BELLA ENGLISH 
