Pacifica Time

I was planning on walking over to the downtown library and asked Carrington where I should eat as an alternative to the Provence located there. She suggested I try Pacifica Pan-Asian Cuisine (506 Church St., 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Mon. thru Fri.) since she hadn't had a chance to eat there yet.



When I arrived, I checked out the menu at the door. The offerings live up to the moniker, including dishes from China, Japan, Vietnam, Malaysia and Thailand—at least in name. I ordered off the Express Menu, which is offered until 2 p.m. and includes your choice of steamed jasmine rice, fried rice, vegetable delight or vegetable lo mein. The Express Menu's entree selections are your typical fast-Asian selections: sesame chicken, sweet and sour chicken or pork, beef with broccoli and others, all priced under $6 (except the $8.39 butterfly shrimp).

The restaurant is nice and open, with counter-service ordering along the back wall. I selected the sesame chicken with lo mein and was eating within five minutes, even with a decent lunch crowd. What I ate definitely passes for decent Chinese—at least in Nashville. The chicken had a few fatty pieces but was otherwise good cuts of meat, and the sauce was sweet without overpowering the chicken. The lo mein was nothing to write home about, but I still ate it all.



My experience was enjoyable enough to warrant a return visit to try their pad Thai and wonton s'mores (crispy wonton triangles drizzled with marshmallow sauce and Hershey's chocolate syrup).

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