Tired of restaurants that ask whether you have dined with them before or have any questions about the minimalist menu with the maximalist prices?

If so, check out this modest new Bridgeport spot, where both the hospitality and the northern Chinese fare are bounteous and authentic.

The menu ranges wide and deep. Diners not up for braised beef tendons with sea cucumber ($14.95) will find plenty of alternatives. Hot-and-sour soup ($1.95) packs a satisfying punch; a scallion pancake ($3.95), delicious on its own, is even more fun sandwiched around smoked pork ($6.95). Stir-fried lamb bold with cumin ($12.95) sets the bar for flavor, but side it with steamed rice and garlicky deep-fried sautéed string beans ($7.95) and you and a friend have got a meal—you’ll have to flip for the leftovers. Other winning bites include preserved egg tofu ($5.95), a cold appetizer with Jell-O-like chunks of blackened egg among silky cubes of tofu, and stewed meats and vegetables in iron pots ($10.95 to $13.95). Dessert? Fortune cookies.

3205 S. Halsted St., 312-949-9328.