There ought to be a law, a statute of limitations, a self-destruct mechanism…We’re fulminating over old reviews that remain on restaurant walls decades after they were published. But here’s the funny thing: in the case of Hsiu Yu, the menu has changed so little that we recently hit upon two items from an old review, and were contemplating ordering a third as take-out. So here goes old review, current revival version.

Most of the appetizers being pu-pu predictable, we go for the “Chef Special Soup.” Apparently it was a little better first time around. Though it comes full of the advertised ingredients, among which are shrimp and snow peas, we are bothered by a bird’s nest topping of crisp rice noodles and a lack of chefly yumminess. The robust “Tzau Lhiuo Eggplant,” in a “rice” sauce with pork (almost as a condiment) and tree ears, however, we are still willing to tout, all the while suspecting it’s a touch greasier. No messier than previously are the “you peel” shrimp; they remain succulent and spicy in their green onion and garlic bath. We also liked both the roast duck and the Szechuan fish years ago and suspect we’d like them again—either more or less.

Service remains unusually friendly as noted previously, but there seems to be more, er, décor. That or we have become less tolerant.