Pacific: 86-16 Queens Blvd., Elmhurst

Cuisine: Classic Cantonese Cuisine

Hours: 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.

Parking: Rear parking is available with direct entrance to the restaurant.

Credit Cards: Master Card and Visa.

Reservations: Recommended but not required.

If you’re an adventurous sort and looking to titillate your taste buds, then the Pacific Restaurant on Queens Blvd. is the place for you.

The Pacific Restaurant was formerly Ko Shing’s Restaurant for 10 years, but the previous owners retired their reigns to the capable hands of Kai Chan who reopened the doors under the new name in April.

Chan has succeeded in keeping the establishment’s previous clientele by keeping some of Ko Shing’s favorite dishes, he has also update the menu to bring the traditional cuisine into the 21st century.

The first thing you’ll notice when you enter the restaurant is the table settings: round tables to accommodate two, four and six people. The seating is designed for family style dining because there are no individual servings of the Cantonese dishes.

A gourmet tasting menu for two averages $38, a party of four will average $68 and a party of six averages $98. The beverage commonly served with the meals is black tea (or red tea), however soda drinks are also available.

According to Tat Chan, Kai Chan’s son, one of the things that set Pacific apart from other restaurants is the food is prepared to order, "the food can only be enjoyed when it is cooked from scratch," he said.

My dining companion and I started out with some of the menu’s Cantonese Style Roast Specials — a selection which included duck, pig (with skin crackling), and chicken served with scallions. The meats were cut into squares to make it easier to pick up with chopsticks. The dishes were accompanied with hoisin and minced garlic sauce, which was delightful.

The meats were followed by an appetizer of steamed giant oysters on the half-shell with black bean and garlic sauce. The oysters were tremendous, succulent and beyond anything I have ever tasted.

After the appetizers, we were treated to some of Pacific’s main courses. Stuffed Crispy Tofu Briquettes over a bed of sautéed Conch slices, Pan Fried Flounder with a crispy bone (a former Ko Shing specialty), Cantonese Style Lobster (which are delivered from Canada and tanked on the premises), and Young greens sautéed with garlic and ginger.

The restaurant serves a lunch special from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., which average $5, and the dinner menu begins after 4 p.m. until 11 p.m.

Catering Packages are also available but only for pickups. To learn more about Pacific’s menu check out their web site at www.geocities.com/pacificrestaurant.