|
|||||||||||||
Printer-Friendly
Email this Story
Post a Comment (0)
Chinese restaurants are everyone's good fortune
Winter is the time for comfort food ... and what could be more comforting than the classic Chinese cuisine that most of us remember so fondly? It can also help us celebrate the first month of the Chinese new year.
Legend has it that Americans first discovered Chinese cuisine during the California Gold Rush, when the minors came across the immigrants' restaurants. They had clearly struck the mother lode for affordable, ample and enjoyable cuisine.
In Fairfax County shopping centers, you'll see plenty of such places, featuring extensive menus in an exotic atmosphere. Many have been here for more than 20 years, and no wonder.
You can bring a date there, dine with the family, enjoy lunch alone or even carry your order home. Either way, the meal customarily starts with your choice of soups and concludes with a fortune cookie.
Your fortune says you are pretty sure to enjoy yourself at some of our favorite locations.
Charlie Chiang's Restaurant, 13059 Worldgate Drive, Worldgate Centre, Herndon; 703-467-9118
At $9.95 for lunch and $12.95 for dinner (half-price for children under 10), the buffet provides a sampling of the two house specialties in this 10-year-old eatery. They include both the Mongolian grill to the left of the entrance and the Chinese buffet on the right.
The latter includes the seafood combo packed with lobster, shrimp and scallops, normally $15.95 when ordered alone.
The soup bar boasts seafood chowder joining the usual won-ton, egg drop and hot-and-sour selections. The appetizer trays feature our favorite crispy spring roll. Cinnamon coffee cake is offered for dessert, along with the fortune cookie.
Lo's Szechuan Hunan Restaurant, 3075 Nutley St., Pan Am Shopping Center, Fairfax; 703-207-9466
With a décor that's almost as delightful as the delicacies, it's no wonder that Lo's has been in business since 1983. But the justly popular all-you-can-eat Sunday luncheon buffet is an outstanding value, at $7.50 for adults, $5.25 for children under 12, and free for those under 4, from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The bright, attractive atmosphere features traditional paintings, including a royal banquet scene, Chinese lanterns and even Asian background music. It makes the Sunday special seem even more, well, special.
The buffet is replenished so often that the shrimp in lobster sauce is usually filled with jumbo-sized shrimp and the pork fried rice boasts great chunks of barbecued meat.
The egg roll, fried chicken wings, beef with broccoli, sesame chicken and Szechuan pork are also well worth the trip. You might even be tempted to ignore the egg drop, won-ton or hot-and-sour soup that is brought to your table. But make room for that fortune cookie at least.
Old Peking Restaurant, 2952-C Chain Bridge Road, Hunter Mill Plaza, Oakton; 703-255-9444
Charming, colorful impressionist paintings of Chinese children provide a pleasant setting for an equally enjoyable meal in this 22-year-old landmark.
The moo goo gai pan was almost all tender chicken slices varied by water chestnuts and mushrooms in a delicately delicious sauce ($6.50 for lunch or $9.25 for dinner).
It is also one of the two choices on the Wednesday $7.25 lunch special, along with Hunan beef. Also featured are hot-and-sour or egg drop soup, followed by a fortune cookie.
Peking Gourmet Inn, 6029 Leesburg Pike, Culmore Shopping Center, Falls Church; 703-671-8088
Both of the Presidents Bush are among the Washington, D.C., celebrities who smile down from their picture frames on this 30-year-old restaurant. Their presence lends credence to those who claim it serves the area's best Chinese cuisine.
In addition to the presidential photos, the décor features the traditional lanterns, floral hangings, landscape tapestries, gilded lions and background music that make the meal even more memorable.
The house specialty is the namesake Peking Duck. It is reportedly the Bush family's favorite, at $37. Including 12 complementary pancakes plus plum sauce, it can easily serve as an entree for George and Laura both.
This entree also doubles as a floor show because the whole duck is carved at the table. It yields two platters of paper-thin meat and crispy skin, with all fat removed during the carving process, plus a third patter of legs, wings and meat.
If you are even more fiscally conservative, another house specialty is the the Jeo-Yan shrimp, which can serve two at $24.95. Dipped in a light, herbed crumb batter, it is deep-fried to be crispy on the outside but moist and tender within, like the namesake duck, served with a garlic sauce.
The Peking spring chicken is even less likely to bust the family budget, since it is always one of the choices on the daily lunch special, at $6.75.
Sino's Inn Chinese Restaurant, 14245-H Centreville Square, Centreville; 703-818-8989
Sino's bills itself as "the area's most popular Chinese restaurant since 1989," and it would be hard to argue.
A tank of giant goldfish stands beyond the door, as part of a traditional décor that also features mirrored walls and a floral carpet.
The menu is just as classical, starting with a choice of won-ton, egg drop, hot-and-sour, or chicken corn soup, plus a fortune cookie for dessert.
At $6.75 for lunch or $7.95 for dinner, the shrimp chow mein boasted a high ratio of plump shrimp to crisp veggies and crunchy fried noodles, thus meeting our mathematical formula for good Chinese food.
Szechuan East Restaurant, 5765 Burke Centre Parkway, Burke; 703-250-1008
Stone lions and paper chrysanthemums frame the large goldfish tank that stands before the door. Red velvet roses are arranged on the tables, beneath red paper Chinese lanterns. The classical décor thus reflects the timeless Chinese cuisine, at a restaurant that is more than 15 years old.
The daily lunch combination preserves an especially popular custom, with its starting price at $5.95. This includes the entrée plus soup, tea, egg roll, fried rice and, of course, fortune cookie.
At $6.75, the beef with broccoli boasted a high proportion of tender meat in a savory sauce and the egg roll was packed with pork. The dinner entrée version is also affordable, at $9.25.
Wu’s Garden Restaurant, 418 Maple Ave. E., Vienna; 703-281-4410
During the restaurant's 35 years at this location, the Wu family has amassed an impressive collection of Asian artifacts. The main dining room features a large, luminous hand-embroidered silk hanging depicting birds, flowers and trees. It stands beneath a decorative painted tin roof and an impressive collection of intricate hand-carved rosewood screens.
The classic cuisine could be classified as a culinary work of art. Moo shi pork was filled with tender meat along with cabbage, mushrooms and fried egg in a savory sauce, at $9.95 for dinner, or $6.95 for lunch, including the traditional pancakes and plum sauce. Egg drop, won-ton or hot-and-sour soup were $1.50 for dinner or $1.40 at lunch. As always, the fortune cookie was complimentary.
Contact the writer at jfriedlander@timespapers.com
You must be logged in to post a comment.