Peter Chang Scott's Addition

At last, a great Chinese restaurant in the city! And one that serves cocktails and dares to have a decent wine list. Thank you Peter Chang for bringing your culinary vision to Scott's Addition! I appreciate the duck dishes in particular. Take a gander at the Shredded Duck with Onion and Scallion.

The duck slices are so tender, and the portions are generous enough to take home some leftovers for lunch the next day. Quack, Quack Good!

Some Spiciness at Cheng Du Restaurant

I stopped in at Cheng Du on a pre-Jonas snow day for Shredded Pork in Garlic Sauce. Only one chili pepper, but spicy enough for me!



And enough for an enjoyable lunch the next day as well.

We Decide to Have a Delicious Lunch at Peter Chang China Cafe Despite Short Pump Traffic

We were headed for Charlottesville for the afternoon on a gloomy Saturday and decided to have lunch at Peter Chang China Cafe. You know the place. It's tucked up in a Walmart shopping strip in the middle of Short Pump, and it's an absolute horror to get to the place from the city (or anywhere else). We strategized the best route that would cause the least stress and, whew!, we made it.

Peter Chang China Cafe Dining Room in Short Pump

At least we were rewarded with some good eats. Hubby had Golden Mountain Chicken. A mountain of fried shredded chicken, indeed, with a light sweet and sour sauce. We both thought this would be the perfect Asian dish to enjoy while watching football playoffs.

Golden Mountain Chicken

I chose the darker side of the poultry spectrum with Shredded Duck with Scallion and Onion. Sublime ducky tenderness! And more than enough to enjoy for lunch the next day.

Shredded Duck with Scallion and Onion

While I always enjoy going to Peter Chang, the traffic can be daunting, and I end up eating nearer to my home. Can't wait to have a Peter Chang establishment in RVA proper!

Imperial China in London

We ducked into Imperial China for lunch one day. The entrance was unassuming, but led into a little outdoor courtyard with a little waterfall and an arched bridge and colorful Chinese lanterns. Upon entering the second door, a large dining room appeared with more lanterns and a variety of diners. A couple reminisced over wine (every Asian place we went to in London had a wonderful wine list); girlfriends were taking a break from shopping; in the corner businessmen ate and talked about how to amass more treasure; a family celebrated their matriarch's birthday.

Amid the bustle we were seated and given a menu that offered a la carte items, dim sum, and a set menu. We opted for the set menu for lunch. A very traditional meal.

We began with Chicken and Sweet Corn Soup along with a pot of Jasmine Tea. When we were served the soup, we discovered the name of the restaurant.

We then had Crispy Duck with Pancakes. Of course, this was my favorite dish. It reminded me of Moo Shu Pork, but this was much better. We received shredded duck and crispy duck skin for the pancakes. Add plum sauce and scallions to the package and I was in heaven.

For the main dish we could choose between Chicken and Lemon Sauce or Sweet and Sour Shrimp. I got the former and hubby the latter. We were also served Stir Fried Vegetables and rice. Each dish was good and plentiful.

This was a nice place for lunch. We were pleased to come upon this on the edge of Chinatown. And that duck was fabulous.

Hyde Park, Kensington Gardens, Orangery, and Min Jiang

We really enjoy walking in Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens. The vast expanses of green with tall, tall trees. The little areas that burst with blooms. A sculpture that delights. The waterfowl and lakes. The horses being exercised every morning. And (as mentioned before), the dogs that are free to roam the park without a leash. It's all good.

And don't forget Kensington Palace which was home to Princess Diana. The gift shop has loads of princess accessories.

The canvas-backed chairs always look cute, but beware; you must rent them. One day when it was unusually sunny, many Londoners took advantage of the weather and picnicked in the park. Unfortunately, most of them did not pick up after themselves and there was trash everywhere. Very disappointing. A great green space deserves a bit more respect.

We had lunch at the Orangery in Kensington Gardens one afternoon. We had dined here on our last trip and was mightily impressed. This time, the food and tea were still very good, but our waiter was found lacking in the service department and while the desserts seemed tempting, we decided to skip the treat (and added expense) because of him.

Salad with Fennel and Mixed Lettuces

Rillette of Roast Pork

On the other hand, we thoroughly enjoyed dinner at Min Jiang. A Chinese restaurant located on the 10th floor of the Royal Garden Hotel overlooking Kensington Gardens. Wow. Our main dishes were some of the best Chinese we have ever had. The other cool thing was a wonderful wine list. We enjoyed a lovely Alsatian Pinot Blanc with dinner. If you dine here, make reservations. The place is very popular, including the bar area.

The View from Min Jiang

Vegetable Spring Rolls

Roasted Chicken with Ginger Sauce

Gong Bao Chicken

Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens together is one of our favorite London places. Great to explore and people-watch and meet new furry and feathered friends.

Yes, I Ate at Peter Chang's, Too

And I want to go back. Real soon. We arrived on a Saturday at 4:45 PM and lined up with the other eager eaters. Folks navigating the parking lot from Walmart slowed up and gawked at the line up. The doors opened promptly at 5 PM and we were seated along with two friends who had joined us for dinner.

Peter Chang sports a decent wine list!! Hooray! We ordered a Silvan Ridge Pinot Gris from Oregon. A nice complement to the bit of spiciness ahead.

Pinot Gris

For starters Spring Vegetable Rolls and Steamed Buns with Beef. The rolls were nice and crispy. The beef had a hint of spice. Unfortunately, the buns were okay. (We were so spoiled by the Duck Buns at the now defunct Ejay Rin. May the buns and kimchi be resurrected in another life!)

Spring Vegetable Rolls

Steamed Buns with Beef

For entrees, a mix of beef and duck dishes. Orange Flavored Beef was tasty and traditional (at least from an American point of view).

Orange Flavored Beef

The Beef Stew in Clay Pot was unexpected and very tasty. Presented in a big cauldron of a pot and consisting of beef brisket, potato, carrot, and tomato in a special sauce that was spicy without being hot. The beef was extremely tender.

Beef Stew in Clay Pot

My favorites, of course, were the duck dishes. Guangdong Gulu Duck was boneless, deep fried, and served with a sweet and sour sauce. And such a beautiful presentation. Hubby really liked the taste and flavor of both the meat and the sauce. He was also very pleased that the water fowl was boneless.

Duck with Sweet and Sour Sauce

I ordered Tea Smoked Duck with Deep Fried Onions. Lovely smoky duck! This fowl did include the bones, but tender enough to strip away the delicious morsels. The onions reminded me of onion straws, but had a prodigious amount of red pepper flakes mixed in. A bit of heat (and even hotter heated up for leftovers the next day!). I thoroughly enjoyed this dish.

Tea Smoked Duck

And what's so great is that Peter Chang offers even more duck dishes as well as a wide variety of other delectable dishes. I want to go back. Real soon.

King of Szechuan

A couple of weeks ago we popped into King of Szechuan Chinese Restaurant and enjoyed a couple of spicy dishes.

The decor is unassuming and basic. We liked the art prints adorning the wall.

We began quite mildly with steamed dumplings and hot tea. The ground meat was tasty and the dumpling wasn't overly thick.

We had heard that the Hot Pot was great, but we decided to try that another time. Hubby went with his old standby: Kung Pao Chicken and I tried Shredded Pork with Garlic Sauce.

Both were spicy, but were flavored with different types of hot peppers. Mine was so hot, my eyes started watering (fair warning - I don't eat a lot of hot foods - this dish may not taste that hot to some of you). We both liked the addition of zucchini to both dishes. Both were served with white rice. A satisfying Chinese lunch with enough to take home and enjoy for lunch the next day.

I'd like to go back and try the Hot Pot. For you who are a tad more adventurous, King of Szechuan offers tripe, pork lung, and grilled eel.

Yum Yum Good

Last weekend we attended an incredible Chablis tasting at J. Emerson and then jaunted over to Patterson to enjoy Chinese food at Yum Yum Good. This tiny place has been around for years, and continues to serve up decent and inexpensive meals. A few tables were occupied, but most of the traffic came from take out.

We began with Wonton Soup

and a Spring Roll

Both tasty. The soup was very welcome on this chilly, windy evening.

For the main couse we ordered General Tao's Chicken

and an evening special of Chicken and String Beans

The General Tao's was what one would expect, but the breading was crispier than most places around here and a few peppers and baby corn graced the sauce. The special was very good. The string beans were steamed and then fiercely sauteed. A few tree ears were also tossed in. All of the plates had been kept very warm, thus, keeping the food warmer during the meal which I thought was a nice touch.

And our traditional fortune cookie contained a fortune in Spanish!

Nobody knows what he can do until he tries (translation courtesy of iGoogle).

All in all a quiet satisfactory evening.

Yen Ching

My husband and I have lived in Richmond almost 7 years now and we had yet to discover a Chinese place that satisfied. Peking was never a favorite. Inter China off of Midlothian was decent, but a bit far for us to drive. Top's take out? Let's just say the last couple of take out meals were probably our final ones.

So last night we finally ate at Yen Ching located in the West Broad Shopping Center next door to Food Lion.

As we walked in quite a few folks were waiting for take out. On-premise diners included families, groups of women gathering for a Friday night outing, and couples both young and mature. Quite a few were regulars that the staff heartily greeted. I admired the water fountain in the middle of the dining room and the tiered layout of the tables, reminding me of an enclosed courtyard.

We ordered a Mai Tai and Planters Punch to imbibe ($7.95 each). The Mai Tai was very good. The Planters Punch tasted like Hawaiian Punch on steroids. Way too sweet and very tough to finish. We began with an Egg Roll and a Shanghai Egg Roll ($1.50 each) served with duck sauce and mustard. The Egg Roll had a ton of cabbage and very little meat. The Shanghai version was more like a spring roll with shrimp, mushrooms, and veggies. I liked the shrimp, but the roll itself was very oily.

The dinner menu featured a plethora of offerings. I must admit the several duck dishes tempted me, but in the end we decided upon Five Taste Chicken ($10.95) and Chicken in Orange Sauce ($10.95). Both dishes contained white meat chicken chunks that were battered and crispy fried. Yen Ching did a wonderful job in attaining the crispy crunch to the chicken. Best we have had in Richmond. Of course, the sauces were supposed to differentiate the two dishes and Yen Ching did not disappoint. My dish showcased a light sauce flavored with Chinese 5 Spice and just a hint of heat.

My hubby's sauce was visibly darker with extremely thin shreds of orange peel. His sauce was pungent while mine was delicate. Both dishes came with white rice. We were served more than we could consume; thus, we could take home some yummy leftovers for later. Upon the end of our meal we received fortune cookies and orange slices (I had forgotten that some Chinese restaurants do this).

Although the egg rolls were a bit disappointing, the entrees were stellar. And now I need to return to discover their Crispy Fried Duck...