Chinatown Garden
Hours
Profile
$$ - average
Chinese
Chinese restaurant offering fake meat
Chinatown Garden has, at the back of their menu, a section called "Chef's Recommendations for Vegetarians" with almost 20 mock chicken and pork dishes such as Kung Pow Chicken and Hunan Pork.
Just a few blocks from the Gallery Place/Chinatown metro station.
- Large Group-Friendly
Added by phavardel on Sep 15 06 (updated Apr 20)
Reviews
The food was decent, but nothing to brag about. I had the vegan "chicken and veggies with black bean sauce"--which the waitress recommended, but it was a simple TVP, lacking much flavor, with some peppers and onions. While I appreciated my meal coming very quickly, I'm always nervous about "fresh" food that's delivered in less than 5 minutes.
I went there on Christmas day and it was super busy there! We ordered doubled boiled "pork" and "chicken with pineapple." We wanted some variety, but the two dishes used the same kind of fake meat; they were virtually indistinguishable. Furthermore, it seemed that they just used store-bought TVP; the fake meat was not too yummy. The veggies tasted fresh and well-cooked, and there were a number of vegan dishes on the menu, but I'm used to better Chinese fake meat and dishes.
UPDATE: Whenever I'm in DC's Chinatown, I always seem to end up at Chinatown Garden, maybe because it's the only place I know that caters well to vegans in that area of the city. I've been there probably six or seven times now over the last three years. They have a large number of mockmeat dishes, though the mockmeat is all the same (whether they call it beef or chicken or whatever): chewy, striated soy protein. It's old-school, unsophisticated mockmeat.
Usually the food is passable, but nothing terribly memorable. The last time I went, on April 16, 2009, my Hunan mock chicken ($12) came out cold, and the sauce had congealed into a gloopy, corn-starch mess. It wasn't even busy in the restaurant. This was my first negative experience at Chinatown Garden.
Otherwise the location is good and has ample seating. Prices are reasonable and the service is prompt and attentive.