Hong Kong Palace
6387 Seven Corners Center
Falls Church, VA 22044
703-532-0940
Neighborhood: Falls Church
Cuisines: Szechuan, Chinese, Cantonese
Opening Hours:
Open Sunday through Thursday 11 AM to 10PM; Friday and Saturday 11 to 11.
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Price Range: Inexpensive
Dress: Informal
Noise Level: Chatty
Reservations: Not Needed
Website: http://www.hkpalace.webs.com/
Best Dishes:
Chengdu Zhong's Spring Dumpling; cold cucumber with cilantro; dan dan noodles; fish-and-pickled-vegetable soup; bacon with black beans and peppers; Kung Pao chicken; fried chicken with fried peppers and peanuts; sesame balls with bean paste.
Price Details:
Appetizers $2.50 to $5.95, entrées $4.95 to $9.95.
Special Features: Wheelchair Accessible, Kid Friendly
Why go: This strip-mall gem turns out dishes that sparkle and zing, thanks to sprinklings of the ma la peppercorn. The authentic Szechuan offerings—the restaurant’s name is from a previous tenant—share menu space with better-than-average American favorites such as Kung Pao chicken.
What to get: Chengdu Zhong’s Spring Dumpling, filled with pork and served in a pool of chili oil; cold cucumber with cilantro; dan dan noodles with ground pork, spinach, and chili oil; fish-and-pickled-vegetable soup with cellophane noodles; a special of thick bacon with black beans and red peppers; Kung Pao chicken; fried chicken cubes crunchy with peanuts, fried peppers stuffed with sesame-seed paste, and ma la peppercorns; a dessert of sesame balls with bean paste.
Best for: Diners overwhelmed by long Chinese menus. Here the decision making is manageable.
Insider tip: Ask a server to translate the specials posted in Mandarin on the walls. Weekends mean long waits at dinner as local Chinese families settle in for a meal.
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