Eat Great Cheap 2018Peer through the kitchen window and you’ll see the staff methodically stuffing and folding dumplings. Hint, hint. In particular, this cash-only restaurant is known for soup dumplings so flavorful they don’t need the accompanying dipping vinegar. The checklist menu of 100-plus Cantonese, Szechuan, and Taiwanese small plates can be intimidating to navigate, but you’ll feel like a pro ordering the fragrant lamb with cumin and the spicy fried tofu with Doritos-like crackle and color. Also good: Szechuan-style beef noodle soup; preserved egg with tofu; spicy pork wontons.
Ann Limpert joined Washingtonian in late 2003. She was previously an editorial assistant at Entertainment Weekly and a cook in New York restaurant kitchens, and she is a graduate of the Institute of Culinary Education. She lives in Petworth.
Anna Spiegel covers the dining and drinking scene in her native DC. Prior to joining Washingtonian in 2010, she attended the French Culinary Institute and Columbia University’s MFA program in New York, and held various cooking and writing positions in NYC and in St. John, US Virgin Islands.
Jessica Sidman covers the people and trends behind D.C.’s food and drink scene. Before joining Washingtonian in July 2016, she was Food Editor and Young & Hungry columnist at Washington City Paper. She is a Colorado native and University of Pennsylvania grad.
