Peter Chang’s – Tasty China II

Aww man, the three pepper chicken was awesome here. Gu’s Bistro is kaput as well. Help me out Unilocalers, where do I go?

My favorite Chinese restaurant in the world. Talked to them today, they are moving to Ponce City Market, not closing! Should re-​open in March!

Went there last night. Food was phenomenal, but they tried to charge us more than the menu price for our drinks. When we called them on it, they argued about it rather than making right. Very disappointed as I liked it except for feeling like I was being gouged for a few extra bucks per drink at the end. Questionable if I would go back because of this, which makes me sad since I really enjoyed the food.

More upscale than Tasty one and the menu is the same. I enjoy the spicy dan dan noodles and the duck. The double cooked pork is excellent and I always have vegetables. If your interest is in asian food from other regions of the great nation then you must try Tasty China.
Come with a desire to eat because there are many things on the menu that are worth trying. The food is served family style so pick several dishes to share.
Last note, the food is hot. This is Szechwan so do your research if this is new to you.

Two words: Chinese Crack. Peter Chang is my hero… gives me a solid food high on every visit. This place is not for the faint of heart mind you… it can be HOT… but it is szechuan after all. Sometimes I feel addicted, can’t stop thinking about the dry fried eggplant, shredded garlic chicken, cold draft beer to cool my tongue (on fire). I have to stop myself from exiting every time I pass the powers ferry exit on 285. Something about the super savory numbing deliciousness that tickles my tongue and soothes my soul.
On to the details~ first of all, pay attention to the pepper scale. One pepper is nice heat, 2 peppers is hot, 3 peppers wrecked me and that’s where I stopped. I’ve been many times and have tried a ton of things, I’ll list a few favorites:
1) Dry Fried Eggplant — you must order this. not optional.
2) Shredded Garlic Chicken — my 2^nd favorite item on menu. Shredded chicken with delicious bamboo, onions, mushrooms, peppers. SO GOOD.
3) Scallion Bubble — its simple but tasty and comes with a side of curry sauce.
4) NW (or SE or NE) Chinese Salad — its on the «words only» cold appetizer portion of the menu — it is shredded veggies and tofu and so delicious. I ordered it to «get some veggies on the table» but it has ended up being a favorite.
5) Hot and Numbing Dry Beef Appetizer — emphasis on HOT. It’s like dried beef jerky in wonderful spicy oil, sounds weird but if you can take the heat it is great.
I could go on and on but that’s a good start.
To address some bad reviews: Yes the service is slow but chill out and enjoy your dinner. As long as my food makes it and someone keeps bringing me cold drinks~ all is well. The food is good enough to overlook slow service.
Yes, it is more expensive than the average strip mall Chinese food… but if you are coming for orange chicken and mongolian beef then skip Peter Changs and head back to the shopping mall. Come here for real Szechuan, the kind you WILL NOT find in 99% of other Chinese restaurants, the kind of food that leaves you in pain but keeps you coming back for more… OVER & OVER & OVER.

First let me begin with the good. The food is quite delicious if your an adventurous eater. The portions are large where one dish can be shared by 3 – 4 people if you order a couple of dishes.
Some highlights on the menu Braised fish in chili oil, spicy dry eggplant, Mixed veggies in white sauce (not spicy) and lamb with cumin.
The food is reasonably priced for even with alcohol and multiple dishes ordered each couple paid $ 62.
Now the Ugly… There is no customer service whatsoever but if you can ignore that the food is good. We were a party of 26.14 adults and 12 kids. I called in advance to book and was told we would be given seating upstairs by someone named Aiyung and to ask for Andy. When we got there Sunday evening at 6pm we found out our reservation had not even been put in the book and that if we wanted to eat «upstairs» we would have to meet a minimum of $ 400!
This was the 2^nd time for this to happen to us. What was frustrating is that I had asked on the phone if there would be any extra charges or minimums and was assured «no only what you eat». I let my frustration show and the manager got involved but wouldn’t let us sit all together as promised, claiming that the upstairs area fit only 22! He offered us two tables one for kids and one for adults trying to pack our kids like sardines on one table. The waitresses were rude and I had to be firm and insist that we would need two tables for our kids. There was no crowd needing those tables so I couldn’t understand why we couldn’t have them.
I was also told next time I should make reservations via email! After two glasses of wine I was able to calm down and enjoy my food with my friends. I will never go back with a large group to this restaurant. as the aggravation takes the fun out of an evening. I wish their customer service would improve so one may enjoy the entire experience not just the food.

1. Food: was fair to okay: Many dishes were half filed with red pepper! Everything tasted kind of the same. Portion size so so and pricey.
2.Service was spotty
3. Went there on a Thursday night with a party of 25, the place was empty. Waitress came to us before the meal and said if we pay cash, she’ll give us 8% discount. Time to pay, she reneged on the deal! Then she had an attitude and refused to talk with us! No idea what she was thinking. Reality is 25 patrons left annoyed.
4.We spent $ 700 plus with drinks and nobody from the resto said thank you to us as we left!

Kinda expensive than the other Chinese restaurants. But it’s worth it! Everything is yummy. The place is nice too.

Wow. I had never really experienced Szechuan Chinese in such an amazing format before. I had the pleasure of having lunch with a fellow Unilocaler for my first experience here and it was fantastic.
Located just off of 285, on Powers Ferry, and on part of the river. The setting for this restaurant is just gorgeous. It’s fairly easy to tell that it has been a few things before Tasty China, but the building and surrounding area give it so much charm you’ll literally forget about it. Sitting at a table along the windows was just magical. We had a chance to watch wildlife around the river while we ate lunch and it was just awesome.
It’s a fairly large restaurant with seating located both downstairs and upstairs as well as patio seating.
For lunch, we split a few entrée-​sized dishes –
Dry-​fried eggplant. This stuff was insanely flavorful and spicy! The «dry» part of this dish definitely pertains to the wonderful dry rub on the eggplant. It is lightly breaded and served heaping on a plate surrounded by the spicy mixture. Such a wonderful dish. Any vegetarian would be stoked about this.
The hot and numbing beef rolls were really interesting. Basically little beef burritos with cabbage and super spicy beef within. Definitely a sinus clearer, but the flavorful beef was complex and kept your palate dancing with flavors.
The Bamboo Fish was awesome. Made with a Southeast Asian fish called Swai. Super light and flaky. Much like cod. The flavors, one again, were magnificent.
Service was great and super friendly.
I’m looking forward to a return visit rather soon.

As a Chinese I would say this place is one of the most authentic places for Sichaun cuisine. Plus the clean and elegant atmosphere makes this our top choice when we crave for Chinese food.
Highly recommend their Sichaun specialties menu as some of tge dishes are really hard to find elsewhere.

Coming in here is a little intimidating at first. I drive by here frequently going to and from the grocery store. I can remember when this was Olive’s and I thought it would be fun to try for the first time with Edward L.
We recently came here for Date Night and initially things were a little rocky. The menu is huge and can be overwhelming. After a few minutes it gets easier to figure out (I went right to the «American Chinese» section). We both had a little bit of sticker shock at first glance because the prices are significantly higher than you would find for other Chinese food.
Everything turned around when our food came. The portions are enough for two meals (hence the double prices) and it was better than other places. Way better. Even my «American Chinese» Mongolian Beef was beyond awesome, although I probably loose a little credit with others for basing my review on such a basic dish.

Nuts and bolts: Was here for a friend’s birthday. The let us have this whole balcony area of the restaurant since we were a large group. It was really cool. They have authentic dishes and Americanized dishes.
Order: For myself, orange chicken. My boyfriend ordered a crispy, fried fish. A friend ordered a beef dish, but I can’t really recall what it was. She and I decided that we were going to split or dishes so that we could experience more of what they had to offer.
Verdict: I loved the upstairs privacy for a large group. There were also lazy susans on the table so that you could eat family style. Very helpful! I enjoyed my orange chicken, but nothing else! The fish was way too salty. There was too much breading vs. fish. The beef dish just didn’t taste very good.
Take home message: I would give them another chance. As I look over their menu online, there is a dish that looks pretty good to me!

WORST SERVICE EVER!
Manger, Please WATCH YOUR MONTH! You must be kidding me!!!
We waited for Three Hours for our food and complained about it. The manager started to SCOLD and ABUSE us!
Unacceptable! NEVER EVER come back again…

AVOID AT ALL COSTS.
IT“s by far the WORST SERVICE anywhere in the world.
My Chinese friend who is doing her expat work picked the restaurant to celebrate the Chinese New Year. She had been here once before. I had when they first opened a 2 –3 years ago. The location a midway for both of us. She called to make a reservation a few days ahead and was told not available for 2 people. She got there before I did and got a table. They gave her 1 chair to sit — no 2^nd chair. I was 10 minutes late (Fri nt post snomageddon) and as I was parking I got texts from her that the service was awful. I get there and there now is a 2^nd chair. So I ask it’s ok — not so much!
As soon as I sit down, I got bumped into by 4 different waiters. The table was less than 2 feet from the bar and a path to the kitchen /​service area that the waiter/​waitresses walk through constantly. I couldn’t put my purse on the back of my chair as the waiters constantly knocked it off. Frankly, it’s probably against the fire code for obstructing the pathways. I asked for a manager and asked nicely if we could please get another table. He said ok and left — NEVER came BACK. After 15 minutes, we decided to leave… we saw him as we were leaving and he was busy serving food. There was NO effort to find another table for us. Mind you there were at least 10 empty tables! He could have told us earlier if that was not possible — nooooo, his ok meant ok we asked for another table… that is all.
Please note, my friend asked in Chinese about another table prior to my arrival as well. So it’s not the language and they don’t treat Chinese better. They simply do NOT care. I do not recall the food being great when I first tried a couple of years back. I don’t think it’s cultural as my very Chinese from Beijing thought it was awful. Simply the owner’s attitude. I don’t think anyone would enjoy eating even the most delicious food if they were constantly banged into by the wait staff. They don’t deserve our hard earned $$$$$. AVOID and save yourselves.

Upon first glance this establishment is very upscale. I am originally from Georgia but this was my first time home in a while.
Service was mediocre and the waitress brought me the wrong drink but they were friendly, so I didn’t complain. It was Valentines Day, so I can understand the rushed environment with the many number of patrons.
BUT…READ CLOSELY… there was a piece of metal in my food. METAL!!! I WAS FLOORED. I immediately asked to speak to the manager/​owner. It took him 20 minutes to respond to us.
Although after the wait he was very apologetic and offered free food, a replacement dish and the meal in question at no charge. But I didn’t have an appetite at that point, so I declined the offer.
I would recommend this venue (check your dishes!!!) but I will not be returning. That was a close call.

If you come here, you must, must, must order the dry fried eggplant. It’s the perfect blend of spice and crisp surrounding the soft eggplant spears then garnished with scallions, cilantro, and red chili peppers. Totally delicious and I’m not even an eggplant fan!
I’ve dined at Peter Chang’s quite a few times and I think the food here is pretty good if you know what to order. Their menu is very extensive so it’s best to go with a large group and order a variety of dishes to try. My favorite main dish is the cumin beef, but depending on the day this could be mildly spicy, spicy, or super nose-​run water-​chugging spicy. From my experience, I would stay away from anything that’s cooked in a lot of sauce – these tend to be very oily.
The one complaint I have about this place is their service. I’ve never had great service here and for my last experience two days ago when I dined here for a friend’s birthday, the service was terrible. I have never ordered soup at an Asian restaurant and they dump the soup, soup bowls, and ladle at your table. We had to pour out our own bowls! Shame shame. When we asked for takeout boxes, she brought along a few boxes, dumped them at the table next to ours and never came back. We spent 30 minutes trying to get her attention to place our order in the first place. We weren’t in a hurry, but terrible service is just annoying. Hopefully you’ll be luckier than me in your experience!

While the food is consistently awesome, the service and kitchen execution can be terrifyingly bad. On a timeline for lunch? Don’t even bother.
So let’s start with the good: the food tends to be heavy but it is complex, pungent and deeply satisfying. A word of warning though: the menu might as well be a paean to the pepper; fiery doesn’t begin to describe it. Tread carefully and be ready to sweat like P90X got stuck in your DVD player.
Some things to try out: cumin lamb, twice cooked pork with leeks, the Peter rolls, and the pepper pork belly.
Now, for the service. Get there when it’s very empty and you’ll be fine. The minute that a medium-​sized crowd build is the instant when the wheels come off the wagon. We’ve consistently had long waits for food, incomplete table orders and longer waits to close out the check. Only go if you have ample time and kind patience, both of which will be rewarded.

This was our first visit to Peter Chang’s Tasty China II, but most certainly won’t be our last. The food was extraordinary; however, I unfortunately have to give a lower rating due to the service.
First, I should point out that we were only a party of three. We started with what they call a «snack». Two of my party ordered soup (egg drop and Sweet & Sour) and I ordered the ‘Scallion Bubble Pancake with Curry sauce’. Regrettably, I didn’t take a photo of the pancake, but it most certainly fits its name.
The pancake is very thin and is blown up like a puffy airy «bubble» accompanied by a beautifully fragrant and tasty light green curry dipping sauce; however, and this is a BIG HOWEVER, they brought each soup (which literally is a ladle of soup from the pot into the bowl right?) and served it before my bubble! I also must mention that each cup of soup came one at a time as well! I sat there without my ‘snack’ for about 5 minutes while their soup was getting cold! I forced them to eat while I sat there with nothing. :(I am not exaggerating when I say it was five minutes.
This is completely unacceptable. A scoop of soup – into two bowls – could and should have waited for my ‘bubble’ to finish cooking and all three snacks would then come out at the same time, as what typically happens at most restaurants.
Regrettably, the SAME problem came with our dinners. My father’s meal was the first to arrive. Ten (yes, I said 10) minutes later before my meal. All meals came out one meal at a time. My father was forced to start eating, as his food was getting cold! I’ve never experienced this before.
I’m not saying that all meals at restaurants should always come out together; closely together yes, but it seemed they (the kitchen) worked on one meal, snack, appetizer, and what-​have-​you one at a time – no matter what. And let me remind you that this isn’t a cheap restaurant! Meals range from $ 18.00 to $ 28.00 dollars which do not include snacks and drinks! This seems to be a kitchen issue and should be corrected immediately by management.
Second, we had a reserved window seat which overlooks the river; however, there was no lighting outside to enjoy it. We had a 6:30PM reservation and it was completely dark which leaves us with no use for the reserved window seating.
I would recommend to management to place some type outdoor lighting (torches) so their guests can enjoy the view.
One should know that this restaurant is not truly on the river. Ray’s on the River (two blocks down) is on the river, but even Ray’s has lighting so you can see it.
Peter Chang’s is a ‘run off’ of that river, but has a lake type view – if full. When the river isn’t quite flowing, you don’t have to turn the lighting on. In my opinion, it would set a romantic atmosphere for their quests, as with Ray’s.
They have a wonderful outdoor patio with outdoor seating which is a great plus — and I was told is dog-​friendly!
Last is a WARNING! If you are not one for «heat», as in hot food, then make sure to closely read the description of each meal. Stay far, FAR away from anything with the hot chili pepper icon on the menu. Read closely the ingredients! BEWARE… if it say’s it’s hot… IT IS FREAKING FLAMING!
**I want to say that even with the heat, the flavor still manages to shine through. Normally heat is just overshadowing, but the food here is so wonderful, whether it burns the next morning or not and if you can handle that, then it’s worth the try!
I’m sure the chef will tone it down for you, if asked, and you may want to do so if you are weary. IT IS HOT!
Returning customer? YES – absolutely!
* I had the ‘Garlic Fish in Clay Hot’.
* My dad had the ‘Jianghu Duck’.
* My husband had the ‘Bamboo Fish’ IT WAS HOT, HOT, HOT!!!

When one arrives with high expectations, hopes can be dashed. And that’s what happened here. Our meal was fine. The restaurant is pretty. The wait-​staff was attentive. But something was lacking.
Dry-​fried eggplant, hot out of the fryer, is gooey on the inside, crisp on the outside and quite good. However, one can only eat a few, so even one order for our table of three, was too much. (I wonder how it’ll reheat at dinner tonight.) We all enjoyed the hot-​and-​numbing beef roll, which despite its name, wasn’t all that hot. Bubble pancake is perhaps the same as poori. The accompanying curry sauce was mild and good.
Because we found the menu difficult to read — has anybody else? — we didn’t realize mapo tofu lacked the usual crumbles of pork. Ohhhh. Disappointment. Ok, one more dish: crystal chicken. Despite the menu description of asparagus, there were none. (The waitress shrugged when we asked.) While okay, the dish struck me as little more than moo goo gai pan.
This restaurant has probably a well-​deserved following. I recognize that we may have ordered the wrong things — but there are other places I’d like to try before we return.

I’ve tried many new dishes since my original review of Peter Chang’s, so it’s time for an update. Here are the new dishes I’ve tried:
Appetizers:
Scallion bubble pancake with curry sauce
Fish coriander (cilantro) rolls
Pork belly in chili garlic mud
Black ear fungus with wild pepper
Crispy pork belly
Northeast Chinese salad
Smoked chicken with mustard sauce
Entrees:
Mapo tofu
Shredded pork with leeks and smoked tofu
Yangzhou fish with pine nuts
Jianghu duck — boneless duck with Chinese celery and other vegetables
Sichuan double-​cooked pork
Braised beef in chili oil
Homestyle fish fillets
Guobao duck with pineapple
Crystal chicken
Hong pao beef
Cumin lamb
Fresh mushroom with bok choy
Shredded pumpkin with ginger sauce
The apps are amazing and just like the ones you find at Tasty China. The bubble pancake with curry sauce is soft and sweet. The fish coriander rolls are served right out of the fryer. I highly recommend both of these apps, along with the dry-​fried eggplant and the hot and numbing beef rolls.
Also excellent is the pork belly in chili garlic «mud» (a cold appetizer). The mud is just an oily sauce that is incredibly good. The pork belly is sliced thin and is appetizingly chewy. The crispy pork belly, on the other hand, is similar to the dry fried eggplant and other deep-​fried Sichuan dishes here that are loaded with peppers and cilantro. If you love those dishes, then more than likely, you’ll love the crispy pork belly.
Black ear fungus with wild pepper, another cold app, makes use of a different kind of chili pepper (the same small green and red chilis that are used in Thai and Southeast Asian cooking). These pack a more spicy punch, so beware. Awesome dish.
The Northeast Chinese salad is another delectable cold app. It makes use of translucent noodles, plenty of cilantro, and of course, Peter Chang’s Sichaun oily goodness. This is another good dish to order.
Noticing a trend here? From the list of apps above, the only one that I probably wouldn’t order again is the smoked chicken with mustard sauce. Without a doubt though, the apps are my favorite dishes at Peter Chang’s.
Favorite entrees: the shredded pork with leeks and smoked tofu, Yangzhou fish with pine nuts, braised beef in chili oil, hongpao beef, and cumin lamb.
The shredded pork with leeks and smoked tofu, Yangzhou fish with pine nuts, crystal chicken, and are non-​spicy dishes, so they are good ones to order if you’re dining with people who don’t like to eat spicy food. The Yangzhou fish is sweet and sour-​flavored and is heavily breaded. Some of the pieces don’t even taste like fish, but it’s still good.
On a menu full of spicy and intense dishes, the braised beef in chili oil is one of Peter Chang’s most intense dishes. The top layer of this dish is purely chili peppers, Sichuan peppercorns, and cilantro. As Mike Y. said, this dish is like «rocket fuel.»
Like the braised beef in chili oil, the hongpao beef and cumin lamb are also hot and spicy. These dishes bring the heat, especially the cumin lamb. Both are loaded with chili peppers and are mouth-​watering. The cumin lamb also has garlic.
I wasn’t a huge fan of the mapo tofu (tofu in chili oil), though Peter Chang’s version includes black beans, which I like. The other dishes — Jianghu duck, double-​cooked pork, homestyle fish fillets, and guobao duck with pineapple — are all solid.
If you need a break from all the spiciness or if you have eaters in your group that don’t like eating spicy foods, the crystal chicken, fresh mushroom with bok choy, and shredded pumpkin with ginger sauce are decent dishes to get. They’re all very mild, relatively speaking.
I assume the crystal chicken gets its name from the clear glaze on top. This dish consists of slices of chicken stir-​fried with green vegetables such as snow peas and asparagus. The fresh mushroom with bok choy comes with plenty of fresh and crisp bok choy. The shredded pumpkin with ginger sauce has thinly sliced pumpkin presented on a plate. The pumpkin almost resembles mango.
Really though, the dishes to get at Peter Chang’s are the spicy ones. These dishes are packed with flavor and executed well. Expect a lot of sauce, oil, seasoning, and garnishes. This is heavy stuff, so come prepared.
Service has improved significantly over the past year to year and a half. Many of the servers know the dishes inside-​out and the food usually comes out reasonably fast.