If you like Chinese food, there’s good news in Washington. Recently opened, Shanghai Lounge, on Wisconsin Avenue above Georgetown, is a most welcome addition to the city.
The restaurant is owned by Lijuan Zhang, who hails from central China. She’s not the chef, but everything is cooked under her supervision and according to her recipes.
The food at Shanghai Lounge is excellent, fresh and prepared to order. Outstanding – and perhaps the best in the city – are the dumplings. They range from Shanghai steamed pork buns to pork, beef, lamb or vegetarian boiled dumplings. Fried dumplings resemble Japanese gyoza. They are lighter, less doughy and more delicate than what is served in most Chinese restaurants. They come in orders of 8, a number that is lucky in Chinese numerology.
Other appetizers fare equally well. Spring rolls have not been sitting around waiting to be reheated upon demand. Rather, they are made to order, arriving at the table crisp and delicate, with fillings of fresh, shredded vegetables.
A scallion pancake is a small, flat round of crisp dough filled with chopped scallions, somewhat like a Chinese mini pizza. It’s delicious and not to be missed.
Main courses, on the whole, are well prepared with a light touch on the sugar. Spicy pork is a tasty combination of slices of stir-fried pork with onions and peppers. It’s a spicy dish, but not overly so. Mongolian beef is a delicious, slightly crunchy version of a classic dish.
Kung pao chicken has just the right amount of heat. The chunks of chicken are tender and tasty, nicely balanced by peanuts and green pepper. Curried chicken, on the other hand, does not fare as well, coming to the table looking unappealing with chunks of tough dark meat chicken.
Many of the dishes on the menu reflect Ms.Zhang’s Shanghai expertise, such as Shanghai green cabbage, a variety of Shanghai style noodles or Shanghai baked seitan (a chewy, meat-like protein-rich food made from wheat gluten), and an unusual dish of tomato and egg. Lamb is featured in dumplings and several entrees.
For dessert, Shanghai Lounge offers non Chinese tiramisu and a rich chocolate cake, as well as mango pudding and Shanghai rice dumpling. The restaurant has a full bar and also serves bubble tea (a mix of tea, milk, tapioca pearls and various flavorings) and smoothies.
Prices in general are relatively high. Appetizers run from $4 to $9.50, dumplings range from $7 to $9.50, with an extra $1 for fried dumplings, and main courses are priced from $8 to $14.50. There’s an $8.80 weekday lunch special, which includes soup, a main dish and rice.
The restaurant is small, and the downstairs space can be very noisy, given the bar, which dominates the room. There is, however, a pleasant upstairs room. Once you have tasted the kitchen’s dumplings, however, noise and space seem to become irrelevant.
Shanghai Lounge
1734 Wisconsin Ave.NW
202/338-1588
Hours: Monday to Thursday 11 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.; Friday & Saturday 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Sunday noon to 9:30 p.m.
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