For weeks before I finally went, the amount of positive buzz I’d heard about Peter Chang and his new Taste of China in Albemarle Square was staggering: he’d cooked for presidents; he’d been all over the world; he could feed the masses with but a fortune cookie and glass of plum wine. Normally I’m pretty cool about such things, but I’ll admit, I got caught up in the hype.
Before the holiday season, I had no idea who Peter Chang was, and I was just fine for it. I had my regular take-out Hunan chicken and I was content. Over the course of December, however, as I heard more and more, I began telling my friends and family, “Oh, you’ve got to go eat at Taste of China…I hear it’s great!” What began as excitement, however, turned into outright hypocrisy by the end of the month. “What!? You’ve never eaten Peter Chang’s food before? Get out of my sight, you hay-chomping hick. Come back when you’ve had some real Chinese food.” Yes, I exaggerate, but as the holidays rolled on I knew I was getting past due for a visit to Chef Chang’s new eatery; thankfully some friends gave me the perfect opportunity to visit on New Year’s Eve.
Needless to say, word had gotten around. The place became crowded quickly after we sat down, which I took as a good sign. The framed accolades of Chef Chang decorated the south wall, which I took as another good sign. In my opinion, however, the best sign was that I and my other Caucasian friends were in the distinct ethnic minority. My already high expectations inched even higher.
Perhaps due to the packed house, the service throughout our meal was fleeting at best. Still we got our food in a very reasonable amount of time, starting with a complimentary bowl of hot and sour soup. I’ve not had many bowls of hot and sour soup in my life, but this was the best one I can remember. Wispy egg whites and thick slices of fresh mushroom caps floated in the broth, which itself was warm, savory, and only slightly but pleasantly sour.
For a formal appetizer, I ordered the Tu Chia style roast pork meat bread, which almost tasted more Southern than it did Asian. It was really good, don’t get me wrong, but the combination of spiced pork sausage and light pastry-esque dough reminded me of something my grandmother might have made. Instead of black pepper and sage, however, the pork was seasoned with red pepper, cilantro, and just a little garlic, and maybe some cumin. I don’t think I’ve ever had a Chinese dish quite like it, but it sure was tasty.
Unfortunately for me, my entree that followed turned out to be the worst-tasting dish of the evening. The scallion and chili beef hot pot, which came in its own little baby wok perched atop an open blue and orange flame, certainly looked impressive, but damn was I disappointed. The heat from the fire kept the dish boiling hot, and I swear there must have been a whole onion in that thing. Not there’s anything wrong with onion, but it completely overwhelmed the dish. And the beef was too chewy. Those issues aside, the level of spicy heat was great—right there in between making my face flush and my nose run—and the lit gel candle prompted a few, “Wow, he’s got fire,” looks from other nearby patrons.
What made my entree choice a real shame was that every other dish I saw looked and/or tasted fantastic (both my wife’s Kung Pao chicken and my friend’s General Tso’s chicken were by far the best I’ve ever had), and with every serving platter that passed me, I regretted my dinner more. Szechuan-style Japanese eggplant…puffy scallion pancakes…it was like an industry party for Chinese food porn and I’d already eaten. Luckily for me, the party is sure to continue (for a little while longer, at least), and I’ll certainly be back.
Related posts:
- Lime Leaf Thai Restaurant Review
- Continental Divide Restaurant Review: Balls Out and Worth It
- Pad Thai Restaurant Review
Mmmmmmm……….. meat bread :0)
There’s a reason that you often see Asians making up the bulk of the diners at taste of China! This guy is seriously talented, so if you’re going to eat there, order what he makes best. Stick with the chef’s specialties and stay away from the “Chinese-American” menu. The dishes that are good are truly amazing and atypical of what you usually get in Cville’s Chinese restaurants.
Dinner is often extremely hectic– they’re so slammed that you can’t even get take-out. Go at lunch-time or a bit later for a leisurely meal and superior service.
The Dry-fried Szechuan Eggplant is the single greatest vegetable dish being served in Charlottesville today. Lightly crispy on the outside, melting inside, and seasoned beautifully. If you order only one thing, this simple and sublime dish should be it.
The Scallion Pancakes are legendary. I’ve ordered the Crispy Fried Shrimp several times, and love the spicy dried chiles , salt, and crispy onion that season the dish. So damned good, I ate the cold leftovers straight out of the fridge the following morning. Beef with Snow Peas is usually a bland dish. Here it’s cooked with nuance and the ingredients are top-notch. Listen to the wait-staff when they suggest you order the Crispy Fish!
Chang is known to be really temperamental, and doesn’t stick around any place too long, so seize the day if you want to try his food.
Sage advice, Natty. Unfortunately, the beef hot pot I ordered was from the chef’s specialty portion of the menu. having already seen (and smelled) orders of the Szechuan eggplant and scallion pancakes, I suspect that will be my next meal there.
For everyone’s sake, though, let’s hope Chef Chang decides to stick around a few more months, at least.
i went to taste of china 3x in the last week. LOVE it! i agree, theirs is the best hot & sour soup i’ve ever had. the spicy beef rolls are so fresh! loved the crispy duck too. the flavor of the honey baked duck was great but it’s way too hard to eat bc there are so many bones (a little too authentic for me). we got some spicy chicken thing from the chef’s specialties section that night & it was a nice juxtaposition. we liked the kung pao chicken too (ordered from the chinese section of the menu, not american–it’s in both; i don’t know if that made any difference). the guys next to us last time were having the scallion bubble pancakes; they were huge. i WANT! there are approx. 40 things i want to try there, in fact (i counted), including stuff from the american menu–seems like it will be the best of its kind ever, even though it’s not exciting.
Thanks for the review. The wife and I went there on Saturday and it was awesome.
Glad you enjoyed it, IamNotme. I’ve since been back, and the dried fried eggplant I ordered was pretty wicked awesome. I also had the hot and spicy beef roll appetizer and the Szechuan pickled cabbage (which actually turned out to be daikon radishes), both of which were superb.
My husband and I tried to go to Taste of China for dinner last night. On a random Tuesday night, they closed at 8 p.m. because they were so busy they litterally ran out of food!! Amazing. Still haven’t tried the place. Guess I need to go for an early dinner, not a late dinner if they are that packed!
Holy damn, that is amazing. I need to get in there myself.
It was the article in the New Yorker that did it, I imagine.
or the washingtonian. i liked TOC & all, but can’t imagine driving 2 1/2 hours for it.
the article in the u.va. law weekly had a good explanation of their hot pot. (i’d wondered why it didn’t look like the hot pot i had in beijing.)
Went there last Saturday afternoon and it was AWESOME. Really busy but we got better service than most because we had a Taiwan native with us. GO.
I could kill Todd for writing that article. Calvin Trillin? Can’t kill him because he’s a venerable author and all-around decent human being. Hell, they both appreciate a great meal, but why oh why did they have to write about MY secret find? Was at ToC yesterday right before 5pm. They were slammed with UVA professors, families and babies– a jostling claustrophobic crowd made up of touristy hopping-on-the-bandwagon sorts of patrons. The place was thick with buzz.
But then, I’m bitter. Please wait until the furor dies down, and then go eat there. In the meantime I’ll mourn the old ToC, when just four tables might be occupied– most of them by Asians. It was quiet, and patron and chef could both concentrate on the food.
are you at all suggesting that the food isn’t as good as it was when it was our little secret?
(serious question; haven’t been since new year’s.)
Orchid, it’s still great, but you can’t do that many covers day after day after day without things starting to slip a bit. Chef Chang is going to burn out, so I hope for his sake that things calm down a little. And honestly, I don’t like eating in a zoo. It’s too crowded and noisy now, the waitstaff is understandably distracted, and it’s harder to linger over your meal.
Maybe once all the people who can’t tell the difference between good and bad Chinese food have eaten there and moved on, it’ll get chill again. Or not…
I guess I will never have to worry about sitting next to you at Continental Divide (too small, too crowded, too noisy…. too bad) then. Why is it that people like you only like something when it’s exclusive and you’re the only one who is in on the hype? You could always start spreading malicious rumors about giant rodents and food poisoning! That might make the place unpopular enough to empty about and return it back to the way it was when it was just you and your friends going there. Although, patrons pay for their food with money, so fewer patrons would be less money – and ToC may close. Then it would really be exclusive! Another suggestion: start dating the chef’s daughter or son and get invited over for dinner. Then you wouldn’t have to worry about other people. Or just STFU and get take out and eat it in front of your TV.
I went there for lunch today and it was fucking awesome. My second time there. I arrived at 11:30 and it was very soon filled to the rafters with a line out the door as we left. I can’t wait to go back.
Congrats Loki, you attempted to read between the lines of my post and managed to get it all wrong.
Let me try and break this down so even a halfwit like you can understand it:
-Not everyone enjoys eating in really REALLY crowded restaurants, when the waitstaff are super stressed, and there are tons of people standing around your table while they wait for a table to open up.
-Perhaps you like eating under those circumstances. Gosh Loki, good for you! I have no problem with your liking it, so you can fucking well deal with my NOT liking it.
-I have no problem with people knowing about the place and enjoying it, but I do feel for the chef who I happen to know is really stressed out and tired right now. Ditto for the waitstaff. I work in the industry, and I have empathy.
-I didn’t like the restaurant because very few people knew about it and I felt “exclusive.” I liked it because it was wonderful to have an amazing meal in a relaxed environment, and to see the chef happy. I recommended it to many of my friends and recommended it on this very website. It got gradually busier as word spread, but nothing like what’s happening now. The New Yorker and Oxford-American articles have caused business to increase hugely in a very brief period of time, If you weren’t such an idiot, you could use your noodle to imagine the impact that can have on a restaurant. They have to close their doors at 6pm sometimes, and they often can’t even handle carryout anymore. But you’re comparing their situation to Continental Divide on a busy night? Nice stretch there, tool.
Let ME break it down for you Natty.
Not everyone enjoys eating in really REALLY crowded restaurants, when the waitstaff are super stressed, and there are tons of people standing around your table while they wait for a table to open up.
-If a restaurant can’t deal with increased business then they need new management. Period. If ToC can’t keep food on the shelves and their tables are always full this is exactly what SHOULD happen to a good restaurant. What restaurant owner wants empty tables? If the waitstaff is super stressed they need more waitstaff or different waitstaff.
If you weren’t such an idiot, you could use your noodle to imagine the impact that can have on a restaurant. They have to close their doors at 6pm sometimes, and they often can’t even handle carryout anymore.
-And meanwhile they are making money hand over fist? I haven’t worked in a ton of kitchens in my day but what the fuck kind of chef takes up cooking to work in a relaxed environment? Of course he’s stressed. He’s a CHEF. And are you really sure the chef is unhappy that his food is bringing people in droves? I’ll repeat my previous statement that if they can’t handle the increased traffic they need new management.
As an aside – what about my previous post got you so riled up you call me ‘halfwit’ and ‘idiot’?
I would say you make interesting points but I can hardly think over the shear volume of ASSHOLE coming out of you. for christ’s sake, tone it down a notch. no one cares.
what about my previous post got you so riled up you call me ‘halfwit’ and ‘idiot’?
Because everyone is just so friendly here now, duh. Not like those mean old cliques.
Just so long as you dont insult ian – then its the banhammer.
/relativism!
Hey I resemble that remark about the mean old cliques. And I also told him to STFU, which I guess wasn’t polite – but on Cvillain saying STFU is sort of like saying “I love you”. At least it used to be, before Cvillain got all crowded and the service got terrible.
/McQuits
Hahaha, very amusing.
I really did laugh out loud.
this has turned into the case of “I Loved This Restaurant Before it Was Cool vs. You Misinterpreted My Comments, on the Internet”
did someone say the cvillain reboot should be less cliquey and antagonistic?
Orchid asked a question. I answered the question and mentioned my experience of the other night, and made some tongue in cheek references to babies and UVA professors (though seriously, there were tons of babies up in that joint). Loki responded with a punk ass response using phrases like “people like you” and then tells me to STFU. So yeah… riled.
Loki, I realize that you have what probably seems to you like years of experience washing dishes (and possibly busing tables) in restaurants, and that informs your opinions. My opinions are informed as both a business owner and Exec Chef. In this particular instance, however, I’ve been a very regular customer since they opened, and have spoken in some depth to the waitstaff about what they’ve been experiencing. I have a friend that knows the Chef well, and so have heard about it from his perspective. Your interactions with the staff have consisted of…? Yeah, I didn’t think so.
Very few restaurants can deal with such a sudden and huge increase in their business in a really brief period of time. I’m certain that they are having to make all sorts of decisions re staffing, hours, etc. Until they get that all straightened out, things are going to be a clusterfuck. But you don’t understand that. Okay, I get it.
@ Belmont Yo above. Is this place less/more rude? A year ago you’d have 20 people jumping your shit. Now it’s 2 or 3. That’s pretty much the only difference.
So you’d agree that the primary reason for owning a business is making money. And the way that money gets to your business is through customers? And the more customers you have the more money you get? I’m not quite sure what I did to inflame your delicate sensibilities, but I guess you guys do coke wayyyy earlier in the day now and maybe you haven’t slept since Friday. I apologize. Take a valium, relax, watch Harold and Kumar, smoke a joint, and realize that none of this matters. Or go get a bite to eat down at Moore’s Creek – it’s always quiet down there.
A year ago you’d have 20 people jumping your shit. Now it’s 2 or 3. That’s pretty much the only difference.
Well, that and the fact that a year ago regular commenters weren’t banned to the SPAM folder with no warning. I’m hoping to make it there some day.
Natty Bumppo – could you tell me at which restaurant you are “exec chef”? i just want to make sure that I don’t ever patronize your business.
I’m sure Chef Chang is weeping tears of awesome that his business is a success. all the way to the bank.
i might actually go there, if i wasn’t afraid of exposing myself to the glaring contempt of ‘people like you’
How DARE people try to go and eat a popular, quality restaurant! the NERVE of some people
Is this place less/more rude? A year ago you’d have 20 people jumping your shit. Now it’s 2 or 3. That’s pretty much the only difference.
This place is like a colorful ice cream truck tink-tinkling past a graveyard.
I’d post here more if it weren’t for the fact that whatever inane drivel I spew sits at the top of the comment stack for days on end. Last time I got into it here, I had some rugby shirt pet threatening to call me up three times a morning because he disagreed with me about the noise ordinance (was he banned? nope).
The proverbial straw for me though was when ian vindictively posted IP addresses. Thats about as uncool, and un code-like as can be. I dont mind rude, in fact I like a little give and take. But that, as they say, was whack, yo.
Besides, as obi wan said: “There is another”. I’ll see you over there.
What about the fact that he marks people’s comments as spam so they can’t comment?
No, you see, I mark SPAM as SPAM. Namely attacks against the site or myself, poof, gone.
It’s pretty simple, I don’t understand why anyone would complain.
P.S. Shenanigans, you can post under your name. It’s not you that I’m removing, it’s merely some of your less desirable commentary. No offense.
No, it’s because I’m not fifteen, and I like to take your toys away when you misbehave.
Are you talking about the blurred IP addresses, as I got tired of Shenanigans ‘leaving’ and ‘returning’ only to post offensive things against me?
What a terrible thing for me to do, give you two out of four octets of an address, while said individual was posting specific falsified information about my personal life? Perhaps you need to re-read the code.
Done defending this topic again. Stop re-hashing it.
Yeah, B-yo, don’t do things that Ian doesn’t like. Duhhhh!
Exactly!
I also have a real problem with this derision you express for dishwashers and bussers. you wouldn’t HAVE a food service business without dishwashers and bussers, and those types of employees deserve respect. not contempt. yeah of course there might be some dirtbags, and Loki might be one of them, but your general tone of arrogance and your need to be the smartest, most experienced, exec chefy guy on the blog is very off-putting.
what happened to you in your life that made you this way? did you have a mentor in the restaurant industry that didn’t show you enough approval? nothing you could ever do was good enough for him? did a dishwasher tease you too much or fuck your girlfriend or something, thereby forever imprisoning you in this dark tower of hatred for the “little people” who slum it in the back of the kitchen?
your attitude is just generally appalling, and if you were my boss and I saw you treating people that way, there would be issues
thank you, natty. i appreciated your answer.
People, people . . . please. Can’t we all get along? Show me, on the doll, where Ian touched you. Is the Box open yet? I need sparkling water. b yo, come back. parlie? Stanley . . . caroline . . . Street . . . Ethan . . . Floozy . . . anyone?
Dr J Rotina– the fact that you can’t comprehend that a business owner and a dishwasher might have different levels of expertise or opinions is bizarre. Your and Loki’s impressions are overly simplistic: Money = gud. Crowds = gud. And fuck the rest. That doesn’t mean that business owners are better than dishwashers, Miss Sensitivity. It means that they probably view the business differently.
Every chef and business owner likes a healthy vibrant scene and happy crowds. Fucking duh. Mob scene they’re not equipped to deal with? Not so much. Makes the place look bad. People don’t return when they’ve been burned once. The food suffers. Seriously man, you’re a simpleton, and your arguments seem to stem from what unfortunately appears to be willful ignorance– which is the worst kind.
BYo, still my favorite poster here ever. Sad not to be reading your words any longer.
Thanks for your compliment, though I am truly just a fool. But if you want to read words that spill from my grey matter, you can go here, and sometimes here.
And if you want to see me humiliate myself by reading them out loud, try here. (check the podcasts…)
Cheers.
Wow! Are you strangely attracted to me and this is your way of showing it? By being an aggressive asshole? I don’t remember attacking you? I’d also like to know where you are an executive chef and I’d like for you to spend a week bussing your own tables and washing your own dishes at their salary. Everything that you touch AND they touch is going in your customer’s mouth. You’re in the same boat. Be proud of them. If you tell me where you work, I may even know some of them. Cvillain commenters are a well-connected group to be sure.
B’yo writes at my site and has some pretty stunning stories up. In fact, we gave him an entire category.
Natty – Calling you out for being a dick is not my lack of comprehension. What is up with you always thinking that a difference of opinion boils down to someone’s lack of intelligence or deliberate ignorance? Do you treat your wife, family, friends this way? Do you still have friends, a wife, a family? or have they all abandoned you because you are a ginormous asshole? I can’t imagine anyone tolerating this kind of pathology in a professional or a personal interaction with you. You seriously seem to have a problem, and ultimately, I pity you more than I deride you. I’m sorry for riling you up, because clearly it matters much more to you than it ever will to me.
I went to Taste of China twice this week. On Tuesday they were so busy at 6pm that I didn’t stay to wait for a table (no biggie, I was literally just scoping it out and wanted to grab a menu). On Wednesday I went back at 5 and ordered some takeout. By 5:15 the restaurant was almost full.
The food was very good, and quite different than the Chinese American dime-a-dozen places. Not sure that it’s worth people creaming their jeans over it.
At a time of great financial difficulty, and in a town where restaurants open and close with the ease of a ziplock freezer bag, I wish Taste of China and chef chang a lot of luck and congratulations on their success.
Byo, the story about your grandmother’s casserole is still one of the funniest things I’ve ever read.
Loki, I’m still not sure how you interpreted anything I said as critical of bus- or dish- staff. Your reaction might have more to do with your own baggage/insecurity than anything I said. You claimed years of restaurant work, but your comments don’t jibe with the realities, i.e. big picture, of the restaurant business. Your comments were very immature, flippant, and ignorant– therefore I assumed that your experience did not involve a senior level of decision making, responsibility, or front of the house interactions. Thoroughly understanding every facet of the business is the key to rising through the ranks. My stating that reality does not in any way imply that good (and well-paid) bus and wait staff aren’t the backbone of a successful business. And I’d be willing to bet that I’ve washed many many more dishes than you ever have, or ever will.
Natty Bumpo, you seem to have a lot of resentment for the folks who weren’t eating at ToC until they heard that it was actually worth it. Other than word of mouth and media hype, there are very few indicators that identify good vs. bad Chinese food from the facade.
Don’t you think it would be more constructive, given your extensive experience, to provide insight as to how it could be dealt with?
STOP THE MADNESS!!!! THIS PLACE IS NOT THAT GREAT!!! GRANTED much better than most Chinese restaurants, which are mostly terrible, this place is good, some things are great. BUT IT”S INCONSISTENT, and not everything is good.
And stop using the word “amazing” to describe something that is better than average, “amazing” means much more than that, “amazing” means that it inspires amazement. Thanks
I understand the Chef has left already, boo hoo. Unless of course he showed someone how to replicate his dishes.
Now THAT is a chef speaking:
“Still speaking through translator Lee, Chang says the small business had become so overwhelmed by the attention that the quality of the food and the service began to suffer, and it was becoming “embarrassing” to him.”
He showed Natty how to replicate his dishes and how to complain about there being too much business for him to handle. Welcome new TOC chef Natty Bumppo!
At least now we know where Natty’s the executive chef.
Do what now?
Now that Chang is gone, what’s the best Chinese restaurant in C’ville?
You guys are pathetic. The chef would have a hard time to find a job in China. Any half decent restaurant in China can beat the taste, quality and variety of this place. If you so desire quality Chinese food, write to your congressman and senate on loosing up the visa policy for Chinese chefs. Seriously!