Dry Fried Eggplant
Peter Chang

Peter Chang

20 Maryland Ave, 20850-0314, Rockville, United States

Asian • Vegan • Chinese • American


"This review is based on our recent visit last weekend. We arrived at 12:30 PM on a Sunday and noticed many open tables. Despite the restaurant being only partially full, the service was somewhat lacking. We waited a long time for one of the waitstaff to take our order. At one point, one of the servers even came over to ask if we were ready to order, to which we replied yes. However, she disappeared for a while, and it was another server who finally came over to take our order. This server didn’t write anything down, which resulted in our forgetting to order one of the dishes we wanted. When we realized that one dish was missing, we decided it wasn’t worth it since the other dishes provided enough food. I noticed that the menu has become smaller, with several items we used to enjoy removed, like the lamb skewers and the boneless whole fish with pine nuts. They literally eliminated my two favorite dishes! We ended up ordering the bubble pancakes, dry roasted eggplant, sautéed cumin lamb, pork, and fish fillet in a stone pot. The pancakes were good, but the curry sauce that accompanied them wasn't as flavorful as I remembered. The dry fried eggplant was tasty though slightly soggy. The cumin lamb, as well as the pork and fish fillet in the stone pot, were all delicious. The pork and fish in the stone pot were part of a seasonal menu, and the fish was served with a medley of mixed vegetables, including mushrooms, broccoli, and kohlrabi. The dish was quite flavorful and was definitely my favorite of everything we tried."

Chuan Cafe

Chuan Cafe

2004 New Bern Ave, 27610, Raleigh, US, Metro Durham/Chapel Hill, United States

Asian • Casual • Seafood • Catering


"This is hands down some of the best food I've had in the whole triangle area. I've been craving authentic Chinese food and Chuan Cafe would hold up against what I have back in the DMV area. It's even worth driving 45 min from Durham. The place is located in the absolute middle of nowhere, but the restaurant itself is cute and generally pretty empty. It seems to be family owned and the server was very sweet. Don't expect 5 star table service lol. It's bare bones in that sense, but you're really here for the food.Szechuan cuisine is known for its spice, so expect chilis and chili oil in most dishes. The Bamboo Flounder Fish is an absolute MUST! It's one of my favorites so I was so excited to see it on the menu. It doesn't stay crisp when you order to-go, unsurprisingly, so dine in to get it fresh. I also highly recommend the Steamed Chicken Slices in Chili Oil, which is a cold appetizer. I've tried the Toothpick Lamb, Double Cooked Pork Belly, Mapo Tofu, and Green Beans (a classic . Sometimes the dishes lean a little salty and the mapo tofu was not my favorite iteration of the dish, but I've been really impressed as a whole. I think if you order more typical American Chinese dishes (egg roll, dumplings, fried rice, chow mein, orange chicken you will be sorely disappointed.There's not a whole lot of authentic Chinese food in North Carolina, so I highly recommend trying something new when you come! There's still so many more things on the menu I've been eyeing, so I'm gonna continue making the trek to come here :"