Jump to content

China Star, Fair City Mall in Fairfax - Strip-Mall Szechuan Monument to the Shadow of Peter Chang


Recommended Posts

Thanks for the advice. Is this Chinese menu literally another menu or is it just a particular part of the menu? Do I say, "I want the Szechuan menu"? We ordered off the Chef's Specialties, so I assumed I was ordering the good stuff. I expected it to be dumbed down, but I didn't expect it to taste bad.

When we arrived, there were very few people in there. There was a table of mixed-race folks in their 20s and a table with an older white couple. We are white couple in our 30s. As more and more people arrived, I noticed we were likely receiving different treatment. Every Chinese family who entered was immediately served hot tea. We weren't and I didn't see any of the other non-Chinese tables with tea. It appeared that some tables were brought food without even ordering. It's good to be a regular! It's disappointing to not get what you want, but I definitely wasn't offended by anything. Live and learn.

I'm open to trying again. But, being a shy introvert, I don't enjoy having to request special treatment especially if I'm not likely to get it anyway. Not to hijack this thread in a direction other than China Star...but I will briefly. I've noticed Korean restaurants tend to be very upfront about treating me differently. My wife and I have been warned, "Are you sure? That's really spicy." Or, once, we were flat out told, "No, you don't want that. It's too spicy." I prefer that upfront approach to the approach of just not even making certain things available. It at least presents the options to you instead of hiding the options. Anyway, thanks for the advice and I hope these comments don't derail this thread.

If you look here, you can see that it is literally two seperate menus - when you get the carryout menus, they are seperate (the American one is long and skinny, and szechuan one is shorter and fatter). In fact, they are so seperate that an order from the Szechuan menu doesn't count towards the minimum for the coupons from the American menu (trust me)! I don't remember how it is laid out in the menu book, since we order from memory now (probably what the other families you saw were doing). All the good food is listed in the entrees and homestyle entrees and house spectials sections, I think nearer to the front of the book. The American stuff is all grouped together towards the back (I think!). They don't even try for the American Chinese there - they just have it because they think the Caucasians expect it. There's even a dish that appears on both menus - Kung Pao Shrimp - and preparations are actually quite different. There is no crossover in goodness or quality between the menus (we have only ordered a couple of dishes off the American menu, but have heard stories from friends and coworkers to confirm).

I love the place to death, but it is one of the most striking in my experience for how different people/groups are treated. I would say that, to get the good stuff, you'd have to look carefully on the menu, or come prepared with a list selected from this thread, and prepare to convince them that you want things spicy and numbing. A place like this, you have to be a little forceful to get what you want. Again, I don't think this is a good thing, it's just how you have to navigate when you don't have a pony. Or, just make it the next $20 Tuesday and some folks will come out and help!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

joined friends here for a late lunch after a movie at Cinema Arts on Saturday -- our show of support for small businesses. It was very quiet but we were dining about 2:30, so we didn't expect a peak crowd. Another friend had raved recently about the wonton soup so we all ordered that. A delicate, flavorful broth and 3-4 wontons per bowl. The wonton wrappers were silky and tender and thin and so delicate that I'm surprised they held together. The wonton filling was bland to the point of being merely a texture, not a flavor. Then we shared crystal shrimp and shredded chicken with leeks, as one person didn't want anything spicy. A bit of a shame, as the spicy dishes can be so good here. Also hot tea for all.

I've had the crystal shrimp before and it was the same as I remembered; it is shrimp chunks in a white sauce that to me tasted almost entirely of a salt-like substance but not actual salt. No headaches or screaming thirst later, so perhaps not MSG (FWIW, I get the same flavor off the corn dish at Hong Kong Palace). It was just all right and we left some behind. The others didn't comment on the salty flavor, but it overwhelmed the shrimp completely. The shredded chicken with leeks was a misnomer. More correctly, it's sliced chicken that's been chowed with lots of garlic chive stems in a light chicken stock-based sauce. Very very good stuff; we competed to get the last bits of it.

Service was quick, albeit unpolished -- reaching across a diner to clear a plate while she was in the process of lifting food to her mouth, for instance -- and seldom checking back to see if we needed anything. All in all, an okay meal with one standout dish that came out to $39 for 3 of us including tax & tip.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just in time for winter, they have hot pot now!! At least for the time being, as it is listed in the front with the specials. For $26, you get a typically sized table-top hot pot (probably big enough for 2ish people to be full without other dishes) with a variety of meats (fish and beef, mostly, I think.), veg, broth, and some noodles. Everything is listed in Chinese, so you have to ask about the specific ingredients and also the rest of the list of specials (supposedly changing a few times a month). We didn't try it this time but another table looked pretty happy with it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Everything is listed in Chinese, so you have to ask about the specific ingredients and also the rest of the list of specials (supposedly changing a few times a month).

I don't understand why the resistance to providing translation. This is like opening up a diner with all the menus in Scottish Gaelic. With a big surly guy in a kilt to say "Och, laddie, ya n'ae like!"

Link to comment
Share on other sites

There's a new chef at China Star. I've heard that they have dan dan noodles now, which they are considering adding to the menu if it's popular. Our usual dishes tasted a little different (the eggplant hotpot was underseasoned and there were far fewer herbs on the scallion fish), were plated on different dishes, and were slightly smaller portions than before. They told us that some new dishes will be coming to the menu in the next few months. We'll see how all these changes go, though so far we are not thrilled.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, that sucked. Our last visit, a month or two ago, could have been chalked up to an aberration. When we asked what happened to the food, we were told that they were breaking in a new chef. The portions were noticeably smaller but most of the food still tasted more or less the same. Tonight, our usual meal was almost unrecognizable. Puddles of chili oil, gone. Black wood-ear mushrooms, gone. Portions, smaller; prices, higher. The sauces lacked flavor and had a ton of corn starch (the Glop has landed!). The scallion fish lacked, um, scallions. And none of it was spicy at all! This time when we asked what happened, we were told by the last original person left standing that the owners and all the chefs are gone (solid gone, back to NY or wherever, no one is local anymore). She also said that they have been getting a lots of comments and complaints and the new chefs are either not able or not willing (or both) to adjust whatever recipes they are using. The service has actually improved, but everything else has dropped off a cliff. Do. Not. Go.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, that sucked. Our last visit, a month or two ago, could have been chalked up to an aberration. When we asked what happened to the food, we were told that they were breaking in a new chef. The portions were noticeably smaller but most of the food still tasted more or less the same. Tonight, our usual meal was almost unrecognizable. Puddles of chili oil, gone. Black wood-ear mushrooms, gone. Portions, smaller; prices, higher. The sauces lacked flavor and had a ton of corn starch (the Glop has landed!). The scallion fish lacked, um, scallions. And none of it was spicy at all! This time when we asked what happened, we were told by the last original person left standing that the owners and all the chefs are gone (solid gone, back to NY or wherever, no one is local anymore). She also said that they have been getting a lots of comments and complaints and the new chefs are either not able or not willing (or both) to adjust whatever recipes they are using. The service has actually improved, but everything else has dropped off a cliff. Do. Not. Go.

Yeah, I downgraded this place awhile ago. Whoops, no I hadn't; I thought I had. And btw, my last meal at Blue Ocean was painfully mediocre.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I am sorry to say that the changes at China Star have erased any of Chef Chang's legacy.

The *recent* changes at China Star have erased Chef Chang's legacy; China Star was still quite good (though not *as* good) for several years after Chang left - there was someone there named Chef Liu who was doing fine work, and who is now gone.

To think I had this guy essentially all to myself for over a year.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I am sorry to say that the changes at China Star have erased any of Chef Chang's legacy.

I'll tell my friends who have kids in school in the Fredericksburg area to check out his place, though.

Sorry to hear that. Nothing lasts forever, especially in the restaurant world.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The *recent* changes at China Star have erased Chef Chang's legacy; China Star was still quite good (though not *as* good) for several years after Chang left - there was someone there named Chef Liu who was doing fine work, and who is now gone.

To think I had this guy essentially all to myself for over a year.

I even made it to the Chang place on Lee Hwy, where he lasted only a few weeks.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I happened to be in the area around lunch today, and stopped in....it was empty at 11:30, and still empty at noon when I left. The place looked a bit nicer than I recall -- my last visit might have been 2-3 years ago -- somewhat fresher in apprearance.

I stuck with two appetizers, and each one could have stood on its own for a lunch portion. I had the A3 Dan Dan Noodle and the A10 Sliced Beef and Tripe. Both had a pepper and a star next to them on the menu, so they were supposed to be quite hot. I must have been given the dumbed down American heat, since my tongue was not aflame and my head was not sweating.

Sliced Beef and Tripe came out first, and I really liked it. This is a cold dish, more or less a salad. Lots of Tripe slices, enough Beef slices to make it interesting, and plenty of crunch provided by scallions, flat leaf parsley and julienned celery. The Beef was a similar cut to the slices I often see in pho, with bits of gelatinous cartilage embedded in the slices. The heat was from the red sauce/dressing that (I think) was muted. But I would definitely order this dish again.

The Dan Dan Noodle dish came out, and although it wasn't that interesting, it sort of grew on me with each bite. It had a chopped pork and peanut clump on top of the noodles, and when stirred together made for a nice bowl of spicy pasta. But again, it was dumbed down as far as the spice was concerned.

The two dishes came to $15, and I just gave the nice girl a $20 bill and let her keep it. I also brought home half the Dan Dan Noodle dish for a snack later on.

This is not the place of legend, but it's not a bad stop for an economical mid-day nosh if you're in the neighborhood. I wouldn't recommend seeking it out or going out of your way.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

My Mandarin class had lunch at China Star today, and we had a great time and a nice meal.  Props to our waiter who very patiently listened to us butcher his language and then left us a menu to study while we waited for the food.

Eggplant in garlic (stem) sauce:  Great flavor, and I was asked, "Chinese or American style" and went American for the two at the table who don't care for much heat.  Gently spicy and cooked perfectly.

Dry-fried green beans:  Not the Sichuan beans that I would have ordered, but I was pleasantly surprised by the excellent flavor and great texture.  They were very evenly cooked, something that is not always present in this dish.  I wanted to ask how they made them.

Wood ear mushrooms:  With garlic, hot pepper, and a bit of sugar, I think.  Too raw-garlicky for my palate, but freshly crisp and well liked at the table.

Other dishes I did not eat but that were enjoyed by others were the Kung Pao chicken (ordered by a student) and a fish dish I can't find on the online menu that I think was just called "Sichuan fish."  It was ordered by our instructor, so it may have been on the first page of the menu that includes new dishes so has no English translation.  Someone got the crab/cheese wontons and was gently told, "I don't think this is Chinese." :)

Overall a solidly good meal, great service, and a lovely afternoon.

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have had several really good dishes. THe Braised fish(flounder) with Chinese vegetables, and the General Kwan beef which is better than its previous iteration.   Again, make sure you order from the Authentic side of the menu which for some reason is not on their website.   Not sure how China Star compares to 100 degrees but its much closer.

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Don, I think you need to reassess this place and put it back on your recommended list.  Tonight, had the Spicy Eggplant in Hotpot and the General Kwan again.  Both were terrific(eggplant came with chicken). Wife had the General Tso which was well above average. Portions were huge( could easily have ordered 2 dishes for 3).   Again, the authentic menu is NOT on their website(pointed out this to them and they will  talk to the boss).

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, guess I'm an outlier, then. My son, who was on spring break from GMU, had to come home Friday, & brought his leftovers (chicken & broccoli & fried rice) from China Star (most of the on campus dining was closed). I thought they were pretty bad, bad enough that I couldn't finish eating them (he left right after he came home & abandoned the leftovers) & fed them to the dogs (the dogs liked them, I think). I still have not found any Chinese food that I like locally, but since I've found lots of other foods that are good, I will survive.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Actually, it was fed to 2 dogs, & if I can't eat it, it has to be be pretty bad, I can eat almost anything. Maybe it would be better if you ate it at the restaurant.

And before anyone accuses me of animal cruelty, I don't feed my dogs anything that I think is spoiled or harmful (just stuff I don't want to eat).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It could just be me, I picked up Chinese takeout for my child & her friends today (hey, had to get the driveway shoveled somehow)-it was just not good, my Hunan shrimp was uninspiring.

I appreciate your intellectual persistence, thistle - it's part of what it takes to be a good restaurant critic. If you're not sure, do it over again - and you did.

Your post gets a huge Like.

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just as soon as I say Marrakesh Palace has two websites pointing to one location, and that it's first, China Star follows suit:

ChinaStarFairfax.com and ChinaStarChinese.com

If someone could help me sort out these two restaurants, I'd really appreciate it - I just don't know how to treat them.

Honestly--it just looks like the one on the left is an older website (see copyright date at the bottom) and should have been deactivated but not, while the right one has a current registration...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...