Shanghai Tea House, Co-Owner Lily Zhang at 2400 Wisconsin Ave. in Glover Park - Closed

[Antonio Burrell]

Not wanting to travel far due to car being in the shop, the wife and I stopped in to Shanghai Teahouse, mere steps from out apartment and found a new fav. I'm not going to say it's the best Chinese I've ever had, but after this first visit I rank it right up there with my favorites, Joe's and A and J. We ordered alot for two people as I usually do, but the leftovers made a nice midnight snack

We had:

Edamame

Mini shrimp springrolls: fantastic, seemed like a whole shrimp in each roll, very crisp and wonderful in every way.

Scallion Pancake: somewhat of a litmus test for me: this one was better than any i've had. Other versions are thick and can be very greasy and more so when cool. This version was thinner, crispy and well pan fried in that it absorbed very little extra oil and after 30 mins was still crisp and delish.

Beef and Celery dumplings, pan fried and steamed lamb dumplings: mixed bag here. wrappers were house made and soft and wonderful when steamed but the dumplings lost their juicyness when panfried, so def not worth the extra dollar for pan searing. Also, while the steamed lamb dumplings were lucious with the right amount of juice and fat and had a great lamb flavor, over all they were bland. Both lacked the depth that great dumplings have.

The pork steam buns: steamed pork soup dumplings: best rendition i've had in DC proper. Perfecty juicy having not lost any from poor handling while steaming, very well done.

Shrimp Wonton Soup: had scallions and wakame with a good amount of sesame oil in it. I loved this soup. I love sesame oil so for my taste it was perfect, some might think the sesame to much.

Lions Head Meatballs: four pool ball sized meatballs with dried (rehydrated) shitakes, baby bok choy and carrots, slivered ginger in a star anise flavored broth. Very rich and delish, meatballs made with ham and other pork bits, very light and had mushrooms and cabbage mixed in. First time I've had these anywhere but would be interested in how they compare to those that used to be served at Bob's. (Hint Hint: Dean, let me know. )

My largest complaint is that they use portion controled sauces ie: hot mustard, plum sauce. I would like to see better sauces to go with these things but it's a small thing compared to the quality of what we ate. Total damage for two was $88 after tax and tip and included two bubble teas (don't bother) and we were STUFFED. Could have probably cashed in at $35-$45 and had a great meal. It makes me very happy to have found this place. They do a lunch special for >$7 iirc. The entire time we were there (7pm-8:30pm) we were the only dine in customers, one guy came in for take out and one other for a bubble tea. I thinks it's a much better alternative to other Chinese choices in DC proper but unfortunately they do not deliver. It seemed to be a young man (server, cashier etc) and his mom (cook). Highly recommended.

[DonRocks]

Shanghai Tea House has been closed for awhile, and is now Dumplings and Beyond.

Does anyone know the exact restaurant history of the three floors of 2400 Wisconsin Avenue? I'm not clear, especially with the middle floor. 

The top floor has always been the dining room at Heritage India, which was, at one time, the best Indian restaurant in Washington, DC.

The middle floor - I *think* (but I'm exhausted, without coffee, and going back to sleep) - is divided into two sections:
* on the north: 1) Shanghai Tea House (which opened in a former photography shop), and now 2) Dumplings and Beyond
* on the south: 1) Downstairs bar at Heritage India, 2) concept change to Heritage Asia Thai Bistro, and now 3) another concept change to Malgudi.

The bottom floor was 1) Faccia Luna, 2) Kavanugh's Pizza Pub (respectable when it first opened; disastrous when it closed), and now 3) Arcuri.

If you know or think otherwise, please PM me or chime in - there's a very good chance I'm wrong here.