Came here for the first time and ordered takeaway. I orders the sliced pig ears (appetizer),…read morestinky tofu (appetizer), and you cai (stir fry green veggies). Total came out to approximately $40, not including tip.
What's hot
- Menu. Pretty authentic Taiwanese menu, which impressed me. There are several items on the menu, such as pig ears and stinky tofu, which are authentic Taiwanese food and not easy to find in any Chinese restaurant. There's something for everyone- meats, veggies, seafood, and vegans. I was able to speak to two staffers in Mandarin, which tells me their staff know authentic Chinese food. I also asked them if they had a specific green veggie. The staffer knew exactly which one I was talking about and responded no, but provided me the options they do have on the menu. This place seems pretty legit.
- Quality. Absolutely delicious. The pig ears appetizer was appropriately seasoned, not too salty, and sliced thinly. Pig ears is a dish that if sliced incorrectly, makes it difficult to chew. The you cai was stir fried well and came with a fair amount of garlic cloves, which added a delicious flavor to the veggies. It was not too salty and came with a nice sauce, that could drench the rice.
- Location. Fairly easy to find in Rockville and there's a decent parking garage in the plaza. It's a rather small restaurant, with a bigger space in the back for larger parties. Their booths appear to hold groups of 4, maybe 6. The front of the restaurant is more narrow and more for single diners.
- Service. I came around noon and there were 2 other customers, that I could see. My order was ready and packaged in approximately less than 15 minutes. They provided white rice with my takeaway order, which I didn't order. There are more restaurants that charge you extra for white rice, so that rice is automatically included with your order is something I appreciate.
- Cost. For the quality, portions, and specific dishes, good value for money.
What's not
- Quality. The stinky tofu was not adequately stinky (I.e., fermented). It was well-seasoned and came with the appropriate sauce and pickled vegetables, but the flavor did not hit the mark. I was disappointed. I've had authentic stinky tofu in Taiwan, so I know exactly what is considered good and what to expect.
- Takeaway containers. The 3 dishes were packed in plastic containers, which mostly did the job. However, each dish has its own sauce. As such, the containers did not do an adequate job of containing the sauces. The takeaway containers were placed in a paper bag, placed in a plastic bag. That helped, because each of the containers leaked sauce, which broke the paper bag and leaked into the plastic bag. I mainly bring this up to prepare you if you order takeaway.
- Credit card. The credit card reader had some difficulty, in the beginning, to read my credit card. When I signed for the balance, I was automatically charged a 6% tip. Not cool, cause I don't appreciate that it was automatic.
Final answer
Plan on returning, but will be very mindful of how I use my credit card.
