Mark's Duck House - Falls Church, VA

Ah dim sum. I don't get to have it often because the bf doesn't like small dishes...pshhh! Well that's what friends are for! One of my friends took me to Mark's Duck House - her favorite spot for Sunday dim sum. The restaurant has been around for over 20 years serving Hong Kong-style cuisine. As their name suggests, they are known for their Peking Duck. However, we didn't get a chance to try it.
Located in a shopping center, there is plenty of free parking, but it can get crowded.

This place is smaller than other restaurants that offer dim sum, so it was PACKED! We took a number when we got through the crowd waiting by the door.

They offered many of the same dishes I'm used to seeing as well as some different items. Sorry guys, but I don't have prices for any of these items because they were in Chinese. All dishes are between $2.50 - $7.50 though.

1. Pan-Fried Chives Dumpling - Out of all the dumplings, this was my favorite.
2. Shrimp and Pork Dumpling (Shiu Mai)
3. Shrimp and Pork Dumpling
4. Shrimp Dumpling (Har Gao)

5. Fried Taro Dumpling - One of my favorite dishes when I have dim sum.
6. Shrimp Noodle Crepe - Best noodle crepe I've tried.
7. Lemongrass and Ginger Oyster - Oyster by itself was the size of my palm.
8. Stuffed Crab Claw - I broke my chopstick trying to cut this. It was massive!

Service was very fast with the carts, they constantly filled our water glasses, replaced my broken chopstick and reminded me that I forgot my leftovers. I thought they were great! Food was on point. Now I just need more dim sum buddies!

6184 Arlington Blvd
Falls Church, VA 22044
(703) 532-2125
marksduckhouse.com

Ping Pong Dim Sum- Chinatown, DC

After DCFBHH at Poste, Michele from Squirrels-n-Sweets accompanied me to get some more food at Chinatown's trendy dim sum spot Ping Pong Dim Sum. There is street and garage parking in the vicinity. The closest metro stop is Gallery Place-Chinatown on the red/green line.

Sorry this pic is blurry! (One too many HH drinks at Poste). The interior is beautiful with dark (almost black) cherry wood floor and tables. There are a good number of tables, full bar area, and dim sum bar counter. Very modern and sophisticated feel. This was 9:30pm on a Wednesday and the place was packed!

Traditional images of dim sum include carts of food being pushed around, but those are not present here. It's more like 'tapas' where you choose off of a menu, and fill out a sheet of paper with the quantity of each item you want to order.

We ended up not being that hungry after sitting down, but check out the few items we did get.'Chicken puff (Honey roasted barbecue chicken in hand made puff pastry topped with pineapple)' for $5. This was my favorite. The puff pastry was flaky and light. The pineapple brought a nice sweetness to the tender filling. I could eat 10 of those.

'Char sui bun (Honey barbecued pork in a fluffy white bun)' for $6. We chose this item because Michele has given one of her friends this nickname. It was also a bit sweeter than a typical pork bun because of the honey. The filling was also very tender and the outside was very soft.

We also ordered the 'pork shu mai (pork and king prawns in an open pastry topped with a Chinese wolfberry)' for $5 because we wanted to see what wolfberry was. I don't remember it tasting like anything. This was good and not as salty as I've had it other places.

Overall the food was yummy, and the items we ordered had a little twist to the traditional flavors, but nothing shocking. Our server was very helpful and nice, and the items came out quickly. They do warn that items arrive as they are made, in case you're wondering where the rest of your order went. The menu has a large variety of items to choose from, though they are more expensive than any other dim sum place I've tried. The atmosphere is fun, and a great place to shares lots of plates with friends and down some speciality cocktails.

900 7th St NW
Washington, DC 20001
(202) 506-3740
www.pingpongdimsum.us


Mon-Thu 11:30 am - 11 pm
Fri-Sat 11:30 am - 12 am
Sun 11:30 am - 10 pm

Oriental East- Silver Spring, MD

Hey Everyone! Rarely do I do anything before noon on a Sunday, but my friend Big Joe asked me if I wanted to try this popular dim sum place called Oriental East. Located in a shopping center, there's plenty of free parking. The closest metro stop is Silver Spring on the red line.

He tells me he's getting there 30 minutes early to stand in line before it opens. Line?! lol. The picture only shows half of the line. The rest of it is wrapped around the back of the building. Thankfully we were a little bit ahead of the halfway point.

Once the doors opened, the line moved VERY fast and we were seated immediately. It's a very large dining room with a lot of tables. Seems like a wider path for the dim sum carts to roll through too.

We shared 6 different items, and tried not to fill up on veggies, rice or noodles. This might not look like a lot of food, but we were stuffed!

'Taro Dumpling' ($2.75). This is a favorite of mine.

'Steamed Shrimp Dumplings' ($2.75). Really good with the pre-poured soy sauce.

'Shrimp w/Garlic, Green Onions and Jalapenos' ($?). It is more flavorful to eat it with the shell on.

'Dried Scallop Dumplings' ($2.75). Joe heard the word 'Scallop' and we had to get one.

'Shui Mai' ($2.75). This is a dim sum classic.

'Fried Fun-Gor' ($2.75). Reminded me of an empanada, but fried.

Every item was delicious, and I didn't have to use any soy sauce because they were all seasoned well. The service was fast and the carts were constantly coming by. If you like a more relaxed environment, I wouldn't recommend this place because it's crowded with lots of stuff going on. Cheap food with items ranging from $2.50-3.00. Sunday is the biggest dim sum day, so it is recommended that you come early to get in with the 1st seating. The food is fresher and your favorite items won't be sold out yet.

1312 E West Hwy
Silver Spring, MD 20910
(301) 608-0030
Website

Sun-Thurs: 11am-10pm
Fri-Sat: 11am-11pm
Dim Sum (Served Daily): 11am-3pm