We had friends visiting from out of town and headed to CHANG CHANGE just south of Dupont Circle for a fabulous dinner last night which is the best Chinese food I can ever recall in DC. The spot is very simple with wood tables and chairs, that are oddly a tad too low for the tables(one of ours was broken) and table legs that could be better placed for comfort, but we persevered in the quiet front section we were seated in. Indeed, for a Monday the place was virtually dead, although lots of take-out orders seemed to be going out all evening. I like the decor with small Chinese vases and artwork as well as some large stucco Chinese pieces that look like the Terracotta Army!
We ordered a crisp citrus-y Albarino from Mar de Vinas and then moved on to a tasty Domaine Chaume Cotes du Rhone red from Arnaud. The food can be very spicy so pick your wines carefully.
Duck Spring Rolls were tasty, and the giant Bubble Pancake(scallion) was fun with a curry dipping sauce, but the winning starter were the Shanghai Pork Soup Dumplings, although they need a better serving method as when you pick them up from the steamer, they often break losing that superb soup inside.
Our server Emily was very helpful as the menu is huge with so many options. We migrated from one chicken dish to another and finally settled on the Chicken Nuggets with Ghost Chili which was fired chicken with a kick-ass dry spice rub! Similarly, the Mala Crispy Pork Belly was fried with "furu" dry spices.
Tomato & Egg Stir Fry is a Cantonese Specialty and came right after these intense spicy dishes and was a welcome "palate cleanser" and we all loved the purple rice which is a mix of purple and white rice for a tad more but worth it.
Sizzling Brussels Sprouts & Tofu is a winning veggie dish for sure served in a cast iron pan and loaded with flavors. The Dry Pot Scallop & Prawn with Asparagus & Cabbage was a huge dish beautifully presented on a pedestal in a magnificent bowl with cover and probably the favorite of us all, although the fired spicy dishes were fab as well.
Dessert was a yummy slice of Passionfruit Pie with Calamansi-lime infused filling in a rice-flour graham cracker crust with black pepper meringue that is not to be missed.
While Chang Chang is about 15 mins away, I could easily see us heading down there for take-out as well as it is worth the trip for sure.
