Yes, we all love Chinese food. It’s such a great comfort food! Some Sundays are literally made for Chinese takeout. But what if you want to go to dinner and have some Chinese specialties? Takeout is great, but so is sitting down with friends and family. I’m always out to dinner, so here are three of my favorite Chinese restaurants.
Potluck Club
This place is all the way on top of my favorite restaurants. Way downtown on Chrystie Street near Chinatown, Potluck Club is a beautifully designed restaurant with vending machines, posters and all kinds of art on the walls. It’s classic and different all at the same time. Some dishes are typical for Chinese (-American) food, but elevated, some are new dishes I haven’t seen on a menu, and whatever is being served is outrageously delicious. I recently went to dinner here with a good friend, and we were swooning throughout the whole evening. It all was so different, and so absolutely flavorful.
Our appetizers were Yellowfin Tuna Crudo and Berkshire Pork & Chive Potstickers. The Crudo was made with a citrus vinaigrette and cilantro aioli, topped off with thin sliced jalapeño. Soooooo much flavor in the vinaigrette! We practically inhaled all of it. The Potstickers? Best I ever had. Made with a chili crisp and sweet soy, I could have easily had ten of them. No exaggeration. For our mains we went with XO Fried Rice with Shrimp, Corn and Chinese Sausage. So, so good. I wasn’t sure what to order and just picked the Salt & Pepper Chicken, not really having an idea what it was. It turned out to be crispy fried chicken with pickled jalapeño, accompanied by a scallion biscuit with chili-plum jam. Unbelievable. Some of the best fried chicken I’ve had, it was bursting with flavor. 10/10.
Pinch Chinese
When it was time for another birthday dinner with my girlfriends, we chose a popular Chinese Restaurant in Soho. Pinch Chinese is located on Prince Street, and it is probably one of the prettiest restaurants in Manhattan. Very cute, with very nice service. The food? Amazing. We ordered a bunch of small plates and appetizers as opposed to ordering large individual dishes. We had Spicy Marinated Cucumbers, Pork Soup Dumplings, Pork & Chive Dumplings, Vegetable Dumplings, Seafood Fried Rice, Zha Jiang Noodles with Peking Duck, and Dan Dan Noodles with Niman Ranch Pork and Crushed Peanuts. Dish by dish we were ooh-ing and aah-ing, Everything was cooked so well, also packed with flavor, and presented perfectly. I’m definitely going back!
Little Alley
Little Alley is located on 3rd Avenue in midtown, and it is known for its Shanghainese cuisine. This place is very authentic, the dishes are generally known to most, however, they are elevated and, again, packed with flavor. The place is unique with brick walls and an old time phone booth, it’s so cute. Soup Dumplings are famous here, and for good reason!
Of course I had the Soup Dumplings, they were phenomenal. The appetizer for the table was Stirfried Cauliflower with Dry Chili Oil, which was absolutely amazing. I have never had cauliflower this way! So good. Another small dish we chose was the Chicken in Chili Oil, just dripping with goodness. Shanghai Stir Fried Thick Noodles with Shrimp was up next, it was such a comforting and warming dish. Last, but not least, was Dong Po Pork with buns, which was outstanding. Slow braised pork belly, glazed in a sweet soy-based sauce, it was served with steamed buns and wok choy. Super delicious.
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