"For a recent-ish friends dinner, we went to the popular Austin location of the also-popular Houston Chinese restaurant to partake in its famous Beijing duck. We ordered the half portion because it was just the three of us (full duck orders are only available for larger parties), among other dishes (spicy and crispy chicken, bok choy). The duck was fantastically prepared — cut into easy-to-manage portions with such tender meat and crispy-sweet skin. It comes with accouterments like very thin spring pancakes, sliced crunchy vegetables, sauces, and the such. There’s also the very rich giant bowl of duck broth soup which comes with bits of tofu and duck meat, which I wanted to sip like a drink because it was that good. We got there early, too — 5 p.m. — to make sure duck was still available, and soon after we were seated, the restaurant filled up fast. Takeout orders can be placed online; there are indoor dine-in services. —Nadia Chaudhury" - Nadia Chaudhury, Erin Russell
